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
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. 
Hennessy Garcia, Climate Justice Organizer
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Born and raised in the South Bronx, Hennessy (they/she) is a current student studying environmental science and data analytics. They are an organizer in different movement spaces.They are passionate about mutual aid, police and prison abolition, reproductive justice, climate justice, intersectionality, coalition building, calculus and trees. ​
Ivy Denham-Conroy, CSA Coordinator & 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
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.
Sam Fabian,  Youth Educator

Sam Fabian (she/her) is a vibrant soul who was born and raised in Loisaida. She went to Earth School and East Side Community High School like many of our Sixth Street kids! Remaining local to the Lower East Side 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 LES 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

​Sarai Garcia, Youth Educator

Sarai Garcia (she/her) is a Dominican-American multimedia artist native to Queens, NY. She graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology majoring in both Illustration and Photography where she discovered her passion for visual storytelling. Sarai specializes in different mediums such as film & digital photography, paint, clay, screen printing and fiber arts. She is committed to sharing her knowledge of the arts to young people of color so that they can share their stories and find creative ways to release their thoughts and emotions. In her free time, Sarai likes to dance, roller skate and support the people in her community. 
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​You can get in touch with Sarai at: sarai@sixthstreetcenter.org

Madeleine Giles, Youth Educator 
 
Madeleine (she/they) is a visual artist and teacher from San Francisco, CA. Madeleine has worked with young people for most of their life, first as a big sister, then as a sports coach, camp counselor, and mental/sexual health educator. In college, Madeleine studied studio art and education. They strive to use art and teaching to affirm LGBTQ+ young people and disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline. They love kids and encouraging their curiosity. Madeleine loves experiencing nature, playing basketball, and listening to music in their free time.

You can get in touch with Madeleine at: maddy@sixthstreetcenter.org
Seasonal Returning Support

​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
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!