Meet our Board of Directors
Immediate Past Chair and Community Relations Chair
Sharon Leicham
Freelance Writer and Speaker
Sharon Leicham is a freelance writer and speaker born and raised in the San Joaquin Valley farm town of Merced, California. She graduated from the University of Oregon and did graduate studies at the University of Utah and the Pacific Institute in Seattle, Washington. She moved to Memphis from Oakland, California nine years ago settling downtown in the South Main Arts District. She is a founding member of the MFM, Past President of the South Main Association, an advisory board member of MDATA and the South Main Association and is a founder of Cultural Synergy Memphis.
Chair
Linda Cornish
Vice President, Development & Member Services, Memphis Regional Chamber
Linda Cornish has over 10 years of management consulting experience with Arthur Andersen Business Consulting and Hitachi Business Consulting. She has her MBA from the University of California at Los Angeles and BS in Business Administration from University of California at Riverside. She moved to Memphis from Los Angeles four years ago with her husband Bob Cornish. In addition to her role at the Memphis Chamber, Linda is a certified Project Management Professional, is in the Leadership Memphis Class of 2008, a member of the James Beard Foundation, and a member of the Harbor Town Garden Club. She enjoys gardening, cooking, running, and spending time with Bob and their two Sealyham Terriers Elvis and Kramer.
Vice-Chair and Events Coordinator
Susan Kitsinger
Director of Provider Contracting, Humana
Susan Kitsinger is the Director of Provider Contracting for Humana. Susan is responsible for network development and contract negotiations in the Mid-South Area. She manages relationships with over 6000 providers in 5 states. She is involved with several professional healthcare organizations. Susan is the immediate past president of the West Tennessee Chapter of the American College of Healthcare Executives. She is also a member of the local chapter of the Healthcare Financial Management Association. Susan is also a freelance food writer and previously worked as the restaurant reviewer for the Memphis Flyer.
Secretary
Beth Brock
Central Regional Director, Mid America Apartment Communities
Beth has 15+yrs experience in the multi-family housing industry in Memphis and the southeast United States, and currently serves as Regional Vice-President over the Central Region for Memphis based Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE: MAA). 2009 will be her fourth year serving on the Apartment Association of Greater Memphis Board, this year as President-Elect, scheduled to be President in 2010. In these roles she represents AAGM and Mid-America as member also of the Tennessee Apartment Association. Beth believes in having a minimal carbon footprint, and promotes a responsible and balanced housing option for today’s economy and eco-friendly lifestyle. Beth and her husband Ben Brock (Owner / Operator of Interim, LLC: SOLE & Interim restaurants), and their teenage son, Tucker, live in Cordova. Beth enjoys running / exercising, being outdoors, and loves the Memphis Farmers Market.
Treasurer
James M. Street
Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Memphis Center City Commission
Mr. Street has been the Chief Financial Officer for the Center City Commission and its related entities since October 1998. As Vice President of Finance Mr. Street is responsible for all area of financial management for the organizations including financial accounting, budgeting, cash management and payroll. Mr. Street has twenty-three years experience in senior financial management in the not-for-profit arena, including health care and higher education. Mr. Street has a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Gettysburg College and a Masters of Business Administration in Account from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is also a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accounts.
Vendor Recruitment and Management
Laretha Harris Randolph
Retired, Pharmaceutical Research & Development
Memphis Restaurant Association Liaison
Mac Edwards
Proprietor, McEwen's on Monroe
Mac Edwards, owner of the McEwen's On Monroe, received the 2004 Memphis Restaurant Association “Restaurateur of The Year” award. He has been in the food and beverage industry for 30 years.
Fundraising Chair
Ben Brock
Operating Partner, Interim Restaurant & Bar
Originally from Jackson, MS, Ben Brock graduated from Mississippi State University with a BA in Psychology. He began in the restaurant business at a young age and worked for local independents as well as a few large chains. He began delivering food as a summer job at the original Amerigo in Jackson, MS, growing with their organization from waiting tables to General Manager. Ben was with Amerigo Italian Restaurant for 20 years, working in their Jackson, MS, Nashville/Brentwood, TN, Atlanta, GA and Memphis, TN stores. He is now the Operating partner of Interim Restaurant and Sole Restaurant & Raw bar. He currently lives in Cordova with his wife and son.
Farmer Representative
Henry Jones
Farmer, Owner of Jones Orchard
Henry Jones handles the farmers market and entertainment segments of the Jones Orchard, a family farm located 10 miles north of Memphis. Jones Orchard has a booth at the Memphis Farmers Market.
Farmer Representative
Keith Forrester
Farmer, Owner of Whitton Flower and Produce
Keith Forrester is honored to serve the Memphis Farmers Market as a board member, and as a vendor since the market's inception. Born and raised on a cotton farm in Northeast Arkansas, Keith and his wife, Jill, are working hard to transition their farm into a sustainable, year - round, fresh food mecca. Keith is a graduate of Arkansas State University, and served two years (1996 -1998) as a sustainable agriculture volunteer working with the Primary School Self Reliance Program for the U.S. Peace Corps in Lesotho/South Africa. Just before he began farming specialty crops, Keith was a teacher and coach for 4 years at Rivercrest Jr. High and High School. Forrester and his wife Jill are the recipients of the Edible Memphis 2008 and 2009 Farmer of Year Award, and were named 2008 Agriculture Leaders of the Year for Northeast Arkansas. Forrester advocates continuously for local food and health education programs, and is currently working with the Health, Wellness & Environmental Studies School in Jonesboro, Arkansas to aid in the establishment of the city's first edible schoolyard. Keith Forrester was elected this year to serve on the Arkansas Farmers Market Association board of directors, and is the secretary for the Mississippi County Historical Society. In his free time, Keith enjoys cooking for family and friends, and sometimes his dogs Bruiser, Chalupa, and Wayne.
Health Chair
Mable Barringer
Executive Director, National Kidney Foundation
Mable plans, designs, and manages the variety of health and nutrition education events and programs offered at the market. Mable is the Executive Director of the National Kidney Foundation, West Tennessee office, located in Memphis, TN.
Marketing & Advertising Chair
Christopher Bevel
Product Manager, FedEx Services
Christopher Bevel manages the MFM marketing & advertising plan and initiatives, and digital marketing strategy. Christopher is a life-time Memphis resident and advocate for green-friendly business and community initiatives. He earned a Master of Business Administration from George Washington University, Washington DC. Currently, he is a Sr. Marketing Specialist, Product Manager with FedEx Services.
Operations and Site Development
Lawrence Migliara
Proprietor, Outdoors Inc.
Lawrence Migliara is a life long resident of Memphis. He is the co-owner of Outdoors Inc., the Public Sector Representative for the South Main Association and a broker with Trammell Crow. His affiliations include the Memphis Area Association of Realtors, Bluff City Canoe Club and Cultural Synergy Memphis.
Volunteer Chair
Terre Gorham
Editor, Memphis Downtowner Magazine
Terre is responsible for "cultivating" the market's team of volunteers, which includes recruitment, training, and ongoing managment. In her second year as Volunteer Chair, Terre has designed a volunteer database, shift grid, and communication system; developed specific job descriptions for each volunteer position; launched an annual Volunteer Salute Party; and implemented an "identity branding" for market volunteers and at special events, such as the Harvest Celebration. Editor of the Memphis Downtowner Magazine since 1994, Terre is also a freelance writer, copy proofer, and event associate for Destination King. She lives on South Main with the cat who adopted her, SoMain.
Grants Chair
Corky Neale
Director of Innovation and Research for the RISE Foundation
Corky drives a community-wide collaborative of about 165 nonprofits and public agencies called the Memphis Debt Collaborative which addresses the credit debt and bankruptcy issues in Memphis. Corky came to Memphis 13 years ago to be Deputy Director of Housing and Community Development with a broad inner city development portfolio. He has graduate degrees in urban-economic geography and urban planning and has taught at the University of Illinois, Champaign; Illinois State, University of Cincinnati and the University of Memphis and is currently teaching part-time at Rhodes College.
Legal Chair
Bob Cornish
Bob Cornish has practiced law for over 15 years. He is a graduate of Davidson College and the Cumberland School of Law of Samford University. Bob also serves on the Session of First Presbyterian Church of Memphis and as President of the Davidson College Alumni Association of Memphis. Prior to moving to Memphis, Bob served as Chief Legal & Compliance Officer for an investment firm in Santa Monica and as President of the Santa Monica Junior Chamber of Commerce.
Market Manager
Maryanne Lessley
Maryanne Lessley was born in Memphis and raised on a family farm in Bartlett. She had wonderful adventures growing up on the farm like selling “cut your own Christmas trees”, living in an amazing peach orchard and growing lots and lots of vegetables. Maryanne graduated from the University of Memphis with a BBA degree in accounting. She has held several accounting positions over the years for large corporations but most recently was financial manager for her husband’s family business, Signs Now. She has been married for 14 years and has two beautiful daughters, eleven and eight years old. Maryanne is a true “foodie”. She loves to cook and experiment with fresh food. With the help of her parents and children, she is growing her own vegetable garden this year with over 100 tomato plants. She is enjoying her new career as the market manager and is wild about the market. “You have to experience the Memphis Farmers Market for yourself. The food is incredible and the fun is contagious. If you come down once…you’re certain to come back again”.