President

Joyce Strand moved to Ramona in 2006 and experienced the Witch Creek Fire soon after arriving. Prior to retirement, she led corporate communications at multiple biotechnology and high-tech companies in California’s Silicon Valley for more than 25 years. She is also the author of published mystery novels.

Joyce values Ramona’s scenic hillsides and farmland and believes the community can be a leader in creating a land-friendly environment that supports a viable local economy. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from Dickinson College and a Ph.D. in International Politics from George Washington University.

Vice President

Belinda Long devoted 35 years to teaching after studying Early Childhood Development. Born in Mobile, Alabama during the Civil Rights Movement, her early exposure to social justice shaped her worldview. Extensive travel throughout Europe and living in Japan further broadened her perspective.

As a teacher, Belinda emphasized nature-based learning, introducing children to planting, composting, silkworms, and tadpole development to demonstrate natural sustainability processes. She moved to Ramona in 1997 so her two sons could grow up in a small rural community and is honored to support Sustainable Ramona’s work.

Treasurer

Molly Begent and her husband David moved to Ramona in 2008 after retiring from a successful San Diego–based biotech construction company. They settled on the historic Old Owen Ranch along Highland Valley Road, overlooking the Ramona Grasslands County Preserve.

They transformed the ranch into a large art space while taking meaningful steps to reduce their carbon footprint, including installing a large rooftop solar array. Molly owns 2Create Gallery, a nonprofit art space in historic downtown Ramona that also houses The Art Center. The ranch hosts numerous community events, including the Ramona Earth Day Festival.

Robert E. Krysak is a practicing attorney with extensive civic leadership experience in Ramona. He served as President of the Ramona Chamber of Commerce from 2015 to 2018 and currently serves as Treasurer. He is a former member and Chairman of the Ramona Municipal Water District Board of Directors and represented Ramona on the San Diego County Water Authority Board.

Robert has also served on the Ramona Town Hall Board, founded and chaired the Committee for a Better Ramona, and currently serves on multiple local boards, including the Ramona Food & Clothes Closet and the Ramona Leadership Council. In 2023, he became President of the Ramona Bar Association.

Rob Lewallen is an architectural designer and California building contractor who has specialized in energy-efficient design and construction since the mid-1970s. Over the past 45 years, he has designed and built more than 300 homes and numerous remodels in the Ramona area.

Rob has held leadership roles on the Ramona Community Planning Group, Ramona Design Review Board, Ramona Village Design Committee, and the Ramona H.E.A.R.T. Mural Project. He is also a performing musician and was the 2022 recipient of the Ramona Chamber of Commerce Lifetime Achievement Award.

Megan Otto is a Water Resources Engineer specializing in watershed and stormwater quality planning, green infrastructure design, and climate hazard analysis. She grew up in Ramona and returned in 2018 with her husband and two children.

Megan enjoys hiking, biking with her kids, and birdwatching, and is passionate about supporting sustainability-driven efforts in her hometown. She also serves on the Ramona–Barona Climate Adaptation and Action Plan Community Advisory Committee.

Dr. Mandy Morrell is a Ramona resident and professor of “Sustainability in Action”, a course she designed and taught at Point Loma Nazarene University.

Megan Carter is a ceramic artist, educator, and entrepreneur based in Ramona, California — and the founder of Green and Ivy. After more than two decades in the software industry, she made a deliberate choice to build businesses rooted in her deepest values: creativity, environmental responsibility, community, and lifelong learning.

That vision took shape first through Green and Ivy Cleaning Services, helping families create healthier homes through environmentally conscious practices, and later through Green and Ivy Pottery, where she brings people together through the art of ceramics — fostering craftsmanship, creativity, and genuine connection.

Megan serves as the ceramics instructor at The Art Center of Ramona and teaches from her private studio, where beginners and experienced makers alike discover the joy of working with clay. Her handcrafted pottery — functional and decorative pieces drawn from the beauty of the natural world — is featured at 2Create Art Gallery.

Whether she’s guiding a first-time potter, shaping a piece on the wheel, or mentoring a young artist finding their voice, Megan holds a firm belief: creativity has the power to bring people together, strengthen communities, and deepen our connection to the world around us.

A longtime San Diego County resident, she finds inspiration in her garden, on nature trails, and in the hands-on spirit of her community — always encouraging others to experience the quiet satisfaction of making something by hand.