Our Board of Directors is composed of a team of talented, passionate individuals from all walks of life. Learn a little more about the people who help keep VINES successful. Interested in joining the Board or attending a VINES meeting? Contact us for more information.
Aisha Jasper, Chair
Aisha Jasper joined the VINES Board in 2019 after being a guest speaker with the Grow Binghamton Youth Program and volunteering on the Urban Farm with the Southern Tier Young Professionals. Fortunate enough to make her passion her career, she works as Community Development Liaison with Visions Federal Credit Union. She is an Endicott native, having remained active in a variety of community organizations including the Emerging Leaders Society, NYS Mentor Program and Uplift Her. Aisha is honored to being a part of the VINES Board during this exciting period of growth for the organization.
Christopher Caroompas, Vice Chair
Chris Caroompas joined the VINES Board in 2016 after being a VINES volunteer for about a year. Chris is a special education teacher at The Greater Binghamton Health Center teaching middle school on the Child and Adolescent Inpatient Unit; he has been there since 2007. In his spare time Chris enjoys hiking with his family, spending time at the gym, running and swimming. He is also very excited to be part of the VINES community and all the wonderful things that VINES does.
Tamika Gordon, Treasurer
Tamika Gordon joined the VINES Board in 2019. A New York native and resident at heart, Tamika was born and raised in Brooklyn. She moved to the Binghamton area to pursue her PhD in Industrial and Systems Engineering. It was at a Binghamton University community fair where she learned about VINES. Excited about the opportunity to eat local, she has been a Farm Share member since 2016. As a member of Farm Share, you are often challenged to think outside of the box and make new recipes. Tamika enjoys sharing these recipes with the staff and faculty at SUNY Broome, where she currently works as an Assistant Professor. Tamika is happy to be a member of the VINES board, among individuals that have a passion for improving the community we live in.
Erica Miner, Secretary
Erica Miner has been involved as a VINES volunteer in several capacities since 2012, joining the Board in 2022. Erica earned her Master of Public Administration from Binghamton University and is currently working for Northeastern University’s Roux Institute. Born and raised in Binghamton, Erica has a fierce love of her community and recognizes the resources provided by VINES are important in enhancing food security in the area. She lives in Binghamton and enjoys hiking, running, traveling and watercoloring. As a board member, she is excited to continue to advocate for healthy food and living for the Broome County area.
Amy Shapiro
Amy Shapiro joined the VINES Board in 2012 and served as Board Chair from March 2013-March 2018. She currently serves as the Chair of the Fundraising Committee. A Binghamton resident since 1990, she is a commercial litigator at Hinman, Howard & Kattell, LLP and a past treasurer of the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Broome County, past president of the Broome County Arts Council and founding president of Binghamton’s West Side Neighborhood Association. She is thrilled that VINES is bring energy and imagination to strengthening the local community and promoting local agriculture, and is happy to work with energetic staff and volunteers.
Beth Bringley
Beth has been a part of the VINES board since the fall of 2019. She first became involved after attending a VINES Farm to Table Dinner and was instantly hooked. A native of Rochester, she moved to Binghamton to work as a chiropractor and acupuncturist with Lourdes Hospital. She is honored and excited to be a part of VINES and the community that she now calls home.
Cheryl Miller
Cheryl was introduced to VINES in 2015, initially as a Broome County CCE Master Gardener Volunteer cleaning out the flower beds at the Binghamton Urban Farm and was instantly hooked. She is currently Site Coordinator at the Columbus Park Community Garden. Her respect for the VINES organization has grown with each year that she’s been involved and is eager to serve on the Board starting in 2023. She was born and raised in Johnson City, New York, educated at SUNY Broome, and has stayed in the area, living, working and volunteering in a community she has great fondness and hope for.
Chris Guy
Chris joined the VINES board in 2020. He is a native Binghamtonian and moved back to the West Side after spending four years at Dickinson College in Pennsylvania. Following an internship and a year-long AmeriCorps position with VINES, Chris knew he wanted to remain closely involved with the organization, and board membership was a great fit. He is thrilled to be able to participate in the growth of VINES, and help continue the mission of growing food and growing community.
Connie Barnes
Connie Barnes has been involved with VINES since its inception in 2007 as a founding Board Member, and served as Board Chair for several years. She is a retired bookseller and now works as Gallery & Retail Manager at Broome County Arts Council’s Artisan Gallery.
Conrad Whyte
Conrad Whyte joined the VINES Board in 2023. A native of the Virgin Islands, Conrad moved to New York in 2008 to attend college, and decided to never leave the state. He moved to Johnson City in 2018 and fell in love with the area. Conrad is an audit supervisor with Insero & Co CPA’s where he as been since 2013. Conrad loves spending his days with his wife and three kids, and is always looking forward to their next traveling adventure. Conrad is delighted to now be a part of the board and assist in the mission of advocating for a better community food system in Binghamton and the surrounding area.
David Levenson
David Levenson joined the VINES Board in 2013. After several decades with NewChannels Corp., then Time Warner Cable, he left the industry as Director of Customer Care. Getting to know the staff and buying vegetables from the Urban Farm, he decided to see if he could help with the organization’s mission. He formerly volunteered at Day Nursery Association, March of Dimes, and several more not for profits. It is a great joy working with VINES as it provides such an accessible, safe way to get fresh, healthy food to so many residents of our area.
Debbie Konnick
Debbie joined VINES Board in 2023. She has been a gardener at Otsiningo for many years. Currently, she is a site coordinator there. She became familiar with VINES while obtaining her Master Gardener certification from Broome County CCE in 2015. Debbie is employed by a national nonprofit as a Project Coordinator. When she is not gardening, she is talking about gardening, learning about garden techniques and sharing the information. She graduated from SUNY Albany. While there was involved with NYPIRG helping get the Bottle Bill passed. Debbie believes gardening is essential to a healthy life both mentally and physically. She loves that VINES is helping so many in the community with gardening. She is thrilled to be on the Board to contribute to the growth of the organization.
Emily Wheeler
Emily Wheeler joined the VINES board in March of 2022. She was living in the Binghamton area in 2020/21 and met Ameila while seeking out a local community composting program. Emily is an engineer and clean energy and technology specialist committed to helping cities, companies, and the community. She currently serves as the Chief of Staff at NineDot Energy. She also volunteers with: iMentor, Cleantech Open, GreenCity Force, NYSERDA’s EIR Program, CIV: Lab and on the board of Magnomer. Emily was born and raised in Endicott and now lives in Brooklyn with her husband and son.
Emeritus Board Members
Gail Kovac officially served on the VINES’ Board of Directors from 2011-2019. She’s a retired teacher having worked in the Vestal Central School District for 34 years. Following a lifelong passion for plants, Gail has been a master gardener at the Cornell Cooperative Extension, Cutler Botanic Gardens for the past decade. She volunteers at the local library and is a member of the Binghamton Garden Club. In her spare time, Gail enjoys reading, walking her dog, yoga and Tai Chi.