Staff
Lisa Abbott
Organizing Director
A KFTC organizer in Eastern Kentucky for five years, Lisa became the Leadership Development coordinator in 1997. She received a Master’s Degree in Public Policy with an emphasis in Leadership Development from the University of Maryland in 2001. Lisa returned to KFTC in 2002 as the Director of Organizing and Leadership Development. She lives in Berea with her husband Justin and two boys, Myles and Hollis.
Beth Bissmeyer
Madison County and Wilderness Trace Organizer
Beth joined KFTC's staff at the start of 2013 and works with our Madison County and Wilderness Trace chapters. She grew up in Louisville's South End, on the same street her parents lived as children, and earned her B.A. in English from Berea College. Before joining KFTC's staff, Beth was an active KFTC member and has previously worked as an organizer for a youth environmental organization and for a congressional campaign. Beth now lives in Berea with her partner, Tony, and enjoys hiking, reading, watching PBS, general silliness, and spending time with loved ones.
Teri Blanton
Canary Fellow
A long-time KFTC leader, Teri became the first KFTC Fellow in August 2007. Her work focuses on building a strong Canary Project Leadership Network on the range of KFTC coal and energy issues. Teri is from Harlan County and has served in numerous KFTC leadership positions, including chairperson in 2003-04. She is the mother of two grown children and the grandmother of three. She lives in Berea.
Denney Breeding
Southern Kentucky Organizer
Denney joined the KFTC staff in January 2013 as an organizer in Bowling Green's Southern KY chapter. She grew up in Letcher County before attending Lindsey Wilson College and Western Kentucky University. Denney has over 15 years of experience in working with children and families across Kentucky in areas of advocacy, prevention, training, and education in an effort to strengthen communities.
Morgan Brown
Administrative Assistant
Morgan was hired in July 2009 as our first full-time Administrative Assistant. She was born, raised, and still lives in Barbourville, surrounded by her extended family. Morgan spends her free time with her daughter Kerigan, and husband David. She works out of our London office.
Tim Buckingham
Communications Associate
Tim joined the staff in March of 2007, filling the position of Communications associate. He lives in Lexington with Amy, his wife, two dogs Ellie Mae and Michael, his daughter Joleigh, and his son Hagan. He is bicycle advocacy nut, a homebrew brewmeister, and a tri-athlete. Tim has a MA in critical media studies from the University of Kentucky and works out of the Lexington office. Tim is a founding member of the Broke Spoke Community Bike Shop in Lexington. thebrokespoke.org.
Robin Daugherty
Office Manager
Robin was welcomed to the KFTC staff team in June 2006 as office manager. Originally from East Tennessee, Robin has lived in Kentucky for 10 years, currently just outside of London with a very special weimaraner named Lucy and five cats. Robin has a Bachelor's degree in business management from the University of Tennessee and brings more than 20 years of experience and training in office management, specialized administrative skills and community service.
Joe Gallenstein
Northern Kentucky Organizer
I have been blessed to work for Kentuckians for the Commonwealth in Northern Kentucky since 2010. If you share our commitment to justice and a desire for a strong democracy then please join us at an upcoming KFTC event!
Jessica George
Development Director
Jessica is our Development Director and is responsible for organizing our grassroots fundraising efforts. A native of Louisville, she received a degree in sociology from Antioch College. Jess has a background in non-profit housing issues and social justice organizing.
Jerry Hardt
Communications Director
Jerry is KFTC’s Communications Director. He has worked with KFTC for 30 years in various roles, including balancing the scales editor, media coordinator and occasional financial manager! He lives in Louisville.
Jessica Hays Lucas
Economic Justice Organizer
Jessica became KFTC's Tax and Economic Justice Organizer in September 2006. She grew up in south-central Kentucky, graduated from the University of Kentucky, and moved away for a time for school. She got involved with KFTC in 2004 when she moved back to Kentucky. Jess lives in Lexington with her husband Shawn, their sons, and too many animals. Jess helps build statewide support for fair and adequate tax reform, helps local chapters with economic justice work, and is the Deputy Organizing Director for Leadership Development, focusing on the New Power Leader Program.
Amy Hogg
Program Associate
Amy joined KFTC’s staff team in 2008. As Program Associate, she works with fundraising, communications and administration. She's originally from Letcher County and now lives in Berea with her husband, Mike, and their daughters, Ellie and Claire. When she’s not writing, Amy enjoys watching her daughters on the stage and on the soccer field. Her first book, a novel for children called Callie Rose, was published in 2012.
Beth Howard
Central Kentucky Organizer
Beth Howard is the new organizer working with the Central Kentucky Chapter of KFTC. Beth grew up in West Liberty (Morgan County). She is a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University with a Master’s in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing. Beth served for five years as a lead organizer with a grassroots organization in Daytona Beach, Florida called Fighting Against Injustice Toward Harmony (FAITH). She returned to Kentucky in 2011 and worked as a case manager facilitating classes in parenting, job coaching, and interpersonal skills for a multi-county program based in West Liberty. Beth is a student and teacher of yoga, she is rarely ever without a book, and lives in Lexington with her dog Sandy.
Erik Hungerbuhler
Website Manager/E-Organizer
Erik is our Website Manager/E-Organizer. He grew up in Corbin and is a graduate of the University of Kentucky. He was involved with KFTC in a number of different roles as a member before joining the staff and is excited about integrating the website and social mediainto our organizing strategy. He currently lives in Lexington with his wife and daughter. He spends some of his free time geeking out on sci-fi, playing board games, and helping at his wife's yarn store, Rebelle. He is an accomplished knitter and always willing to teach others.
Alicia Hurle
Jefferson County Organizer
Alicia is originally from Louisville and holds a Master of Public Administration from the University of Louisville with a concentration in Non-Profit Management and a Graduate Certificate in Pan-African Studies. On her free time, Alicia enjoys running, cycling, hiking, watching indie films, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.
Enchanta Jackson
Deputy Director for Voter Empowerment
Enchanta joined the KFTC staff team in March 2014 as the Deputy Organizing Director for Voter Empowerment. A Lexington, KY native, she is returning to the Bluegrass State from Pennsylvania by way of Washington, DC; where she worked as an organizer on several campaigns. Enchanta finds liberation through philanthropy, laughter, reading, running, blogging, traveling and spending time with family and friends. She received a dual Bachelor's degree in African-American Studies and Women's Studies from Berea College.
Burt Lauderdale
Executive Director
Burt is our Executive Director. He is a graduate of Auburn University and has been with KFTC since 1983. His responsibilities include leadership identification and development, campaign development, organizer training, strategy development and fundraising.
Carissa Lenfert
Deputy Organizing Director
Carissa grew up in southern Indiana and joined the KFTC staff team in 2008. She has a bachelor's degree from Ball State University and a Master's degree in Public Administration from George Mason University. She previously worked as a grassroots organizer for Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement where she focused on organizing family farmers and rural residents. She lives in Louisville with her husband and little boy. She enjoys spending time telling bad jokes, learning how to prepare new recipes in the kitchen, and playing with her family.
Sara Pennington
Renew East Kentucky Organizer
Sara joined KFTC's staff in April 2009 as a New Power Campaign Organizer, working to reform Kentucky's rural electric cooperatives and move them toward more energy efficiency and clean energy. Originally from West Virginia, she now lives in Berea. Sara holds a Ph.D. in creative writing from Florida State University and is working on publishing her first book of poetry.
Kevin Pentz
Canary Project Organizer
Kevin is the Canary Project organizer. After working as an organizing intern with KFTC in 1996, he moved west to work with an organizing group in Montana. He returned to KFTC as an organizer in 1999. He has a degree in Environmental Science from Saint Lawrence University.
Heather Roe Mahoney
Deputy Director
Heather grew up on a farm in Lewis County, Kentucky and graduated from the University of Louisville more years ago than she'd like to admit. She came to KFTC in 2005 after working for seven years at Democracy Resource Center, first as project coordinator, then as co-director. She works closely with the Executive Director, helps with foundation fundraising, provides administrative oversight for KFTC, and staffs several of our leadership teams including the Steering Committee, Executive Committee, and Finance Committee. She lives in Lexington with her son, Kaden.
Jessie Skaggs
Perry County Organizer
Jessie is working as the organizer for the Perry County chapter, especially around water testing and public health. She is a graduate of the University of Louisville with a degree in graphic design and worked in that field for four years. She holds a Master's Degree in Public Affairs from Indiana University, with an emphasis on sustainable development. Jessie lives in Johnson County and enjoys cooking, gardening, and shopping for books.
Tanya Turner
Southeastern Kentucky Organizer
An EKU grad from Bell County, Tanya has been organizing with KFTC since 2010 in southeast Kentucky. She recently served two years on the Advisory Committee for Highlander's Seeds of Fire program and continues to engage with Southern organizing through Highlander. Tanya is a part of The STAY (Stay Together Appalachian Youth) Project and now serves on the board of the Appalachian Community Fund. She likes to swim and dance and cook and tell tales.