Adeline Druart (she/her)
President of Vermont Creamery
For Re-Election
A foodie by nature and an artisan cheesemaker by trade, Adeline Druart is President of Vermont Creamery, one of the leading American specialty cheese and dairy makers based in Websterville, Vermont. Born and raised in the French countryside, Adeline studied dairy science at the prestigious National Dairy School of France.
Looking to learn English, Adeline left French for the United States to join Vermont Creamery as a summer cheesemaking intern in 2002. What started as a two-month internship became a 15-year journey that inspired a passion for Vermont, its taste of place and the unique products made by Vermont Creamery’s dedicated employees.
Over time, Adeline scaled Vermont Creamery’s operations and infrastructure, help grow the brand to national distribution with the addition of new products and led the efforts to achieve B Corp certification status in 2014.
She has served as judge in international cheese competitions, is a member of the American Cheese Society and Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR). When she’s not at the mission-driven business, Adeline is at home with her husband Marc and two young sons, hosting friends for dinner, or on the hunt for fresh vegetables and pastry at the Montpelier Farmer’s Market.
David Epstein (he/him)
AIA, LEED AP (2016) Managing Principal, TruexCullins Architecture + Interior Design (VBSR Board Chair)
For Re-Election
David is the managing principal at TruexCullins (TXC) and a long-time VBSR member. TXC has four areas of focus: Workplace, Home, Resort, Education and Interiors. David co-leads the Education and Workplace Studios.
David’s passion is creating engaging 21st Century learning environments. He has designed created master plans and school facilities in over 35 countries. He enjoys practicing an art that has profound social relevance and technological sophistication as architecture represents a synthesis of competing forces and, at its best, inspires and challenges the way we live and think about our world.
To learn more about David or to read his education blog Digital Crayon, visit David Epstein’s BIO.
John Kim (he/him)
University of Vermont’s Grossman School of Business, Graduate Programs Career Advisor for Sustainable Innovation MBA and Master of Accountancy
For Election
John Kim is currently the Graduate Programs Career Advisor at the University of Vermont’s Grossman School of Business where he serves the Sustainable Innovation MBA and Master of Accountancy programs. Prior to that he was the Head of Impact and Strategy at 1Row, a boutique marketing and consulting firm focusing on purpose-driven start-ups, nonprofits, and other ventures.
Before this, he spent 10 years in CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) and ESG (environment/social/governance) roles at The Walt Disney Company and Herman Miller (now MillerKnoll). He also worked at Lipman Hearne, a branding and marketing agency focused on the nonprofit sector, supporting higher education institutions, large foundations, and member associations.
Earlier in his career, John served in the Peace Corps in Morocco, worked on food insecurity impacting communities in the Washington, DC area and South Africa, and evaluated programs for the United Nations World Food Programme in Malawi. He’s also the creator of the blog, Virtuous Cycle, which highlights changemakers using bikes to do good and serves as an advisor for zero-emissions last-mile delivery company, Coaster Cycles.
He received his master’s in public policy (MPP) from Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy and his bachelor’s from Cornell University. He lives with his family in Montpelier, VT.
Kate Ogden (she/her)
Seventh Generation, Advocacy and Movement Building Manager
For Election
Kate Ogden is the Advocacy and Movement Building Manager at Seventh Generation. She leads the company’s advocacy work in the US and globally through partnership with movement-leading NGOs. Kate leads Seventh Generation’s engagement in organizing spaces dedicated to the business community’s advocacy for climate justice, democracy, reproductive freedom, and other issues.
Prior to Seventh Generation, Kate spent 12 years at the global environmental organization Greenpeace, most recently as Deputy Director of the Grassroots Department. Kate is passionate about climate and energy justice, but has also developed and implemented advocacy campaigns on toxics regulation, deforestation, protecting our oceans, and protecting the right to protest.
Kate lives in Richmond, VT with her husband John and two elementary school-aged sons, Eli and Leo. She graduated from Brown University with a bachelor’s degree in International Relations and South Asian Studies.
Karen Lawson (she/her)
Co-Owner of Lawson’s Finest Liquids
For Election
Karen is a graduate of the University of Vermont, with a Master’s degree in Public Administration. Her undergraduate degree in Sociology and Psychology was obtained at Franklin Pierce University in NH. After graduation, Karen had a 20 year career in Vermont state government. The majority of those years were with Department of Corrections as their Housing Coordinator, which provided oversight to transitional housing programs statewide.
Additionally, Karen managed the Serious and Violent Reentry grant and the annual Facts and Figures data publication. Karen also worked at the Secretary of State’s office for three years to independently launch the Safe at Home program which provides address confidentiality to victims of violence.
Karen worked part-time for a number of years with Lawson’s Finest before joining full time in 2017. Karen was initially responsible for wholesale distribution logistics, which then transformed to the role of Chief Creative Officer in 2018 upon the launch of the Waitsfield brewery, taproom and retail store where her time was spent on marketing, branding, and philanthropic endeavors, as well as paying attention to all of the fine details that represent the quality of Lawson’s Finest.
Currently Karen oversees the company’s values-based Social Impact Program which works to support thriving communities. The Program features six initiatives focused on cultivating a people-first work place, charitable giving for local communities, greening the planet and bringing people together to play and innovate. Karen is responsible for shaping and guiding the mission-based initiatives of Lawson’s Finest to create the greatest possible social impact, acts as a steward for corporate responsibility, and brings company values to life for staff, fans, community and the environment to create a lasting legacy.
In her spare time, Karen enjoys doing Pilates, reading, relishing the Vermont summer and enjoying adventures with her husband, two daughters and rescue dog.
