2026 Board Candidates

Ellen Barfield

VFP Chapter 105 - Baltimore MD
Branch of service:  Army
Member since: June, 1988
Current board position: Board Member

Ellen Barfield spent 4 years in the US Army 1977 to 1981, occupying West Germany and South Korea, puzzling her so long after those respective hot wars were over. Her doubts about US foreign policy and militarism grew as she finished college with Army money. She joined VFP in 1988 as soon as she heard it existed, while working against nuclear weapons with a peace coalition challenging the Pantex nuclear warhead assembly plant outside Amarillo, TX.

She was on the VFP Board from 2000 to 2008, beginning by filling a vacated seat, and proudly was VP under Dave Cline, and again is filling a vacated board seat. She co-founded the Baltimore, MD Phil Berrigan Memorial VFP Chapter in 2003, and continues to coordinate it. Ellen has traveled on VFP delegations to Iraq and Palestine, has been arrested at many VFP Veterans Peace Team actions. She serves as the Head Representative of VFP to the United Nations Department of Global Communications, and coordinated attendance of many VFP members to the pre-covid yearly UN NGO conferences.

Ellen represented VFP on the School of the Americas Watch board in years past, and now joins Gerry Condon representing VFP on the Peace in Ukraine Coalition.

I serve on the Board Membership Committee, and steering committees of the Climate Crisis and Militarism Project and the Korea Peace Project, and coordinate the Board Nominating Committee. I aim to continue my long and broad VFP experience.

Stephen Zollman

VFP Chapter 071 - Sonoma County CA
Branch of service:  Army
Member since: June, 2020
Current board position: Board Member

Am a current board member and have served on the TJC and the bylaws committees. Am the Mayor of Sebastopol, CA, a small city an hour and half NW of San Francisco. Am a former San Francisco Public Defender of twelve years. Have represented fellow Veterans during that time and also during my time as a staff attorney with Swords to Plowshares. Am very involved with national, state and local politics and work to support many from the most marginalized in our community i.e. BIPOC, Queer, differently abled, those with few means, etc.  I would like to find  a way to help support other elected and help others run who support the mission of VFP. I would be honored to be elected and serve with the rest of this terrific and hard working board. Please reach out with any questions.

Have served on the TJC and bylaws committees and would like to continue serving on them. I would continue to provide the elected, queer and differently abled perspective.

Michael Wong

VFP Chapter 069 - San Francisco CA
Branch of service:  Army
Member since: Aug, 2016
Current board position: Board Member

Michael Wong is a former national vice president of Veterans For Peace (VFP) and currently serves on its national board, is a co-founder of Pivot To Peace (https://peacepivot.org/ ), co-chair of the VFP China Working Group (https://www.veteransforpeace.org/our-work/working-groups/china-working-group ), and vice president of VFP San Francisco chapter #69. He has been published in the anthologies, "Veterans of War, Veterans of Peace," edited by Maxine Hong Kingston, "A Matter of Conscience," by William Short and Willa Seidenberg, and in "Waging Peace in Vietnam," edited by Ron Carver, David Cortright, and Barbara Doherty.  He is also featured in the documentary film, "Sir! No Sir!" about the Viet Nam era GI anti-war movement, and is a retired social worker with a Master of Social Work degree. 

I have been a part of the peace movement since the American war on Viet Nam, and am active in both the peace community and the Asian community.  I work with both local and national leaders of other peace organizations and bring those contacts and experiences with me to VFP.  I have a particular knowledge and connections to opposing the US war drive  on China and Asia, but also continue work on opposing US wars around the world.  My life has been marching, organizing, speaking, writing, and advocating for peace. 

Gerry Condon

VFP Chapter 092 - Greater Seattle WA
Branch of service:  Army
Member since: June, 1988
Current board position: Board Member

I am a Vietnam-era veteran and war resister, who refused orders to deploy to Vietnam and fled from Fort Bragg, North Carolina and from the US in early 1969. I spent 3 years in Sweden working with the American Deserters Committee and the European antiwar movement and then moved to Canada, where I spent 3 years working with the Vancouver American Exiles Association and AMEX-Canada, organizing for an end to the Vietnam war and for amnesty for all war resisters. I returned to the US in 1975, publlicly refused to participate in President Ford's "earned re-entry program" and going on a 50-city speaking tour. My prison sentence, which was once for 10 years, was droppped, and I have been a peace and solidarity activist ever since.

I organized the first two veterans delegations to revolutionary Nicaragua in 1983-84, exposing the US role in funding, training and leading the terrorist, counter-revolutionary forces known as the "Contra." I worked in the war zones of Nicaragau with Brian Willson and the Veterans Peace Action Teams, rebuilding clinics and schools that had been destroyed by the Contras. was a co-coordinator of the Veterans Peace Convoy to Nicaragua in 1988. In the 90's, I worked for IFCO/Pastors for Peace, organizing humanitarian aid caravans to Nicaragua and Cuba.

From 2004-2006, I returned to Canada to work with another generation of US war resisters - mostly Iraq war veterans who did not want to re-deploy to war, and were seeking asylum in Canada.

I have been an active member of Veterans For Peace since 2006. I have served on the VFP Board of Directors, including as Board president. i am currently finishing up a 3-year term on the Board, where I facilitate the meetings of the Communications Committee and the Mobilization Committee. I assist in writing and publicizing VFP statements. I facilitate the monthly meetings of the VFP Nuclear Abolition Working Group.

For the last ten years, I have served as president of the Golden Rule Committee, which organizes the voyages of the historic Golden Rule anti-nuclear sailboat. I am preparing to spend the month of August accompanying the Golden Rule 's voyage around San Francisco Bay. Aside from rasiing the alarm about the growing danger of nuclear war, we will be expressing VFP's continuing opposition to the US-backed Israeli genocide in Gaza and to the militarized attacks on our immigrant friends and neighbors.

Along with my sister Board member Ellen Barfield, I represent Veterans For Peace on the steering committee of the Peace In Ukraine Coalition. I have led two VFP delegations to Nicaragua, one in 2019 and another in March of this year. I am a dedicated member of Veterans For Peace and its many activist members who are on the cutting edge of local, national and international movements for peace, justice and solidarity.

As you can see from my bio above, my perspective is rooted in my experience as a GI resister who continues to support resistance to the many wars of US imperialism around the globe - and also at home here in the US. I believe in active resistance, in solidarity with those who under attack by the US, and in working in coalition with as many groups as possible to achieve Peace at Home and Peace Abroad. I will always be one of the Board members who are pushing for us to do more and better. I greatly admire the leadership that is shown by so many VFP chapters and members. I want to see us become an even more powerful voice for peace through nationally-coordinated actions and greater visibility.

Dave Logsdon

VFP Chapter 027 - Minneapolis MN
Branch of service:  Navy
Member since: Jan, 2018
Current board position: None

Vietnam Vet, retired teamster, 25 year member of VFP, Chapter President for 10 years, former Board of Directors member.

I have been involved in activities locally (over 150 vigils and actions last year) I have worked in the area of building membership both nationally and locally. I was briefly Vice-President of the BOD. I have ran for the Board twice and lost! Third time is a charm.

Aneesa Ahad

VFP Chapter 111 - Bellingham WA
Branch of service:  Air Force
Member since: Aug, 2023
Current board position: None

With a broad range of work and life experiences, I recognize that communication is usually central to fighting injustice and solutions. As a veteran and a mother, I am committed to amplifying the voices of women and children, particularly in resisting the militarization of our communities and the policies that sustain military empire.

Through my work as a mentor and community advocate, I support youth in understanding how militarism is intertwined with issues like injustice, hunger, homelessness, and the concentration of power among elites. I’ve had demonstrable success in counter-recruitment efforts, helping young people move from seeing the military as the only option to exploring alternative pathways for success in life. I also provide educational workshops about examining individual conscientious objection, encouraging individuals to reflect on their own positions regarding war and empire, fostering an understanding of personal impact on policies and cultural resistance.

As a board member of Veterans for Peace, I would bring these principles to the table, with a focus on three key goals: elevating the perspectives of younger members, preserving the wisdom of long-time activists, and ensuring our actions remain rooted in direct, achievable outcomes—what we can change through our actions, voices, and resources.

This work is integral to who I am, and I will continue to dedicate myself to these causes, both within Veterans for Peace and through ongoing lifestyle choices.

I would like to continue as coordinator for the Conscientious Resistance Working Group with an emphasis on counter recruiting coordination. Additionally, I am interested is supporting communications among members and between working groups utilizing my experience with technical writing, web-design, graphic arts, and community based communications. A third area of interest, is providing direct support to individuals who have a message or action to share but do not have the bandwidth or the tools to move forward.

James L. Smith II

VFP Chapter 091 - San Diego CA 
Branch of service:  Marines
Member since: May, 2021
Current board position: None

James L. Smith II is a cofounder and director of Black Deported Veterans of America (BDVA). As a proud United States Marine Corps veteran, James is dedicated to advocating for veterans' rights and ensuring they receive the benefits they have earned. His advocacy is particularly focused on military naturalization, with a focus on addressing the unique challenges faced by Black veterans in this context. James is an active and engaged member of several prominent veterans' organizations, including Veterans For Peace (VFP), Common Defense, 50501 Vets, VFW, LULAC, and the NAACP. The formation of BDVA was driven by the realization that Black veterans were often overlooked in discussions and solutions concerning deported veterans. James works tirelessly to provide guidance, resources, and support to veterans, helping them navigate the complexities of accessing their earned benefits. His efforts are particularly crucial for deported veterans who face significant barriers in obtaining the assistance they deserve. James's mission is to bridge this gap, ensuring that all veterans, regardless of their status or background, have the opportunity to reclaim their lives and futures through fair and accessible support systems.

I hope to bring a different perspective on veteran advocacy. A bit of refined rawness. I am a true believer in diplomacy. I don't believe in violence as a determinate for peace. However, I am not ignorant to the historical fact that conflict and violence are ingrained in the human condition. Peace is a purpose! I'd like to explore the concept of DEI in VFP. The committees that I feel that I can be a productive additive are Strategic Planning, Membership/Chapter Support, and Convention.