Our Team
Our team is made up of students of the outdoors. We have careers outside of Braided Seeds, but our shared vision of seeing more BIPOC outdoors unites us. Learn about how we fell in love with the outdoors and our favorite ways to get outside below.
Ashleigh Shoecraft (she/her), Executive Director
Emily Ames (they/them)
Earliest Outdoor Memory:
I grew up on the Sacramento River and played outside a lot. I walked on rock dams going straight into the river.
Favorite Outdoor Activities:
camping, running, hiking, sun bathing
Brianna Klein (she/her)
Earliest Outdoor Memory:
Collecting jasmine flowers and pine needles at my elementary school and making bracelets for my friends in the grass
Favorite Outdoor Activities:
fishing, hunting, slow hiking, surfing
Corina Rendón (she/her)
Earliest Outdoor Memory:
Some of my earliest outdoor memories are playing outside with my neighbor friends and adventuring around our neighborhood. Growing up in along the border in South Texas we didn't have vast landscapes to explore but our imaginations took us from the hot streets playing kickball to being world discoverers, which was really just playing around in our local park adjacent to the Rio Grande.
Favorite Outdoor Activities:
At home: Hanging out on my deck or in my hammock, gardening, walking my dog
Beyond: bike riding, hiking, camping
Our Staff
Chioma Uruakpa (they/them), Youth + Family Programs Coordinato
Erandi Bucio-Flores (she/her), Youth + Family Programs Coordinator
Our Board
Taylor Jones (she/her)
Early Outdoor Memory:
Camping with my family, and remembering Ashleigh rolling the car on that camping trip
Favorite Outdoor Activities:
hiking, camping, river floating, gardening; chasing waterfalls
Charissa Bass (she/her)
Earliest Outdoor Memory:
A giant camp-out in our backyard with 60+ kids invited from the Union Gospel Mission where my mom worked.
Favorite Outdoor Activities:
camping; sleeping outdoors; stargazing; spending time on the tropical beach
Eya Lazaro (any pronouns), Community Engagement Coordinator
Jude Knife (they/them)
Early Outdoor Memory:
I remember making mud pies under banana trees in Zimbabwe with my cousins in the dry heat. I remember warm rain in monsoon season and running outside until I couldn’t run anymore.
Favorite Outdoor Activities:
hiking/walking, biking, farming, reading outside
Sarijana Clark (she/her)
Earliest Outdoor Memory:
Show and tell experience in the 2nd grade, bringing my horse to school and discussing horsemanship.
Favorite Outdoor Activities:
volunteering at a therapeutic horseback riding center, camping, beginner hiking, fishing
Brea Desautel (she/her)
Earliest Outdoor Memory:
Swimming and fishing in the river with family at home on the reservation.
Favorite Outdoor Activities:
Swimming, gardening, foraging, running