Our Team

Gail Savina, Executive Director

Gail Savina grew up picking apples in the ‘Apple Capital of the World’ and, after a hiatus of 40 years, returned to coordinate fruit harvests throughout Seattle. She has organized neighborhood and community harvest groups and is the author of Gather It: How to Organize an Urban Fruit Harvest. Gail’s background includes serving as a communications specialist with King County environmental programs, working as a public health educator, and overseas stints in the Philippines and Ghana. She has masters degrees in anthropology and public health.  photo courtesy of urbanfarmhub.org

Colette Cosner, Program Manager

Originally from the east coast, Colette moved to Seattle in 2009 to work for YES! Magazine. Since then she has served as the Regional Organizer of Witness for Peace Northwest and as the Communications Associate for Cultivate Impact. Colette is currently the Executive Director of The Domestic Fair Trade Association–a national non-profit dedicated to fairness, equity and diversity across the food and farming sector. When she is not working, Colette can be found playing guitar or baking apple pie!

BOARD of DIRECTORS

Heather Hazen Parton

Heather grew up in North Carolina where she spent many hours in the garden with her mother. Since moving to Seattle in 2008, Heather has volunteered in community harvests and urban gardening events:  giving back to the community through locally sourced food is a passion.  As the Director of Development for PopCap Games, Inc., Heather  supports game teams for the Bejeweled franchise.

Morgan Larsen, Secretary
Morgan most recently hails from Chicago where she survived the winters by spending long hours crunching numbers first for Ernst & Young in their audit practice and then Citadel Investment Group working in Accounting Policy and Financial Reporting. She is now a full-time mom who runs marathons and loves to cook and eat delicious food and is excited to learn how to care for the pear tree that came with her new house!  Morgan holds a Masters in Accountancy from Arizona State University and is a CPA.

Larry Liang
Larry focuses on Online and Digital Merchandising for Windows Phone and PC Hardware as part of the Worldwide Retail Services group at Microsoft.  He organizes Microsoft’s Visiting Chefs Series, bringing local and national chefs, food writers and cookbook authors to the Redmond campus.  Away from work Larry spends as much tiome as he can with his wife and young daughter and is active in the local food community.

Kristen Ramer Liang
Kristen has been singing and teaching in Seattle since 2001. She is a core member of the internationally recognized Fisher Ensemble and serves as the ensemble’s Director of Education and Outreach. Kristen has also performed in the chorus of Seattle Opera and with the Esoterics. When she’s not singing, Kristen loves to spend time with her family in the garden and around the dining table.

Matt Pope  

Matt was introduced to City Fruit when he joined the Orchard Steward group at Martha Washington Park. He is committed to supporting good local food and is especially interested in getting it to those who need it most and in building knowledge and community around food. Most recently Matt has been applying his experience as a hobby hard cider maker to teaching people how to turn their bounty of apples into delicious cider. Matt works at the King County Department of Transportation as a technology project manager.

Hazel Singer, Treasurer
Hazel’s work experience relates back to and is reinforced by my training in Economic Geography and Urban Planning: understanding how systems (transportation, social services, manufacturing, health, small and large businesses, communities, government, etc) function in a region; what are the constraints and obstacles to successes and efficiency; and how to increase participation by all citizens in these processes so that they have a stake in positive outcomes. photo courtesy of urbanfarmhub.org

Betsy Moyer

Betsy has always wanted to make a positive difference in the world by using her expertise and talents for the greater good. Since opening her consulting firm, Betsy has used her experience to help her nonprofit and business clients grow and contribute to the world. Betsy holds an MBA from Bainbridge Graduate Institute. She grew up in rural Pennsylvania where the art of preserving fresh produce for the winter was common and spent countless hours as a child picking wild berries. A few years ago, she and her husband bought a house with an ancient apple tree needing lots of love and care, which began her involvement with City Fruit.

Kimbery Muska

Kimberly has lived in the Pacific Northwest since 2004. Originally from Chicago, Kimberly has spent over 14 years in the investment profession and is currently a Relationship Manager at Halbert Hargrove, a boutique wealth manager. She works with clients on their wealth planning and investment portfolios and is a Certified Financial Planer. In her free time, Kimberly can be found spending time with her husband and two young boys exploring Seattle neighborhoods.

ADVISORY COUNCIL

Bob Baines helps clean up downtown parks as a crew chief with Seattle Parks and Recreation. He’s also a longtime hobby orchardist and president of the Friends of Piper’s Orchard Steering Committee, a community group that maintains the historic orchard at Carkeek Park.

Dave Beeman worked in the Computer industry for twenty years and then started my own piano studio three years ago, teaching classical piano in my home, he volunteered for the Solid Ground Lettuce Link program for two years and for City Fruit last year. He was the assistant volunteer lead for the South Seattle fruit harvest last summer and delivered fruit to numerous food banks, shelters, and low income apartments in the South End. Dave represents City Fruit in their partnership with Bradner Gardens.

Don Ricks has been leading the charge on applying foot socks to apples & pears throughout the city. While Don shies away from the term “expert”, he’s very knowledgeable about fruit trees and pest prevention. He’s very involved with the Friends of Piper’s Orchard and sits on the City Fruit Advisory Committee.

Diana Vergis Vinh grew up visiting family farms in Iowa and Montana and now farms an urban yard, complete with goats and chickens. When she’s not busy collecting eggs, Diana serves as a public health nurse for Public Health Seattle & King County’s Healthy Eating and Active Living Program.

VOLUNTEERS

While there are too many to name, we couldn’t do what we do without them. Thank you!