Our Board of Directors
Dr. Patrick Barron, President/Treasurer
"Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food." -Hippocrates
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Organic Farming Institute co-founder and President Patrick Barron, N.D., M.D. led the integrative medicine movement to reform healthcare by changing our lifestyle, diet, and approach to medicine. After earning a master’s in Rehabilitation and Counseling Psychology from Marshall University, he owned and operated an 85-acre organic farm in Southern Ohio. His study of Appalachian Medicine with local herbalists inspired him to pursue medical degrees at Bastyr University, the Universidad Central de Estes, and the University of Washington. Over the past 40 years, he has practiced rehabilitation medicine, served as a medical educator and administrator, and published multiple medical textbooks. In recent years, he has returned to the farm to cultivate an organic vineyard and harvest forest products. Dr. Barron oversees scientific research for our grantwriting services.
Lynne Irvine, Vice President, Director of Development
"Sustainability is no longer about doing less harm.
It's about doing more good." -Jochen Zeltz
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Lynne Irvine is the co-founder and Vice President of the Organic Farming Institute and founder of our for-profit affiliate, Eco-Asis, LLC. She is an accomplished Development and Fundraising catalyst. Over the last decade, she has secured over $99 million in grants, low-interest loans, and contributions from public and private sources for sustainable businesses and community-based nonprofit organizations. Lynne's Development Portfolio reflects her commitment to environmental and cultural sustainability. It includes funding campaigns for net-zero, LEED®, Living Building®, and WELL Building® projects, clean energy, carbon sequestration, wastewater treatment, regenerative agriculture, and native plants. Lynne holds a master's in Sustainable Leadership from Goddard College and a Bachelor's in Fine Arts from Central Michigan University.
Michelle Stauffer, Secretary
"The first rule of sustainability is to align with natural forces,
or at least not try to defy them." -Paul Hawken
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Michelle Stauffer is a Sarasota-based cultivar of sustainability who has instituted programs that qualified two local businesses as "Green" as well as "Sustainable Floridian" through the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) program. She is committed to volunteering for programs that share her philosophy in sound environmental practices, including the Sarasota Bay Water Festival, Great American and International Coastal Cleanup, IFAS Green Business, and others. Raised in Olympia, Washington, Michelle graduated from The Evergreen State College with a Bachelor of Arts in education, where the innovation of sustainability integration was woven throughout every course.
Our Advisory Board
Arlene Gilbert, Attorney & Administrative Judge - Retired
J.D. Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York
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Arlene is a retired Administrative Law Judge with the New York City Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings. Before entering law school at the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, she studied Urban Planning at Queens College in Queens, New York, and Hunter College in New York, New York. In her retirement on Pine Island, Florida, Arlene remains politically active on the community, state, and national levels.
Susanne Quattro, Forensic Certified Public Accountant (CPA) - Retired
B.S. Accounting & Finance, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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Suzanne Quatro is a Forensic Certified Public Accountant (CPA) who has retired from a distinguished career that included working for Coopers and Lybrand (1978-1983), where she managed audits for corporations, including J.J. Heinz, Gulf Oil, Quaker State Oil, and ServiStar Corporation. She worked for ServiStar Corporation as a Corporate Controller (1983-1991) and as an Operating Officer (1991-1995), and for The Meridian Group as an Investment Banker (1995-2002). Always a leader, Susanne was named Time Magazine’s ‘Person of the Year’ early in her career. In her retirement, her interests include kayaking, nature, gardening, golf, human and animal rights, and political positioning.
Organic Farming
I N S T I T U T E
This is more than a Funding Opportunity. It's a peek into a world where people and the planet thrive!
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Over the past decade, our for-profit affiliate, Eco-Asis, has helped mission-aligned organizations
secure over $99 million in grants, low-interest loans, contributions, and impact investments.
We're fundraising to provide "Seed Grants" that expand access to the Business Development Solutions
proven to help entrepreneurs launch, scale, and replicate regenerative solutions
that cultivate environmental and cultural sustainability.
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Your tax-deductible donations help BIG IDEAS take root.