Meet Our Team
Board Members / staff
Jason & Tara Hood
(FOUNDERS and directors)
Founds Jason and Tara Hood have been married for 34 years and every year, their family continues to grow. They have three adult children, a son-in-law, a daughter-in-law, two adopted elementary age kiddos, seven grand babies and countless people they call family.
The Hoods have been mentoring families since 1991 and fostering children since 2011. Their “methods” have been greatly affected by the grace shown to them by others...believing that God is a God of judgment, and His favorite judgment is grace. While fostering the children, they found ourselves challenged by the words of Psalms 68:5-6, “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing. The Hoods desire to invest into the lives of every person they serve, loving them as if they were and are a part of their own family. They mentor in many ways, but most of all they love the parents and children, believing that love, consistency and trust are essential for healing and growth.
LaRae EagleS
(Board member)
LaRae was born and raised in Oregon and has worked in accounts receivable field for over 20 years. She and her husband have two amazing children, an incredible daughter in- law and son in-law, and four adorable grand-babies. LaRe’s parents were foster parents for most of her childhood and she has seen up close the trauma it has caused not only to the children, but also with the parents. LaRae supports this ministry because of Jason and Tara's commitment and the passion they have to see families reunited and restored.
cyndi villamor
(board member)
As a local business owner and expert in her field, we are grateful to have Cyndi and her many years of experience on the board!
DR. JAY A. BARBER, JR.
(BOARD MEMBER)
Dr. Jay A. Barber, Jr. is President Emeritus of Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon, after retiring following a twelve-year stint as president. Dr. Barber has a long-term association with Warner Pacific College. In 1964 he received his baccalaureate degree from the college and later served on the Board of Trustees. Jay received his master’s degree from the University of San Francisco and the Doctor of Laws Degree (Hon.) from Anderson University. Jay also served as senior pastor of the Red Bluff, California First Church of God for 16 years.
Active in the Northwest Community, Jay was elected to a four-year term on the Seaside, OR City Council and later was appointed to complete a two-year term as Mayor and following that was elected to a full four-year term. Jay and his wife Jan have lived full time in Seaside since 2008.
Barber currently provides consultation services to a wide range of not-for-profit organizations assisting with strategic planning, fund raising strategies, board development, staff recruitment and coaching with new and emerging leaders. He is an Executive Consultant with The Focus Group, a Florida based consulting firm and is a Senior Fellow at the MJ Murdock Charitable Trust. His special interest is in providing coaching with CEOs, Presidents and Executive Directors of not-for-profit organizations based on his 40 years of experience in those challenging roles.
nick hoffmann
(board member)
As a retired U.S. Army veteran, service and helping others have always been important to Nick. He is a proud husband and father in a blended family of 12, with family at the center of everything he does.
As a board member for Hannah Grace Family, he is honored to give back to his community and support an organization dedicated to strengthening families and being there for them when they need it most.
mike mercer
(chairman of the board)
Mike is the founder and CEO of Compassion First, a Christian relief and development/anti-trafficking organization that has pioneered holistic, long-term care and rehabilitation for survivors of child sex trafficking in Indonesia.
Prior to working for Compassion First, Mike was the co-Founder of Foursquare Disaster Relief (FDR) and served in various pastoral roles in Beaverton, Oregon. He remains an ordained minister and serves the broader Christian Relief and Development Sector and the church-at-large wherever possible, often speaking and having served on several boards. Mike and his wife, Kymra, live in Powell Butte, Oregon and have three grown children.
Non-Voting Board Members
Jeizel molina miramontes
(treasurer)
Jeizel Molina Miramontes was born in Mexico and moved to the United States at the age of five. She is a retired U.S. Army veteran, wife, and proud mother whose life has been shaped by family, hard work, service, and giving back.
Jeizel believes strongly in the value of hard work and is incredibly grateful for the opportunities and blessings she and her family have received. Giving back is important to her, both as a way of showing gratitude and of teaching her children the importance of compassion, generosity, and service.
Jeizel’s connection to Hannah Grace Family has allowed her to see firsthand the impact that kindness and community can have on families going through difficult times. Through supporting HGF and programs like Bins of Joy, she has seen how even simple acts of generosity can bring comfort and support when it is needed most. Being part of HGF gives Jeizel the opportunity to use what she has been blessed with to help other families and make a meaningful difference in her community.
Whitney Hill
(SEcretary)
associate DIRECTOr
Over the years Whitney has found that when people are at their lowest, sometimes a little grace evokes more change than judgement. She is a mother of three biological children and foster mother to one, a youth leader, a Creative Director, Associate Director and a dedicated advocate for helping people in their times of need.
Whitney grew up with a family that serves and helps others, as well as with a family that fosters children and bio parents. Fortunately, Whitney and her family now get to serve and foster others as well. She has found that being apart of Hannah Grace Family isn’t just another task to check off, it’s truly a deep love and commitment to seeing others reach their true potential, despite their mistakes; extending grace where condemnation is often given.
ADVISORY Board Members
Christian Hood
Shannon Ayuyu