Meet The Staff

For the past fifteen years she has worked in the non-profit sector advocating and empowering families from all walks of life in reaching the dream of homeownership. Her experience includes working with first-time homebuyers through NEDCOs’ pre-purchase programs and financial literacy classes. She is a certified homeownership counselor by the NeighborWorks Center for Homeownership Education & Counseling. And in the past six years she has served as the Cross-Cultural Community Outreach Coordinator for Proud Ground, helping many families learn about the CLT model and assisting them to purchase homes that will be forever affordable.
Yesika currently serves at Board of Directors of Habitat for Humanity of Oregon and as Ambassador CLT Homeowner for Grounded Solutions Network.

While assisting homeowners who were facing foreclosure, she became acutely aware of the racial, cultural and socio-economic barriers around sustainable homeownership. She represented Solid Ground as a member of the City of Seattle’s Race and Social Justice Core Team IV from 2010-2014, and received Solid Ground’s Racial Justice Award in 2014.

As a fundraising and communications professional, Jackie acts as a connector – from connecting people to people socially, to bridging organizations to their communities, and donors to a cause. She started volunteering with a community development organization in college and hasn’t stopped working to give every individual, every family, and every business an opportunity to be part of their community through local non-profits. Additionally, Jackie currently serves as the Development Committee Board Chair of KairosPDX.

As a licensed real estate agent Tyler guides Proud Ground participants through the home buying or selling process and markets Proud Ground homes in addition to providing education, outreach and general program support. Through Proud Ground real estate brokerage Tyler is able to offer his real estate experience and expertise to partners and the general public.
Tyler enjoys cooking for friends and family, home improvement projects, coaching basketball and weekend trips around the Northwest with his wife Carly and their dog Dekum.



Ryan lives in NE Portland with his wife and son and enjoys regular trips to the coast, going to local pow wows and Native events, and watching Portland Trail Blazers games.

Katie’s experience includes working with first-time homebuyers through USDA Rural Development’s Self Help Homeownership Program in SW Colorado; neighbor to neighbor mediation; serving on the board of directors of the NW Community Land Trust Coalition; working in several arenas with diverse youth; and 2 ½ years researching, analyzing and utilizing data regarding regional indicators of a healthy community. Katie provides all homebuyer counseling and education services; provides post-purchase support to current homeowners; leads program innovations; and is responsible for lender relations.
Board of Directors
Proud Ground Board Members are comprised of one-third Proud Ground homeowners, one-third community partners, and one-third community stakeholders within its service area. Additionally, Proud Ground maintains a Board of at least 50% people of color.















Advisory Board
Adam Davis, DHM Research
Paul Del Vecchio, Ethos Development
Mary Edmeades, Beneficial State Bank
Ben Kaiser, Kaiser Group
Fara Laners, Fidelity National Title
Juan Muros, Umpqua Bank
Shoshana Oppenheim
Neal Sacon, SkyBlue Center for Community Development LLC
Annie Rose Shapero, Portlandia Properties
Affiliations are listed for informational purposes only