Staff
Linda Geggie, Executive Director
Linda has been actively working on regional food system issues since the early 1990s and has been instrumental in building and shaping CRFAIR into the organization it is today. She has worked extensively with a wide range of individuals and groups and believes in collaboration as a path to meaningful change. In addition to her work with CRFAIR, Linda is a member of the Peninsula Agricultural Commission and a Community Research Fellow with the University of Victoria's Institute for Studies and Innovation in Community University Engagement. Linda is heavily involved in the local soccer scene, loves walks with her dog Leroy and lives with her family near Prospect Lake.
Eden Murray, Youth Coordinator
Eden is a passionate young woman whose passion for good food has made her a brilliant coordinator of the Youth Food Action Team. She has not only acquired a great group of youth, but is growing our youth initiatives to include a Youth Food Network.
Eden is a brilliant student at Victoria High School, excelling in academics and earning the highest award for Leadership given to an undergraduate student. She is also a certified Yoga teacher, organizes Vic High's Salad Bar program, and is the driving force behind the Victoria High School Garden.
Jasmine Robertson, Communications & Engagement Coordinator
Jasmine joins the CRFAIR team after coordinating the UVSS Food Bank & Free Store at UVic for 3 years. Having studied Political Science and Indigenous studies at UVic, Jasmine is passionate about seeking systemic change and pursuing food justice. In particular, she is excited about engaging children and youth in developing food literacy. In her spare time, Jasmine loves to find hidden swimming spots, make desserts, and host crafternoons.
Contractors
Aaren Topley, Capital Region Farm to School Hub Animator (in partnership with Farm to School BC)
Aaren Topley is Farm to School BC’s Community Animator for the Capital Region which is administered by the Public Health Association of BC (PHABC). He collaborates with the Capital Region Food and Agriculture Initiatives Roundtable (CRFAIR), the backbone organization in the Capital Region for Farm to School, to support regional animation work in schools and across communities. Aaren has been working in the field of food system development for over five years, with a focus on building community food literacy and youth engagement. He is pursuing his Master’s degree in the Social Dimensions of Health at the University of Victoria where he is investigating factors that promote school garden sustainability. During his spare time, he co-chairs the Urban Food Table, a food systems advisory body to the City of Victoria. Reflected in his work is his belief that food is a powerful tool that can create common ground to bring communities together. Outside of work, Aaren loves to cook new recipes, spend his days exploring the west coast, travel the world and riding his bike.
Board of Directors
Lee Fuge, President
Lee has been an avid supporter of local farms and foods for over 35 years, on both a personal level and through her work in the retailing of natural and organic foods. Lee is a founding member and manager of the International Women’s Catering Co-op, serves on the board of LifeCycles Project Society, and is a board member the Victoria Downtown Public Market Society. Lee has served on the boards of the Certified Organic Associations of British Columbia, Moss Street Market, and the Canadian Worker Co-op Federation. Her interest in re-localizing the food system merged with her interest in co-ops and led her to become a founding member and manager of FoodRoots Co-op, which for several years hosted the Pocket Market Network; the Sustainable Feast series of local, organic dinners; and Cinema in Season, a collaboration with Open Cinema. Lee envisions local, community controlled food systems in which co-op ownership plays a major role.
Wendy Farwell, Treasurer
Wendy has lived in the Capital Region for 40 years, and was a frequent visitor prior to that. A lifelong gardener and ‘urban farmer’, she is intensely interested in the challenges we face in our local food system and concerned about the food skills (growing, processing, cooking) that we seem to be losing. Her personal contribution to the local food system is operating a micro artisan bread bakery in the Gorge Tillicum community. This is a retirement activity; after a long career in management consulting in Canada and the UK, Wendy brings skills and experience in strategic planning, program design, outcome management and change management to the Board of CRFAIR. Recently she has been actively involved in the planning and creation of the Gorge Park Community Gardens and is a member of Gorge Tillicum Urban Farmers (GTUF).
