Community Soil Foundation Staff
Rym B. Ernst
Farm Manager
Rym is a culinary professional and community builder who believes in the deep transformative power of food and relationship to land. Whether tending gardens, preparing meals for people to gather around, or collaborating with others, she approaches her work as a way to nurture connection and collective well-being.
Rooted in the principles of earth-care and people-care, she sees food as a catalyst for social change — a bridge that fosters living culture and nourishes both body and spirit. A deep passion for food-based education, food sovereignty, and equitable access to nutritious food continues to guide her path and has led her to join the Community Soil Foundation team.
Rym is very excited to be stewarding the Larkfield Community Garden and Learning Center, utilizing this opportunity to dream into the potential of reimagined public green spaces.
Allison Ho
School Garden Educator
Allison is a Cal Poly Humboldt alumni with a B.S. in Environmental Education. Much of her working experience includes teaching environmental education and garden-based education to students of all ages in non-profit and school settings throughout Humboldt, San Francisco, and Sonoma County.
One of her all-time favorite experiences was working at the Children's Garden at the San Francisco Botanical Garden. She is passionate about the natural world, community, art and music. In her free time she enjoys hiking, foraging, reading, and learning how to play new instruments.
Gretchen Maurer
School Garden Educator + Grants Manager
Gretchen grew up in Mendocino County, where she loved to tend her own garden and enter her vegetables in the Redwood Empire Fair. She has an MA in Education from UC Berkeley, a BA in English from Santa Clara University, and over 20 years of experience as a teacher and tutor in both indoor and outdoor settings. She’s also the author of several children’s books and articles, including one in Highlights for Children magazine about her family’s organic pistachio farm. Gretchen is excited to have the opportunity to teach 2nd-5th graders at the Larkfield Community Garden and to develop an outdoor learning environment that encourages exploration, cultivates inquiry, and celebrates a sense of awe.
You can reach Gretchen at gretchen@communitysoil.com.
Paolo Tantarelli
Community Farm Co-Founder and Advisor
Paolo has worked with some of the top gardeners and builders in California, growing food and practicing sustainable building at places like the Solar Living Institute, Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, and Golden Nectar Farms. His garden work and style reflect key principles of permaculture, the bio-intensive method, and biomimicry.
Paolo received his Bachelor's Degree from Chico State University in Cultural Anthropology, with a Minor in Italian. He has traveled extensively through Central and South America, following a passion to study human behavior as well as healthy food systems throughout history.
Jeff Shields
Community Farm Co-Founder and Advisor
Jeff grew up in the Bay Area and has lived in Sonoma County since 2008. He first worked on community-driven garden projects in San Francisco with the Department of Public Works and their Community Garden Program.
After working in the public sector and interning for SF Environment, Sierra Club, and Emerald Earth Sanctuary, he began managing ornamental and edible gardens at private retreat centers such as Mayacamas Ranch and Mark West Lodge in Sonoma County. During this time, he also installed private gardens, integrating his experience and skills with sustainable water systems and native and site appropriate plant materials.
Community Soil Foundation Advisors
Bethany Facendini
Community Farm Advisor
​Bethany’s mission is to strive for social justice and environmental sustainability through education, community building, and leadership development. She has over 20 years of professional experience in equity and inclusion in program management, experiential education, youth development, grassroots organizing, and community engagement serving diverse populations in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.
Bethany currently serves as the Sonoma County Regional Parks Community Engagement Division Manager. She created and implemented award-winning youth employment and education programs in Santa Cruz, Alameda, and Contra Costa Counties that now serve as regional and state models. She has a BA from U.C. Berkeley, an MA in Environmental and Social Justice from Sonoma State University, and an Urban Environmental Education certificate from Cornell University.
Bethany is a fellow of the Sonoma County Leadership Institute for Ecology and Economy, Local Leaders Academy, On the Verge Leadership Program, and Government Alliance on Race & Equity. She has been on the Executive Board of Sonoma County’s Latino Service Providers for the last three years.
Jason Riggs
Community Farm Advisor
Jason has been the Executive Director of Extended Child Care since 2015, and has over 20 years of experience in K-12 and nonprofit administration, child and youth development, service learning and community engagement. Prior to joining ECC, Jason was the Region 1 Lead for after school programs at the Mendocino County Office of Education supporting grantees and programs in Sonoma, Lake, Mendocino, Humboldt and Del Norte counties. His prior experience also includes administration of after school programs for the Oakland and San Francisco Unified School Districts.
Jason deeply believes that out-of-school time programs and experiences are a vital part of the education ecosystem, preparing children and youth for college, career, and community success. Jason is passionate about leadership, creativity and innovation, and is an effective collaborator. Jason has served as co-chair to the Child Care Planning Council of Sonoma County and is currently co-chair of the California Afterschool Network.
He has a proven track record for developing long lasting partnerships between government, school districts, community partners and families that create high quality cradle to career support systems that address the needs of the whole child and the whole community.
Kelly Osorio
A native of Santa Rosa, Kelli left in 2000 for college and career opportunities in Southern California. Receiving her bachelor's degree from San Diego State University in General Studies with a minor in Spanish, including a Masters Degree in Teaching Reading. She began her teaching career in Watts, moved through South Central, finally returning home in 2015 with a wealth of experience and a desire to contribute to her home community.
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Kelli brings valuable insights from her role as Principal of Mark West Elementary, a position she has held since 2022. Her leadership at Mark West Elementary is characterized by a deep commitment to student learning, bringing a fresh perspective and dedication to her hometown.
Kelli has championed initiatives that integrate outdoor education directly into the curriculum, providing students with unique and enriching learning opportunities that extend beyond the classroom walls and foster a connection to the local environment.
Community Farm Advisor
Krisitin Maharg Suarez
Kristin believes personal connection to nature is an essential ingredient in creating genuine curiosity and deep appreciation for the world.
With extensive experience in collaborating with non-profits, government agencies and educational institutions on behalf of environmental leadership, Kristin's ultimate goal is for humans to have a good time on Earth while adopting principles of diversity as the measure of health.
Her University of Wisconsin-Madison degrees focused on wildlife & agroecology, Spanish and water resources management. She refined her strengths for many years at Water Education. An advocate of preparing colorful food with children, rainbow salsa with blue corn chips is her favorite garden snack.
Kristin's respect for youth development has recently expanded to her own little ones and alongside her partner, her family enjoys playing outside with the pooch, tracking critters, and learning new tricks!
Community Farm Advisor
Community Farm Advisor
Rachel Perry
As an employee of Community Soil, Rachel gathers materials and tends to landscape installations. Also a freelance artist with a focus on design and an interest in plants.
The creative work is shaped by a connection to the natural world. Whether working on a visual project or tending to a garden, there is a focus to maintain a balance between function and aesthetic.
Chris Grabill
Chris Grabill currently serves as the Field Representative for District 4 at the County of Sonoma, and is an Associate Faculty member in Wildfire and Climate Resilience at Santa Rosa Junior College.
He lives in Santa Rosa with his wife and three children and enjoys birdwatching and environmental justice work. Chris received a Bachelors degree from UC Berkeley’s College of Environmental Design.
Community Farm Advisor
Micheal Jones
Community Farm Advisor
Michael Jones is the University of California Cooperative Extension Forest Advisor for Mendocino, Lake, and Sonoma Counties. With a background in forest entomology, he specializes in forest health and disturbance ecology.
He promotes an extension program that aims to help forest landowners and managers steward their coastal conifer forests and oak woodlands through outreach, education, and research. He lives in Cloverdale with his wife Rebecca and menagerie of animals.
Tanya Duckett
Community Farm Advisor
Tanya grew up in Los Angeles and has a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of San Francisco and is a Certified Public Accountant. She has over 15 years of experience in public accounting and corporate finance, currently working for a beverage brand platform specializing in better-for-you beverages.
Passionate about sustainability, equity, and community empowerment, Tanya joined the advisory board of Community Soil Foundation to support its mission of cultivating healthy communities
through soil health, garden education, and regenerative land stewardship.
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Outside of her professional work, Tanya serves as “gardening assistant” to her husband’s home garden focused on post-fire regenerative practices and growing delicious fruits and vegetables to share with neighbors passing by. This hands-on experience with regenerative agriculture deepens her commitment to the Foundation’s mission and community impact.
Bryan Clifton
Community Farm Advisor
Bryan is the Pigment Product Line Manager with VIAVI Solutions OSP division, with focus on business and product development initiatives targeted toward the overt anti-counterfeiting market. He is a representative on VIAVI OSP Community Affairs Team supporting education & environmental programs and organizations in our community.
His background is engineering management, process engineering, biomedical engineering, and R&D. Bryan has strong roots in the community having grown up in Sonoma County & more than 25 years of volunteering with local non-profit organizations.
