Get To Know New Staff: Summer 2023
Get to know the new staff members that have recently joined the Prospect Park Alliance team! Get to know Mark, Rachel, Kendra, Yvonne, Erinn and Naima, and find out who hunts for mushrooms, who is part of a mermaid dance group, and who you’ll run into walking their dogs!
Naima Dahir, Community & Government Relations Coordinator, Communications + External Relations
What is something you like to do in your free time?
I love exploring new neighborhoods and trying out different restaurants with friends.
Do you have a favorite song/band/musician or movie/tv show or book?
My new favorite artist right now is Erika De Casier. Her recent projects have been incredible!
What are you most looking forward to in your new role?
As part of my new role, I’m excited to connect with communities less involved or familiar with the park and create engaging experiences for them.
Do you have any favorite places or activities you like to do in Prospect Park?
I’ve been loving doing picnics and reading on the Long Meadow this summer.
Mark Jennings, Tree Care Technician, Landscape Management
What is something you like to do in your free time?
I like to travel, go hiking, cook and spend time with my family and two small dogs, Reggie and Louie.
Do you have a favorite song/band/musician or movie/tv show or book?
I like to read biographies. One of my favorites is Master of the Senate.
What are you most looking forward to in your new role?
Learning more about the trees in the park and working outside.
Do you have any favorite places or activities you like to do in Prospect Park?
I like the Concert Grove. I would like to join the hockey league this winter at LeFrak…TBD.
Rachel Pendleton, Assistant Architect, Design + Construction
What is something you like to do in your free time?
In my free time I am usually reading or baking!
Do you have a favorite song/band/musician or movie/tv show or book?
A few books I’ve read this year that I enjoyed are The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak, Piranesi by Susanna Clarke, and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E Schwab.
What are you most looking forward to in your new role?
I am most looking forward to working with my D+C teammates on upcoming projects, like the Upper Vale.
Do you have any favorite places or activities you like to do in Prospect Park?
I love to picnic on the Long Meadow with friends and my dog Suki, who’s favorite park activity is rolling around in the grass.
Kendra Srebro, Project Coordinator, Volunteer Services
What is something you like to do in your free time?
I perform with a mermaid dance group called The Tailshakers. Our next performance is September 16 at the Poseidon Parade in Rockaway Beach.
Do you have a favorite song/band/musician or movie/tv show or book?
My favorite movie is Drop Dead Gorgeous, a 90’s mockumentary about a midwestern beauty pageant.
What are you most looking forward to in your new role?
I’m looking forward to teaching volunteers all of the cool things I’ve learned about the park from my colleagues.
Do you have any favorite places or activities you like to do in Prospect Park?
I can’t quite narrow it down just yet. At the moment my family and I are really enjoying the Carousel and Smorgasburg.
Yvonne Tomich, EcoZone Gardener, Landscape Management
What is something you like to do in your free time?
I like to garden in my free time. Some other things I enjoy are cooking food with my partner, Ben, and visiting the many amazing green spaces in NYC.
Do you have a favorite song/band/musician or movie/tv show or book?
I don’t usually pick favorites. I’m currently reading Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and just finished Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver.
What are you most looking forward to in your new role?
Getting to be here for the plants, animals, soil, and people of Prospect Park. Helping to care for somewhere really special.
Do you have any favorite places or activities you like to do in Prospect Park?
Everything from wildlife watching (I’m particularly enchanted by our fireflies and hummingbirds right now) to enjoying a free show at the Bandshell. Sometimes I go home after work, and then come back out to the park!
Erinn White, Project Development Coordinator, Volunteer Services
What is something you like to do in your free time?
I like to take long bike rides and play guitar.
Do you have a favorite song/band/musician or movie/tv show or book?
No favorite musician, but my favorite music event is Celebrate Brooklyn at the Bandshell. I look forward to it every year!
What are you most looking forward to in your new role?
Prospect Park is my backyard, and I am excited to directly help in keeping it a vibrant greenspace for all creatures.
Do you have any favorite places or activities you like to do in Prospect Park?
I like to go birding in the Peninsula or hunting for mushrooms in the Midwood.
