About Us

Joe served 22 years in the United States Navy as a Seabee Combat Warfare Officer, retiring as a Commander after deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, the Mediterranean, and the Indian and Pacific Oceans. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Central Florida and a Master of Civil Engineering from the University of Florida. He has spent his career building things meant to hold under pressure.

Then a Panamanian pastor named Samuel walked eighteen miles out of the mountains to find him and ask for a bridge. Joe said yes. Today he designs every Ember bridge, walks every site, and works shoulder to shoulder with the villagers who build them, so the knowledge stays behind long after the crew goes home. He will tell you a bridge is never only a bridge. It is a school day that is not missed, a mother who reaches the clinic, a family that stays whole.

Noelle founded The Human Collective Foundation in 2020 out of a heart for families in her own community, and had no idea it would one day lead her to a riverbank in the Comarca Ngäbe-Buglé. She serves as Parent Ministry Director for Adventures In Missions, walking with parents whose children have said yes to the mission field, and she is the author of I Am Gravel, a children's book told in the voice of a river stone.

She married Joe on January 25, 2025. Instead of a honeymoon, they flew to Panama and began construction on the first bridge, and they have been building ever since. Noelle leads fundraising, storytelling, and the child sponsorship program that connects supporters here to children there. She will tell you that all of it has been one long lesson in saying yes before you know what yes is going to cost.

Rachel Boyer is from Jacksonville, Florida and currently serves as our Assistant Executive Director, working closely alongside our Founder to spread hope and our mission to our community. Rachel received her BA in psychology with a concentration in sports at Florida Institute of Technology on a Softball and Academic Scholarship. Her passions revolve around helping people reach their fullest potential in any capacity, so she is currently earning her Masters in Clinics Social work from UCF. Rachel has aided in the fight against Human Trafficking, hiking The Enchantments in Washington State for Rescue Freedom International, bringing awareness and raising funds for the rescue and restoration of victims. In her free time, she enjoys giving softball pitching lessons, being outdoors, going to the park with her dog, husband and daughter Blake, son Brock and newest addition daughter Leighton and being involved at her church. Rachel is also Godmother to two teenage girls that adore her and the wisdom she shares.

Tom Bestafka is a diehard Yankee fan who wonders why it is so hard to get a decent bagel and a decent slice of pizza around Jacksonville. He is married to the love of his life, Lynn, and they have two fantastic teens, T.J. (Tom Jr., 16) and Isabella (13). When asked to join the Board, Tom jumped at the opportunity because the work of Ember Foundations is truly saving lives, and he is honored to support these efforts.

Pete is an architect and a PMP certified project manager with more than two decades of experience leading design and construction work across the private and public sectors. That includes 20 years in the United States Navy, 14 of them as a commissioned Civil Engineer Corps officer, managing facilities, design, and construction projects around the world. He counts the building of two medical clinics in Vietnam, serving communities that had been going without, among the most rewarding work of his career.

Before the Navy he spent six years in architecture and engineering, moving from drafter to Project Designer and Job Captain on civic projects. That is where he learned what it takes to carry a design all the way through to something people can walk into. He brings the same combination to this board: creative vision, disciplined execution, and a habit of building trust with the people around him.