"Art is more than creativity—it is connection. By using art for community engagement, neighborhoods become more inclusive, empowered, and united. Art projects and programs strengthen civic identity, give voice to underrepresented groups, and foster both cultural and economic vitality."
East End Arts and Humanities Council
The Kalderra Team
Kalderra’s founding board is comprised of local residents including artists, gallery owners, and design professionals.
Rena Charles
Board Member
Owner and Artist, Rena Charles Gallery
Rena Charles is the proprietress of the Rena Charles Gallery, a contemporary art space devoted to visually stimulating works by fine artists and creative makers. Through thoughtful curations, dynamic conversations, and a spirit of delight, the gallery connects collectors with art that resonates on both personal and aesthetic levels.
Located in the aesthetically and culinary rich wine-country nexus of Healdsburg, California, the Rena Charles Gallery serves as a visual arts matchmaker- pairing the right work of art with the right collector. Its program is a synthesis of local and regional creatives, emerging artists, women artists, and BIPOC voices.
Rena Charles holds a Bachelor of Arts in Art History, with minors in Visual Art and Environmental Studies, from Emory University. Now based in Sonoma County, she curates with an eye toward amplifying diverse artistic voices and fostering meaningful relationships between artists, collectors, and place.
Jonathan Pearlman
Board President
Principal, Elevation Architects
Jonathan is the Design Principal of Elevation Architects, a 30-year-old firm based in Healdsburg with work in many Bay Area locations including Los Altos, San Francisco, and Sonoma County. Originally from the New York City area, he studied art history at Tufts University and earned his Master of Architecture from the University of Texas at Austin.
Moving to San Francisco in 1989, while working at a major architecture firm, he volunteered and subsequently, worked in the AIDS services community for over 10 years. He founded Elevation Architects in 1995 and moved its office to Healdsburg in 2014. In the late 1990’s, he served on the board of Philanthropy by Design, a service provider to non-profits, designed and built spaces for AIDS service providers, and from 2008 to 2015, was a volunteer Director of The Neutra House in Los Altos. He served on San Francisco’s Historic Preservation Commission from 2013 to 2021, and he currently serves on Healdsburg’s Planning Commission. Jonathan is one of the organizers of Design Healdsburg, an annual event celebrating a broad spectrum of design activities which focuses on local designers, makers, and artists.
Matthew Frome, MBA, MS, MPH
Board Treasurer
Matthew Frome brings a diverse background in business, science, and education to his role as Treasurer of Kalderra. He holds an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley, along with advanced degrees in public health and biology. Over the course of his career, he has held leadership roles in biotechnology business development, helping grow early-stage companies and managing complex financial and operational initiatives.
More recently, Matthew has been involved in education, including teaching in the Bay Area. A passionate supporter of the arts, he is an enthusiastic patron of both performance, such as jazz and theater and visual arts, with a particular interest in figurative work. He looks forward to helping build a strong financial foundation for Kalderra as it develops a vibrant cultural arts district in Healdsburg.
Rebecca S. Miller
Chief Executive Officer
Principal, Defiant Strategies, LLC.
After 15 years as a Retail Business Systems Executive with Federated/Macy's, Rebecca shifted into her nonprofit career. As President/CEO of Children of the World (COTW) she developed model programs in seven countries. The COTW mission was to serve highly vulnerable children in desperate situations which included orphaned, abandoned and HIV+ children, young victims of armed conflict and high-risk youth.
She is an awarded Fellow of the Rockefeller Foundation’s Next Generation Leadership program (in Democracy and Social Justice) and was placed on a US Senatorial task force on de-institutionalizing the world’s children. Rebecca has served on numerous nonprofit boards and provides consulting services in strategy, development, communications and leadership.
In January 2025, when the world turned upside down, she met the moment by rebranding her practice as Defiant Strategies, LLC. with a hyper-local focus on helping nonprofits adapt and pivot through these highly uncertain times. In late 2025, Rebecca co-founded Kalderra to embrace joy, belonging and a thriving creative economy in her local community of Healdsburg.
Mark McMullen
ACMP and Tech Advisor
Principal, Mark G. McMullen Consulting
Mark McMullen has spent over 25 years helping Sonoma County small businesses and nonprofits navigate change with practical solutions. His real talent is connecting people, organizations, and ideas to build thriving communities.
Since arriving in Healdsburg in 2004, Mark has been deeply involved in our local arts scene. As a past board member, he drove the Healdsburg Jazz Festival's vibrant Jazz Village and Campus. He served on committees with the Raven Performing Arts Theater, and he currently sits on the Healdsburg Museum & Historical Society board and as Board Member-at-Large for the Sonoma County Wine Library Association.
What drives Mark is weaving together the region's rich history and multicultural heritage to make arts and culture accessible to everyone. As one of Kalderra's advisors, he's working with the community to establish the Healdsburg Cultural Arts District and pursue California Cultural District status. He's helped chart the city's future through the Sustainable Design Assessment Team Report, grassroots collaboration with Imagine Healdsburg 2040, and the Creative Leadership Team behind the Healdsburg Community Arts & Culture Master Plan. From park designs to transportation initiatives with Move! Healdsburg, Mark builds bridges between artists and neighbors, weaving together past and present to strengthen Healdsburg's creative spirit.
James Munden
Board Member
Munden Fry Landscape Associates
James Munden is a Partner at MFLA with 20+ years of experience in landscape architecture, urban design, and community development. He received his BA (Honors) degree and postgraduate diploma in landscape architecture from the University of Central England in Birmingham, U.K. James is a licensed landscape architect in the state of California.
Since 2010, James has been collaborating on high profile and challenging projects in the Bay Area, Sonoma County, Carmel and Arizona. Work includes a variety of agricultural sites, hospitality, winery, State Parks and residential estates. His career began in the U.K. working on research & development projects that sparked his passion for innovative and sustainable design solutions.
James displays an enthusiasm for community participation by creatively collaborating on project ideas with community users. He is co-founder of WalkStop, a San Francisco based group focused on wayfinding for pedestrians in the city while amplifying the stories and history of neighborhoods through design.
Kalderra Advisors
Nancy Jane Andrews, PhD
Healdsburg Parks and Recreation Commissioner, Environmental Consultant and Member Healdsburg 2040
Bradford and Jess Brenner
Artist -Owners of Bradford Brenner Gallery
Richard Burg
SDAT Organizer and Member Healdsburg 2040
Sonia Byck-Barwick
Generation Housing, Paradise Ridge Art Collection
Jill Cerutti
VP Sales and Wellness, Appellation Hotels
Eric Drew
Owner/Broker Sotheby's International Realty
Anne Driscoll
CEO, Launch Pad Foundation
Alexis Greenberg
Artist, Partner in Rena Charles Gallery
Jim Heid
CraftWork, Founder
Past President, Healdsburg Chamber of Commerce
Chris Hunsberger
COO and Co-Founder, Appellation Hotels and Vice-Chair LBC for the Arts
Pat Kirkish
Owner, Dovetail Collection Gallery and Founding Kalderra Board Member
Linus Lancaster
Art Director/Teacher at Healdsburg Unified School District, Member Creative Leadership Team
Lucy Lewand
Independent Hospitality Consultant
Nicole Myers-Lim (Pomo, Miwok)
Executive Director, California Indian Museum and Cultural Center
Paul Mahder
Owner, Paul Mahder Gallery and The 222., Member Healdsburg 2040 and Creative Leadership Team
Jessica Martin
Artist, Educator, and Community Advocate
Joe Naujokas
Founder and CEO Healdsburg Community Trust, Former City Council Member, Digital Transformation Solution Architect
Erin Partridge, PhD, ATR-BC®
Director at THE 222.
Jane Portalupi
Owner, Portalupi Wines
Amy Ramirez
Executive Director Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma, and Lead Funding Partner for the Multicultural Center
Marty Roberts
Corporate and IP Attorney, Founding Board Secretary
Dan Zastrow
Producer "Tuesday's On The Plaza," General Manager Smith Rafael Film Center, CAFILM
Dawn Zidonis
Co-founder and CEO of Design Bay Area