Sarah Bellamy, Lori Pourier, and Ryan Wong Elected to the Jerome Foundation Board of Directors

Sarah Bellamy (elected 2018) is a nationally renowned racial equity facilitator and practitioner of racial healing. Her methods are holistic, profound, and foster powerful intimacy and authenticity for clients. She brings a wealth of scholarship, strategic acuity, and deep compassion to consultative and coaching relationships. Her writing focuses on memoir, personal essays, plays, and short stories. She is a stage director and the president of Penumbra, a center for racial healing that houses one of the nation’s oldest and largest African American theatre companies.

Sarah is a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and holds an M.A. in the Humanities from the University of Chicago. She has taught at Macalester College, the University of Minnesota, and served as Visiting Professor of Theatre and Culture at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. Her lectures on the power of race and representation have been presented across the country illuminating the ways in which images, narratives, and media influence perception and ultimately shape lives. She is a skilled and dynamic public speaker offering audiences fresh, big-hearted, and courageous perspectives on a wide range of topics. She is especially recognized for her work on racial healing, authenticity, and resiliency. 

Sarah has been awarded the Hubert H. Humphrey Public Leadership Award, a Bush Foundation Fellowship, and served on the Board of Directors for Theatre Communications Group. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Jerome Foundation. More at www.sbellamy.com

Photo credit: Simone Lueck

Lori Lea Pourier (Oglala Lakota) (elected 2018) is a visionary leader, advocate, and champion for Indigenous artists and culture bearers. For over 27 years, she has dedicated her career to advancing Indigenous arts, entrepreneurship, self-determination and cultural sovereignty. As the founding President and CEO of First Peoples Fund (FPF) (1998-2023), Lori has worked closely with Native communities to foster sustainable economic opportunities through arts and culture.

Now serving as Founder and Senior Fellow at First Peoples Fund, Lori focuses on storytelling initiatives, including film projects and publications that uplift and honor more than one hundred FPF Culture Bearers whose work has touched countless lives. She remains committed to amplifying Native artists’ voices and preserving their legacies for future generations.

Most recently, Lori was honored with the United States Artist, 2026 Berresford Prize and is 2025 Bush Foundation Fellow. Lori has numerous honors over the years, including her 2024 election to the Academy of Arts and Sciences.  In addition to serving on the Jerome Foundation Board of Directors, she serves on the Library of Congress, Center for Folklife, appointed by Dr. Carla Hayden during her tenure spanning three U.S. Presidents.