This year’s Board of Directors nomination cycle has come to a close. If you, or someone you know, is interested in applying for the Rising Tide Board of Directors in the future, please email the board at board@risingtide.coop for more information. 

The 2024 Annual Election opens on October 4. Stay tuned for more information. 

The Rising Tide Board of Directors:

Ed Ross, President, and his wife, Sandra, have been year-round Damariscotta residents since 2010, but Rising Tide customers since 1980. They recognize that the member-owned co-op is one of the organizations making Lincoln County a great place to live. With his business background, Ed has a special appreciation for the hardworking farmers and small businesses partnering with Rising Tide so locally produced products can be offered. Ed continues to be a positive contributor to Rising Tide’s board.

 
 
Sean O’Neill, Vice President, has been a member of the Rising Tide Co-op for several years and recently joined the Board to further support co-op education and sustainable development outreach. Sean is a biologist and educates students and community members about Ocean Science Research. He enjoys using his experience to work and communicate with the cooperative membership
Sean is a  great example of member-owners stepping into the role of board members. Member-owner participation is crucial to a healthy Board and for the cooperative. The Board is always looking for interested member-owners to get involved in cooperative governance.
 
 
Beth Polhemus, Treasurer, has been a member of Rising Tide for over 10 years and brings her small business expertise and passion for food and sustainability to the Board. After thirty years of restaurant operations, she’s aware that she is still learning about the impact she can and should have as a business owner. She brings that sensibility along with enthusiasm, creativity, and a heartfelt desire to contribute to the Rising Tide community to her role as a board member. Beth enjoys the challenges and opportunities that come with cooperative governance.

Hide (pronounced hee-day and short for Hideaki) Mizuno, Secretary, is delighted to be a member-owner of the Rising Tide Coop, with its healthful food and other products, local producers, and the vital role it plays in the well-being of the community. Hide has over 30 years of experience in finance and investment management, working in Tokyo, New York, Paris, and Algeria, in addition to San Francisco. For over 10 years, he has worked in the not-for-profit sector, including endowment management, development, board relationships, governance, and fiduciary responsibilities, with a recent focus on ESG (environment-, social- and governance-focused investments). He has a wife, June, a son, and a daughter who went to college in Maine and settled here. Hide is passionate about food, wine, and bluegrass music and looks forward to helping Rising Tide Coop continue to thrive.

 
Graham Walsh has been a patron of Rising Tide since the early days when the location was what is now the “Woman of Substance” building. He is a regular face at Rising Tide, often often visiting more than once a day to shop.  Walsh enjoys assisting patrons, tidying up if he sees the need, engaging in conversation with staff and customers, and providing suggestions when appropriate.  While the Shop Manager and Director of Admissions and Sales for the Apprenticeshop in Rockland, Walsh oversaw daily operations, managed the physical plant, and acquired materials for traditional boat-building programs. Currently, Walsh works in Advertising at the Lincoln County News, which keeps him connected to the community on many levels. 
 
Deb Singer, is thrilled to be a newly settled resident of Maine – being where her passion and heart have led her (living closer to nature.) Discovering Rising Tide has been a joy and aligns well with her commitment to healthy eating/living and supporting local food. She is passionate about Rising Tide’s success now and into the future. A Social Entrepreneur, Deb brings decades of experience working in both retail (Whole Foods for 12 years in leadership roles) and as a supplier of sustainable products to retailers across the US.  She is squarely focused on making an impact on our plastic pollution crisis.  Since 2007 after leading the ban on plastic shopping bags at Whole Foods, her work and passion have been directed toward the elimination of single-use – supporting the reuse movement. She is committed to creating a radical shift in consumers’ mindsets and behaviors away from single-use plastic. She resides in Nobleboro with her partner Bruce, who has been a loyal shopper at Rising Tide for over 15 years and shares their home with a blended pet family (2 cats and a dog!) 
 
Tammy Lee has been a patron and member-owner for 20+ years and cares deeply about Rising Tide as her primary source for local, organic food, natural medicine, cleaning products, and so much more. After graduating from Dartmouth College, she spent many years working and traveling between Maine and Northern California as a marketing professional and yoga teacher. In 2012, she helped to form Destination Wellness MidCoast Maine, a non-profit organization whose mission is to make health and wellness a mainstay of life in Midcoast Maine; she was its founding president from 2012-2014. She has also been an active volunteer for Bioneers, PopTech, National Ski Patrol, and World Cup Soccer. She is a member of Coastal Rivers, MOFGA, and the Sierra Club. With deep family roots going back generations in New Harbor, she was raised in NH, spent nearly every summer in Pemaquid Beach, and now lives here year-round. She looks forward to supporting Rising Tide’s sustainable growth as a valuable community resource
 

Sam MacGown is a local food enthusiast who homesteads in Nobleboro. He is passionate about creating and supporting a local food system. Sam’s family has shopped at Rising Tide for the past 15 years when visiting family in the area. In 2019, they decided to move to mid-coast Maine. Rising Tide was a large factor in choosing Nobleboro as their home. Sam has extensive experience in sales and finance. He currently services and advises merchants with their credit card processing. Sam looks forward to deepening his community connections and supporting the growth of Rising Tide as an active board member.

Rebekah Mende is a recent resident of the area after returning to her home State of Maine in 2018. While living in Portland, OR she studied horticulture, community development, and prison food reform. She is proud to be a Vocational Trades Instructor at a local prison where she manages a robust agricultural program. She enjoys renovating her first home and building up her garden soil. She is excited and honored to bring her food justice perspective to this gem of a community in MidCoast Maine.

 

Meeting Dates for 2024

October 29
November 19
December 17

The Rising Tide Policy Register contains the most concise definition of the Board’s role: “Acting on behalf of our member-owners, the Board ensures that our co-op produces benefit and value while avoiding unacceptable actions and situations.” The Board does this through the completion of monitoring reports in collaboration with the General Manager. The Board is also responsible for communicating to the membership updates, and plans for the business. Together, the member-owners, the Board, and the General Manager chart the course for Rising Tide and its vital role in an increasingly dynamic business climate.
 
If you’re interested in attending a board meeting via Zoom or have any questions for the board, please contact them at board@risingtide.coop. Our next Board Meeting is on August 27 at 5:30 p.m.  We hope you will join us. 
 
In Cooperation,
The Rising Tide Board of Directors