Meet Our Leadership Team

Cynthia Schaefer is an author and herbalist who believes passionately in the power of community at the local level. She thrives in a small urban homestead on 1/3 of an acre in Davie, Florida, and is founder and admin of South Florida Edible Gardening and Sustainability meetup and FB group. With over 14,000 members, SFEG is dedicated to sharing ways we can create vibrant local food systems and live in urban areas and maintain harmony with the planet. 

Cynthia sees opportunities for growing food, supporting community and caring for the planet everywhere, and envisions The Caring Community being a replicable template for communities everywhere to engage volunteers to come together and create good. 

   While not an educator herself, Kerrie comes from a family of teachers and understands the daily stress that today’s teachers are under. She is currently, a wealth manager to successful families, 

The Caring Community has provided a way to give back in a hands on way to a group she cares deeply about.  

Kerrie is our COO and helps with various administrative projects as well.

She is a master of creativity and shares her talents to help us with special events and presentations and supports the team wherever she can. 

Kerrie grew up in South Florida and after nearly 25 years in New England she and her family relocated to Broward County in 2017.  

Kerrie is also involved with the United Way of Broward County and sits on the University of Hartford Alumni Association Board.

Susan has been creating community and serving others for a long time. She joined TCC in 2021 and immediately became irreplaceable. 

She is our volunteer coordinator, a dedicated weekly volunteer in our Hope Garden, AND she is creator and editor of our newsletter! 

She is also a fabulous ambassador for our outreach at the La Zoola popup markets and special events. 

 Aileen is the Special Events Coordinator for TCC.  She graduatedfrom Texas State University with a bachelors degree in early childhood education. Her participation in study abroad programs fueled her desire to learn more about community, culture, and sustainable living. After receiving  her degree she gained her nature based skills certification, then felt a desire to assist in her own community volunteering and continued working in harmony with the natural systems in schools and community gardens.

Today, Aileen is focused on learning and advocating for and about herbalism, regenerative landscapes, children’s yoga, permaculture design, composting, and how she can find an intersection between these skills and concepts, and how to instill them in our community and young people. Aileen started volunteering with TCC in the summer of 2022. In September she led our first Gardens Matter, working with community to give away 20 butterfly gardens and close to 100 food forest growing kits in Broward County. 

Amber is an avid gardener who serves as the Hope Food Bank Garden Team Leader.  

She's an enthusiastic volunteer and stepped into the leadership position when we needed her in the summer of 2023.  

Amber has a lifelong love for plants and nature. When she's not in the food bank garden, she propogates plants at home.  

As our youngest Team Leader, Kyle has been innovating in the Robbins Park food forest and gardens for 2 years.  

He took over leadership at 16,  along with his mother, Jessie Basto and his two younger brothers. 

They've created wonderful classes and Jessie is a master in the kitchen, creating wonderful recipes made from foods that grow easily in South Florida. 

Kiana is a graduated student from the 

University of Central Florida with a degree in Hospitality Management and cofounder for The Caring Community.
 

Her love for plants runs deep, starting with her father, who was always showing her different home remedies he made whenever anyone was sick.  Also, with a Haitian background, plant medicine was and is still very common throughout her family to help with various health issues. Although she’s still in the beginning stages of learning on her plant journey, she’s very passionate about expanding her knowledge. 

Through The Caring Community, she hopes to reach more people and communities, bringing to light how beneficial herbalism can be.