Executive Director

deka@southsidegrowth.org

Housing & Community Development Director

danchell@southsidegrowth.org

Community Engagement Manager

sarhia@southsidegrowth.org

Executive Operations Assistant

amy@southsidegrowth.org

Board Chair
Community-minded Investor and Philanthropist

Chedy believes that all communities prosper when investments are made in people, places, and projects. An advocate for community growth, he grew up in the McKinley Park neighborhood on the South Side of Syracuse and established the South Side Community Growth Foundation to ensure current and future residents have access to the resources and opportunities that allow them to thrive.

Board Member
Neighborhood Resident
Co-founder & Vice Chair, Food Access Healthy Neighborhoods Now

Audrey Haskell has been a resident and community activist on the South Side of Syracuse for more than 60 years. In addition to her work as Vice Chair of Food Access Healthy Neighborhoods Now, an organization that advocates for access to fresh food and other essential services for neighbors living on the South Side, Audrey is an active volunteer. She coordinates the McKinley Park Supporters Group and is a member of Neighborhood Watch. She was a founding member of the Brighton Area Coordinating Committee and served as Vice President of the Board of Directors at Southside Interfaith CDC.

Secretary
Director, Community & Media Relations at Wegmans Food Markets Central New York Region; Founder of The Castle

Evelyn is very well-versed in community, especially what it means to be part of ours. In all aspects of her life, she strives to bring people together in collaboration. As Director of Community and Media Relations for Wegmans Food Markets, she oversees community investment, consumer affairs, and media relations. She and her husband Chino are renovating a 30,000 square-foot vacant historic church, formerly known as the South Presbyterian Church, on South Salina Street. “The Castle” will be a multi-use event center, featuring elegant event space, a networking lounge, and a training center.

Board Member
Executive Director, The Rosamond Gifford Charitable Corporation (The Gifford Foundation)

Sheena is passionate about fostering growth in others. She believes in the “teaching people how to fish” concept and that celebrating diversity is the best way to build and sustain strong, vibrant, inclusive communities. As Executive Director of The Gifford Foundation, Sheena is engaged in racial justice, equity, and inclusion work. Sheena serves on the Advisory Board for Professionals Learning About Community Equity and Smart Growth (PLACES) Program, a year-long professional development program designed to explore critical issues that affect grantmaking decisions to address the needs and assets of low-income neighborhoods and people of color, and from which she is a 2012 graduate. She was also instrumental in designing Nourishing Tomorrow’s Leaders, a leadership development training program focused on increasing diversity and inclusiveness on nonprofit boards.

Treasurer
Restaurateur, Developer, Investor – 2023 NYS Economic Development Power 100

As a Syracuse-based real estate developer, restaurateur, and investor, Ryan is focused on the future of Central New York and is deeply committed to seeing all parts of our region prosper. Recognized by City & State New York on its 2023 NYS Economic Development Power 100 List, Ryan brings valuable real estate knowledge and economic development perspective to the Foundation’s Board of Directors. His development company, Redev CNY, has completed more than $100 million in local projects. Ryan is also an adjunct faculty member at Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management where he teaches entrepreneurship.

Board member
Consultant, The Charles F. Bolden Group

Jeanette is a consultant with The Charles F. Bolden Group and brings decades of experience in research, intelligence, and leadership to the Foundation and is dedicated to supporting her hometown community. A Syracuse native, she graduated from Corcoran High School and Le Moyne College before earning her Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from the University of Maryland as a NASA Fellow. Selected as a NASA astronaut in 2009, Jeanette completed extensive training before being assigned to NASA’s Crew-8 mission. On March 3, 2024, she launched to the International Space Station, spending nearly eight months in orbit as a flight engineer. She retired from NASA in 2025. Prior to joining NASA, Jeanette earned two patents as a researcher at Ford Motor Company, and served seven years as a technical intelligence officer for the CIA, including a deployment to Iraq.