Mendo Food Network’s Amanda Friscia steps down as executive director

Volunteers assemble bags of produce for distribution at area food banks at the financially strapped Mendo Food Network in Willits, Calif. in April 2025. (Mendo Food Network via Bay City News)

MENDOCINO CO., 6/11/26 — Nine years into her tenure, Mendo Food Network’s executive director Amanda Friscia steps down September 30.

Friscia guided the food distribution and networking nonprofit through challenging times. She led emergency food distribution during the COVID-19 pandemic, mobilizing rapid-response systems to ensure residents across Mendocino County continued to receive food without interruption. Friscia led a team that expanded food access countywide, strengthening programs and partnerships that now reach thousands of residents in remote and rural communities that have long faced barriers to services.