Just Food interim director Elizabeth Keever addresses Chef's Dinner attendees, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2015, at Cider Gallery, 810 Pennsylvania.

The Just Food board of directors announced Friday it named Elizabeth Keever as the full-time executive director of the food bank.

Keever has served as director in an interim role since former Lawrence Mayor Jeremy Farmer resigned from the post in August. Will Katz, president of Just Food’s board, said in a news release that Keever “successfully shepherded the organization through some tremendous challenges.”

Elizabeth Keever

After Farmer resigned amid allegations of financial misconduct, Just Food launched a campaign that raised nearly $80,000 to pay off the nonprofit’s tax liability. An audit of the food bank determined the nonprofit’s board lacked several key financial controls that likely made it easier for Farmer to allegedly take $55,000 from the organization over a three-year period.

The board talked to “countless” stakeholders and community members before selecting Keever to fill the executive director spot permanently, said the board’s vice president, Brandon Deines, in the release.

“The Board knew selecting the right executive director would be vital to the continued success of the organization, so we were very deliberate throughout this process,” Deines said.

Keever started with Just Food in 2013 as its chief resource officer, responsible for the food bank’s marketing, communication, event planning and food acquisition. She implemented Just Food’s two annual fundraisers: the Founder’s Dinner and the Kansas Food Truck Festival.

Keever also expanded the food bank’s grocery recovery program, in which unused food is collected from local grocery stores and restaurants. The food bank collected about 600,000 pounds of food in 2015 through that program, up from about 200,000 in 2014.