Training Team
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Shellie DeMaria
Director of Learning & Development Manager

Shellie DeMaria has been the Regional Training Manager for Manna Development
San Diego since 2012 and is responsible for onboarding and training of new managers for all cafes in the county and continued learning and development of the current management staff. Shellie joined the Manna Development team working as a bakery café cashier at the opening of the Mira Mesa café in 2004. While attending college, Shellie worked her way up holding all positions from associate to Training General Manager when she returned to lead the Mira Mesa cafe in 2009. In May 2015 Shellie graduated from San Diego State University with her Bachelors in Art History. 

Shellie is a San Diego native who enjoys education, the arts, and staying active.  In 2004 she was named to the All-American Soccer team for the NAIA Western Division while on scholarship at Point Loma Nazarene
University. Working at Panera Bread for Manna Development was the first job
Shellie ever had and she has been happily employed and grateful for the
opportunities provided to her for over ten years.
Colby Green
Regional Training Manager - Bread of Life, Michigan/Indiana
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Colby joined Panera Bread in November of 2008 at our Alpine bakery cafe. He was attending Kendall College of Art and Design as a full-time student at the time. Colby worked his way into management and was promoted to Shift Supervisor at our Cascade bakery cafe at the end of 2009. Colby worked in the Cascade location for the next 6 years, working his way up to Assistant Manager in 2010 and eventually General Manager in 2012.

Training has been in virtually every aspect of Colby's Panera Bread career. As an Assistant Manager, Colby was the Training Specialist and also worked as a District Training Specialist.  As General Manager of the Cascade location Colby quickly became a Training Certified General Manager.  

Colby has been married to his wife, Lisa, since June of 2015. They have both worked in food service for many years and absolutely love it. They love sports and are currently season ticket holders for the University of Michigan football team. GO BLUE!
Autumn Kwolek
Market Training Manager - Manna NW

Autumn was hired as an Assistant Manager with Manna at the Muskegon, MI cafe in 2011. During her time there she was the Training Specialist and also taught Planet Bread. She moved to Vancouver, WA in September 2015 due to her husband's career and quickly found a job at the local Panera Bread as a Catering Sales Coordinator. Autumn then decided to step back up to an Assistant Manager role. After she really excelled, she took on the Market Training Manager role when she returned from maternity leave in August 2017. One of Autumn favorite parts about working for Manna is their commitment to making the community a better place!

In Autumn's free time she enjoys spending time with her husband, Jeff, and new baby boy, Wesley. They love to go hiking and travel, exploring the beautiful landscape of the Pacific Northwest. She also loves to bake and even studied Culinary Arts and Food and Beverage Management at the Culinary Institute of Michigan. 
​​Morgan Crueger
Market Training Manager - Manna NW

Morgan started with Panera in 2012, during the opening of the Keizer Cafe, as an associate and then moved into Catering, Shift Lead, Assistant Manager and then General Manager. She started the District Training Specialist role and absolutely loved getting to meet other associates and managers across the markets and hearing their passions for Panera and personal goals. Morgan is looking forward to seeing the development with our new and existing Team Managers and helping each cafe reach their training goals.  She also has a goal of increasing the number of training Bakery Cafes in Manna NW. 
 
Morgan and her fiancé, Jesus, have a 7-year-old son, Silas, and two cats, Phil and Lil, who keep their days packed full of fun. They love concerts, traveling to different parks in their area and spending time at the Oregon coast.
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Ashley Kidd Balajadia
​Regional Training Manager - ODB and Manna LA

Ashley joined Panera Bread in November 2007 as a cashier the Tustin Ranch bakery cafe.  She has worked in many cafes throughout the years and was promoted in 2009 to Shift Supervisor and General Manager/ Training General Manager in 2014. Training has always been her passion and she really enjoys developing others and seeing the teams grow!   

She has been married to her husband, Aaron, since 2010 and enjoys spending  time with him and their two boys, Brody and Boston. They like  being outdoors, hiking, camping and going to the river, as well as, working out together. 
Jackie Jackson
​Regional Training Manager - Manna CO

Jackie joined the Panera Bread family in 2000 as she helped open the very first Panera in Colorado. Jackie has gone on to help open more than 28 of the  locations in the state. Originally starting out as an associate, Jackie has worked her way up the ranks to her current position.

Jackie has always been passionate for training throughout her career at Panera. One of her greatest strengths is her boundless energy, coupled with a genuine appreciation for people.

In her free time Jackie loves to make candy, crafts and participates in a bowling league.  She lives in Loveland Colorado with her son Angelo and her boyfriend Dan. They have two cats and a hedgehog. They love doing family activities that include fishing, hiking, playing Pokémon, board games, visiting family, road trips and watching movies. 
Sarah Medlin
Regional Training Manager - Risen Bread, LA

Sarah joined Panera in July of 2004 as a 16-year old starting her first job.  She worked at the Palmdale bakery cafe and was promoted to Shift Supervisor in April of 2007 at our Lancaster bakery cafe. Sarah became a member of the Pro Team and helped open several cafes over the next few years.   Sarah attended community college while working at Panera and received an Associates of Arts Degree in Administration of Justice. 

In 2010 Sarah was promoted to Assistant Manager at our Golden Valley bakery cafe and in October of 2012 Sarah became the General Manager of our Encino bakery cafe where she quickly became a Certified Training General Manager.  Currently, Sarah has been working as a Regional Training Manager since January 2015.

Sarah and her husband James were married In September of 2013 and welcomed their first child, a son, in October of 2014.  Sarah and her family reside in Acton and enjoy the outdoors - fishing, camping and hiking as well as cherishing every minute watching their son grow.

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Emily Groves
Regional Training Manager - San Diego and Orange County

Emily joined the Panera team in November 2011 as an associate in the Escondido Cafe, and was quickly promoted to Shift Supervisor in the Summer of 2012. She joined the pro team later that year, helping open a number of cafe's over the years. She was promoted to Assistant Manager in Escondido in February of 2014, and took on the role as opening General Manager of our El Camino cafe in early 2015. During her time as General Manager, she became a Training GM and was certified as Manna's first Gold Standard Cafe. Emily became Our Daily Bread and Manna North San Diego's RTM in mid 2018, which was a goal she had been working towards for a number of years. She loves training, helping others to grow, and the heart that Manna has for people.

 Emily and her husband Dominick were married in 2017, and love serving in their church, and traveling the world. She has been to Mozambique on missions trips 4 separate times, and also visited Costa Rica and Europe. 
Leon Frizzell 
​Regional Training Manager - Manna CO

Leon has been with Panera since 2010 and has held many positions including District Training Specialist, General Manager and Training General Manager.  He has also been awarded both Rookie GM of the Year and The Golden Goose for Manna Colorado!  

As a Regional Training Manager, Leon is looking forward to being able to reach out to other cafes and help them get their training programs on a solid ground and to work with new managers which are the future of our company!
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Leon has an adopted son that is 14 and is a freshman in high school. His passion is working in the community helping others. He serves on the board of directors as treasurer for ICRME which is a nonprofit that raises money for charities in the GLBT+ community. 
 
When relaxing, his passion is gardening and working in his yard! He likes to cook and feed others including his bakery café staff and the market at GM meetings.