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Kétlye Gurrola
Alumni and Donor Engagement Organizer
Kétlye is from Fayetteville, North Carolina, and graduated from East Carolina University with a bachelor's degree in Public Health in 2024. She first joined SAF through the Into the Fields Internship in 2024, where she deepened her commitment to farmworker justice. Passionate about health equity and uplifting farmworkers and all workers, Kétlye strives for justice and respect in workplaces and communities alike.
Pronouns: She/her/Ella919-360-4248
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Anna Jensen
Program Director
Anna has worked with farmworkers in North Carolina, as an outreach worker, and California, as a graduate student, researching heat stress and grape workers’ rights. She grew up in North Carolina, but her first experience with farmworkers was as a SAF intern in 2007. She was Executive Director of the NC Farmworkers’ Project before joining SAF as Program Director. She is excited to continue helping new generations of students connect with farmworkers and find their place in the movement.
Pronouns: She/her/ella919-884-7603
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Mari Juarez
Youth Organizing Director
Mari comes all the way Southern Idaho, and is from a farmworking family and community. Working at SAF is an opportunity to give back to the farmworker community. Mari is a SAF alumni and is very excited to connect with the community and families around!
Pronouns: She/her/ella919-433-7747
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Genesis Ramirez
Assistant Program Director
Genesis Ramirez is a proud Latina from Salemburg, North Carolina, and joins SAF as the Assistant Program Director for Into the Fields. She has a deep connection to SAF’s mission, having participated in the Levante Leadership program from 2021-2022 and the Solidaridad program from 2023-2024. A graduate of North Carolina State University, Genesis earned her bachelor's degree in Communication with a concentration in Public Relations and a minor in Spanish. With a passion for advocating for equity and supporting underserved communities, Genesis brings skills and dedication to the SAF team in 2025. Her academic journey, combined with her lived experiences, fuels her commitment to creating meaningful change.
Pronouns: She/her/Ella919-884-0895
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Dannette Sharpley
Operations Manager
Dannette grew up in Ohio and moved to North Carolina in 1992 to attend Duke University. She has worked as a labor organizer, on U.S. policy in Central and South America, and on Black land tenure. Dannette lives in Durham, North Carolina with her two children. She studies Black intellectual history in graduate school. She also loves yoga, baking bread, gardening, and nurturing her children’s passions and talents.
Pronouns: She/her/ella919-566-1913
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Teresa Vazquez
Grassroots Organizer
Teresa is from a small town in rural North Carolina which is largely sustained by agriculture. Since discovering what it means to be part of the farmworker justice movement as a SOL 2022-2023 intern, and later as an ITF 2023 health intern and ITF 2024 program assistant, she is interested in continuing to connect with the communities that have raised her. Currently, she is pursuing her Master of Public Health from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health with an expected graduation date of May 2026. Therefore, she is excited to be part of SAF as the Grassroots Organizer to use her skills in public health towards community organizing, advocacy, addressing social determinants of health, and deepening relationships with farmworkers.
Pronouns: She/her/Ella919-566-1898
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Sylvia Zapata
Executive Director
Sylvia is a third generation Texan, a Winston-Salem State University and La Joya High School graduate. She is a SAF ITF alumna with over 13 years of working in the government sector and is currently attending online classes to obtain a Master's in Public Health at UNC-Chapel Hill. As a former farmworker child, Sylvia is honored to be able to serve the farmworker community in this new role.
Pronouns: She/her/ella919-402-7684
