City of Good, a Boise-based non-profit that launched in 2020 to address food insecurity among Boise children, is excited to announce Britt Udesen as its first executive director. Britt returns home to Boise after spending the past six years in Minneapolis where she served as executive and artistic director at The Loft, one of our nation’s leading independent literary centers, and most notably launched Wordplay, Minnesota’s largest celebration of readers, writers, and great books. Before leaving Idaho to lead The Loft, Britt served as executive director at The Cabin in Boise and director of education and humanities at the Sun Valley Museum.
“What excited me about this opportunity most was the mission but also the incredible leadership shown by this board and their COO, Cathy Knipe. Good ideas only succeed when matched with a clear vision and hard work. I’m incredibly lucky to be stepping into the role knowing that the organization has been thoughtfully built, well managed, and ready for the next phase.” Udesen will bring her past nonprofit experience to bear at City of Good, including her experience in creating new programs and building grassroots support for mission-driven organizations.
City of Good co-founder and board president, Dave Krick, had this to say about Udesen: “We are incredibly excited to welcome Britt to our organization, not just because of her breadth and depth of experience in the nonprofit sector, but because her past involvements show great synergy with the mission of City of Good, something that will only continue to benefit the Boise community.” Krick is known for his successful career in the restaurant industry and is the partner-owner of long-standing Boise establishments Bittercreek Alehouse, Diablo & Sons and Red Feather Lounge.
Knipe, formerly the founding Sponsor Liaison for Treefort Music Fest, will continue her work with the organization where she has served as COO for the past year. “I’m thrilled to welcome Britt to City of Good. It’s been an incredible experience to help lead this burgeoning organization and I’m looking forward to all that we can accomplish together with Britt in the driver’s seat.”
City of Good, through the development of their signature Weekend Fuel Kits, unites local restaurants and growers to address food insecurity among school-aged children in Boise. Partner restaurants are employed by City of Good to create nourishing meals for hungry children every weekend when school meal services are unavailable. Having just celebrated its one-year anniversary, City of Good has created over 44,000 meals for hungry children in the Boise School District since beginning the food program in June 2020. The framework has been made possible and supported over the past year by hundreds of donors and volunteers, a working board of directors, and the culinary teams from roughly eight local Boise restaurants.
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About City of Good
City of Good’s mission is to mobilize the Boise community to build a “Circle of Good” that empowers socially committed leaders and businesses to create a prosperous future for all. City of Good works with the Boise School District and Interfaith Sanctuary to identify children in need of food support. Fuel Kits containing six meals each are distributed every Friday to social workers within the school system who ensure the meals reach the kids and their families. During the pandemic, Fuel Kit production helped keep culinary workers employed while filling the food gap for children forced to stay home. Learn more about City of Good: www.cityofgood.com
About Britt Udesen:
Britt Udesen served as Executive and Artistic Director at The Loft, one of our nation’s leading independent literary centers, and most notably launching Wordplay, Minnesota’s largest celebration of readers, writers, and great books. Before leading The Loft, Britt served as Director of Education and Humanities at the Sun Valley Museum, and Executive Director at The Cabin in Boise.
About Cathy Knipe:
Cathy Knipe is the Chief Operating Officer for City of Good, a socially-minded 501c3 collective focused on finding solutions to and resiliency against some of Boise’s most timely problems. Prior, she was the founding Sponsor Liaison for Treefort Music Fest, a certified B Corp and one of the largest and most diverse independent music, arts, and culture festivals in the pacific northwest. She was born and raised in Boise and continues to work for the betterment of the city through active volunteerism and community-building experiences. She and her husband, Quentin, are proud to raise their three daughters as 5th generation Boiseans.
About Dave Krick:
Dave Krick is a founding partner in Bittercreek Alehouse, Diablo & Sons and Red Feather Lounge, restaurants with a focus on products from our local food system. Along with the restaurant businesses, Dave is active in our local non-profit community; he currently serves as board President for City of Good and FARE Idaho (an advocacy group for Idaho’s small-scale independent restaurants, farms, food and beverage businesses) and is a community board member for The Boise Farmers Market.