Heather Paquette

President

• hpaquette@gsfb.org
• She/Her

Heather Paquette is guided by her unwavering leadership purpose – Always Press Forward, Always Give Back. As the President of Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine, she leads a dedicated team of hunger-relief professionals to address the root causes of hunger by exploring innovative solutions, sourcing nutritious and culturally relevant food, and collaborating with a network of over 600 partnerships across Maine.
Heather’s professional history reflects her commitment to innovation. Before joining the Food Bank, she played a pivotal role at Ahold Delhaize, where she led a team focused on addressing the changing needs of retail consumers and store associates during the industries’ evolution and omnichannel ambitions. Her team sourced, tested, and delivered innovative solutions to enhance the consumer experience for the five brands under the Ahold Delhaize brand umbrella.
As a University of Southern Maine graduate with a degree in Business Finance, Heather began her career with Hannaford Supermarkets in 1999 as a Retail Management Training (RMT) program participant. During her 22 years with the company, her roles spanned from Assistant Store Manager to Vice President Retail Operations for Maine and New Hampshire, demonstrating her versatility and dedication to the brand.
Throughout her career, Heather took on diverse responsibilities, including marketing and brand management, leading cross-functional teams, and redefining operating models. Her final role at Hannaford was as Vice President of Retail Services, overseeing critical support functions such as payroll, asset protection, pharmacy, retail communications, and operations support.
Beyond her professional endeavors, Heather is deeply involved in community service. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine and co-chaired the United Way Tocqueville campaign. Heather also served as the board chair for the Maine March of Dimes Chapter from 2017 to 2019 and as a board member for 11 years.
Her contributions have not gone unnoticed. She was recognized in the Griffin Report’s “Women of Influence in the Supermarket Industry” in 2021 and again in 2017, and she was named in their “40 under 40” in 2016. As a graduate of the NEW Executive Institute 2015-2016 program, Heather has keynoted at the UNE Health Majors’ Leadership Conference and participated in panels for organizations like the Network of Executive Women, the National Diversity Council, and the University of Southern Maine.
Heather Paquette resides in Maine with her husband, Brian, and their two children. Beyond her professional commitments, she enjoys running and supporting her busy kids’ activities, including participating in a unique unicycling group!

Shannon Coffin

Community Partnerships Officer

• scoffin@gsfb.org
• She/Her

Shannon Coffin, vice president of community partnerships, joined Good Shepherd Food Bank in 2010 and launched the first Youth & Families Initiatives partnerships in 2011. Under her leadership from 2011 to 2019, Youth & Families Initiatives grew from reaching 40 children in one school to over 5,000 families in over 150 schools. From November 2019 to August 2020, Shannon served as Good Shepherd Food Bank’s Director of Community Partnerships, helping to lead the transition of our Community Resources team. She grew the team from four Field Representatives focused on agency compliance to seven Community Resource Representatives, building agency capacity and managing relationships with local retail donors through increased partner engagement.

Shannon is a part of Full Plates Full Potentials Leadership Council and has served as Chair for both their Child & Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program committees. She is also very active in the national Feeding America network. Most recently, she was selected to be a part of Feeding America’s first Equitable Access Innovation Cohort. In the past, she has provided support to peers across the country as a Child Hunger Capacity Adviser and as a Child Hunger Corps Supervisor.

Prior to working at Good Shepherd Food Bank, Shannon was Marketing & Events Coordinator for Green Tree Event Consultants in Falmouth, Maine, from 2006 to 2010. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from St. Joseph’s College of Maine in 2007 with a Bachelor’s in Public Relations and Advertising. Outside of work, Shannon is the mother of endlessly energetic twins, and loves to garden and kayak.

George Fox

Chief Supply Chain Officer

• gfox@gsfb.org

George Fox joined Good Shepherd Food Bank as Vice President of Supply Chain in 2020. He is responsible for helping the Food Bank grow its capacity to feed food-insecure Mainers.

Prior to joining Good Shepherd, Fox held engineering and operational leadership roles at L.L.Bean for over 20 years and received a B.S. from the University of Maine in Forestry, an MBA from New Hampshire College, and MS from the University of Southern Maine in Manufacturing Systems. He lives with his wife and teenage son in Gorham.

Nicole Nadeau

Chief People Officer

• nnadeau@gsfb.org
• She/Her

Nicole Nadeau, vice president of people and culture, joined Good Shepherd Food Bank in February 2010. Nadeau nurtures a high-engagement culture throughout the Food Bank’s statewide workforce that supports talent development, fosters employee wellbeing, and positions the organization to meet its short- and long-term goals. Her work is grounded in building meaningful relationships and delivering a great employee and volunteer experience. She is fascinated by learning about the energy and joy within everyone. General Mills previously employed Nadeau in Scottsdale, Arizona. While at General Mills, she was approached by St. Mary’s Food Bank to host a volunteer group and donate cereal to the food bank. On her first experience with any food bank, she was captivated by the work the Food Bank was doing and fell in love with the spirit and essence of community support and helping others. Five years later, Nadeau moved to Maine and was excited to see an opportunity as a gift processor at Good Shepherd Food Bank. After a year in the gift processing role, she moved into the Human Resources department. Nadeau is a volunteer working with incarcerated women in recovery as they prepare to return to their community. She offers mentorship and group support sessions at the women’s facility in Windham, Maine. She is an avid reader, explorer, and learner. She raises her three children to lead with kindness, compassion, and awareness.

Bryan O’Connor

Chief Financial Officer and Chief of Staff

• boconnor@gsfb.org
• He/Him

Bryan O’Connor is Chief Financial Officer at Good Shepherd Food Bank, overseeing the accounting, technology, and risk management functions.

A Certified Management Accountant, Bryan has over 20 years of experience in accounting and leadership roles. Before joining the Food Bank in 2015, he served as Vice President of Finance at United Way of Greater Portland.

A graduate of Bentley University, Bryan is a father of two, a self-published author, and a Little League baseball coach.

Amy Sassi

Vice President of Public Policy

• asassi@gsfb.org
• She/Her

Amy Sassi, vice president of public policy and research, joined the Food Bank in December 2019. Her work includes state and federal advocacy, working with partner agencies to utilize research tools to assess the impact of our work, and engaging our Board, donors, volunteers, community, and those who have lived experience of hunger in grassroots advocacy. Sassi’s work is grounded in building relationships with elected officials and staff on all sides of the political aisle. You can find her in Augusta, DC and on the road throughout Maine.

Sassi was previously employed by AARP Maine as the advocacy director and built the successful Tuesdays at the State House constituent engagement program. She began her career at Preble Street, a social services organization in Portland, Maine, and oversaw the Maine Hunger Initiative, Healthcare Outreach to Veterans, and Homeless Voices for Justice.

Sassi is a volunteer with The Prouty, the Eastern Trail Alliance, and is a board member of Portland Ovations. She cares deeply about the “New Mainer” community and organized the 2019 Welcome Picnic for 300+ asylum seekers. Sassi grew up in Buxton and is a proud graduate of Catherine McAuley High School. She graduated from Saint Anselm College with a BA in Politics, New York University with an MS in International Development.

Meg Taft

Vice President of Equity and Impact

• mtaft@gsfb.org
• She/Her

Meg Taft joined Good Shepherd Food Bank in 2018 as the advocacy and community organizing manager. In this role, she responded to the strategic priority of centering the voices of those most impacted by hunger in the Food Bank’s work and decision-making. In 2019, alongside many community partners, Meg supported the Building Advocates Leadership Program (BALP) launch, a program designed to center and uplift the voices of food-insecure Mainers in a statewide movement to end hunger. In 2021, the evolving work and priorities of the Food Bank culminated in a deepening commitment to understanding the racial and economic disparities underlying hunger. Meg accepted the director of equity, diversity, and inclusion position, now the vice president of equity and impact. She has a deep background and professional experience leading equity and diversity work. In this role, Meg works closely with the Equity and Impact Team and her colleagues across the Food Bank to envision a more just and equitable food system in Maine. Outside of her work with Good Shepherd Food Bank, Meg co-founded Twin Villages Foodbank Farm alongside her partner, Sara, and their daughter, Adley. Meg previously owned and operated Seed by Seed Farm and supported the start-up of an immigrant growers’ cooperative in Madison, Wisconsin. She has an M.Ed in Diversity and Social Justice from the University of Massachusetts, focusing on food access and security.