Khyentse Foundation is a funding organization: We don’t operate projects directly, we channel resources to people and institutions who share our vision. For that reason, we have a small executive office of key players. Marco Noailles is one of those keys. He has been the treasurer and a member of the Executive Committee since the inception of Khyentse Foundation. Despite having a very busy full time job, until recently, Marco has been doing all the bookkeeping and accounting for Khyentse Foundation and 84000. It’s not a glamorous task, but it is essential. At the tenth anniversary celebration, Rinpoche singled out Marco to thank him for his selfless hard work.

Originally from northern Minnesota, Marco graduated from Northwestern University in Evanston IL with a major in Economics. Few people know that Marco helped establish a number of food co-operatives in Wisconsin, and that over the years he has lived on various goat farms throughout the midwest and northwestern United States. Marco met Choygam Trungpa Rinpoche in 1972 and soon thereafter moved to Boulder, Colorado, where he helped with the start-up of Naropa Institute. He attended the 1975 Vajradhatu Seminary, where the second of his three sons was born.

Despite his very busy schedule, when Cangioli Che approached Marco to help establish a foundation to support Rinpoche’s activities in 2000, he accepted instantly. “I wasn’t certain what I was getting into, and I’ve tried to keep pace with the rapid evolution of KF ever since,” he says. “Needless to say, it has been an extraordinary experience working for KF. I am constantly amazed by Rinpoche’s vision, delightfully challenged by the development of KF and 84000, and grateful beyond words to assist in whatever way I can to help Rinpoche’s aspirations be actualized.”