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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
 Marceia Blake, Chair
Marceia and her three children, then teenagers, moved into their Land Trust home off East Franklin Street in 2001 and joined the board a year later. She is a strong believer that the Land Trust offers one of the best programs around for single parents with one income. Also known as Sakari, she is a clerk with the US Postal Service and a Red Cross volunteer. She spent three weeks on the Gulf Coast working in disaster relief after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
 Gary Giles, Vice Chair
Gary is a partner in GGA Architects and has been a Land Trust board member since June 2002. He believes that affordable housing provides sustainability and balance in our urban community, because more people can live closer to their workplace and community resources .Gary and his wife Martha have lived in the community since 1970. Their two daughters and their families now live here as well. Gary enjoys all sports, especially golf; the arts, including pottery; and trying to keep up with four grandchildren.
Gordon Merklein, Secretary
An investment officer with a commercial real estate firm, Gordon brings a wealth of knowledge about buying, selling, and managing real estate to the board. He found the Land Trust through an online search after moving here from Atlanta three years ago and joined the board in October 2005. He believes the Land Trust provides a true alternative for combining affordable housing and ownership opportunities in Orange County. He and his wife and two sons, ages 7 and 4, enjoy soccer, baseball, and cycling together.
 Jim Tucker, Treasurer
Jim joined our board in October 2004 and currently chairs the Finance Committee. Jim is a financial advisor with Smith Barney and an avid Masters swimmer. He moved from Menlo Park, CA, to Chapel Hill with his family in 1997. Similar to his experience in Northern California, Jim observed Chapel Hill's real estate market becoming unaffordable to community service providers. He sees the Land Trust as a way to maintain affordable housing opportunities within Orange County for people who earn moderate incomes.
Mary Bratsch - info and photo to come.
John Cooper
Elected to the board in October 2005, John is also a Land Trust homeowner. With his wife and two daughters, he purchased the 100th Land Trust home, a three-bedroom townhome at Vineyard Square. John is an associate at MDC, Inc., where he coordinates the Emergency Preparedness Demonstration Project, focusing on ways to increase disaster preparedness in disadvantaged communities. John says safe housing is vital for preparedness and recovery and this is just one reason he wants to spread the word about community land trusts.
 Laurin Easthom
Laurin is a council member for the Town of Chapel Hill and a member of Neighborhoods for Responsible Growth and the Orange Chatham Sierra Club. She feels strongly that people who work in our community should be able to live here, and as a councilmember she wants to encourage development targeted to buyers with limited incomes. She and her husband have two daughters, and she practices dentistry part time. In her free time she enjoys running, tennis, and painting.
 Sabrina Farrar
Sabrina is a Housing Officer for the Town of Chapel Hill Housing Department and a member of the Orange County Human Rights and Relations Commission. She feels very strongly about the need for more affordable housing and for supporting the Land Trust. A busy mother of two sons, Andre and Torrell, and a part-time student at Meredith College, she still finds the time to serve on other committees. In her free time, she enjoys reading, playing badminton, and traveling with her husband and family.
Valerie Foushee
Valerie is a member of the county Board of Commissioners and a former member of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school board. A native Chapel Hillian, she has seen housing costs skyrocket and is especially pleased that there are now over 100 homes in the Land Trust.
Michael Hansen - info and photo to come.
 Dwayne Pinkney
Dwayne is assistant vice chancellor for finance and administration at UNC Chapel Hill and the university’s representative to the board.
Mary Jean Seyda
Mary Jean is assistant director of CASA, a nonprofit affordable housing developer in Raleigh, where she oversees the day-to-day operations of the agency. Her membership on the Land Trust board gives her an opportunity to support affordable housing in her home community. For a number of years she was co-owner of MJM Catering in Chapel Hill, where she and her partner live, and cooking and entertaining have remained her passions.
Alex Zaffron
Alex is a member of the Carrboro Board of Aldermen.
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