Felicia Salcedo | President
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Felicia Salcedo (she/her) was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest and has been a longtime patron of Real Change News. She is a regional leader, strategist and advocate for racial equity and social justice with nearly a decade of experience in government and public policy. Her focus is on building authentic relationships, utilizing data to drive towards measurable results, and supporting the leadership of people with lived experience to achieve transformational systems change. Felicia is the Founding Director of the King County Partners Group and We Are In, advancing solutions to homelessness that are racially equitable, community-driven and data-informed. She has previously worked for Public Health - Seattle & King County, supporting overdose prevention and harm reduction solutions to substance use disorder and for All Home, the Seattle/King County Continuum of Care where she developed cross-sector community partnerships in support of ending homelessness.
Matthew Hayashi | Vice President
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Matthew Hayashi is the principal organizational development and leadership consultant for Headwater People. They help brilliant people do transformational work and offer a variety of strategic consulting services such as organization learning, strategic planning, change management, process design, and designing equitable organizations. His passion is to help connect groups to the core mission of their work through collaboration and innovation, whole organizational health, and to the societal responsibilities of economic, social, and environmental justice. Matt grew up in Kaneohe, Hawaii. He, his wife Colleen, and children make their home in Seattle, Washington.
Breanne Schuster | Treasurer
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Breanne Schuster grew up in Wisconsin, and moved to Seattle in 2012. She heard about Real Change shortly upon becoming a resident, and has been an avid reader of the paper since. Breanne is currently an attorney at the ACLU-WA, where she fights to protect and advance the civil rights and civil liberties of Washingtonians. Breanne is committed to making racial and economic justice a reality, and Real Change's mission and vision resonate deeply with her.
Dimitri Groce
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Dimitri was born and raised in Seattle, and can’t remember a time when Real Change wasn’t present in his life. Drawing from lived experience of housing instability and struggle, Dimitri is on the capacity-building team at Building Changes, where he partners with community leaders, service providers, and government partners to fund services and try out new strategies to end homelessness and enhance racial equity. Dimitri is inspired by the legacy of Black-led organizing that put community at the center of efforts for enrichment, sharing information, and survival. He considers Real Change a part of that local legacy, and is eager to do what he can to uplift the leadership of people on the frontlines of injustice, vendors and staff to help build a region where people can live with dignity and self-determination.
Maria Elena Ramirez
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Maria Elena Ramirez was born and raised in Othello, WA. An avid Real Change reader since 1994, Maria Elena appreciates what a community asset Real Change is and has been an active volunteer since September of 2012. A graduate of the University of WA, Maria Elena’s professional experiences include the healthcare field with the Epilepsy Foundation NW. Maria Elena has served as a resource for Latino, first generation high school graduates pursuing a post K-12 education, as well as an education equity advocate to the Latino community, in eastern WA. Maria Elena looks forward to deepening her relationships with vendors and watching their self-confidence grow as they continue to inform and inspire people from all walks of life in Seattle to join them in bringing about real change in our hearts and actions.
Shelly Cohen
Shelly Cohen was born and raised in Seattle, and likes to say “I have the webbed feet to prove it!” He has three adult children and several grandchildren. With his smiling personality and sense of community, Shelly became active in Real Change June 7, 2013, and achieved the coveted 600 Club level at the conclusion of June 2013. He is also active in Real Change advocacy. He was elected to the Real Change Board of Directors on March 24, 2016, at 62 years young, as he prefers to say. To learn more about Shelly, read about his other activities in Real Change and his life experiences. Shelly would love to visit with you at his current 600 Club Post at PCC Natural Markets – Bothell in Canyon Park, 22621 Bothell Everett Highway, Bothell, WA 98021.
Ethan Campbell
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Ethan C. Campbell (he/him) grew up in Illinois and moved to Seattle for graduate school at the University of Washington, where he is a Ph.D. candidate studying ocean physics, sea ice, and climate. As an advocate for mobility justice with Whose Streets? Our Streets! and the Seattle Neighborhood Greenways coalition, Ethan uses a research lens in his organizing to drive change towards a safer and more equitable transportation system. He collaborated with Real Change on an effort to address disparities in traffic stops of bicyclists by race and housing status that led to the repeal of King County’s bicycle helmet law in 2022. He highly values Real Change’s commitment to providing independent local reporting, low-barrier employment, fearless progressive advocacy, and creative moral leadership, and he is excited to contribute to its mission.
Donald Morehead
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Donald Morehead has worked as a vendor since 2004. Donald formerly led New Vendor Orientations at Real Change, and is an expert in vendor sales techniques. He has experienced homelessness in Seattle, and has a long history of advocating against homelessness including meeting with elected officials and protesting with community members. Donald has worked in construction and as a car mechanic.