Who we are 

Megan Jacobsen

Board member: VP Sales and Marketing

What first connected you to Lanna Foundation/ITDF?
My journey with the Lanna Foundation began more than 12 years ago, sparked by a connection through my life group leader at the time and now fellow foundation board member Jessie Thiesen. This initial introduction to the organization and its mission proved to be a significant turning point, leading me to eventually serve in Thailand with ITDF in 2014.

What does the Lanna Foundation mean to you? What makes you passionate about being involved in the holistic end of poverty for the hill tribes?
The Lanna Foundation resonates deeply with me because it embodies a holistic approach to alleviating poverty among the northern hill tribes. What truly fuels my passion was witnessing the profound impact ITDF has on the lives of men, women, and children within these communities. Their commitment to sustainable, holistic agriculture aligns perfectly with my own values, and seeing the tangible difference they make in providing access to basic necessities, like clean water, is incredibly moving. We often take such privileges for granted in the USA, and being part of a mission that transforms entire communities, in partnership with my church, I believe has been a truly remarkable and humbling experience.

What do you hope for Lanna Foundation while you are a board member?  As a board member, deepest hope for the Lanna Foundation is to actively contribute to the positive transformation of the northern hill tribe’s lives. First and foremost, I want to be part of a movement that brings lasting, holistic change to these communities. On a personal level, I left a piece of my heart in Thailand when I served there in 2014-15. That experience was profoundly impactful, and the community changed me in ways I’ll never forget. It’s truly a privilege to have the opportunity to give back, to support the work that touched my own life so deeply. I hope to help ensure that Lanna Foundation continues to be a beacon of hope and empowerment for the hill tribes, fostering sustainable development and building on the strong foundation already established.

What would you like to say to the person reading this who is just starting to learn about the hill tribes in Northern Thailand and want to get involved?
If you’re just beginning to learn about the hill tribes of Northern Thailand and feel called to get involved, I would wholeheartedly encourage you to take that leap of faith. The desire to help is a powerful reason, and it’s often the first step towards making a real difference. Don’t hesitate to explore opportunities with organizations like the Lanna Foundation. You’ll find that even small actions can have a significant impact. Whether it’s through volunteering, donating, or simply spreading awareness, your involvement can contribute to positive change within these communities. Trust that if you feel called to this work, you have something valuable to offer, and your journey will be both meaningful and rewarding.

ERIC HANSON

Board President; Orthopedic Surgeon, Sierra Pacific Orthopedic Center

Why are you on the board? I am deeply committed to the vision and mission of Integrated Tribal Development Program. Lanna Foundation is a critical arm in raising awareness and support for the work of ITDP.

What do you hope to accomplish for the Lanna Foundation? My ultimate goal for Lanna Foundation is for it to have a broad self-sustaining base of support that lasts beyond me and the current board.

Favorite place you’ve traveled: MaOhJo, Thailand

What is one thing you want people to know about you? I grew up in Thailand until the age of 13.

DARLENE HANSON

Board Secretary: Retired RNBSN who still keeps her license active to serve in a medical capacity in Thailand

Why are you on the board?: Being on the board is my response to one of the ways God has called me to serve his kingdom. Helping the Hill Tribe people is what I think about almost every day!

What do you want to accomplish for the Lanna Foundation?: A long and sustainable organization that has the funds to further the work in Thailand with ITDP

What is your favorite place you’ve traveled? Besides Thailand, Belize

What’s one thing you want people to know about you? I love being a grandma almost as much as I love being a wife and mom!

DEBBIE TINGLEY

Director of Hands to Heart Women’s Co-Op; Board Member

Why are you on the board?: It is my genuine passion to support ITDF and the hill tribes in whatever ways are needed, while bringing my God given gifts to complement the Lanna Foundation Board to reach our goals, financially, physically and spiritually. My four years of experience serving alongside ITDF and villagers bring knowledge of the culture and changing needs of ITDF and the Hill Tribe.

What do you want to accomplish for the Lanna Foundation?:  Currently, I am spearheading the Women’s Cooperative Project in an effort to come alongside them through micro-loans and branding/marketing of artisan craft. Helping to  inspire and create more sustainability within the Cooperative Project members.

What is your favorite place you’ve traveled?  The Hill Tribe area of Northern Thailand

What’s one thing you want people to know about you? My genuine and committed desire and passion is to come alongside ITDF, Mike and Becky Mann and the villagers of the Hill Tribe areas; to continue to listen to what the needs of ITDF and the villagers are at hand and to work as a team on the Lanna Foundation Board to aid in accomplishing these goals.

KELLY MITCHINSON

Lanna Foundation Administrative Support Staff; Board Member

Business: Administrative Director- Lanna Coffee Co.

What do you want to accomplish for the foundation? I’m honored to work with such amazing people. My goal is to establish systems of operation that will better organize the Foundation and communicate the story of the hill tribes needs. I want to create ways for others to connect with us to make a difference.

Favorite place you’ve traveled? Sea of Galilee, North Shore, Oxford, Sierra Nevada Mountains, Ma Oh Jo, Tarifa.

What is one thing you want people to know about you? Puns and good food are my love language. I’m passionate about transformation and freedom.

JULIA CARDOZA

Board member: Safety & Health Consultant, Zenith Insurance Company

Why are you on the board? ITDF and the Northern Hill Tribes have been in my heart and prayers ever since my first missions trip to Thailand 5 years ago. Today, I am grateful to be a part of Lanna Foundation and support the amazing works of ITDF.

What do you want to accomplish for the foundation? My hope is to bring greater awareness to IDTF’s mission, the villages and the opportunities available to partner with the foundation in sponsoring the efforts of bring education, sustainable resources and medical supplies to the villages.

Favorite place you’ve traveled? I have been to the Northern Hill Tribes twice now and each time I fall more in love with the villagers, their culture and the breath taking views of the mountaintops.

What is one thing you want people to know about you? Growing up in a farming community, I have a deep passion for ag and animals. I find great joy with having a career within the agriculture industry here in the Central Valley.

JAMI FAGUNDES

Board Member: Alltech, Territory Sales Manager

Why are you on the board? I love the the work ITDF is doing! I have experienced first hand what Integrated Tribal Development Foundation is doing in Thailand and have seen how their efforts directly impact the villages of the Northern Hill Tribes. It is so humbling to see ITDF’s support of the villagers and their commitment to furthering their quality of life.

What do you want to accomplish for the foundation? It is such an honor to serve on this board. It is my hope that I can continue to serve the villagers state side by growing awareness and the financial means to further ITDF and their mission.

Favorite place you’ve traveled? I do not think any trip will ever top my first visit to Thailand back in 2014, but I am a bit of a beach goer and the island of Crete tops my travels thus far.

What is one thing you want people to know about you?I am a lover of animals and strong coffee.

JESSIE THIESEN

Board member: Teacher turned stay at home mom

Why are you on the board? I feel honored to be on this board and grateful my two trips to Thailand. I traveled to Thailand 8 years ago for my first missions trip with ITDF.  On that trip I fell in love with the people, culture, and their passion for life. The children in the village really captured my heart and I’m passionate about their education and well being.

What do you want to accomplish for the foundation? I want to bring awareness to this foundation, the villages and people it represents. So many amazing things are happening with ITDF in Thailand and I think people don’t understand how giving a little can really make such a huge difference in these villagers life.

Favorite place you’ve traveled? Traveling to Thailand for my first time  was by far the best trip of my life. We live in a country where everything is just a click away, but the villagers in Thailand have very little and yet are some of the happiest people I’ve ever met. They were so encouraging and uplifting!!

What is one thing you want people to know about you? One thing people might not know about me is that I met my husband on my first mission trip to Thailand, and on my second trip we announced we were pregnant with our first child. So Thailand holds a special place in my heart for many reasons!

Scott Carolan

Board member: Executive Pastor, Sanger Bible Church

What first connected you to Lanna Foundation/ITDF? I was first introduced to ITDF when I was on staff at The Well Community Church. I was asked to step in and help provide leadership to a global exposure trip team that was going to work in Ma oh jo. While we were there I was introduced to the amazing ITDF staff and was overwhelmed with the hospitality of the ITDF staff as well as the village we stayed in. On that first trip we were even invited in to attend a local wedding and have a meal with them to celebrate afterwards!

What does the Lanna Foundation mean to you? What makes you passionate about being involved in the holistic end of poverty for the hill tribes?  On my three trips to Thailand I have been able to see and work alongside the ITDF staff and the villagers with multiple projects including clean water, coffee, and education. We also have had the opportunity to pray with the staff and some of the villagers as they struggle to find a way out of poverty. I believe that the greatest thing we have to offer the hill tribes is hope. Hope for abundant clean water. Hope for a way to make a fair living and take care of their families. Hope for a bright future for their kids through education. But most importantly, Hope that God loves them and we love them
enough to come alongside them and help meet tangible needs as well as spiritual needs.

What do you hope for Lanna Foundation while you are a board member? As I come into the Lanna Foundation as a board member I simply hope to keep moving forward the good work that those before me have started and continue to do. I want to bring awareness to the needs of the Hill Tribes. I want to connect people with resources to those needs so that they can feel the joy of giving. I want to come alongside and invest in the ITDF staff in any way possible to encourage them. Most of all I simply want to serve and be a blessing in any way that I can.

What would you like to say to the person reading this who is just starting to learn
about the hill tribes in Northern Thailand and want to get involved? I would say that if you can go visit and serve you should go. Your life will never be the same. I would say that you can be confident that any resources that you choose to invest, your time, your talent, your money, will be invested in a way that create lasting and generational change and will have an eternal impact.

HannaH Brooks

Board member: Marketing and Business Development Executive

What first connected you to Lanna Foundation/ITDF? Debbie Tingley, Lanna’s Hands To Heart Director, and I have known each other for over thirty years. She introduced me to the amazing progress the Lanna Foundation, ITDF and the Hill Tribes have made to end poverty in Northern Thailand.

What does the Lanna Foundation mean to you? What makes you passionate about being involved in the holistic end of poverty for the Hill Tribes? While on my first trip to Southeast Asia, I fell in love with the people, but was deeply troubled by the level of poverty. When I returned home, I discovered Tabitha – a nonprofit that was making a significant difference in Cambodia through community development. Over a number of years, I utilized my marketing expertise to sell Tabitha handicrafts, fundraise and participated in house building. While Tabitha is now closed, I still feel a deep calling to serve in Southeast Asia and am honored to join the Lanna Foundation and ITDF’s mission.

What do you hope for Lanna Foundation while you are a board member? I look forward to substantially raising awareness of the amazing work the foundations are doing alongside the hill tribes and in turn increasing donations, expanding markets for the goods the tribes produce and attracting more volunteers.

What would you like to say to the person reading this who is just starting to learn about the hill tribes in Northern Thailand and want to get involved? Thank you so much for your interest in ending poverty for the Hill Tribes of Northern Thailand. The Lanna Foundation has opportunities for involvement no matter what season of your life you are in. We welcome assistance with building awareness of the work that we do, fundraising for our programs, purchasing handicrafts and volunteering for local events or on the ground in Thailand.

SARAH DAVIS

Staff, Accountant

Business: Controller – AYC Construction, Accountant – Lanna Coffee, Accountant – Neighborhood Industries

What do you want to accomplish for the foundation? Keep the books in good shape ?

Favorite place you’ve traveled? Bora Bora

What’s one thing you want people to know about you? I’m a very giving person and will do what it takes to make everyone happy.

SARAH SCIANNA

Marketing and Donor Relations

Along with doing Marketing for Lanna Foundation, I am pursuing further education in completing my Bachelors in Human Resource Management.

What do you want to accomplish for the foundation?
I hope to support Lanna Foundation’s mission by implementing personable and effective practices for engaging with our existing community of supporters, while also reaching new audiences through marketing and storytelling.

Favorite place you’ve traveled? Sogndal, Norway.

What’s one thing you want people to know about you? I love to take on new challenges and stretch myself. Because of that, I have worn many hats – from missionary to cosmetologist to EMT. 

RICHARD & JILLIAN MANN

Lanna Foundation Thailand Staff/Director of Coffee Operations, ITDF

Richard’s wife, Jillian, is an integral part in Lanna Cafe Thailand

Favorite place I’ve Traveled: Vietnam and  a village in the middle of nowhere that takes multiple days to get to.

What is one thing you want people to know about you: I judge travel destinations by food options

MATTHEW WEAVER

Advisory Council Member, CEO- Weaver & Associates Insurance Brokers

Business: Weaver & Associates Insurance Brokers

Why are you a part of the Lanna Foundation? To support the work of Mike and Becky

What do you want to accomplish for the foundation? Continue to bring living water to the Hill Tribes

Favorite place you’ve traveled? Villages in the rainy season

STEVE JENKINS

ITDF Missionary

Missions has been a part of my life since my college days back in 70’s.  I have experienced life changing growth in my faith as I have had the opportunity to serve alongside Missionary partners on Short Term Teams.  I first met Mike and Becky Mann in 1996 while serving with them and ITDF bringing clean water to a remote hilltribes village.  Over the past 29 years our partnership has continued and expanded.

I am now at a place in my life where the Lord is calling me to serve with the Mann’s and ITDF in a full-time volunteer capacity in Thailand.  The amazing work with the hilltribes has always held a very special place in my heart.  I have seen the importance of clean water, sustainable agriculture, education, medical resources combined with the hope of the Gospel that changes lives, families, villages and those who go to serve.  It is my honor to respond to the invitation to go and serve with ITDF.  My main responsibilities will be with Missions Teams, Volunteers’ and Eco Tourism while supporting the staff each and every step of the way. I am incredibly excited with this opportunity that will draw from my Christian journey serving at the local church level as a pastor and within Christian Higher Education.  At this stage in my journey, I am seeking partners who will become part of my prayer and financial support base. My hope would be to have my partnership base of “senders” in place so I can launch this October of 2025.  I am confident that God’s calling is His enabling. 

Living to serve, 

Steve