Pat Bassett, Membership Manager

Pat Bassett joined the Garden in 2006 to work with a newly acquired membership database system.  The job blossomed into bookkeeping, mailings and event data management.  Within the last year, the Garden has itself blossomed with new staff and accounting help, so Pat’s position is now focused on Membership.  She has a background in non-profit management, with her last position serving as Associate Director of Humanities West, a small non-profit in San Francisco that presents programs rooted in history and the arts.  Pat has a BA in English Literature from Willamette University in Salem Oregon.

Charlotte Blome, Garden Manager

Charlotte Blome is the Garden Manager of The Ruth Bancroft Garden. In 2008 she moved with her family to the Bay Area from Chicago. She has a strong background in garden design and maintenance and had her own garden design company for 17 years. In the 1980’s she apprenticed to a master gardener in Kyoto, Japan and interned with the landscape architect Nakane Kinsaku. She has a BA form the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Sophie Damerel, Education Coordinator

Sophie Damerel recently graduated from Saint Mary's College with a BA in Environmental Studies. Her passion for the environment has gone beyond classroom learning through her participation in environmental education camps, recycling programs and greenhouse gas reduction efforts. She is an enthusiastic supporter of education at every age and continues to learn each day she spends at The Garden. Having grown-up in the Bay Area, Sophie is pleased to be a contributor to the preservation of The Ruth Bancroft Garden.

Email

Laura Hogan, Nursery Coordinator

Laura is a retired environmental graphic designer who provided primarily interpretive signage for both public and private clients over a 38-year career. She is excited to be able to pursue her second love of drought tolerant plants by assisting with the organization and maintenance of the Ruth Bancroft nursery and sales area. In 2004, Laura started the Landscape Cacti and Succulents section of the UC Botanical Garden nursery and continues to volunteer both as propagator and Advisory Board member at UCBG. She enjoys working with enthusiastic volunteers who appreciate the wealth of plants the Ruth Bancroft Garden and nursery have to offer.

Rebecca Ines, Development Director

Rebecca is a Native Californian and has lived in the East Bay since 1960. She and has a BA in  Management from Saint Mary’s College, Moraga, and comes to The Garden with a passion for horticulture design, and medicinal plant alchemy.  She studied California native plants while being involved with local watershed management/restoration and open space conservation.  Her background in the Arts includes project management, grant writing, fundraising, event planning, gallery curator, marketing and public relations. Having worked with non-profits, City and County Government, and served on a variety of boards, councils and commissions, her experience offers The Garden an opportunity to grow new relationships as well as develop new funding sources.

Email

Brian Kemble, Curator

Brian Kemble has been involved with The Ruth Bancroft Garden since 1980. He is highly regarded in the horticultural world and lectures in this country and in South Africa on the Agave family, Aloes, Bromeliads, the history of The Ruth Bancroft Garden and other horticultural topics. Kemble has a B.A. in Philosophy from Antioch College. His work has been in the area of horticulture since 1976, including garden design and installation, tree trimming and garden maintenance. Brian's work for The Garden has included hybridizing of aloes, agaves, and some South American cacti. Brian has traveled extensively in Mexico and South Africa, studying and photographing plants in their native habitats.

Email

Becky Rice, Executive Director

Becky Rice is the Executive Director of The Ruth Bancroft Garden. She has worked at The Garden since 2002, when she was awarded the Marco Polo Stufano Garden Conservancy Fellowship. After the fellowship was complete, she joined the staff as the Education Director. Becky is originally from Georgia, where she grew up gardening alongside her parents. She earned a B.S.A. in Horticulture and an M.H.P. in Historic Preservation, both from The University of Georgia.

Email

The mission of the Ruth Bancroft Garden, Inc. is to preserve this exceptional example of garden design and to continue to develop its collection of water-conserving plants for the education and enjoyment of the public.

The Ruth Bancroft Garden would like to recognize the Quest Foundation for funding our youth program through the Education Coordinator’s position.