Board of Directors
Dave Seel | Board President
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing restaurant industry crisis, Dave founded The Baltimore Restaurant Relief Group on Facebook as a resource for the local hospitality industry to find answers, support each other, and find a sense of community during uncertain times. After discussions with others on the board, the Baltimore Restaurant Relief Fund was begun as a financial mechanism to provide support and recovery funds to Baltimore’s restaurants and its employees.
Seel is also the principal of Blue Fork Marketing, an integrated marketing firm that focuses much of its efforts on the food and beverage industry in the Maryland/DC metro area.
Kelly Cross | Board Vice President
Lawyer, advocate, and community leader, Cross has consistently stepped up to advocate for others in Baltimore and Maryland throughout his career. His work with the Old Goucher Community Association and the restaurants within the Baltimore neighborhood lead him to collaborate with Dave Seel to begin the Baltimore Restaurant Relief Fund. He is passionate about the need for advocacy work for the local Baltimore restaurant community and continues to work with the BRRF board and his neighborhood’s restaurants to create a more stable, equitable and vibrant hospitality industry.
Michael Frank | Board Treasurer
Michael Frank is a Team Leader and Realtor® with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices - PenFed Realty. He and his team have helped nearly 250 families move throughout the state of Maryland over the past five years. As a professional, Frank has been nominated for a number of roles including board membership on the Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors Charitable Foundation, regional membership of Berkshire Hathaway's ReThink Council, and graduating from the Maryland Realtors 2018 Leadership Academy.
For Frank, having worked in different parts of the hospitality industry for almost 20 years, the 'service-mindset' runs deep. Holding nearly a dozen different positions in Baltimore area restaurants has helped Frank to understand the core values and foundations on which business builds. Adapting service industry skills to real world applications is a focal point for his business, and Michael prides himself of converting service workers to profitable business people.
"Every american should have to work through one Saturday PM shift in the service industry at some point in their lifetime"
Anna Kent | Board Secretary
Anna Kent is a proud Baltimorean and a passionate veteran of the Food and Beverage industry. In more recent years Anna has focused on roles in leadership, developing well-structured and professional work environments that put transparency and accountability at the forefront for all levels of staff. In joining the board of the BRRF, Anna aims to develop resources for small businesses and industry employees that will go beyond emergency relief needs and create a continued platform to support the growth of Baltimore's restaurant culture.
Timothy “ Chyno” Chin | Director of Community Relations & Board Member
Better known as “ The Boy with the Blue Beard” and “The Baltimore Foodie,” Timothy Chin is a well-known food personality & social media persona in the DMV Region. With his charismatic presence and large social and public following, Chin uses his platform and works to build awareness and support for a variety of political, socio-economic, and minority based issues. When not fundraising, participating in political actions, promoting small businesses, or curating social media campaigns, Chyno can be found at Pinch Dumplings, a Chinese dumpling bar located in the heart of Mount Vernon at the Mount Vernon Marketplace where he recently became a co-owner.
With a background of over 15 years in the foodservice industry and 12 years of social media marketing work paired with his continued rise as a Media Personality fuels his work with groups and initiatives like the BRRF. Chin also currently sits on the Diversity and Inclusion Board of Visit Baltimore. Is a member of the MVBA as a community member as well as an avid supporter of various local organizations including Healthcare for the Homeless, WYPR, BOPA, Downtown Partnership and more.
Clare Yost | Board Member
After coming to Baltimore for a "Task Force" temporary job, Clare Yost fell in love with Baltimore and its deep sense of community. She quickly decided that Baltimore was going to be her new home. Since then, she has worked for some of the top-rated restaurants in Baltimore, including Wit & Wisdom in the Four Seasons, Azumi, and Of Love & Regret. Currently, Yost serves as the Lead Sommelier at the Sagamore Pendry Baltimore.
Through all of these experiences, she has met some of Baltimore's finest industry professionals who share knowledge and embrace people with - at the moment properly social distanced - open arms. Wanting to follow in their footsteps of promoting community, she serves currently as the Treasurer of the Baltimore Bartender's Guild, and now a Board Member on the Restaurant Relief Fund. She is excited to give back to a city that has given her so much.
Ezra Allen | Board Member
Bartender, event curator, and consultant Ezra Allen has spent the last 20 years cultivating a career in the world of hospitality. Discovering his passion for food and beverage at an early age, Ezra has developed a wide range of expertise in training and educating staff, managing and designing innovative spirit experiences as well as providing high level, luxury customer service. A passionate people connector and native New Yorker, Ezra now affectionately calls Baltimore City home.