Whole Foods

Richard Downey founded Richard's Whole Foods in 1979 and when he passed away, his widow sold the company. John Rorer was one of the partners and in 2004, he purchased the company. The company has grown to 11 local stores in Sarasota, Osprey, Bradenton, Englewood, Venice, Port Charlotte, and St. Petersburg. The original store is still open at 2856 Ringling Blvd in Sarasota. Since 1979, Richard's Whole Foods has provided the communities it serves with a natural, convenient and affordable alternative to traditional grocers and large corporate health food purveyors alike. Our loyal customers rave about our service levels and the relationships built with our knowledgeable team members. We are your neighbors, striving everyday to be better and bring you the freshest array of the top selling and most popular products, in a convenient format at prices that make natural and organic foods affordable for everyone. Whether it's bulk foods, supplements, beauty care, or groceries -- we are a solution in your busy schedule. Naturally. Come celebrate our 30th anniversary with great deal throughout the year!

Amy Eller---Amy is serving her second year on the Board. She is the marketing team leader for Whole Foods in Durham and previously worked in the world of non-profit communications. She has been involved in the mission of this organization for many years and formerly served on the staff of APS, first as volunteer coordinator and then public relations manager. She is the proud mom of three APS animals, one Bassett hound mix and two very lovely cats!

Angela is a relative newcomer to the animal rights world. A vegan for 2 years, she is interested in how a plant-based diet benefits the animals, the human beings, and the planet. Angela is an aspiring cook, a jogger, and spends her days creating those fruit and veggie pyramids at the local Whole Foods. Her dream is to someday open a vegan coffee shop or diner.

Austin musician, performer and award-winning songwriter Kit Holmes has been volunteering with AMF since its first major fundraising event "The Star of Texas Gala" back in 2003 at the Austin Music Hall where she ended up as the winning vocalist in the "One Night Band" competition! In addition to traveling regularly as a performer with her piano-driven brand of original, intelligent and often humorous pop-jazz, Kit is currently on board with AMF as the audio engineer for the Whole Foods "Music at the Market" series every Thursday from 6:00 to 7:30 pm. You can find out more about Kit and her music by visiting www.kitholmesmusic.com.

Lee Kane spent nearly twenty-five years working in health care and hospital administration in the Boston area, until he ?career-hopped? into the natural products industry with Whole Foods Market in 1996. He was particularly drawn to Whole Foods by the company?s Core Values, especially Core Value #5: ?Caring for our communities and the environment?. After spending 6 years on the operations side, as a Store Team Leader in several locations, Lee took on the brand new role of EcoCzar for the North Atlantic Region. As such, he is responsible for creating, implementing and overseeing all programs and initiatives which fall under the umbrella of Whole Foods? ?Green Mission?. These include forming ?green teams? in every location, and helping them to establish composting, recycling, and source reduction initiatives, overseeing energy and resource conservation programs, consulting with Construction and Marketing teams, and new team member training and development. Lee also works closely with Whole Foods? Global Green Mission Task Force on such initiatives as sustainable packaging, biofuels, ?green? cleaning products and practices, and renewable energy.

Renee Terese has worked in the Healing Arts for over a decade. Her initial studies and practice emphasized nutrition/organic foods along with exercize/ dance programs. As her own health began to unravel, and traditional medicine being at a loss to help her, she began to explore and become schooled in the healing & nurturing arts and alternative medicine. Today, she is healthy, creative and thriving. Through the use of alternative forms of therapy and building a bridge within traditional medicine, she was able to begin to look deeper and see patterns into her own disease and continue to come into true wholeness and wisdom through her health challenges and struggles. She has been priviledged to guide her own family's growth stages and struggles in using the healing arts and finds it equally "a sacred work" for those whom work with her and who choose to begin to create wholeness and healing for themselves. She uses food and flower essences as her base. She studied with the North American Flower Essences of Nevada City, California which incorporates the original 38 essences of Dr. Edward Bach of England along with over a hundred and fifty verified flower essences of North America. She is a member and works closely with the Flower Essence Society via infomericals, case studies and support work with Whole Foods and other major health food stores across the country. She has finished her four-year training at the school for nurturing arts. Nurturing arts brings the artistic process to us as a source of personal and social renewal. Based on the work of Dr. Rudolph Stieiner and Maria deZwann.

Roger Ly is a recent graduate of The University of Texas at Austin. This bold Dallas native, first experienced YLC as a mentor the summer of 2005. Relating his life experiences tp mentees and mentors is what brings Roger back year after year. He currently resides and works in Austin, TX for Whole Foods Company.

Tara Quinan lives in Broomfield and works at Whole Foods when she is not performing massages at FIT Wellness Center. Tara believes strongly in a healthy diet along with exercise. She enjoys her time in the great outdoors and helping others to experience an active and nutritious lifestyle. Tara graduated from the Cortiva Institute with an extensive 884-hour massage certificate. She majored in orthopedic massage; the techniques and methods used are proven approaches to treating pain, injury and other conditions. Her attention to detail and extensive background in Anatomy, Physiology, and Kinesiology explains why her clients see faster and longer lasting recovery times. She continually expands her educational background so that you can be assured the care you are receiving is based upon the most current techniques and research available. Tara believes that just because massage can feel like a pampering treat, doesn't mean that it is not therapeutic. Massage therapy can be a powerful ally in your healthcare regimen. Experts estimate that upward of 90% of disease is stress related and perhaps nothing ages us faster, internally and externally, than high stress. Tara can help alleviate your stress naturally and provide fast results.

Director Director Stephanie Kugelman, age 61, currently serves as a principal of A.S.O., A Second Opinion, a brand consultancy firm which she founded. Prior to founding A.S.O., Ms. Kugelman was employed by Young & Rubicam for 36 years. During her tenure at Young & Rubicam, Ms. Kugelman served in a series of increasingly senior roles, mostly recently as Vice Chairman and Chief Strategic Officer from June 2001 to March 2007 and as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Young & Rubicam's New York officer from May 1999 to May 2001. Ms. Kugelman currently serves as a Vice Chairman Emeritus at Young & Rubicam and on the Board of Directors of Whole Foods.