We’re excited to introduce the Base Building Grant grantmaking panel, SJF community members who will review applications, meet with prospective Base Building Grant grantees, and democratically select the final awardees. We love how deep our panelist’s roots go: we’ve got representatives of grantee organizations, artists, educators, and organizers. Their expertise and perspectives are vital to keeping our work grounded in community!

Meet the Base Building Grant panel

Daysi Bedolla Sotelo (she/her) | Organizing Director, Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN)

Originally from Michoacan, Mexico, Daysi migrated to Oregon in 2006 and since then considers Oregon her home away from home. As a first generation DACA student, Daysi has advocated for BIPOC students while at Eastern Oregon University where she graduated in 2019 with two Bachelors Degrees. Daysi’s passion to advocate and empower community is what led her to Pineros y Campesinos del Noroeste (PCUN) where she currently serves as the Organizing Director working directly with farmworkers and Latinx working families. The pandemic has brought many challenges along the way but she is grateful to be able to help her community during these times. When she is not working she enjoys watching TV series, playing tennis, and cooking.

What does grassroots base building mean to you? “Grassroots base building means we are centering the voices of those we serve, that there is representation at all levels of our society and barriers are removed so our communities can be empowered to thrive in any environment.”

Joy Alise Davis (she/her) | Executive Director, Imagine Black

Hailing from Cincinnati, Joy graduated from Miami University with a BA in Political Science, and from Parsons School of Design with an MA in Theories of Urban Practice. She is the founder of the award-winning firm, Design + Culture Lab, and is an Assistant Professor at Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA). Currently, Joy Alise serves as the Executive Director Imagine Black, where she works to help our Black community imagine the alternatives they deserve and build political participation to achieve those alternatives. When she is not winning awards, Joy enjoys spending time with her two loves: Emmy-nominated husband Rob, and her whippet rescue, Trudy.

What does grassroots base building mean to you? “Simply put: liberation is, and always has been, the work of the collective. Grassroots base building allows us to bring people together to use their collective power to improve their lives and challenge the power structure.”

Mija (they/them) | Educator. Organizer. Whore.

Mija is a sex farmer and sexual savant who has been working in sex and identity realms for 20+ years. They offer workshops in HIV/STD prevention and education, gender and sexuality, polyamory and non monogamous relationships. They help curious people struggling with gender and sexuality cultivate personal personal value and joy by making acceptance and pleasure #1.

Mija is motivated by their mistakes and by Indigenous brilliance. They fight for accountability and liberation, resisting notions that colonial ideals, beliefs, and practices are superior. Mija rejects a gender binary that confines bodies and identities to toxic policies and posturing. Mija believes that everyone has a right to their personal autonomy and that sexual liberation is a key component for personal and global harmony.

Mija has presented in person and online at secondary schools, universities, retirement communities, centers for teen parents, youth groups, community organizations, Indigenous gatherings, the Sexplanations Youtube channel and podcast, as well as regional and national conferences and organizations like Creating Change, Sex Down South, Plume, and Twitter. You can find Mija on Facebook as Dandilion Cloverdale or on Instagram @thelovingwarrior.

What does grassroots base building mean to you? “Grassroots base building to me is all about nurturing environments for great seed planting, growth, and development. It’s setting upt he garden in good ways that allow things to grow how they do and in supported ways.”

Monserrat Padilla (she/her) | Program Officer, Satterberg Foundation

Monserrat joined the Satterberg Foundation in July 2021 as a Program Officer. Prior to joining Satterberg, Monserrat was the Director of the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network, a multiracial, multilingual, and multi-faith statewide coalition that came together due to the 2016 elections to protect immigrant rights. Monserrat has worked at the state and national level for over 12 years building the capacity of grassroots organizations through programs and advocacy campaigns to foster community development for LGBTQ+ individuals, immigrants, and people of color. Under Covid-19, Monserrat mustered state policy wins that brought economic relief for Washington state undocumented immigrant residents that provided direct cash assistance, legal support, and access to healthcare. Monserrat grew up undocumented in the United States since the age of two and is a beneficiary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), an executive program under the Obama Administration for which she helped shape blueprint policy.

What does grassroots base building mean to you? “Grassroots base building is the act of courage when our material conditions oppress our livelihood and where our liberation from that oppression is bound to community.”

Taffy Johnson (she/her) | Executive Director, United Territories of Pacific Islanders Alliance – Washington

Taffy is unapologetically Fa’afafine and a trans woman from Sāmoa. She is a queer and trans activist and community organizer. Taffy is the founder and Executive Director of United Territories of Pacific Islanders Alliance – Washington (UTOPIA WA). She has worked in the movement for LGBTQ rights and equality for over 10 years. Taffy has been a resource, refuge, and support to many Fa’afafine and Pasifika individuals who are making the long trek to the Pacific Northwest in search of better opportunities.

What does grassroots base building mean to you? “Developing the collective strength and leadership of communities to address injustices and set up new approaches to organizing specifically in underrepresented communities.”

Wesley Frugé (he/him) | Development & Communications Director at Intiman Theatre

Wesley Frugé is a director, producer, marketer, fundraiser, and event planner. He currently serves as the Development & Communications Director at Intiman Theatre, and he is the co-founder and Executive Director of BeautyBoiz. In addition, he is the founder and Artistic Director of Forward Flux Productions and the founding artistic advisor of The Grief Dialogues. He has experience working in the corporate sector (Ralph Lauren), social impact strategy (williamsworks), non-profits (Casey Family Programs, Treehouse, Forward Flux), and government (Washington State Department of Transportation). He has worked with clients ranging from Eastern Congo Initiative, the Schultz Family Foundation, Hillary Clinton, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and more. He is a member of the steering committee for the Capitol Hill Arts District, and he holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Sam Houston State University.

What does grassroots base building mean to you? “Grassroots base building allows the direction and work of the organization to be set by the community being served. What better way to deepen impact than to expand the voices at the table!”

Also included in this panel is Magan Do, former SJF Grantmaking Director and a longtime member of our community. We send our heartfelt appreciation to all the panelists!