Founded in 2006 to meet the needs of the educationally disadvantaged, Root Foundation provides training in academics through character development in rural villages.

Root Foundation is built on a number of vitally important principles, to which all board members, staff, and volunteers are devoted.

• An advancing civilization depends upon education of its people, both in essential skills (e.g. literacy, math and arts) and personal virtues (e.g. cooperation, honesty, service, and upright conduct). Root Foundation believes that skills and virtues can be nurtured among young children in school settings, and is dedicated to the development of institutions that share this philosophy.
• Root Foundation provides the means for the people of the materially-developed world to share their wealth and educational benefits with others in their human family.
• Root Foundation believes it has a responsibility to actively nurture newly founded schools and that active nurturing requires strong leadership and vigilant oversight of potential and actively funded projects.

Root Foundation Board of Directors

Patricia Kubala - Board Secretary
Patty has been a child educator for 34 years. She taught in public schools, home schooled five children, taught children and youth classes in the Baha'i Community and served as the Director of Milwaukee Children's Education Program for the Milwaukee Baha'i­ Community for five years. She was the director of a youth leadership in diversity program for the Ozaukee County NAACP for eleven years. She is a trained facilitator of The Virtues Project which inspires individuals to live more authentic, joyful lives, families to raise children of compassion and integrity, educators to create safe, caring and high performing learning communities, and leaders to inspire excellence and ethics in the workplace.

Sue Manners
Sue has 30 years of experience in teaching and administration in the Far East, including China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and the Philippines. She is currently an administrator and instructor at WESLI, Wisconsin English as a Second Language Institute.

Steven Milston - Board Vice President
Steven is an experienced IT executive and consultant, specializing CIO services to the banking and health insurance industries. Steven brings advanced business planning and organizational skills. 

Michael Vestlie- Board President
Indian-born, Michael was raised in orphanages operated by the Catholic Church in Southern India. At age 11, Michael was adopted by a US family, where he completed his education and now works. In 2003 and 2005, Michael revisited his homeland country and resolved to work to the best of his abilities to bring to poor children of his and other native lands some of the quality training and schooling which he was so fortunate to receive. He began by supporting the development of Little Angels Junior School as a start-up consultant and as an individual donor. It is from this inspiration that Michael developed the core ideas that now drive Root Foundation.

Russell Vestlie - Board Treasurer
Russell has a 40 year career as a strategic business development executive and consultant, helping to launch several new businesses. He has been an officer of several Fortune 100 firms, including American Express and GMAC. Russ is an expert in finance, marketing strategy, and business development. He has also served for years on the successful Green Lake Baha'i­ Conference Planning Committee as its treasurer.