Staff
Charlotte Rodina, Director
A love for food and being outside led Charlotte to gardening and farming. She started out her farming journey by lending a hand on her uncle’s market farm near Pittsburgh, PA and then spent a year working on sustainable farms, learning different styles of farming, in Italy and Scotland. An AmeriCorps position led her to Knoxville where she managed the Center for Urban Agriculture and started a school garden at Pellissippi State Community College. Charlotte believes everyone deserves access to fresh, healthy foods and is grateful to demonstrate the empowerment that comes with gardening at Beardsley Farm.
Sarah Heizenroth, Education Manager
Sarah’s first experience in the garden happened as an AmeriCorps member in Austin, TX. She immediately fell in love and spent much of her free time volunteering in community gardens and establishing a garden at her service site where she supported young adults experiencing homelessness. That passion for growing and sharing food led her to work on a teaching farm, a few small scale organic production farms, and volunteer with a variety of organizations working to foster food security in Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Sarah is excited to be able to promote food security and education with Knoxville’s community.
Maryl Burke, School Gardens Manager
Maryl loves all things outdoors, gardening, and children. She has spent many years in Montessori classrooms and finished AMS Montessori training. Maryl feels blessed to be able to combine her love of being in the sunshine and eating delicious, fresh, farm food with her passion for hands-on education in her role at Beardsely. She believes all children benefit when they have opportunities to engage with natural systems and the life cycle of their food and is happy to be able to share this with children in public schools around Knoxville.
Riley Douglas, Community Garden and Distribution Manager
Riley is an artist and maker in Knox County. Her practice delves into the history of Appalachian craft and building natural dye gardens. Riley's personal and professional practices focus on a maker's role in creating sustainable methodologies and lifestyles, specializing in growing, harvesting, and manipulating dye plants. During the pandemic, she took on a new project of serving AmeriCorps with low-income and elderly housing to teach garden-to-table gardening and creative workshops like dying with kitchen scraps, container gardening for limited time or mobility, and gardening for your health. With Beardsley Farm she is excited to grow Knoxville's Community gardens. She believes that communities- like gardens- best thrive with engagement, a wide variety of backgrounds, and a deep understanding of the rituals of biomes and life cycles.
Lia Bevins, Farm Manager
Lia was very young when she first trampled through her grandmother’s garden in Southwest, VA. Here, she grew to appreciate nature while hiking through the Blue Ridge Mountains, picking buckets of raspberries every summer with her family, and starting a garden of her own. Lia has experienced the healing abilities of growing food and spending days digging in the dirt and hopes to help others enjoy these benefits as well. After two years working on a CSA farm she is excited to work at Beardsley Farm helping to promote food security within Knoxville.
Mary Woody, Special Projects Coordinator
Born and raised in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, Mary moved to the Knoxville area in 2015. After serving two terms as a CAC AmeriCorps VISTA (2018-20) she was hired on as a Special Projects Coordinator, helping Beardsley with tasks ranging from grant writing to CRM management. When not enjoying time with her husband and dog in their gardens, you’ll either find Mary with her nose in a book or her head in the clouds. She has held her Private Pilot Certificate since 2004 and enjoys flying single-engine aircraft in and around East TN.
Sweet William, Director of Reception and Rodent Control
Sweet “Willie” Willam adopted Beardsley Farm in 2020, when then AmeriCorps member Connie Flachs and Sarah Heizenroth recognized his exceptional skills and were able to persuade him to join the team. Willie is quick to welcome each volunteer, enjoys showing off the farm with guided tours, serves as delightful entertainment when he scales the greenhouse or demands fresh water from the fountain, and is a beloved addition to our team. Look for his likeness on our Beardsley Farm t-shirts with custom artwork by Beardsley AmeriCorps alum Emma Vieser.
AmeriCorps Members
CAC Beardsley Community Farm would not be where it is today without the service of its AmeriCorps members. Since 1998, Beardsley has been staffed with anywhere between two and eight of these full-time volunteers. Our AmeriCorps members assist in the daily management of the farm, run educational outreach programs, and work with volunteers.
Megan Rockefeller, AmeriCorps Member
Megan is from Jefferson County, TN, but has lived in the Chattanooga area for the last five years. Recently, she moved back and is now residing in Maryville. Megan’s true passion has always been environmental education and is excited for the opportunity to serve with Beardsley Farms. She hopes to build connections in the Knox area, help ensure food security, foster environmental stewardship, and play in some dirt. In her spare time, Megan enjoys crocheting while binge watching space shows with her partner and cats, reading (hopefully, one of the books that has been on her bookshelf longer than a year, but not likely) while soaking up the sunshine, or buying a new houseplant that her partner claims “won’t fit in the house”.
Barbara Price, AmeriCorps Member
Barbara is a native of Bogota, Colombia. She enjoys sewing, baking sourdough bread, and riding her bike. She is happily married with three amazing kids. Her love for nature started at a young age thanks to her mother who taught her respect and care for the Earth. Barbara is very excited to work at Beardsley as the Farm Operations Assistant, and she is looking forward to learning more about plants and contributing in any way she can to help with food insecurity in the area, especially among Hispanic communities. Barbara previously worked with Community Schools, Centro Hispano, and Knox County Schools.
Maria Brandofino AmeriCorps Member
Maria is an avid outdoor enthusiast who loves all things nature and all things people. Having grown up in Southeastern US, understanding our rapidly developing land, foodwebs, and social structures has always been at the forefront of her concerns. She believes that everyone has the right to healthy food, and hopes to bridge the gap between people and the resources in their communities. She invites others to share in the joy of our biodiverse home by gardening, hiking, and volunteering!
Bailey Burton, AmeriCorps Member
Bailey has been passionate about environmental preservation from a young age and believes in the collective responsibility to protect our planet. Pursuing their passion for photography, Bailey sought to raise awareness about the urgent need for environmental action. They didn't want to settle for just capturing images; instead, they wanted to engage directly in any way possible. Driven by the desire to contribute to conservation efforts and assist those in need, Bailey sought a quick path to start their career in this field. In 2023, Bailey joined AmeriCorps NCCC and gained valuable experience by working with three state and national parks, two nonprofit organizations, and a fish and wildlife refuge. Now, Bailey has returned for another year of CAC AmeriCorps and is working at CAC Beardsley Community Farm in Knoxville, where they feel they can make a real impact. Outside of work, Bailey enjoys photography, gardening, longboarding, and spending time in nature.
Andrew Jensen, AmeriCorps Member
Andrew is an East Tennessee native; growing up in Jefferson County, TN, graduating from Middle Tennessee State University with a degree in Plant & Soil Science, he has lived in the Knoxville area for the last four years, working primarily in the wholesale plant nursery business. His passion for the environment and sharing agriculture with others lead him to CAC Beardsley Community Farm, where he hopes to learn more about education and sustainable urban agriculture, and to share his experiences and passions with his neighbors here in Knoxville.
