Who We Are

Solace Stateside Staff

Nate York, Executive Director and founder of Solace International

Nate became involved with international aid during the Bosnian war, helping direct supplies with U.N. operations in the Balkans. In early 2002 he traveled to Northern Afghanistan and worked with a program distributing educational supplies for U.N.I.C.E.F. Returning to the US later the same year, Nate completed a BA in Liberal Studies from Alaska Pacific University in 2002. On campus, he organized a team of supporters and raised funds to build two schools for girls in Afghanistan. With momentum from the completion of these schools in 2003, Nate founded Solace International as an international aid organization.  By 2005, Solace had completed seven schools and Nate expanded the mission to include Nepal, and disaster recovery in Indonesia. Nathaniel's passion for helping people has served him all his life and it has shaped and inspired all those who work with Solace. 

Marlo Shedlock, Project and Fundraising Director

Marlo Shedlock joined Solace International in 2004 and currently serves as the Project Director. In addition to fundraising, project management, and donor outreach she is responsible for establishing the fair trade art project between Overstock.com and a community art gallery in Malawi Africa.  Marlo brings to Solace a diverse background of wealth and experience in non-profit and issue advocacy campaigns. Marlo was formally the Project Coordinator for the Alaska Conservation Alliance / Voters (ACA / ACV) a non-profit based in Anchorage, AK.  For 2 years she produced and hosted a drive time talk radio show for ACA and was active in wildlife conservation issues. Marlo has a passion for environmetal protection.  She has a BA in Environmental Geography from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Marlo is from the Outer Banks of North Carolina, but currently resides in Tucson, AZ with her partner Scott and four beloved rescue dogs.

Michelle Winston, Project Director, Solace Cottage Industry Program

In 1996, Michelle Winston traveled across India and Asia as a buyer of fine crafts & apparel. She joined Solace in 2003 as a producerof fabric art and high-end fashion apparel. In 2004, Michelle traveledto Afghanistan to work with women in the northern province of Jawjan - launching Solace's first cottage industry program. At one time, her projects employed over 500 women in several villages. Michelle's talent for developing popular lines of goods, and her ability to connect meaningfully with village women despite cultural and logistical challenges, drew the attention of one of Solace's largest donors, Worldstock.com. She was hired by as Worldstock's lead buyer for Southeast and Central Asia. Returning to Solace in 2010, Michelle now creates her own line of ingeniously designed jewelry, and is both manager and mentor to dozens of craftsmen and women in Nepal. She is overseeing all other cottage industry development in Asia, and Central and South America.

Field Staff

Developing in-country staff has proved an irreplaceable piece of Solace's operational philosophy. By mentoring and eventually hiring students and entrepreneurs who show commitment and energy, Solace has put together a team of hard workers who represent the next generation of business and community leaders. The salaries Solace pays for in-country project managers have been the greatest return on investment of any part of its efforts. The organization is proud of the determination and passion its staff has shown.

Ayub Azizi, Field Director, Malawi

Ayub was born and raised in Kabul, Afghanistan. Because of the dangers posed by the Taliban, Ayub fled with his family to the Northern City of Sheberghan. Ayub joined the Solace team in 2003 and was vital to the success of every Solace project in Afghanistan. In 2007 Ayub and his family moved to Malawi where he became the Field Director for Solace. His tireless work in developing the Solace Mangochi Fish Farm has led to one of the few successful fish production facilities in a country where most other farms – funded into the millions of dollars – have failed.

Mingma Lama, Field Director, Nepal

Dr. Mingma Lama grew up in the remote Napali village of Phaplu in the Solu Khumbu District. He walked nearly an hour each way to attend the local school. He carried this determination to his studies at Sarswati Multiple Campus – Kathmandu, Nepal. In 1995, he earned a Ph.D. in Information Technology from Sydney Institute of Technology in Australia. Mingma began his work advancing the cause of rural education in Nepal in 2004, acting as treasurer for the Belgium aid organization Cunina. With Solace in 2005, Mingma facilitated the construction of the Dorothy Byren Primalry School in his home village of Phaplu, convincing his family to donate land for the project.

Banze (Benjamin) Odera, Project Manager Fanya Mambo

Banze currently oversees the Fanya Mambo project in Nairobi. Because of his tireless work ethic, strong ability to manage logistics and junior staff, Solace sent Banze to Guatemala for one year to manage our Casa del Niños orphanage project.   

Helvin Moses Binda, Project Manager

Born in a rural village in Liberia, Moses was the youngest of seven brothers and sisters. He moved to the capitol, Monrovia, until civil war reached the city in 1990. Moses survived in a refugee camp. War once again returned in 1996. Moses and his family were targets of one of the rebel leaders, and narrowly escaped being burned alive in their home. Moses was able to buy passage on a Russian freighter, but the ship was eventually forced to return to Liberia after a harrowing passage. Moses made his way to Ghana and, with his studies in computers, was able to find work as an agent for two airlines. He met Nate York in Ghana and helped manage the building of an AIDS clinic in the Ho region. Taking note of his abilities, Nate sent him to Liberia to oversee the construction of a new school in the site of the notorious Belle Yella prison. Moses holds degrees in computers and project management, and has worked for Solace in Ghana, Liberia, Kenya, and Malawi. He is currently helping to craft a plan for a pilot sanitation project in Monrovia.

Mathew Dennis, Project Manager

A member of the Kpelle tribe of Liberia, in the Todee District of Montserrado County to a family of five brothers. As a child he lived with his family supported by his father’s work in the Bong mines. When civil war erupted, his father took him to the town of Todee and enrolled him in the Killingsworth Mission School. Within a year, rebels attacked and overran the town and Mathew’s parents were captured. Mathew narrowly escaped only to spend several years fleeing from one village to another as the battle lines of the conflict shifted. During a brief lull in the fighting, Mathew enrolled in school in the city of Gbarnga. Word reached him that his parents were alive in a town close to Monrovia. Reunited with his family, Mathew returned to the village of Todee and enrolled once again at the Killingsworth Mission School. He completed his high school degree in August 2001. He later enrolled in the Booker Washington Institute, where he studied accounting. He is now a seasoned project manager for Solace in Liberia.

"Do not hire a man who does your work for money, but him who does it for love of it."- Henry David Thoreau