Local First Utah

Board of Directors

Meet the Local First Board

Betsy Burton, Board Chair

Betsy Burton is co-owner of The King’s English Bookstore, founded in 1977 in Salt Lake City. Burton co-founded Local First Utah, and has served as its Board Chair since its inception. She was a co-founder of Vest Pocket Business Alliance of Salt Lake City and has worked on behalf of local business and community in Utah for decades. She serves on several boards and foundations, including the American Independent Booksellers Association (ABA), and the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA).

David Nimkin, Board Vice Chair

David Nimkin is the Southwest Regional Director of the National Parks Conservation Association, an organization dedicated to the protection of national parks, monuments and heritage sites. He is a co-founder of Local First Utah, as well as the founder of the Utah Microenterprise Loan Fund. Nimkin is the former State Director of the Utah Small Business Development Centers, and also served as the first Executive Director for Salt Lake Neighborhood Housing Services.

Jorge Fierro, Treasurer

Jorge Fierro came to the US from Mexico over 20 years ago, and in 1997 started Rico Mexican Market by selling pinto beans at the Downtown Farmer’s Market. Rico Foods now produces more than 125 different food products and distributes products across the state. Fierro was named Minority Business Man of the Year by the Small Business Administration and the Salt Lake Area Chamber of Commerce. Fierro has served on the boards of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Salt Lake Business Advisory Council, among others.

Blake Spalding and Jen Castle

Blake Spalding and Jen Castle are co-chef/owners of Hell’s Backbone Grill in Boulder, Utah. Spalding began cooking when she was a small child, and later worked as a river chef as well as in the field of “extreme catering.” Jen Castle grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she was taught to cook by her mother, aunts and uncles, who viewed mass-quantity cooking as standard procedure. In the year 2000, the opportunity to own Hell’s Backbone Grill presented itself, and Spalding and Castle moved to Boulder to begin their adventure. The restaurant has just finished its eighth season.

Suzy Dailey

Suzy Dailey joined the Local First Board of Directors in 2007 because of a commitment to bolster community through empowering small, locally owned, business. She and her husband opened their first Grounds for Coffee establishment in 1991 and now operate 3 locations. The Daileys later established Grounds for Coffee Franchising Corporation, a small cooperative of coffee shop owners. Dailey also donates her time to The Ogden Arts Festival at Union Station and the Friends of the Salt Lake City Library organization.

Leigh von der Esch

Leigh von der Esch currently serves as Director of the Utah Office of Tourism. She has worked as State Film Commissioner, Chief Administrative Officer for the Utah Department of Community and Economic Development, and was Chairman of the Sundance Film Festival Committee for 9 years. She was named one of Utah’s 100 Most Influential People in Business by Utah Business Magazine. She is currently a member of the College of Social and Behavioral Science Board for the University of Utah, and serves on the Advisory Board for the Utah Arts Festival.

Mayor Dave Sakrison

Lavell Edwards, Honorary Board Member