MEET OUR TEAM
Tim Chen
Executive Director
Tim joined the GGWNY team in November 2020 to supervise the day-to-day operations of the Community & School Garden program before moving into the Executive Director position in January 2023. His background has ranged from youth development and education to environmental justice work, and he holds an MS in Environmental Studies from the University of Oregon and a BS in Biology from Houghton University. Most recently, he spent several years working in outdoor leadership training while based out of Boston, MA. Tim is particularly interested in the intersections of community development, food sovereignty, and environmental equity, and looks forward to continuing to advance GGWNY's collaborative efforts with communities across our region.
Tim can be reached at director@grassrootsgardens.org
Justin Baumgardner
Development Director
Justin joined Grassroots Gardens WNY in December 2022 as development director, bringing more than a decade of nonprofit fundraising and communications expertise to the organization. Throughout his career, he has worked to address food insecurity and increase food access in our communities. Prior to joining Grassroots Gardens WNY, he served in both development and communications roles at FeedMore WNY and the Meals on Wheels Foundation of WNY.
Justin holds a Master of Science in Communications and Leadership from Canisius College. A lifelong resident of the Buffalo-Niagara area, he is passionate about the region’s food system and the sustainability of its unique resources.
Justin can be reached at justin@grassrootsgardens.org
Greg Wilder
Garden Education Coordinator
Greg joined Grassroots Gardens WNY in the spring of 2017 as the school garden coordinator. He has a bachelors degree in adolescent education and has been an avid gardener for many years. In 2014 he purchased an empty lot at the city foreclosure auction and transformed it into a garden where he grows fruits, vegetables, and perennial flowers. He enjoys how gardens can be effective conversation starters as a way to build positive relationships within the neighborhood. Outside of gardening, Greg is active in the local cycling community and helps to promote alternative forms of transportation with Go Bike Buffalo. For recreation, he loves spending time hiking and camping, especially in the Adirondacks. He also unsuccessfully tries to be a fisherman, but enjoys it nonetheless.
Greg can be reached at greg@grassrootsgardens.org
Loc Tran
Program Manager
Loc joined the staff of Grassroots Gardens WNY in 2022. He has a degree in Botany from the University of Oklahoma and a passion for gardening and addressing food insecurity. He previously worked in southwest Colorado as a food security coordinator and a garden coordinator. He has also served as a food security volunteer with Peace Corps Nepal from 2017-2019.
Loc moved to Buffalo in 2021 and looks forward to making Buffalo his home. Loc enjoys listening to jazz and poorly playing his clarinet at the dismay of his neighbors.
Loc can be reached at loc@grassrootsgardens.org
Sylvin Ashbrook
Land Stewardship Coordinator
Sylvin joined the GGWNY team in June 2022 as the Land Stewardship Coordinator. In this role, Sylvin will be responsible for the support and growth of the Grassroots Gardens Land Trust. Sylvin has well over a decade of gardening experience and has an extensive background in native plant gardening.
Sylvin moved to Buffalo in 2018 with their husband and dog, two cats, a bird, a snake, and a frog. Sylvin looks forward to growing closer to the Buffalo community in this new role. They recently got their Masters in Sustainability Leadership from the University at Buffalo. When Sylvin is not gardening, they can be found either reading a book, enjoying their houseplants and two planted aquariums, taking a hike in the woods, or working on their art.
Sylvin can be reached at sylvin@grassrootsgardens.org
Gail Wells
Project Consultant & Founder of Buffalo Freedom Gardens
A long-time Grassroots Gardener, Gail has stewarded community gardens in the African American Heritage Coordinator. She currently leads the community efforts at Jesse Clipper Square. In 2020, Gail founded Buffalo Freedom Gardens as a rapid response to the COVID19 pandemic, ensuring BIPOC community members affected by the pandemic had access to growing healthy food at home. In 2021, Freedom Gardens entered into a formal agreement with Grassroots Gardens and we are proud to be there fiscal sponsor.
Gail is an urban planner, a dancer, and a teacher. She wanted to work with Grassroots Gardens to bring the beauty of nature into urban spaces.
Adamaah Grayse
Food Justice Organizer & Policy Fellow
NYS Public Health Corp Fellowship Program
Adamaah is returning home to Buffalo after almost three decades to continue the work she loves of digging in the soil and advocating for fair and just practices in the distribution of resources of food, shelter and clothing which should be a human right. Her humble beginnings include attending Buffalo Academy of Visual and Performing Arts and majoring Fine Arts, earning her Bachelor’s in business studies and Masters in College Student Personnel from Buffalo State College. While in school she also served in the US Naval Reserves as a Chaplain’s Assistant. Adamaah second career took her south to train as an organic farmer that has worked on both urban and traditional farms. She ran farmer's markets, serviced in a Black farmer's cooperative, and co-lead the Baltimore Residence Food Advisory Committee. Adamaah’s previous position was to help design and implement a digital agricultural library for volunteers and beneficiaries of the Catholic Relief Services Farmer to Farmer program. She is currently a New York State Public Health Senior Fellow being hosted at Grassroots Gardens WNY to do food policy work and garden installs. Adamaah has had an adventurous life in that she has traveled to over 21 countries on five continents. When not playing in the soil or standing on her community soap box advocating for equity, she enjoys all things astrology, holistic health practices, a good book, and finding the magic laced throughout everyday living.
Adamaah can be reached at adamaah@grassrootsgardens.org
Nicole Capozziello
Therapeutic Gardening Coordinator
NYS Public Health Corp Fellowship
Nicole has been involved in the Therapeutic Gardening Initiative since it began in 2019 and is excited to be able to grow this effort in her full-time position as of July 2022, thanks to a placement with GGWNY by the NYS Department of Health Public Health Fellowship. Her favorite part of this work is connecting with members of the many unique communities that make up Buffalo.
Nicole moved to Buffalo in 2018 to pursue a Masters in Social Work/PhD in Social Welfare at the University at Buffalo. She is currently in the dissertation phase of her PhD and her work focuses on community social work, with interests in criminal justice revolution, nature-based interventions, and the role of storytelling in social change and policy development. She is also an organizer/activist and freelance writer on issues related to food, the arts, and social justice. In her free time, Nicole enjoys cooking, riding her bike, mushroom foraging, thrifting, and tending to her community garden plot at the Vermont Triangle Garden with her partner David and dog Ira.
Nicole can be reached at nicole@grassrootsgardens.org.
Sarah Bragg
Community Garden Coordinator
Sarah joined the community at Grassroots Gardens WNY in February 2023. She has a diverse background in gardening, cooking, kitchen management, and community development. She loves how food brings everyone together, whether you're growing, cooking, or eating together. She's excited to help enable more people and communities to grow their own food and teach them how to do it well.
She has worked on and off in gardens for the last 10 years and looks forward to being a part of the Grassroots Gardens community in Buffalo and Niagara Falls.
When she isn't gardening, Sarah enjoys painting, baking and biking, as well as hiking with her husband and dogs.
Sarah can be reached at sarah@grassrootsgardens.org
Special thanks also to Paula Pirson at PRP Financial Solutions, Anthony Armstrong at Make Communities and Briana Popek of Briana Popek Grants, LLC for their ongoing contract work to support our programs and operations.
Grassroots Gardens couldn't thrive without the dedication of our strong, working board. Each member shares time each week to support our growth.
Our 2023 Board Officers:
PRESIDENT: Dan Reid Roma
VICE PRESIDENT: Daun Nicholas
TREASURER: Kristin Re
SECRETARY: Eitan Stant
Board Members at Large:
Raana Azam
James Ciliberto
Cara Cox
Kate Gorman
Lindsay Haubenreich
Marc Kabigting
Isabella Newman
Derek Nichols
Fiona Reid Roma
Kate Willoughby
Gail Graham | Board Member Emeritus
Interested in becoming a board or committee member with GGWNY? Contact director@grassrootsgardens.org to learn more.
Board members Raana Azam (on left), Jim Ciliberto (middle) and former Board Chair Ellen Barnum (right) pitch in at Shakespeare Garden in 2020.
Many former and current board members joined our staff and gardeners to celebrate our accreditation in 2021.
Board member, Raana Azam (pictured on the far left), is one of the lead gardeners at Universal School of Buffalo.
Board member, Minesh Patel, participating in the GGWNY 5K in 2020.