Board Of Directors

Felicia Tripp-Folsom, Board Chair, Executive Committee

Deputy Director, Portland Housing Center

Felicia Tripp-Folsom is the Deputy Director of the Portland Housing Center (PHC), a NeighborWorks homeownership center, and graduate of the Achieving Excellence Program at Harvard’s Kennedy School. She previously worked at the Emergence Foundation before joining PHC in 2000. In her professional life, she is busy working on issues involving, affordable housing, social justice, healthcare and educational reform. Currently Ms. Tripp-Folsom sits on the board of directors of Altair School, Children First for Oregon, Innovative Changes, and North/NE Business Alliance. When she is not busy serving the community, she is a carpooling mom of two very busy children. She holds degrees in English and History from Reed College.

Olga Acuña, Board Treasurer, Finance Committee Chair

Director of Federal Programs, Hillsboro School District

Olga served on the Hillsboro City Council from 2007 to 2016. She was Assistant Principal at Hillsboro High for 7 years, and currently serves as the Director of Federal Programs for Hillsboro School District. Among her many responsibilities, she oversees federal funding related to homeless students, and truly appreciates the role that stable housing plays in student success. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Liberal Arts/Spanish from Oregon State University, and a Master of Arts Degree in Special Education from Portland State University. She is currently working on a PhD in Educational Administration at Lewis & Clark College.

Rob Drake, Board Secretary, Executive Committee

City Manager, Cornelius, Oregon

Rob Drake has served as the City Manager of Cornelius since 2012. Prior to that, he served as the Mayor of Beaverton for 16 years, managing a staff of about 500. During that time, he served as president of the League of Oregon Cities. Prior to his public service, he spent 17 years in key sales and senior management positions with Oregon food and beverage wholesalers. He volunteers on a number of local boards and committees, including: Beaverton School District (Audit Committee), and PSU/Portland Metropolitan Studies Institute. He has also served on committees such as the Tualatin Hills Parks and Recreation District Bond Oversight Committee. Rob has also worked as a strategic consultant to local jurisdictions, and served as interim city manager for two small Oregon cities.

Adolph “Val” Valfre, Jr., Past Board Chair, Executive Committee

City Councilor, City of Forest Grove, Oregon

Val was the Executive Director of the Housing Authority of Washington County and Director of the Washington County Department of Housing Services for nearly a decade. He has almost 20 years of experience leading housing and community development efforts, 14 years with Washington County’s Housing Authority, and 6 years with other agencies. Val worked closely with community partners to create Washington County’s 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness, and has fostered housing initiatives to preserve and expand the County’s portfolio of public and affordable housing. In addition to serving as Board Chair for CHF, he serves as Chair of Oregon’s Housing Stability Council. Val is a past President of the Oregon Housing Authorities Association and was a member of the Washington/Multnomah County Workforce Investment Development Board. He is a former Air Force pilot and veteran of the Vietnam conflict. He earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Bacteriology from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), and Master of Arts Degrees in Public Administration, Business Management, and Human Resources Management from Golden Gate University, Salve Regina College, and Troy State University, respectively.

Renée Bruce, Finance Committee

Executive Director, Community Action

Renee became the Executive Director of Community Action in 2015, after 25 years with the agency, 15 as the Director of Family and Community Resources. She is an accomplished advocate, and serves on a variety of boards and commissions. In addition to the Community Housing Fund, these include: NW Regional Education Service District, CASH Oregon, Washington County Early Learning Steering Committee and Washington County Thrives Steering Committee. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Child Development and Teaching from Michigan State University.

Amanda Garcia-Snell, Finance Committee

Community Engagement Manager, Washington County

Amanda Garcia-Snell is Washington County’s Community Engagement Manager. She has a passion for relationship building and collaboration. She has been working in partnership with communities on a broad range of activities for the past 16 years. During her 10 years with Washington County she has held a variety of positions focused on equity and community partnerships. Prior to joining the County, Amanda held positions with Yamhill County, the Oregon Health Authority, and JLA Public Involvement. She also taught as adjunct faculty in the Chicano Latino Studies department of Portland State University. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Anthropology, a Master of Arts Degree in Public Health, and a certificate in Chicano Latino Studies from Portland State University. Originally from Northern Arizona, Amanda has lived in the Pacific Northwest for over 20 years. When not working she enjoys travelling, learning new things and having new experiences with her husband and young son. She is especially interested in history and loves an opportunity to see a good sunrise.

Peter Hainley, Finance Committee

Executive Director, Community and Shelter Assistance Corp. (CASA of Oregon)

Peter Hainley serves as the executive director at CASA of Oregon, where he has worked in a number of capacities since 1992. He leads 28 employees in helping other nonprofits and public agencies meet the needs of low-income families throughout Oregon, particularly rural farmworker housing, and asset and leadership development. CASA is the country’s largest network provider of Individual Development Accounts. CASA also assists with conversion of manufactured home parks to cooperative ownership, and is a CDFI lender. Prior to his work at CASA, Peter served in the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic. He holds a bachelor’s in Accounting from Portland State University.

Ron Lehr, Loan Committee Chair

Retired Director, Public Finance, KeyBanc Capital Markets Inc.

Dr. Ron Lehr recently retired after 25 years of public finance banking experience. He is a nationally recognized leader in the municipal arena specializing in housing finance. He has led over $1.5 billion in tax exempt bond issuance. He is the former CEO of the Alaska Housing Finance Commission and former Budget Director for that state. He earned his PhD in Economics from the University of Oregon, a bachelor’s in Mathematics from University of Alaska/Fairbanks, and bachelor’s and master’s in Economics from Washington State University.

Javier Mena

Affordable Housing Manager, City of Beaverton

Javier Mena is the City of Beaverton’s new Affordable Housing Manager. Born in Ecuador, he immigrated to Portland in 1982. He served in the Army for two years and graduated from Portland State University with a degree in Economics and a minor in International Studies. He has over 24 years of finance and policy experience in the private and public sectors. Over the past 12 years he has focused on the affordable housing continuum, from shelter to homeownership, keeping equity at the forefront of activities and initiatives. He currently serves on the Network for Oregon Affordable Housing (NOAH) board, and the Oregon Zoo Bond Oversight Committee. He loves the outdoors, is a soccer fanatic, and will root for any local team and against any Seattle team. He enjoys local theater, but not so much musicals.