Meet the Team

Eugene Yeboah

President & CEO

Eugene is a geneticist and infectious disease specialist making a significant impact in public health. Originally from Ghana, Eugene moved to the United States as a teenager. While his career spans work within the U.S. and various other countries, his heart remains firmly rooted in Ghana, where he continues to feel a deep connection to his homeland.

Over the past few years, Eugene has witnessed a troubling trend in the U.S.—valuable resources being discarded and turned into waste. At the same time, he has been aware of the critical need for such resources in remote villages in Ghana, where they could greatly improve the quality of life. In the fall of 2023, Eugene decided to take action. When he learned that his company, Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) was replacing old laptops with new ones, he saw an opportunity to make a difference. Rather than allowing the laptops to be discarded, Eugene collected them, packed them into boxes, and personally delivered them to remote villages in Ghana, where his family and friends still live.

These laptops were distributed to orphanages, schools, and health centers, and just a few months later, Eugene received a heartfelt thank-you video from the schools. The video showcased how the laptops had a transformative impact on the students, enhancing their educational experience. Seeing the immediate and positive effects of his efforts, Eugene was inspired to create a system to prevent excess, reusable resources from becoming waste in the U.S. and instead, repurpose them for communities in need, like those in rural villages in Ghana.

Having worked extensively in healthcare, Eugene was well aware of the staggering amounts of medical supplies being thrown away, despite the fact that they could be reused to address shortages in healthcare facilities in remote parts of Ghana. With this knowledge in hand, Eugene began to recruit like-minded individuals who share his passion for creating change. This led to the creation of Resource Together in the summer of 2024.

Heidi hopkins

Educational Supply Coordinator

Heidi is a mental health therapist who has been significantly impacted by her experiences with African communities over the last 25 years. The aliveness, vibrancy, embodiment, groundedness, energy, movement, music, food, connectedness, togetherness, present moment focus, spiritual awareness, and prioritization of relationships and helping one another that exists within African cultures is incredibly attractive and precious to Heidi. It is a particular balm for our productivity-obsessed and isolated existence in the west.

When Heidi visited a remote village in Malawi by boat in 2000, her first trip to the continent, she was greeted by the whole village in their best clothes singing and dancing on the beach. Overcome with weeping, this remains one of the most significant experiences of Heidi’s life. In light of western colonization, enslavement, and ongoing exploitation and stealing of resources across the African continent, it is a wonder a white woman from the west would receive such a welcome. Indeed, we know the reverse would not be true even though it would be much more deserved.

After supporting 6 young Kenyan men with their school fees for almost 20 years via a friend’s non-profit organization, Heidi was able to travel to Turkana, Kenya in 2018 to meet them and their families. She also spent time during this visit in a village near Kisumu learning and serving in local schools.

In 2021, Heidi discovered Kizomba/Semba, an Angolan music genre and partner dance. The diversity of the pacific northwest kizomba community in an otherwise very white area of the US, the energy of kizomba/semba music, and the dance itself have become a central source of joy and mental health in Heidi’s life. She traveled to Angola in 2024 for an historical/cultural learning experience that included live semba music and dancing with local Angolans daily.

In June of 2024, Heidi made her first trip to Ghana as Resource Together was forming, hand carrying suitcases of books and educational materials to Akroso Islamic School, compiling a list of needs in Danquah Village’s school and orphanage, and interviewing medical staff in Volta region clinics. Heidi received much more than she gave, smitten by the people she spent time with during 2 of the most delightful weeks of her life.

Heidi’s intention with Resource Together is to participate in reversing the tide of stolen wealth from the African continent and promote the embodiment, connection, and healing available in Ghanian and African ways of life.

Naoko Kawaguchi

Medical Supply Coordinator

Naoko is a dedicated registered nurse in Oregon, specializing in pediatric oncology since 2005. Originally from Tokyo, Japan, Naoko’s passion for becoming bilingual and speaking English fluently began in her teenage years. Driven by this dream, she moved to the United States in her mid-20s, embarking on a journey to master English and pursue a nursing career. After enrolling in an ESL (English as a Second Language) program, Naoko worked tirelessly for seven years to complete her nursing education and ultimately become a registered nurse.

Throughout her academic and professional journey, Naoko harbored another ambition - to utilize her medical background in international settings, providing healthcare support in foreign countries. Although the timing for this dream remained unclear for many years, Naoko’s path took a significant turn when she met Eugene, the president of Resource Together, through their shared passion for salsa dancing. This connection led to an invitation to join the Resource Together team, marking a pivotal moment in her journey.

In January 2025, Naoko had the opportunity to visit Ghana for the first time, where she experienced firsthand the urgent healthcare needs in remote villages. This trip deepened her resolve to invest her time and expertise into transforming excess resources into life-saving opportunities in regions like Ghana. Alongside her colleagues at Resource Together, Naoko is committed to expanding the organization’s work to other areas of Ghana and beyond, aiming to make a long-lasting impact on communities in need.

Emily Huff

Board Member

Emily Huff brings a deep commitment to education, reconciliation, and community-building to her work and relationships. A native of Texas and Tennessee and a graduate of Stanford University, Emily has spent most of her adult life in Seattle, WA. 

In 1994, she co-founded a child sponsorship program with a Turkana pastor in Kenya, which now supports over 250 students in Kenya and India. Since 1995, Emily has devoted her career to education—teaching at both the elementary and high school levels, mentoring aspiring educators, and teaching at the university level. She holds a master’s in human development with a focus on conflict resolution, and more recently earned a Master of Theology with an emphasis on reconciliation and intercultural studies.

Emily divides her time between offering spiritual care as a hospital chaplain and supporting future educators as an instructional coach. Her work is grounded in the belief that transformation happens in the context of authentic connection. She finds joy in growing alongside others—as both a learner and an unlearner—and seeks to create spaces of reflection, belonging, and renewal wherever she goes.

Outside of work, Emily is an outdoor enthusiast who loves running, biking, and hiking. She also cherishes time with her husband of 29 years, Jason, and their two young adult children, Anna and Taylor.

Gabriela Prescott

Board Member

As East Coast Supply Coordinator, Gabriela Prescott brings both strategy and soul to the mission. Born and raised in communist-era Romania, her early experiences with scarcity inspired a lifelong commitment to creating access—especially for children in underserved communities.

With a sharp business mind and a big heart, Gabriela now coordinates the flow of surplus medical supplies from abundance to need—working hand-in-hand with local teams to make sure every item serves a real purpose.

For Gabriela, this work isn’t just logistics—it’s a love language. She sees nonprofit work as a way to build global kinship through generosity, empathy, and shared humanity.

When she’s not moving pallets or solving puzzles, Gabriela finds joy in gardening, dancing, and soaking up the laughter of kids. Whether nurturing a garden or a global supply chain, she leads with deep care and unwavering hope.

Dr. John fontana

Senior Advisor & Board Member

Dr. John Fontana is a board-certified Clinical Laboratory Director with a Ph.D. and a heart for service. As Senior Advisor and Board Member of Resource Together, he helps guide a mission rooted in compassion: making sure vital medical, educational, and everyday resources get to the people and communities who need them most.

With decades of experience in laboratory medicine and public health, Dr. Fontana brings both scientific rigor and a deep sense of responsibility to his work. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he spearheaded and coordinated the distribution of over 600,000 test kits and critical equipment across Oregon, expanding testing capacity at a time when rapid, organized action was essential to saving lives.

His commitment to serving others has taken him beyond state lines. In Haiti, Dr. Fontana led efforts to deliver X-ray equipment to under-resourced clinics—ensuring that communities with limited access to care could still receive timely and accurate diagnoses. Whether working locally or globally, his focus remains the same: meeting people where they are and helping ensure no resource goes to waste.

At Resource Together, Dr. Fontana brings his knowledge, experience, and heart to a team that believes in the power of shared humanity. His leadership continues to inspire practical solutions rooted in empathy, equity, and action.

megan grace

Administrative Support and Social Media Management

A bit of a Jane of all trades, I am a dog mama, music lover, traveler, and someone who’s been singing and standing up for others since I was little. I’ve always had a deep conviction to speak up for those whose voices have been silenced or overlooked. I love to dance, laugh, and help people feel more at home in their bodies through somatic bodywork, reiki and compassionate project management in my business The Megan Grace MVMT. That’s why I care so deeply about Resource Together, we as an organization take what would otherwise be wasted—from tech to medical supplies—and reroutes it to places where it can truly change lives. Our mission to move resources from overabundance to communities with real need resonates deeply with me. I believe bodies are sacred, and no child, family, or community should go without the essentials for health and well-being. Supporting this kind of work feels like a natural extension of how I move through the world—joyfully, purposefully, and always in service of equity and belonging. It brings me so much joy to see people moving together to support a mission that is doing so much good in the planet.

Zoe Renee App

Board Member

Zoe Renee App serves on the board of Resource Together, contributing her background in counseling, education, and nonprofit work to support the organization’s mission. She currently works as a professional school counselor in Portland, Oregon, where she was born and raised.

Zoe’s dedication to service began with her work in southern Arizona through AmeriCorps, where she supported food banks and developed a deep commitment to community-based outreach and resource equity. That passion continues to guide her work today.

Outside of her professional and volunteer work, Zoe enjoys traveling and dancing — both of which fuel her appreciation for connection, culture, and joy. She is honored to be part of Resource Together’s mission to build bridges through resource-sharing and global solidarity.

Ben Ryon

Board Member

Ben was born in Caracas, Venezuela and grew up in Akron, Ohio. He lived in Taiwan for 7 years where he attended college. After working in Venezuela as a Spanish-Chinese interpreter, he moved to Oregon where he accompanied his mom in her final years, while completing an MBA. He has worked in agency market research, business analytics, data science, and software engineering. He is the co-founder of an EdTech startup called Learnology where he works currently. He is father to 2 kids.