About Us

A third-generation Central Oregonian, Nicolle Timm-Branch is the Founder and Executive Director of Central Oregon Locavore, a nonprofit she established in 2009. Under her leadership, Locavore operates a variety of educational programs that champion local food and farmers for the well-being of individuals, the community, and the planet. The centerpiece is a year-round indoor marketplace offering local produce and products, and accepting SNAP/EBT, Oregon Farm Direct Vouchers, and Double Up Food Bucks. Nicolle also works as a full-time nurse at St. Charles Family Birthing Center, where she supports families with care and expertise.

Amanda Bedell is a seasoned entrepreneur who understands the transformative power of food-based businesses and the critical role of financial management in driving profitability. After successfully building a bakery from scratch in Seattle, Amanda gained firsthand insight into the unique challenges and opportunities within the food and retail industries. Known as the “Business Chaos Sorter,” Amanda empowers business owners to understand their numbers, make financially sound decisions, and optimize their operations for lasting profitability—without getting bogged down by overwhelm.

Caleb Thompson moved to Central Oregon from western Illinois to pursue a career as a small scale organic vegetable farmer with his wife Ashley. Together they operate Sungrounded Farm in Terrebonne since 2019, and strive to provide the Central Oregon community with high quality local produce year round. Caleb has a passion for the outdoors, served in the Peace Corps, and received a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts from Knox College.

Dr. Anthony Gustin is a trained functional medicine clinician, entrepreneur, and amateur farmer, dedicated to optimizing human health. After earning a Doctorate in Chiropractic (D.C.) and a Master’s in Sports Rehab (M.S.) to work with elite athletes, he founded a successful clinic in San Francisco that expanded to six locations. He now operates several health and wellness brands, including Equip Foods, Lineage Provisions, and Rooted Local, and hosts “The Natural State” podcast, where he explores how to recreate natural environments for humans to thrive.

Originally from San Diego, California, Dan moved to Bend, Oregon in 2023 with his spouse of 45 years, Donna, to enjoy the vibrant Central Oregon lifestyle. After a successful career as a Certified Public Accountant, and a partner in a forensic accounting firm specializing in business valuation and economic damage analysis, Dan retired in 2023. Dan served on the boards of several non-profits, such as Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego and the California Surf Museum and now volunteers on the Deschutes County Facility Project Review Committee.

With over 25 years of hands-on experience in Sales & Marketing and Operations within the real estate, hospitality and event industries. Over the past 15 years, I have served as a consultant and business developer, offering my expertise to diverse real estate industry companies, large scale community events with sponsorship, mixed-use development projects in Oregon, Washington, Texas, and Panama. My consultancy work spans diverse aspects such as family legacy brand design/operations, team business development, strategic partnerships, event production, sales entity organization, branding, integrated marketing organizational/operational design, coaching, recruiting, forecasting, analytics/reporting and long term, sustainable business modeling.

Jeff is adept at helping companies identify opportunities for financial and operational improvement. He is able to rapidly synthesize and interpret confusing and conflicting financial data into useful and meaningful information and then communicate that information to numerous constituents, including boards of directors, management, lenders, investors, shareholders and employees. With a strong financial accounting background and hands on technical expertise Jeff has led a variety of businesses through operating and financial challenges, from bankruptcy proceedings or tough refinancing situations to pursuing and implementing business development start ups.

Jeff and his wife, Linda, own and operate DD Ranch in Terrebonne.