Meet the Team
Sheryll Durrant, Board President
Sheryll is an urban farmer, educator, and food justice advocate. She has been the Resident Garden Manager at Kelly Street Garden since 2016, and is also the Food and Nutrition Coordinator for New Roots Community Farm, managed by International Rescue Committee (IRC). Her work has included developing community-based urban agriculture projects, providing expertise and technical assistance for gardens within supportive housing developments, and she currently serves as Board President for Just Food. Sheryll has led workshops and spoken on issues related to urban agriculture and food justice for many key organizations, and was part of the 2019-2020 HEAL School of Political Leadership cohort. As a former Design Trust fellow for the Farming Concrete project, she is now responsible for communications and outreach for the data collection platform that helps urban farmers and gardeners measure their impact. Prior to her work in urban agriculture, Sheryll spent over 20 years in corporate and institutional marketing.
Ana Morán, Board Secretary
Ana currently works as the Community Food Coordinator for Community Access, assisting tenants and staff in supportive housing to expand opportunities to grow and eat fresh produce, and engage in food-related entrepreneurial initiatives. Originally from Guatemala, Ana is an incredibly passionate food justice organizer who has worked at various points along the food chain, including being a food vendor, restaurant worker, farmer and entrepreneur. She has also worked in various communities engaging in urban farming projects. Ana is deeply connected to the intersections between food, immigration, and culture.
Sia Pickett, Board Treasurer
Sia Pickett, affectionately known in her community as Chef Sia, started with Just Food as a Community Chef in 2011, eventually moving into the treasurer role through her commitment and dedication to the organization’s mission. Sia brings 30+ years of experience in fiscal oversight as a business owner, culinary/nutrition instructor, wellness coach, facilitator, management and mentoring, curriculum development, project/event coordination, marketing, business technology application, business consultation, and business development. She has worked in operational and sales management for various Fortune 500 companies, spent 12 years in personal banking with US Bank, and has held positions with several nonprofits. Sia currently serves as a program manager for the Business Outreach Center Network (BOC) and has worked as a project manager for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). In addition to her community work, Chef Sia owns Malata Cuisine, a “Natural Foods'' personal chef service and culinary nutrition education company in Brooklyn, NY.
Tahirah Cook, Board Member, Policy and Advocacy
Tahirah Cook is Manager of Community Engagement at Brooklyn Communities Collaborative within the Maimonides Medical Center. She manages relationships with over 100 community-based organizations across Brooklyn. Tahirah also administers and manages the Strong Communities grant fund focused on advancing health and wealth equity in Brooklyn neighborhoods. Before coming to Brooklyn Communities Collaborative, Tahirah was Community Programming Manager at the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. Tahirah wore many hats at the Department including administering a grant program, liaising between community members and Department leadership, and providing food systems policy research to the Governor’s office. While she found all her work rewarding, her favorite part of her job was administering the New York State FreshConnect Food Box program. The Food Box program works to connect local farms, businesses, and not-for-profits to provide marginalized communities with fresh produce while also supporting local NYS farmers. Before working with NYS, Tahirah worked for two non-profits, the Rural Coalition in Washington, D.C. and the Center for Social Inclusion in New York City. During her tenure in nonprofit, Tahirah worked with farmers, community gardeners, and activists from all over the country to advocate for fair and equitable food and farm policy; including improving access to healthy and nutritious foods and increasing economic opportunities for low-income communities and communities of color. Tahirah is from Hempstead, New York and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Agriculture and Extension Education from Penn State University and a Master’s degree in Urban Policy and Leadership from Hunter College. Tahirah loves to cook and enjoys spending time with her family. Her favorite pastimes include hosting dinner parties, listening to music, and trying out new restaurants.
Tanika I. Williams, Board Member, Community Food Education
Tanika I. Williams specializes in multi-sensory education and engaging demonstrations using food, mindfulness and visual art. As an activist and educator, she brings culinary arts and food justice to life through innovative workshops, cooking classes and writings. She is also an award-winning filmmaker and performance artist whose work centers the quiet nature of care and seeks to understand the role of service in deepening the experience of humanity. Williams holds a BA from Eugene Lang College, New School and MDiv from Union Theological Seminary. Her films have been screened at festivals and broadcast on American television. Williams has been awarded residencies at New York Foundation for the Arts, Hi-ARTS, and BRIC. Additionally, she has been featured on 99.5 WBAI; and in Art in Odd Places; Creative Time; Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, Civic Art Lab, GreenspaceNYC; Let Us Eat Local, Just Food; and Performa.
Shari Rueckl, Advisory Committee
Shari grew up in the Midwest where she was surrounded by many farms. But it wasn't until moving to New York that she truly realized the value of good, fresh food and the access that everyone deserves. She was able to join the Brooklyn Bridge CSA from its start in 2010 and has been the core team leader for 7 years. She's been active in the Advisory Committee since 2018 and focused on the CSA and Farmer aspects of the Just Food Network. For the Network, she coordinates and leads the now annual CSA Forum for CSA leaders to share and learn from each other and coordinates the annual survey of Network members to keep our data and website updated. Her role as Project Coordinator at the LES Ecology Center allows her to fuel her passion for building a more sustainable and equitable urban environment.
Ruth Katcher, Advisory Committee
Ruth Katcher has been a member of the Clinton Hill CSA in Brooklyn since its first season in 2002. She’s been on the core group since 2008 and has led the core since 2014, helping to steer the CSA through enormous changes brought about by gentrification, the challenges of COVID, and food insecurity among many of our neighbors. At least two of her four grandparents grew up on farms in Eastern Europe and rural New Jersey, and she has always explored farmers markets and alternative food systems. In her other life, she edits and ghostwrites books for children and teens.
Alicia Grullón, Advisory Committee
Alicia Grullón is from and based in New York City. Grullón’s works have been shown in numerous group exhibitions including The 8th Floor, Bronx Museum of the Arts, BRIC House for Arts and Media, School of Visual Arts, El Museo del Barrio, Columbia University, Socrates Sculpture Park, Performa 11, Old Stone House and Art in Odd Places. She has received grants from the Puffin Foundation, Bronx Council on the Arts, the Department of Cultural Affairs of the City of New York, and Franklin Furnace Archives. She has participated in residencies with Hemispheric Institute for Politics and Performance at New York University, Center for Book Arts, Bronx Museum of Arts on 80 White Street AIM Alum, and Shandanken Project on Governors island. She has presented for the 2017 Whitney Biennial with Occupy Museums, Creative Time Summit 2015, The Royal College of Art, and United States Association for Art Educators. Her work has been written about in the New York Times, Village Voice, Hyperallergic, Creative Time Reports, ArtNet News, The Columbia Spectator and Women & Performance: A Journal of Feminist Theory from Taylor and Francis. Grullon is the recipient of the inaugural 2019 Colene Brown Art Prize and the Walentas Fellowship at Moore College for 2020-2022. She received a BFA from TISCH School of the Arts at New York University, an MFA from the State University of New York at New Paltz and has done doctoral coursework in Art and Art Education at the Teacher’s College at Columbia University.