WATERSHED - Key Persons
Brooke has been active as an educator and facilitator in NYC since the mid 80s. She was a founding member of the Direct Action Network, Bluestockings Bookstore and Solidaire. Brooke has served on Boards of the Institute for Social Ecology, Schumacher Center for New Economics, and Center for Whole Communities. She leads workshops on generative communication, direct action, yoga, and structuring organizations, and works as a consultant for social justice organizations. Her true passion, however, is match-making and spending time with her daughter Evie.
Celia Kutz has been facilitating and training in the movement for social change for 15+ years, primarily with Training for Change as Core Trainer and former Co-Director. She has led direct actions, organized neighborhood residents, and coordinated first-aid and wellness for activists. Celia supports movement leaders to learn from tension, disorientation and conflict and to grow in an embodied and authentic way. Her practice is guided by her work with Sacred Vibes Apothecary, Process Work Practitioners, the School for Global Somatics, and by the Jewish women who have taught her resilience, compassion and bravery.
Erin is an accomplished chef with over 20 years in the food industry. Spending her early years in North Carolina, her food is rooted deep in southern comfort. She specializes in farm to table cuisine, establishing deep connections with local farmers. Erin has also has a passion for food Justice, running a local food program for four years, providing free and nutritious lunches for school age children during the summer months. When Erin is not working she is spending time with her four children and husband.
Gregg is a certified Somatics Coach with a background in small business operations, website design and development, and community organizing. Gregg grew up farming on his family's dairy and at a very young age stepped into the role of CFO of Hammertown, his family's small business both ten miles from Watershed. Gregg brings all of this experience to his work incubating and supporting non-profits and local businesses. Gregg is a member of the Board of Kite's Nest and the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. He can often be found running with his dog Bella in the woods behind Watershed.
Kassandra has served Watershed in numerous capacities over the past 5 years, from intern to Retreats Administrative Assistant. Born and bred in the South Bronx Kasssandra is an undergraduate student studying Anthropology. Kasssandra has been organizing around gentrification and police brutality since a very young age through Brotherhood / Sister Soul. When not organizing, Kasssandra can be found watching obscure foreign films or reading about art history.
Katie is a Dutchess County native, who's adventurous soul explored living in Long Island, Virginia, Florida, Colorado, prior to returning home to the Hudson Valley. Katie is a proud, hard working single mother of two beautiful children, Owen and Claire and their spirited young pup, Champ. Katie has been a beloved member of the Watershed team since 2015. She manages both Watershed's office and housekeeping operations. In addition to her work at Watershed, Katie works as an event coordinator/wedding planner. Katie is fluent in sign language - C.O.D.A, and in her free time she can be found working in her garden and solving puzzles.
Rachel is an herbalist, land tender, and plant lover. They have a love of bringing what grows wild on the land into a home cooked meal and it is a passion of theirs to make sure everyone around them feels nourished and cared for. Rachel is also a scent designer, crafting botanical perfumes--aka scent stories for curious and imaginative noses. They've been pairing scent designing with storytelling for the last decade. In their spare time Rachel loves to watch indie cult films (especially sci fi or horror), cook elaborate meals for friends, make music, read, and write short stories.
Job Titles:
- Founder and Director of the Ahimsa Collective
Sonya Shah is the founder and director of the Ahimsa Collective, a restorative justice project that works to respond to harm in ways that foster wholeness for everyone. She is also an associate professor at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Sonya is a Buddhist, a first-generation immigrant from the Northwestern part of India and feels most at home in nature. She has two amazing children who remind her what it means to be in love all of the time, and currently resides in northern California.
Tom Kruse is program director for the global challenges portion of the Democratic Practice program of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. Tom served as an Advisor to the Bolivian government on trade and debt relief and as Program Director at the Bolivia chapter of the Social Watch Global Network. Tom has been a leader in international climate talks and global social movements for decades.