Director of Land Acquisition

Adrin is a driven negotiator with a commitment to cultivating relationships of trust with landowners and partners. As Director of Land Acquisition, Adrin is the collaborative and critical thinker behind procuring land for Bayou Greenways, future park use, and land conservation. With more than 11 years of experience in land acquisition, Adrin’s work has created new greenspace that connects communities, bringing trails and parks to all Houstonians. Adrin lives for early morning runs and family bike rides on weekends along Heights Hike and Bike Trail.

Favorite Activities

Running

Cycling

Conservation Assistant

As Conservation Assistant, Alex has a particular love for biodiversity. Through his work at HPB, he is helping Houston become a more biodiverse place, and reconnecting people to the wonders of nature found all around them. Having received his bachelor’s in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Rice University, Alex is excited to help create and maintain habitat for wildlife and people to enjoy. After work hours, he can often be found looking for ‘new to him’ species of birds, plants, and insects while walking his adorable dogs Sophie and Bella.

Favorite Activities

Sr GIS Manager

Amanda is a contemporary cartographer who creates and analyzes geographic data to map greenspaces and connections throughout Houston. Through computerized mapping, she displays complex ideas in tangible form to visualize the potential of our city’s parks and trails. An environmentalist at heart with a background in civil engineering, Amanda brings 14 years of experience to her role as Sr GIS Manager. An avid traveler, her love of geography has taken her from hiking in the Rockies to snorkeling in the Caribbean.

Favorite Activities

Database and Development Administrator

Anjela Ramon is a nature admirer and loves spending time outdoors. As Database and Development Administrator, she assists with Houston Parks Board’s donor database and all administrative aspects of the Development team.

With five years of experience in event management and data processing, she brings a positive attitude and collaborative spirit to Houston Parks Board.

Anjela loves spending time with her family exploring trails and hiking.

Favorite Activities

Accounting Manager

Arun is wildly attentive to detail. As Accounting Manager, Arun is committed to ensuring that the work of Houston Parks Board operates with accuracy and timeliness. With over 4 years of experience and a BBA in Accounting from the University of Houston, Arun handles budgets, schedules, contracts, permits, and the annual audit. Arun understands that this everyday work creates parks that all Houstonians can enjoy without knowing how they came to be. A team-player with a love of basketball, Arun sees our greenspaces as a place where everyone can explore what they love most.

Favorite Activities

President and CEO

White is a seasoned and determined visionary who gets things done. She is a nationally recognized leader with extensive experience in public-private partnerships, planning, fundraising, and opening new parks and natural areas including such notable efforts as the award winning 606 elevated park and trail system in Chicago and the Hackmatack Wildlife Refuge spanning the boarders of Illinois and Wisconsin. As President and CEO of Houston Parks Board, she is responsible for the implementation of Bayou Greenways —the city-wide initiative creating more than 14,000 acres of new greenspace and bringing 1.5 million people within 1.5 miles of 150 miles of trails and guiding the expansive Beyond the Bayous planning effort. In her spare time, she serves as the Chair of the National Capital Planning Commission, the federal government’s planning agency that preserves and enhances the historical, cultural, and natural resources, and federal assets of the National Capital Region.

Favorite Activities

Director of Development Operations

Candace is a charismatic leader. Her passion for connecting people and communities to nature aligns well with her interests in responsible environmental stewardship and sustainability. As the Director of Development Operations, she will develop, strengthen and implement the Annual Giving campaign as well as support the Annual Luncheon and other events. Her four years’ experience in capital fundraising, volunteer management and membership recruitment gives her a diverse approach to growing support for greenspaces. Candace is an avid traveler and loves spending time with her family and dogs in all of Houston’s parks.

Favorite Activities

Conservation Assistant

Carter strives to ‘be the change he wants to see in the world” and loves being in the field. As Conservation Assistant for Houston Parks Board, he believes the best route for personal growth is by learning about the world around us. With an eagerness to learn and prior experience as a crew leader for Texas Conservation Corps’ Summer Youth Program, Carter is passionate about pursuing a lifelong career in environmental conservation.

In his free time, Carter enjoys camping, hiking, surfing, and playing golf.

Favorite Activities

Outreach Manager

Chanelle Nicole Frazier is a reformed grant writer turned urban planner, turned Houston Parks Board Outreach Manager. She attributes her love and knowledge of Houston to years of riding the Metro as a teenager, and her many years of playing in Houston parks as a child. With three years of experience as a planner and community advocate, and ten years in grant writing and program development, Chanelle is a ‘people person’ and likes to get things done quickly and efficiently. As Outreach Manager, she supports community awareness and education about local parks and greenspace one neighborhood program at a time, with an emphasis on equity. Chanelle has a Master’s degree in Urban Planning and Environmental Policy from Texas Southern University, and enjoys taking walks with her family and dogs in George T. Nelson Park, commonly known as Yellowstone Park.

Conservation Technician

Christina is a passionate biologist with a commitment to restoring habitats and supporting wildlife. She understands the benefits of natural greenspaces not just as refuge for plants and animals, but also for people.

As Conservation Technician, Christina works collaboratively to monitor and maintain restoration projects with hopes of creating more natural areas in the Houston area.

With Bachelor’s degrees in Environmental Studies and Biology, and a Masters in Wildlife Science, Christina is experienced is many various habitats. She enjoys traveling and discovering new animals on nature walks.

Favorite Activities

Asset Manager

Dan is a multi-tasker with a diverse understanding of the field of landscape architecture. Inspired from a young age by his parent’s garden, he built his first pathway at the age of 12. His commitment and passion has taken him coast-to-coast to work on projects of every scale. Hearing Houston Parks Board members discuss Bayou Greenways was the spark that led to joining the organization. In his role as Asset Manager, he ensures projects are completed with timeliness and acuity. Active himself, Dan can be found at Crossfit, five days a week.

Favorite Activities

Sr Capital Projects Manager

Danny is a Sr Capital Projects Manager for Houston Parks Board. Coming from a technical background in engineering, and a background in landscape architecture, Danny brings a wide range of vision to effectively solve an array of problems. Having a career that spans over 20 years, he is pragmatic in his approach- from balancing high quality work with timely completion, to daily problem solving and keeping the project on budget; seeing the smiles and hearing laughter of the people using the greenway at the end makes it all worthwhile for him.

Favorite Activities

Maintenance Technician

David brings over 20 years of construction experience to his work at Houston Parks Board. He holds himself and those he works with to high standards, and has a reputation for being meticulous and detail-oriented. David’s mechanical ‘know how’ coupled with industry ingenuity makes him an invaluable member of the HPB team. An avid outdoorsman, he takes special consideration in doing his part to maintain and replenish our natural greenspaces. In his free time, David enjoys mountain bike riding along the Bayou Greenways in the Houston Metro area with his family.

Favorite Activities

Greenspace Manager

DK is keenly passionate about the details. As Greenspace Manager, DK is responsible for ensuring that our trails are maintained for the enjoyment of millions of Houstonians. Bringing over 30 years of experience to that work, DK takes pride in creating spaces everyone can enjoy. DK enjoys walking with his wife and her dog along Meyer Park, and taking his grandkids to visit Greens Bayou Greenway and the skate park.

Favorite Activities

Conservation Technician

Ethan is an experienced Naturalist with a Bachelor’s degree in Natural Resources Management from Texas Tech University. As a Conservation Technician, he advocates to save and restore the environment to its native landscape. He loves archery, hiking, birding, exploring nature, and can often be found enjoying time in Lake Houston Wilderness Park.

Favorite Activities

Accountant

Evelyn is a polished and skilled professional with over 20 years of diverse experience in the Accounting field. As Accountant, everything she does—from processing invoices to administering payroll—is processed efficiently and demonstrates her drive and dedication to the role she plays on Houston Parks Board. Evelyn enjoys the beauty of our greenspaces and is proud of how Bayous Greenways is helping Houston get more active.

Favorite Activities

Greenspace Manager

Glenn is our resident expert in the practical aspects of all things horticultural. With over 30 years experience in Houston’s high-end landscape industry, Glenn has done it all, personally: from pushing a lawn mower while in high school, to ownership of a successful small business. It’s with that obsession for all aspects of our natural world and an abiding passion for husbanding beautiful views, that Glenn brings to bare on our Brays Bayou trail system—as Greenspace Manager and coordinator of “boots on the ground”. In his spare time, Glenn is a devoted grandfather, avid fisherman, amateur naturalist, gardener and artist.

Favorite Activities

Sr Capital Projects Manager

John is an energetic leader and collaborative facilitator. As Sr Capital Projects Manager, he is responsible for providing clarity and complex community projects to broaden public access to parks. With over 20 years of experience with large scale projects with greenspace components, John brings significant expertise to planning and implementing Bayou Greenways. John enjoys jogging, hiking, and playing baseball with his son at TC Jester Park.

Favorite Activities

Capital Projects Associate

Jordan is interested in improving access to greenspace for all Houstonians. She has previously worked with the Rice University Kinder Institute, GrantWorks Inc., Hagerty Consulting, The Wilderness Society and Texas A&M Transportation Institute. She has a BS in Environmental Studies from Texas A&M University, as well as a Masters of Community and Regional Planning from the University of Texas at Austin. As Capital Projects Associate at Houston Parks Board, she assists in the creation and implementation of greenspaces in Houston and surrounding areas. Jordan is an enthusiastic hiker and gardener, with a love of houseplants, throwing pottery, and her cats.

Favorite Activities

Chief Planning and Strategy Officer

With fifteen years in the public and private sectors focused on large-scale infrastructure, climate resilience and strategic planning, Justin approaches his role as Chief Planning and Strategy Officer with the aim of expanding access to quality open space to all Houstonians. Justin’s role at the Houston Parks Board includes expanding partnerships and leading strategic initiatives, in addition to overseeing the organization’s planning studies.

Justin holds a Masters in Urban Planning from New York University and a BA from the University of Texas at Austin. A native Houstonian, Justin enjoys running on the myriad of Bayou Greenways trails around the city, reading non-fiction and trips to the Houston Zoo with his family.

Favorite Activities

Staff Accountant

Keith is a charismatic humanitarian with a skill for numbers. As Staff Accountant, he prides himself on working effectively and efficiently to ensure accurate and precise financial reports for staff and board members. His ability to balance the cut-and-dry world of accounting, yet stay personable, makes him one-of-a-kind. As a husband, father, and devoted basketball player and fan, Keith enjoys staying active and spending time with loved ones in developed park spaces around Houston.

Favorite Activities

Chief Development Officer

Kira is a results-oriented non-profit development professional with over a decade of international experience working with organizations during times of growth and strategy development. As Chief Development Officer, she brings her global experience to Houston and enjoys parks and greenspaces as a place of refuge, recreation, and fitness. During her tenure at myAgro, Kira secured transformative funding through TED’s Audacious project to move 1 million smallholder farmers out of poverty. At Touch Foundation, she worked with McKinsey & Company to strengthen healthcare in Tanzania and scaled the maternal emergency transport system m-mama throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Prior to living in Tanzania, she navigated SeriousFun Children’s Network through a rebrand, and helped lead a successful fundraising campaign during a period of change and growth. Kira holds a B.A. in International Political Economy and Spanish from Fordham University in the Bronx, and is a key player in sustaining and advancing Houston Parks Board’s philanthropic efforts.

Favorite Activities

Outreach Coordinator

Linda is an enthusiastic people person with an irresistible ‘joie de vivre’. As Outreach Coordinator, her multidisciplinary background informs engagement and stewardship efforts around Houston Parks Board initiatives and outreach, with a focus on the Inwood Recreation Project.

Linda loves bike riding, line dancing, and aspires to one day become a skilled pianist.

Favorite Activities

Capital Projects Administrator

Linda is an industrious facilitator. Her instinct for anticipating needs and providing support to those around her stems from over fifteen years of experience in the service and hospitality industry. As Capital Projects Administrator, Linda performs a variety of administrative tasks, keeping the office coordinated and organized. Additionally, she works closely with the Projects team to manage project schedules, record costs, reconcile budgets, and create financial reports. In her spare time, she enjoys Bikram yoga and tinkering with technology. Linda strongly believes that, in our increasingly car-centric city, the benefits of parkland accessibility/equity are invaluable and should not be overlooked as a priority.

Favorite Activities

Sr Capital Projects Manager

Lisa G. is a creative problem-solver. As Sr Capital Projects Manager, Lisa enjoys collaborating with the team to clarify, organize, and implement projects that bring park benefits to all Houstonians. Her twenty years of experience in international building and campus projects drives her extraordinary vision in coordinating large-scale projects. Passionate about travel, Lisa has lived internationally in cities such as London and Shanghai. A native Houstonian, she served on the Board of the Bayou Land Conservancy and loves exploring Houston’s wild places.

Favorite Activities

Senior Outreach Manager

Lisa is a thoughtful community builder who brings integrity and passion to every aspect of her work. With over 15 years of nonprofit experience working and engaging with communities across the country, Lisa works to ensure Houstonians have a voice in Houston Parks Board projects from the very beginning. She is committed to making sure everyone has a seat at the table when it comes to changes within their neighborhood, and is deeply invested in greenspace access for all communities. Prior to joining HPB, Lisa worked in environmental justice communities with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and got her start in outreach with the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. During her college career at Penn State University, she traveled to Alaska and the Yukon to study the impacts of industrialization on Native communities.

Favorite Activities

Conservation Technician

As a conservationist, Liz has a passion for restoring and protecting the native Houston landscape. She has work on various wetland and prairie restoration projects with different agencies and non-profit organizations along the gulf coast. Liz is responsible for monitoring and identifying habitat restoration needs within the Bayou Greenways as a Conservation Technician. She loves to engage with the community, learn new skills, and teach others about the environment.

Favorite Activities

Conservation Manager

Marissa is a dedicated field biologist with extensive experience in her field. After training at Brown University with highly skilled biologists, she forged a long career in conservation spanning 23 years and counting. As the Conservation Manager for Houston Parks Board, she is responsible for the careful and thoughtful conservation of the natural resources of our parks and open spaces. As a proud mom to two musically talented children and rescue dogs, Marissa understands the importance of protecting our resources to ensure we have beautiful outdoor spaces where families can spend quality time together.

Favorite Activities

Greenspace Manager

Marvin is a charismatic team player who takes pride in connecting with others to facilitate the success of projects. As Greenspace Manager, Marvin oversees the maintenance and conservation of Houston’s parks and trails. With over 10 years of experience with bayous, including previous roles in inspector capital, property management, and development coordination, Marvin brings a diversified level of experience to ensuring that our greenspaces are cared for in every respect. Passionate about getting active, Marvin regularly plays tennis, hikes and bikes at Terry Hershey Park.

Favorite Activities

Conservation Assistant

Mary Claire is an east Texas-raised lover of people and the ecosystems that sustain us. As a valuable member of the Conservation team, she plants and maintains the natural habitats along our Bayou Greenways. Her appreciation runs deep for Houston’s interconnected trails and greenspaces as a form of alternative transportation, the vital conservation work and flood mitigation they provide, and the solace they offer. Benefits she believes should be accessible to all Houstonians. Prior to joining HPB, Mary Claire earned a bachelor’s degree is sociocultural anthropology and served a 6 month term with Texas Conservation Corps on a traveling conservation and disaster crew.

Favorite Activities

Chief Operating Officer

As an urban planner, Matt is passionate about how green, open, and resilient spaces can make our communities more livable and be sources of pride for stakeholders. The significant achievement of livable communities is more notable if they are safe, equitable, and accessible for all. Matt is an advocate for the artistic community’s inclusion in developing and using open spaces, whether active or passive. Programmatic activity in parks via arts and culture, whether lively or static, is viewed as a goal to embrace the new normal and elevate our communities and their artists. Matt is affectionately known as a “Human GPS” by travel buddies in exploring almost 40 countries.

Favorite Activities

Conservation Assistant

Native Houstonian Maya Fletcher-Bai has a passion for prairie restoration. Before joining Houston Parks Board as Conservation Assistant, they worked with the Coastal Prairie Conservancy in outreach and restoration. As Conservation Assistant, Maya is part of the hard-working Conservation and Maintenance staff, helping to create greenspaces that wildlife and humans alike can enjoy. When not at work, Maya enjoys hiking and looking for birds.

Favorite Activities

Chief Financial Officer

With more than 20 years of global experience across corporate and nonprofit sectors, Chief Financial Officer Melanie Musgrove is proficient in strategic transformations and brings a deep knowledge of accounting, finance, and risk management to Houston Parks Board. A Houston-native, Melanie is passionate about mission-driven efforts and applies her diverse expertise to help the organization create, improve, protect, and advocate for parks for everyone. She is a graduate of Texas A&M University and is CPA licensed in New York and Texas.

Favorite Activities

Director of Development

Mindy is an enthusiastic relationship builder with over 27 years of wide-ranging experience in Houston nonprofits. Her background includes meeting and exceeding fundraising goals in the arts, private and higher education, as well as animal welfare organizations. As Director of Development, she initiates and advances relationships with individuals, foundations, and corporations to secure funding for strategic initiatives. She brings her love of the outdoors and her desire to continue building accessible greenspaces for Houstonians.

Mindy graduated with a BA from Texas Christian University and an MA from the University of Florida with a degree in American Politics and a certification in political campaign management. She enjoys exploring the Bayou Greenways on bicycle, traveling, walking dogs, and is an avid SCUBA diver.

Favorite Activities

Conservation Assistant

Nestor is community driven Conservation Assistant that brings hard work and collaboration to the HPB team. He helps execute restoration projects to support engagement in parks and greenspace.

His prior experience includes working with regional parks and recreation departments and as a Park Ranger for the city of Waco. With a degree in Environmental Geography from Sam Houston State University, he hopes to help make an impact in creating greenspaces for everyone to enjoy.

In his free time he enjoys camping, hiking, and longboarding.

Favorite Activities

Director of Communications

Nicole is a creative thinker who is committed to championing Houston’s green renaissance. With over 15 years of experience finding solutions for interdisciplinary nonprofits, Nicole leads internal and external communications for Houston Parks Board. With expertise in transformational programming, authentic community engagement, event planning, grant writing, and marketing communications, Nicole is dedicated to Houston Parks Board’s mission and vision. Nicole holds a Masters degree in Public Art Studies and hopes to pass on her love of travel and the outdoors to her children.

Favorite Activities

Conservation Coordinator

Ricardo is an avid outdoorsman with a passion for conservation and education. During his graduate studies at Texas A&M University he focused on Natural Resource Management and Conservation, aiding the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department in restoration and translocation projects.

As Conservation Coordinator he is focused on making sure the restoration projects are carried out; and hopes to make the greenways enjoyable for everyone, while educating the public in the importance of conservation and stewardship.

Favorite Activities

Director of Capital Projects

Richard is an engaged team player who advocates for the professional growth of his peers and understands the needs of the park system. As Director of Capital Projects, he works closely with the Projects team to oversee and manage Houston’s Bayou Greenways and the Beyond the Bayous initiative. Richard brings over 28 years experience as a Landscape Architect to Houston Parks Board. Raising his family in a neighborhood where parks and trails are plentiful drives his desire to provide safe, accessible, outdoor opportunities for all Houstonians.

Favorite Activities

Nursery Technician

Ron is a Conservation Nursery technician with passion for the outdoors and working with plants. He has experience as a wholesale nurser in the state of Arizona, specializing in plants indigenous to the southwest. With his extensive experience in the horticulture industry and as Nursery Technician for Houston Parks Board, Ron works to expand and cultivate the vital native plant inventory in Houston’s parks and greenspaces.

Favorite Activities

Greenspace Manager

Ronny is very detail oriented with an ability to build great relationships and takes pride in his work. As a Greenspace Manager, Ronny is responsible for ensuring trails are maintained for all Houstonians to enjoy. Ronny comes to us from Harris County Precinct 3, where he has served for nearly 15 years as an inspector. His responsibilities included capital projects, mowing, landscaping, clearing operations and plan reviews. He has a BS in Public Service Leadership from University of Houston—Clear Lake. Ronny has his own Travel Baseball Organization in Waller that he operates with his son. Ronny enjoys going to any park and spending time with his wife running or walking the trails together.

Favorite Activities

Senior Greenspace Manager

Russ is an effective problem-solver dedicated to proactive thinking and solution-oriented results. As Senior Greenspace Manager, Russ oversees all contract work along the Bayou Greenways system, ensuring that projects are run effectively for the continued benefit of the Houston community. With over 30 years of experience in the public and private sectors, Russ is well versed in what’s necessary to find the solutions to drive action that improves communities.

Favorite Activities

Conservation and Maintenance Director

Trent is a responsible, visionary leader. As Conservation and Maintenance Director, he oversees contract/staff management, program planning, and budgeting. With over 30 years of experience with park development and improvement projects (planning, design, construction and maintenance), he brings a unique, historical perspective on how park systems function best. Trent is a dedicated fan of golfing, cycling, and swimming.

Favorite Activities