Team
Get to Know Our Leaders
Our Darlington teams are here to personally serve our customers, whether you need assistance from sales and marketing, customer service, finance, food science, manufacturing or quality assurance. Contact us – we’re here to help!
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Meet Our Management Team
Valerie has been with Darlington Snacks for five years assisting the executive team, coordinating company events and assisting in human resources. In her position, she jumps in when needed and enjoys having a variety of responsibilities and the ability to work with different coworkers every week. Her prior experience includes 16 years in operations management and human resources, 9 years in administrative/clerical work and five years in food service. Outside of work, she likes to spend time with her two sons and daughter in law, baking, gardening and reading.
With seven years working at Darlington Snacks, Megan is currently the customer support manager, in charge of overseeing orders from start to finish and managing customer communication. In this fast-paced, solution-seeking role, she coordinates customer satisfaction with our production team. She enjoys the engagement and communication across all corners of the company, and with our brokers and distributors. She has three decades of customer service experience, including many years in the service industry. Megan is also an avid reader and likes hanging out and playing in the sunshine with her kid.
Luiza’s role includes managing the marketing and samples departments, with a focus on our marketing materials, packaging, sample fulfillment, website content and trade shows. She appreciates the opportunities to learn and achieve her goals, while contributing to the success of our brands. Luiza brings a range of insight to the team, with experience in business development in London, a non-profit in Chicago, and degrees in Restoration and Conservation, and Interior Design. Born in Rio de Janeiro, she embraces all cultures and experiences gained while living around the globe. Outside of the office, Luiza travels and enjoys life with her husband, three kids and friends.
Rafael manages all of the IT needs at Darlington Snacks, implementing company-wide procedures and processes, as well as IT training sessions. He enjoys enabling our team to best serve all customers more seamlessly, while finding paths for better communication and service. With over 10 years of IT experience, Rafael previously worked for an engineering firm and a national foodservice company. After playing baseball and becoming one of the top high school chess players in Texas, he was driven to IT based on his love for both active/time sensitive puzzles (baseball) and for methodical/big-picture puzzles (chess).
Diana has been purchasing manager for Darlington Manufacturing for three years, with over 10 years of experience in purchasing, as well as manufacturing and supply chain. In her current role, she’s in charge of sourcing, contracting, pricing and purchasing all direct/indirect material for our Joplin operations. What she enjoys most at work is that every day is different – she always has the opportunity to learn something new as part of a growing company. Beyond the office, Diana enjoys both gardening and crocheting.
As plant controller for Darlington Manufacturing, Don oversees both plant financials and inventories for our Joplin, Mo., manufacturing location. Prior to joining our team, he gained valuable insight and experience at various food manufacturers in the Chicago, Ill., and Springfield, Mo., areas. He particularly enjoys working as part of a strong team at a growing company. Outside of work, Don has a passion for restoring old houses and enjoys spending time with his wife, Carol, and their two dogs, Sammi Jo and Baxter Springs.
As the quality and food safety manager, Emily oversees all aspects of production – from the quality and safety of each cookie that goes out the door all the way down to how clean the floors are. In her position at Darlington Manufacturing, she most enjoys seeing new products evolve from concept to fruition and all the steps in between. Prior to joining the team, she worked in quality for four years in the nuclear industry. But no matter the industry, Emily has found that quality is quality is quality. Beyond the office, she wears many hats as a small business owner, an engineering student, a homebrew master and a motorcycle rider.
Jeremy oversees the daily operations of all inbound and outbound loads at our Joplin, Mo., facility. He has contributed to the overall improvements of our logistics, improving cost, quality and service, and appreciates how his co-workers help to grow the company by driving a “Zero Loss Culture.” Prior to Darlington Snacks, Jeremy worked for General Mills for 21 years, where he held a variety of key roles such as raw material planner, production planner, demand planner and logistics planning manager. Beyond work, Jeremy spends time with his family, rides his Harley and is a tournament bass fisher.
Jack has served as plant engineer and maintenance manager since our Joplin, Mo., location opened in 2016. With these roles, he’s in charge of a variety of tasks, including utilities, wastewater, PLC programming and custom automation system design, as well as supervising the maintenance department. He’s inspired by the range of challenges in his role, and the opportunity to learn something new every day. Jack brings to the team over 35 years of experience on the floor in nearly every aspect of industrial engineering. Outside of work, his hobbies include golfing and training Labrador retrievers.
Samer has worked for over four years as a product superintendent at the Darlington Snacks facility located in Joplin, Mo. In this role with the company, he particularly enjoys seeing his team develop and grow professionally – from new employees, learning about the operations to independent, to strong leaders. Prior to joining the company, Samer worked as the production lead and supervisor for 10 years at the same facility that Darlington purchased as its new manufacturing plant in 2016. His hobbies primarily include travel, with a love for visiting large cities and seeing amazing skylines.
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Meet Our Sales Team
Meet Our Sales Team
For over five years, Jason has been the business development manager for the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, stretching from Oklahoma to Maryland. His favorite aspect of the job is traveling across the country to meet new customers, understand their needs and offer solutions that work for them. Before joining Darlington Snacks, Jason worked for over 9 years for an independent distributor purchasing cooperative. Along with being a huge Atlanta Falcons and Georgia Southern Eagles fan, he’s been married for over 15 years and has two children – Jamison and Allie.
Jeff has managed the Midwest and Pacific Northwest regions for the last five years. In this role, he travels and provides a portfolio of quality products to individuals, primarily in the K-12 and healthcare essential markets. Jeff has always had a passion for foodservice, with a degree in culinary arts/foodservice management and a variety of professional experiences with restaurants, catering/vending operations and distribution sales. He also served on the board of the Iowa SNA for 15 years. Beyond work, Jeff enjoys spending time with his wife, Jayne, and their daughters, Elizabeth and Jessica.
With over 10 years of experience working at Darlington Snacks, Mike is responsible for the sales management of brokers and sales to customers in the Northeast to Great Lakes regions. He most enjoys providing product solutions for our customers, and working with individuals in various segments we serve. Before joining the Darlington Snacks team, Mike worked in sales in both medical devices/disposables and nutritional foodservice. Outside of sales, Mike enjoys sports and the outdoors.
Tara is responsible for sales in the West territory and bottom-line profitability for Darlington Snacks. She enjoys working for a company that’s dedicated to developing healthier and innovative snack solutions, and has strong relationships with brokers, distributors and end users. Prior to joining the team, she worked for a national broker and in sales and merchandising for retail, independents, e-commerce and grocery. In her spare time, Tara frequents the beach and enjoys spending time with her dog and five nieces and nephews. She is passionate about wellness and helping with relief for the homeless.
With over eight years at Darlington Snacks and 25 years as a registered dietitian, Scott has expertise in both long-term care facilities and school foodservice. He leads our sales and marketing efforts throughout the country and excels at knowing our customers, maintaining successful partnerships and keeping our products top of mind. He’s inspired by his co-workers, stating that they’re some of the best minds in foodservice. Beyond his work life, Scott is an avid gardener, cook and gamer.
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Click on any state below to see the respective Darlington Snacks representative
Sales Team