Who We Are || Staff at Sixth Street

Howard Brandstein, Executive Director

Howard Brandstein (he/him) began his work at Sixth Street Community Center as a volunteer back in the 1980s. As a lifelong New Yorker and urban homesteader, he assisted Lower East Side and East Harlem residents in homesteading and sweat equity, helping establish  HDFCs, community gardens and the first Community Land Trust (CLT) in NYC. He is passionate about saving our planet and communities from the scourge of racial capitalism, fights against displacement in our working class neighborhoods and is actively organizing a new Community Land Trust (CLT) to be established right here on East 6th Street.

​If you'd like to get in touch, contact him at: howard@sixthstreetcenter.org
Jen Chantrtanapichate, Deputy Director
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Jen Chantrtanapichate (she/her) is a Thai-American artist, climate activist and community organizer from New York City. She received her Masters in Urban Planning and BA in Urban Studies from Hunter College. She developed and jumpstarted Sixth Street's Youth Programs, Teen Programs, Emergency Food Distribution and Mutual Aid Kitchen Project. On top of being responsible for the overall success of SSCC's programs, she leads the center's organizing work in climate justice campaigns around energy democracy, opposition to fossil fuel expansion and coastal resiliency.  In 2015, she founded the grassroots community organization, CNB, which advocates for environmental justice, particularly in response to waste inequity and environmental racism in North Brooklyn. She serves on the board of the Bushwick Food Coop and the Fifth Street Farm Project. In her spare time, she fights for climate justice for BIPOC communities with coalitions like Frack Outta Brooklyn (FOBK) and works on campaigns that fall under the ethos of ecosocialism.
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If you'd like to get in touch, contact her at: jen@sixthstreetcenter.org
Anna Tsomo Leidecker, Teen Program Director
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Anna Tsomo (she/her) is a Tibetan-American community organizer based in NYC. She is currently leading the Teen Climate Justice Program at Sixth Street Community Center, and pursuing her Masters of Environmental Health & Safety at CUNY School of Public Health. As an organizer with the No North Brooklyn Pipeline Coalition, she has led protest and community building events since 2020. Raised in Appalachia with roots in Brooklyn & Queens, she is passionate about wellness, climate justice, nature, decolonization, and pleasure activism.

​If you'd like to get in touch, contact her at: anna@sixthstreetcenter.org, 929-220-3014
Krystal Bydonne, Youth Program Director
Krystal Bydonne (she/her) is a community organizer and event coordinator who currently serves as Youth Program Director at Sixth Street Community Center. Born and raised in New York City, Krystal received her BS in Journalism and Media Studies from Brooklyn College. She now attends Hunter Graduate School working towards her Masters in Urban Policy and Leadership with a concentration in Non- Profit Management. She plans to use her degree to create more housing resources in Black & Brown communities. In addition to her work at Sixth Street, Krystal has worked closely with the nonprofit org. PeerForward since 2017 as an Assistant Workshop Director, Operations Captain, and National Alumni Council Secretary. Her work there aims to unleash the power of positive peer influence to transform the lives of youth living in low-income communities by connecting them to college and careers. Krystal continues to look for spaces that give a voice to the community; whether in education, childhood development, or urban policy. She is passionate about bringing awareness to the connection between mental health and faith. 

​You can get in touch with Krystal at: krystal@sixthstreetcenter.org

​Noel Sanchez, Teen Climate Justice Summer Program Coordinator

Noel Sanchez (they/them) lives in Brooklyn NY where they are from. They received their BA in Urban Studies with a minor in African/Latinx Studies from Hunter College. As a descendant of Dominican Diaspora and reflecting on their lived experiences, Noel has been inspired to explore identity politics by promoting an importance in self growth and self awareness for themselve and at the Sixth Street Community Center’s Youth and Teen Programs.

​If you'd like to get in touch, contact them at: noel@sixthstreetcenter.org
Alfred Robertson, Facilities Maintenance Manager

Born and raised in Harlem, Alfred Robertson (he/him) has been a part of the Sixth Street team since 2003. Alfred brings decades of facilities maintenance experience, carpentry and other building trades. You can always count on seeing Alfred outside with a big smile on his face. 
Ryan Moore, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Coordinator & Youth Educator
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Ryan Moore (he/him) is a creative and progressive instructor living in Brooklyn. Originally from Nevada, he spent much of his adolescence exploring the mountains and landscape of southern Nevada, which prompted a desire to promote a more Earth conscious mindset in today’s climate. His main priorities are environmental justice, social equality, mindfulness, and teaching the youth at Sixth Street to care about one another as well as themselves! He hopes to bring his vision of a better world into the youth program by leading workshops centered around fostering the true and untarnished creativity of the children.

​If you'd like to get in touch, contact him at: ryan@sixthstreetcenter.org
Ebony Cawthorne, Youth Educator

Born and raised in Queens, N.Y., Ebony Sojourner has always had a love and a passion for storytelling and films. She is an independent director, writer and producer. Ebony Sojourner is the Founder of Disrupt Media. Disrupt is an artistic space dedicated to providing young people of color the opportunity and resources necessary to engage in storytelling as a practice of healing but also to bring attention to critical needs among artists of color in society. Art has the power to heal and Ebony feels honored to have Disrupt Media to be an outlet and provide a space for healing to our Black and brown communities.
Alex Lopez-Guevara, Youth Educator

Alex Lopez-Guevara (he/him) is a current student at Queens College's Masters in Teaching Visual Arts program. He is also a practicing illustrator with a BFA in Illustration from FIT. He looks forward to spreading his love of the arts and storytelling within the NY school system as a teacher, while collaborating with their families to nurture and empower their communities. Being part of a strong team is essential in this journey, and he's happy to be able to grow with a team like Sixth Street! He also enjoys drawing, reading, spending time with loved ones, and learning as much as he can with his time on this earth.
Ivy Denham-Conroy, Youth Educator

Ivy Denham-Conroy (she/they) is super exited to be a part of the Sixth Street community this year! Ivy is from Washington State and graduated from Occidental college in Los Angeles where she studied Spanish and Urban and Environmental Policy. She is passionate about food justice, environmental education and understanding our roles and importance as individuals and communities within our interconnected food systems. She loves working with kids and is excited to learn with and from the students of Sixth Street! In her free time she loves to make floral arrangements, go on windy scooter rides and play dress up.

You can get in touch with Ivy at: ivy@sixthstreetcenter.org
Sam Fabian,  Youth Educator

Sam Fabian (she/her) is a vibrant soul who was born and raised in the the Lower East Side. She went to Earth School and East Side Community High School like many of our Sixth Street kids! Remaining local to the LES up until today, she has witnessed the neighborhood go through significant changes. She is committed to contributing to the positive growth of this community through her engagement with Lower East Side youth. Aside from enjoying her time at Sixth Street, Sam is working on her bachelors degree in Psychology at Hunter to eventually fulfill her career aspirations as a trauma informed therapist.

You can get in touch with Sam at: sam@sixthstreetcenter.org
Kathryn,  Youth Educator

Kathryn Camacho (they/them) is a teacher, poet, ceramicist, and service-industry worker in no specific order. They find happiness in being useful to the people they are surrounded by and love to share skills, knowledge, and information. Constantly considering and reimagining what community means, they seek to understand how to care for and better support all they make contact with. They view art, movement, and writing as spaces that can be healing, regenerative, and JOYFUL. Kathryn strives to create a space where kids can connect with each other, explore their creativity, and consider how they can care for themselves and their greater community. Their favorite part about working with kids is learning from them. In Kathryn’s free time, they love to simply hang out with their friends, cook, eat, and go to the movies.

You can get in touch with Kathryn at: kathryn@sixthstreetcenter.org
Jhansiris Arias, Youth Program Assistant

Jhan Arias (he/him) is was born in the Dominican Republic. He moved to Brooklyn, NY when he was just 11 months old and has been living there since. He is currently pursuing his Bachelors Degree in Health Management at St. Francis College in Brooklyn. Jhan has many ties to Sixth Street Community Center. His younger siblings have attended summer programs here and he first started working at Sixth Street Community Center back in 2019 as a teen intern in their after school and summer programs. Jhan's role in the youth program is essential, making sure our kids are safe on their walk over to the center, supporting students with homework and assisting Youth Educators with their workshops. 
Mambwe Chama, Summer Program Intern

Mambwe Chama (he/him) has been part of the Sixth Street Community going on a decade now.  As a kid, he attended the Sixth Street Youth Program for years until he aged out of the program. As a young Teen, he returned back to Sixth Street and has been supporting us as a teen intern every summer since for Summer at Sixth Street (SSYP's summer program). This Fall, Mambwe starts his first year at the University of New Mexico where he will be focusing on mechanical engineering. Before heading off to college, Mambwe shared he wouldn't be the same person without Sixth Street. The feeling is honestly mutual, we believe Sixth Street wouldn't be the same without Mambwe! 

Massive Thanks and Gratitude to Our Amazing Volunteers: 

Sixth Street Community Center relies on the generous support of volunteers to sustain the work of our Mutual Aid work, our Emergency Food Distribution and Mutual Aid Kitchen Project. Many of these neighbors have been showing up to support weekly for nearly 18 months! 
Bo Bao.                                                                                     Ashwin Rastogi.                                                                     Michelle Hembree.
Cajou Wedemeyer.                                                               Julie Powell.                                                                         Quinn Shanahan.
Mark Levy and Bo Bao, making grocery bags with heaps of quality greens! 
Porfirio, Cajou, Emer and Miguel resting after a distribution day. 
Mark Levy helping unpack the corn!