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History

Global Roots was founded by Rick Montgomery, an American by birth who has lived and worked in over 75 countries. Rick’s inspiration to devote his life to the assistance of desperate, vulnerable children came in three phases. At the young age of 12 he was pursued by a stranger at full sprint deep inside Portland’s vast “Forest Park”. Fortunately, Rick was fast and he knew the park better than his pursuer so he got away. The experience made him realize that there are indeed adults who consciously prey on children. Later in life Rick would hold a starving baby in India and witness the largest migration of child labor in early 90’s China. Rick met his mentor in 2001 – a Tibetan woman who has adopted and seen to the needs of more than 250 orphaned children on the Tibetan Plateau. The woman’s selfless giving nature inspired Rick to create a children’s charity that would support local humanitarians who are already helping children (not just talking about it).
 
 
Today, Rick and an amazing team of volunteers (including a director at eBay, a former US/Soviet arms negotiator, a US Bank VP, two nonprofit professionals and a former foreign service admin chief) spend a great deal of time making sure that the majority of Global Roots donations reach projects not central administration and that all funds are spent on target. Other, younger volunteers are bravely traveling into the field to help hardworking local humanitarians improve living conditions for the world’s most forsaken children.

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Your Trusted Partner

Global Roots is a 501c3 non-profit organization registered in the states of Washington and Oregon.  Our goal is to support local humanitarians in their efforts to change the lives of children around the world. We strive to commit 90% of all donations to projects and less than 10% to administration.


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Click here to see our Financial statements.
 
 
Global Roots Staff 
  • Rick Montgomery, Director
     
  • Sarah Tarvin-Tan, Global Outreach Manager
  • Ryan Peck, Senior Volunteer, North America
  • Kelly Palin, book keeper

Board of Directors  

  • Patrick Firouzian, Corporate Executive, eBay
  • Suzanne Parry, professor, Department of Defense negotiator
  • James Gearhart, former Admin Chief, US Foreign Service 
  • Sheila Capestany, Executive Director,  Open Arms Perinatal, Seattle, WA 
  • Rick Montgomery, small business owner, writer, expedition leader