Pamela Kraynak

1. Describe your past and current involvement with Intervale Community Farm (ICF) and why you are excited about serving on the Board. 

I have served on the ICF Board for the past 3 years and was involved in the Equity Statement and goals.  I am currently the Staff Liaison to the ICF Board.  I continue to be grateful for this amazing farm that gives so many people fresh food and farms the land in ways that preserve it for generations.  Helping ICF get through the two years of flooding and shift our practices to plan for possible future events was a critical part of our Board work that I am enthusiastic about continuing.  

 2. Please describe any relevant skills you would like to contribute to ICF that make you a good candidate for the Board. This may include specific skills such as accounting and financial planning, land management, engineering, flood management, farm and food sovereignty policy, experience with cooperatives, addressing diversity issues, strategic planning, or past board or community organization experience. Or, you may have never served on a Board or don’t have specific skills but have a passion for food, health or farming and love ICF; describe these qualities as well.

 As ICF grows beyond its 30 years, businesses need to change and adapt.  I have had decades of experience as a director, Board member, consultant, technical provider and lawyer helping business, organizations and public agencies face challenges and growth.  I have a long history of creating organizations, such as housing cooperatives, in Burlington that are still going strong today.  I am a long time advocate for food for all people grown in healthy ways. 

3. The ICF Board has identified the importance of serving the diverse members of the Burlington community whether because of wealth, racial, ethnic or religious background, recent immigration, gender or LGBT identity or other. What experience do you have, personal, business or organizational, that could help ICF work towards this goal? Do you have any suggestions?

I am a retired human rights lawyer who has a long track record of making changes happen, but more importantly, knowing how to bring people with many different perspectives to new solutions. ICF, now 30 years old, is to be commended for continuing to tackle the tough equation of providing memberships priced to as many people as possible, providing good paying jobs, and dealing with the impact of climate change on our land.  The recent membership slide-up is a good example of its innovations.  ICF has always had strong relationships with community organizations that it supplies with excellent donations of food for those who would not afford our memberships with our limited ability to offer subsidized memberships.  Going forward, I would like to help ICF continue to diversity its membership and staff.

 4. ICF experienced tremendous flooding in recent years which impacted our food, our land, and our personnel. We think these events might become more frequent in the future, what ideas do you have about the future of ICF and how it might deal with these challenges? Do you currently have the time outside of Board meetings to help grapple with these challenges which involve both short-term and long-term solutions?

I have been available outside of ICF Board meetings to help ICF tackle the problems associated with flooding, off-site relocation of some of our crops and new purchase, such as the new hoop houses on high ground on our property.  I would like to continue to be available.

5. What else would you like ICF members to know about you?

While I did not grow up in Vermont, I have lived here most of my life in rural areas in Central Vermont and in Burlington.  I learned how to grow vegetables from my grandfather and canning from my mother, joys I follow to this day.  My son grew up running around ICF in summers, and I love to watch the new generation enjoying the same.  I live with my partner, Leah, who has always been a long term member of ICF, you might say we are an ICF family!