Council Chair Mary Ferrell
Mary Ferrell is the founder and executive director of the Maslow Project. A lifelong Oregonian, Mary graduated from Southern Oregon University and began working with children and families in 2000 as an advocate for the civil rights of homeless students
in the public school system.
Ferrell founded the Maslow Project in 2009 in response to a need in her community.
Her vision was to offer a service delivery model that works best for those needing
help: low barrier, trauma informed, and responsive to changing needs. Maslow has gained national and international attention, and Ferrell has received numerous awards for outstanding service and community impact. Ferrell’s experience brings a lens as a service provider to a population that often has extensive barriers to housing, education, and employment.
Ferrell is an American Leadership Senior Fellow, vice chair of the Jackson County Continuum of Care, and has served on numerous advisories and initiatives in support of her state and community. She currently sits as a governor-appointed member of the Oregon Housing Stability Council.
Council Term: 7/01/2024 to 6/30/2028
Council member Carly Colgan
Carly Colgan is the Chief Executive Officer of Bend-Redmond Habitat for Humanity, where she leads efforts to expand equitable access to affordable homeownership across Central Oregon.
Previously, Carly served as Chief Executive Officer of South Puget Sound Habitat for Humanity in Olympia, WA. Carly serves on the Board of Directors for Habitat for Humanity of Oregon, Habitat for Humanity International U.S. Council, and the U.S. Advocacy Committee. She is Co-Chair of the Habitat for Humanity International Build & Resilience Committee.
In this national role, she advances innovative construction strategies that improve energy efficiency, strengthen climate and disaster resilience, and accelerate housing production at scale. Her policy experience includes serving as Vice President of Habitat for Humanity of Washington State, co-leading the Washington Affordable Homeownership Coalition, and as a member of the Washington State Housing Trust Fund Policy Advisory Team.
She previously served on the City of Bend Human Rights and Equity Commission and Habitat for Humanity International's U.S. Policy Committee. Carly holds a Master of Nonprofit Management from Regis University and a Bachelor of Arts from Knox College.
Council Term: 7/1/2026 to 06/30/2030
Council member Sami Jo Difuntorum
Sami Jo Difuntorum is a member of the Kwekaeke band of Shasta from the Upper Klamath River canyon of Northern California. Difuntorum presently serves as the National American Indian Housing Council (NAIHC) board member representing Oregon, Washington, and Idaho and previously served as the NAIHC chairwoman for two terms. Difuntorum has been employed as the Housing executive director for the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians since 2010 and previously worked for a Tribally designated housing entity in California for 16 years.
Her experience in Tribal housing spans 26 years and includes providing testimony to the U.S. Congress during the reauthorization of the Native American Housing and Self-Determination Act (NAHASDA), representing the National American Indian Housing Council at the first Tribal leader meeting with the White House, and membership on the Indian Housing Block Grant Formula Negotiated Rulemaking Committee.
Difuntorum has served on numerous boards and committees including co-chair of the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians Housing Committee, chair of the NAIHC Legislative Committee, vice-chair of the Northwest Indian Housing Association, chair of the National Congress of American Indians Housing Sub-Committee, and as board member of the former Lincoln Community Development Corporation.
Difuntorum currently lives in Oregon.
Council Term: 11/25/2019 to 06/30/2027
Council member Ed McNamara
Ed McNamara is a retired developer and owner of energy-efficient, transit-oriented, mid-rise affordable housing in Portland.
In his one-person company, he was responsible for all phases of development and operations – land acquisition, hiring and overseeing the architects and general contractors, securing the financing (including doing the LIHTC projections), hiring and overseeing the property managers, planning the marketing and lease-up, and doing all of the ongoing reporting and asset management.
Ed’s other development work included acquiring and renovating single-family houses for a nonprofit, helping to plan and entitle an 82-acre, 860-unit HOPE VI redevelopment for a housing authority, and developing apartments (affordable, mixed-income, and market-rate) for a for-profit developer. Other experience includes working as a plumber’s helper, working and living on a commercial fishing boat, working as a building contractor, running a nonprofit community development corporation (CDC), running a CDC intermediary at the Oregon Community Foundation, and serving as a Policy Advisor to the Mayor.
Ed continues to be involved in affordable housing. Recent activities include serving 3 years on the Metro Affordable Housing Bond Oversight Committee and serving 7.5 years on the board of BRIDGE Housing, Inc. He currently volunteers one day a week building houses for Habitat for Humanity.
Council Term: 7/1/2026 to 06/30/2028
Council member Javier Mena
Born in Ecuador, Javier Mena 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 25 years of finance and public policy experience in the private and public sectors.
Mena currently works as the affordable housing manager at the City of Beaverton. To ensure the city continues being the most diverse city in the state, he focuses on ensuring affordable rental and homeownership housing opportunities are available to all, especially Black, Indigenous, People of Color and marginalized communities. Until July 2018, he was the assistant director of the Portland Housing Bureau, where he had worked since 2010 in various roles. He worked with more than 40 nonprofits and service providers that partnered with the Housing Bureau to ensure the city's housing and rent-assistance programs were fulfilling their mission. Mena also has an extensive record in the finance industry, working for Wells Fargo until 2006 as an assistant vice president.
Mena currently serves on the boards of Network for Oregon Affordable Housing (NOAH) and Community Housing Fund (CHF); he also serves on the Oregon Zoo Bond Oversight Committee.
Council Term: 07/01/2026 to 06/30/2030
Council member Sharon Nickleberry Rogers, CPA
Sharon Nickleberry Rogers is a native Portland resident who lives in northeast Portland with her husband and is an empty nester while her daughter attends college in Texas. She has observed changes throughout Portland regarding population growth, housing developments in northeast Portland, and the increased number of people experiencing housing issues throughout the state.
Her compassion for housing stems from her childhood when her parents provided housing for family members relocating to Portland. She recognized early on the importance of housing and knew having a safe place to call home was special. Rodgers' parents' commitment to helping others ignited her interest in helping others.
She is a public servant employed as a financial analyst with the City of Portland. She has over 20 years of experience in various financial roles with the Internal Revenue Service, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, NE Community Development Corporation, Harsch Investment Properties, and Home Forward.
Rodgers received her undergraduate degree from the University of Oregon and two master's degrees in business and taxation from Portland State University. Additionally, she's a licensed, certified public accountant.
She is passionate about serving the community and making a difference for vulnerable residents who lack adequate or affordable housing and is honored to serve on the Oregon Housing Stability Council.
Council Term: 07/01/2025 to 06/30/2029
Council member Brooke Standifer
Brooke Standifer is a housing strategist, writer, engineer, and principal of Wild Rising LLC. She works at the intersection of housing policy, development feasibility, and implementation, helping communities turn ambitious housing goals into projects that actually get built.
Over the past 15 years, Brooke's career has spanned energy efficiency, sustainability, and housing. That breadth of experience gives her a unique perspective on the interconnected factors that shape community outcomes. She brings together data, policy, finance, and implementation to develop solutions that are both ambitious and practical.
Brooke serves on the Board of Better Housing Together, the Lane County Land Banking Task Force, and the Eugene Area Chamber's Local Government Affairs Council. Through both her consulting practice and her writing, she makes complex housing issues accessible by connecting data with stories that deepen understanding, spark conversation, and move ideas into action.
Outside of work, Brooke is raising two curious kiddos who are a constant reminder that the housing decisions we make today shape the communities and opportunities of tomorrow.
Council Term: 9/1/2026 to 06/30/2030
Council member Kristy Willard
Kristy Willard was born and raised in Ontario, Oregon. She is the executive director of the Housing Authority of Malheur & Harney Counties and has been with the agency for more than 11 years.
She began her journey with the housing authority in 2012 as a single mother out of college living in public housing. She started as the front desk receptionist for the agency and then became the Housing Choice Voucher Program, Family Self-Sufficiency, and Homeownership program manager. In 2018, she was appointed as the interim executive director for the agency, and a year later became the executive director.
Willard is mission-driven to ensure everyone has a place to call home and is motivated to become self-sufficient. She has made housing, homelessness, and advocacy for rural counties her primary focus.
Willard serves on her local Treasure Valley Rental Association Board, is chair of the MAC/LPG for both Malheur and Harney counties, and is the treasurer for the Housing Oregon Board of Commissioners. She also serves on the Minority, Women-Owned, Emerging Small Business Committee at OHCS.
Council Term: 10/5/2023 to 06/30/2027