Board of Directors

Deep Roots Market’s Board of Directors hires and oversees the General Manager but the management and staff handle the daily operations. The Board and General Manager report to YOU, the Owners, on the state of the business at our Annual Owners Meeting. Finally, YOU support the growth and mission of Deep Roots through your patronage and loyalty. If you want to find out more, the Board of Director Meetings are open to all Owners and are held in the Community Room beginning at 6pm.

Meeting minutes are posted here after approval.
You may send the Board a message using the contact form below

BoardofDirectors@deeprootsmarket.com

Board President Joel Landau

Joel has 30 years’ experience in natural foods retail management; 18 of those years were as Deep Roots Co-op’s General Manager. He’s planned and opened 2 new stores, one of those being Deep Roots current location. Joel also planned and opened his own natural products store, which he managed for 7 years before selling it in 2002. He's been through multiple Board of Directors trainings and has served on several nonprofit Boards. Landau also served 4 years on Greensboro's Planning Board, plus helped establish Greensboro's Sustainability Commission, which he co-chaired for 8 years. Joel's been on Deep Roots Board of Directors since May 2016 and has been Board President since January 2017. He occasionally provides business consultation to small businesses, nonprofits, and startups, helping with financial projections/spreadsheets, business plans, operational procedures/efficiencies, and Board trainings.

Vice President Chris Kwong

Chris has over 13 years of retail management experience stemming from Target, Bank of America, and Black Ice Sports, in which he excelled at business growth and customer service. He received his degree in Marketing from the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, and his MBA from Wake Forest University. He has been an owner of Deep Roots Market since 2005 and is currently in his second stint on the Board of Directors. His first stint lasted from 2010 until 2014, where he served as President and helped lead the store in a successful relocation project to our current location in downtown Greensboro. In 2017, he rejoined with the Board where he hopes to help Deep Roots Market return to its core focus of being Greensboro’s Local Natural Food cooperative and informational hub to support local healthy living for everyone.

Treasurer Haley Mills

Haley joined the Board of Directors as Treasurer in May of 2019. She is passionate about reducing the waste in our community and was drawn to Deep Roots’ commitment to environmental sustainability and supporting local farmers. Haley has previously served on nonprofit boards and worked with them in a management capacity. Her professional background is in finance and budgeting with a focus on helping businesses achieve financial stability through budget management. Her role in the capital campaign is that of systems coordinator, which will help the campaign manage and develop systems to track campaign progress and performance.

Secretary Linda Sullivan

Many years ago Linda teamed up with a friend to buy bulk items from the precursor to Deep Roots. At the time, it was just a bulk food order operation in the basement of a Guilford College building. When it actually opened its doors as a store on Spring Garden St, near Chapman St, she began driving over from her home in Elon to buy organics and bulk foods. Kathie, long-term owner and cashier, encouraged her to join, so Linda became owner number 282. Linda graduated from Elon with a degree in English and French. Several years later, she added an accounting major to that degree. She worked at Burlington Industries in the Corporate Information Systems division as a Telecommunication Analyst where her project duties were both technical and financial. When Burlington Industries was taken over, she went to work for Guilford County Schools, working first at Grimsley High School and then at Kiser Middle School, where she went from ESL tutor to testing coordinator and finally to data manager. She retired in 2014. Linda joined the board of Deep Roots to be a part of its next stage of growth. She believes deeply in the mission of Deep Roots and its importance to the Greensboro community.

At-Large Yvonne Lee-Hawkins

Yvonne is a small business owner currently operating her own salon of 5 years. She holds a 25-year Cosmetology license and a 24-year Cosmetology Teacher’s license. Currently serving on the Deep Roots Board since April, of 2016, and serves on the Advisory Board with Empire Beauty Schools. She also served on the Board Directors for the Hair Design School and Director of the Winston Salem campus of the Hair Design School; her responsibilities included HR, payroll, ordering supplies, customer, student, staff relations, and covering teacher’s classrooms. Serving in the beauty industry for 25 years her background includes Salon Manager, with responsibilities including; HR, payroll, ordering supplies, customer satisfaction, and employee relations. Working in 2015 with the Passion to Purse program through the YWCA, training included a feasibility plan and building the components of a business plan. Other experience includes grocery, restaurant, and retail sales.

At-Large Kathleen Donahue

Kathleen has been a downtown Greensboro resident for over 10 years and a resident of Guilford County for over 20 years. Her professional career spans 30 years: as an Enterprise Account Executive, in various industries including Marketing, Television, Radio, Telecommunications, Non Profit and Technology. Through her work with the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce, as the Director of Member Engagement, Kathleen was able to have a front seat view of the local economic climate and teams working within them to improve living conditions in Greensboro. Those local organizational connections ignited her passion for Deep Roots Market and its vital role within downtown and the community as a whole. Kathleen has a passion for Discovery, Being a Connector and Business Process Improver within organizations and their people. Her formal education was at SUNY at Buffalo, NY with a BA in Psychology and Biology. She considers herself a constant learner of all things. Personal passions include: economic development, food security, nutrition, gardening, physical fitness, reading, hiking and cooking.

At Large Audrey Mangili

An owner since 2013, Audrey began her work in sustainable food systems in 2010. Building off her experience in organic farming, Audrey began volunteering with local gardening groups and later became a Sustainable Food Systems Apprentice with CEFS. Her work evolved to center food justice and equity as a Food Access and Outreach Coordinator with AmeriCorps VISTA, and later as the coordinator of the Bonner Scholars Program at Guilford College where she oversaw over thirty service-learning sites and co-created learning opportunities for social advocates. In 2018, Audrey received the Local Food Hero Award from CEFS and will receive her MPA from UNCG in May 2021. She continues to lead and support projects to create a just food system. Audrey believes everyone has the right to eat well and be well. She plans to support Deep Roots by bolstering community engagement efforts and its ability to be a responsive, accountable, and compassionate force in our community.

At-Large V. Ashleigh Odom

V. Ashleigh Odom, MBA, is the CEO & Principal Consultant at Ashlen Enterprises. Based out of Chicago, IL, and Jamestown, NC, she leads an innovative and strategic supply chain operations firm specializing in disruptive technology, competitive insight, sourcing, negotiations, staffing, and intellectual property management. Prior to founding Ashlen Enterprises, Ashleigh was a trusted Senior Global Sourcing Buyer and Team Lead at Volvo Group North America after launching her career with Harley Davidson and Syngenta Crop Protection. Her complex roles in global sourcing and planning, portfolio management, leading strategic negotiations, and human resources provided support in the areas of executive leadership, operational development, and leading high performing teams. Ashleigh earned her bachelor’s degree from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Transportation Logistics and Operations. Ashleigh now serves as a donating member of the Aggie Athletic Foundation (AAF), a former college athlete and senior student body treasurer. Ashleigh holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from Temple University and is a proud member of the Fox School of Business Alumni Association (FSBAA). Ashleigh’s family has a rich agricultural history in NC and SC, where her grandfather supplied fresh produce to community members. Upon her return to NC, as a tribute to her grandfather, she became an owner of Deep Roots Market in August 2020. Outside of work, Ashleigh is heavily involved in her community. She is a devoted member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, and The National Urban League. She enjoys sports, volunteering, reading, the arts, traveling, and all things related to fashion.

At-Large Drew Dix

Drew is the Director of Sales Development for the nation's leading office and home fruit delivery company, The FruitGuys, founded in 1998 to help companies provide fresh produce and healthy snack options to their employees. The FruitGuys (a certified "B Corp") has regional hubs across the United States that network local farms for their produce. Drew has 30 years of business development and performing arts experience, and has worked with the American Press Institute, Times-Shamrock Communications, the Specialty Food Association, and the NY Botanical Garden, among others. He founded and directed a not-for-profit theater company in New York City, co-directed a major NJ outdoor music festival for 14 years (Maplewoodstock) and is a member of Actors Equity performance union.