Ari, an Evergreen grad, has been living in Olympia since 2017.  They put their hands in the dirt and harvested a potato for the first time while in college. That experience put Ari on a new path that eventually led them to GRuB. As a residential counselor for Community Youth Services, Ari noticed that the residents who participated in GRuB's Youth Program made a lasting impact on the growth and leadership shown within the housing dynamic. Ari is passionate about youth having safe adults they can trust and having a place in their life where they feel truly at ease to be themselves. Ari also enjoys bird watching, playing various musical intstruments, making crafts out of clay and wood, playing games, and spending time at home with their four cats, Felix, Moth, Huckleberry, and Thimbleberry.

Raised on a New England diet of quahogs, poison ivy, and deer ticks, Ben has called Olympia home for nearly fifteen years. Having studied alternative food systems and social justice at The Evergreen State College, their path to GRuB has felt like a natural progression of their commitment to food equity. When they're not helping the gears of GRuB turn, they enjoy cycling, drumming, and reading.

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Amanda Maratta joined GRuB as the Outreach & Office Coordinator. She is thrilled to be a part of a team that brings people together through food and community. Amanda comes to GRuB with a background in community-based programming, outdoor recreation, and disability advocacy, with experience ranging from human services in Washington to guiding rivers in Alaska. Amanda cares deeply about creating spaces where people feel welcome, valued, and empowered to grow. Outside of work, you can find her crafting, paddling, looking for cool rocks, or seeing live music!

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Will comes to us after working for the Department of Enterprise Services and the Thurston County Food Bank, before which he was working on his family’s ranch in Northern California. If you want to be his friend, ask him about foraging for wild mushrooms, raising livestock, and Korean Natural Farming.

Born and raised in Lingít Aaní, Ezra is a food systems enthusiast who found their passion for farming at Evergreen’s Organic Farm. As an undergraduate research fellow, they contributed to participatory research by conducting buckwheat variety trials with the goal of diversifying grain production for Western Washington’s changing climate.

The Climate Corps Network is a service learning program which advances career opportunities while supporting community initatives. GRuB’s goals are to improve the climate-related practices on our farm and to provide workshops for the public on what we are learning.  

Ezra’s position will have a mycelic nature– like the fungal webs, Ezra will help to build and hold soil, sustain the flora and life of the soil, exchange ideas, and connect farming at GRuB with the broader community of gardeners, knowledge keepers, and climate resilience enthusiasts. Whether in the field or the kitchen, they are committed creatively responding to the challenge of adapting our local food system to the pressures of climate change and the opportunities for social and cultural change the moment invites.

As an environmental educator, Deb fell in love with farms as a place for gathering community, connecting with the land, and providing nourishment–both for individuals and for deeper social change. During 15 years at Angelic Organics Learning Center in Northern Illinois, she developed innovative farm-based educational programming while growing her own non-profit leadership skills and agricultural experience. Deb returned to her home state of Washington in 2019 to join the GRuB team, where she resonates with the playfulness, intentionality, kindness, groundedness, and adaptability of the GRuB community. Her hidden talents include delivering goat kids, solving really hard puzzles, disguising vegetables in desserts, and generating a punny twist for whatever task is at hand. On a weekend day, you might find her foraging huckleberries on a mountain trail, exploring a tidepool, grubbing around in the garden soil, or snuggling her Aussiedoodle Lucy.

Coyote is a poet, artist, avid learner, jester, amateur zoologist, prairie-pacer, lichen-licker, moon-howler and lover of the mystic and esoteric.

A GRuB youth program alumni, beginning on the youth crew in 2020, returning as Farm Assistant and then Farm Coordinator, working as Community Engagement Coordinator, and now Farm Manager. Coyote was born and raised in Hawai'i to an immigrant and bilingual family before moving to Washington in 2019 to attend the Evergreen State College, so he is passionate about centering immigrant and non-"USAmerican" experiences, especially in the farming world.

At GRuB, Coyote loves to teach the youth, experiment with farming techniques, help with events, and grow beautiful food for the beautiful Olympia community.

As a long time community member, Beth has aligned her career with working to create positive social change. She has been a business owner, community organizer, project manager and program developer both internationally and regionally. For over 12 years she worked in disadvantaged communities in India developing fair trade product with a women’s co-op and organic farmers. Beth worked for a social enterprise aiming to alleviate poverty and advance gender equality in West Africa through the use of fair trade indigenous resources and community empowerment initiatives. She is passionate about collaborating and connecting with people to help drive social change for a more equitable future. Beth first became involved with GRuB volunteering on the farm when her daughter was a toddler. She immediately felt welcomed into the community and loved being on the land. She is thrilled to be in this role to support GRuB’s impactful work and mission.

Drawing from the wellspring of her Indigenous roots, Kerensa is a community builder, facilitator, multicultural connector, and landkeeper. Blending curiosity and the gifts of the natural world with social justice and decolonizing systems, she assists people across liminal spaces to heal, expand their innate potential, and co-create transformation. With over 21 years in nonprofits, Kerensa has been at GRuB for 13 years, in many roles, from community-based fundraising and engagement to volunteer management and donor cultivation. Kerensa and her family live in Olympia, WA on the ancestral and current lands of the Salish peoples. She raises up her Ancestors, Elders, and community to teach her how to bring strength through love. On the weekend, you might find her in the garden, hiking a trail, or exploring art and music with her family. 

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Sade Gilliom, MES, has been a part of the GRuB community since 2014 and a staff member since 2019. Sade is Co-Ed with Deb Crockett. Sade's roles include org-wide strategizing and stewardship, teaching GRuB's Harbor Heights' Gardening Program and supporting the following GRuB teams: Veteran Programs, Youth Programs, Growing Home Collective, Volunteers, and Human Resources. Sade’s passions include regenerative farming, wild crafting, ecology, criminal justice reform, community connection and everything GRuBby! They spend their free time with their goats and chickens on their farm and kayaking in the Salish Sea.

Clare, M.E.S, is a writer, artist, activist, bibliophile, tea-leaf reader, and urban rooftop gardener. She has enjoyed spending lots of her time playing with story--she's worked in bookstores for the past six years, and she's been a writer and storyteller all her life. She loves poking holes in dominant or obsolete narratives and strives to both listen to and help uplift the voices and stories that have been too often cast aside. She can often be found playing at her secret swimming spots with a good book and a bunch of doodling supplies.

Jennah joined the GRuB community in 2019 as lead garden builder for GRuB's Garden Project. In 2023, she stepped into a new role as Farmer Veteran Project Specialist, where she will get to foster relationships with beginning Veteran farmers. As a Navy Veteran who struggled establishing roots and finding community in and out of the military, Jennah is passionate about creating supportive and equitable spaces for people to come together. Outside of GRuB, Jennah loves spending time with her sweet pup; hiking and foraging; creating and enjoying art; and growing, preparing, and eating delicious food!

Dusty grew up near Philadelphia and went to college near Pittsburgh, PA, earning a B.S. in Food and Nutrition. Dusty has worked with youth and young adults in the Olympia area for 8+ years, via nonprofits and looks forward to being able to provide safe spaces for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC youth to learn and build community.

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Alex works closely with Veteran beekeepers and supports GRuB’s Veterans Program connecting Veterans to resources and community. Growing up with active duty Army parents, Alex understands the feeling of being uprooted and transplanted. She is proud to call Olympia her home for the past 20 years. She is passionate about community engagement and has worked for many of Olympia’s small businesses in various capacities. She is passionate about providing service in a way that contributes to the whole person—intellectually, spiritually, physically and emotionally. During her personal time, Alex enjoys exploring trails with her pup Dahlia, reading with her kitties Miya and Mia, and dipping her toes into a slew of creative hobbies.