Katie Fonsen Young

Katie Fonsen Young joined the John Jordan Foundation as Executive Director in 2021. This role closely aligns with her prior work dedicated to the success of local nonprofits and youth enrichment programs.

Fonsen Young was born and raised in Sonoma County, CA. After graduating from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, she returned home to begin a career in marketing and communications.

Fonsen Young spent eleven years as an executive in the fairs, festivals, and events industry, serving as the Chief Operating Offer of the Cloverdale Citrus Fair and Manager at the Sonoma County Fair and Event Center. Prior to her work in the Fair and Events Industry, Young served five years at the Sonoma County Farm Bureau, working to support agriculture by forming strategic partnerships with regulatory agencies, government officials, and local farmers and ranchers.

In 2015 Fonsen Young was named as one of the North Bay Business Journal’s ‘Forty Under 40’ for being “an extraordinary executive that has advanced quickly in the fair and agriculture industries.” Her leadership in the Fair Industry earned her positions on the Western Fairs Association Board of Directors and the California Fairs Alliance.

Her work to develop scholarship programs and support the success of local youth through the Sonoma County Fair Foundation and Farm Bureau Foundation of Sonoma County remain among her most rewarding projects.

Agriculture and a love of the land runs deep for Fonsen Young. Katie’s husband, Brent, farms winegrapes and olives. Together, they run cattle, farm hay, and raise champion Quarter Horses on their ranch in Potter Valley, Mendocino County. Fonsen Young competes nationally in cutting horse competitions. Their daughter, Lucy, is following in her mother’s footsteps and has become an accomplished young equestrian.