Meet the Team
Staff
Erin Achenbach Farmer-Florist (she/her)
Erin is in charge of selecting, propagating and growing crops, managing flower rescues, stem prep, bouquet making and deliveries. Recently, she was a garden nursery manager at a nearby Lowe's. She has a Culinary Arts degree from Johnson & Wales and has worked many a Newport wedding season. In her spare time she grows hundreds of peonies and raises nine different types of animals on her own small farm outside the city.
Contact her at farmerflorist@whatcheerfarm.org
Christine Dechichio Administration (she/her)
Christine has a passion for helping others to do what they are good at by taking administration and bookkeeping off their hands. She has worked as a bookkeeper, accounting assistant and executive assistant for more than a dozen years.
Contact her at accounting@whatcheerfarm.org
Amy Ramos Lopez Deliveries (she/her)
Amy loves flowers and working with her hands. She was one of our junior farmer/florist staff for the 2022 season and then took on the (much coveted) role of deliveries. When you see our Cheermobile out on the streets of RI, it's most often Amy at the wheel!
Kimberly LaMarre Assistant Farmer (she/her)
Kim works year-round making sure our crops are planted, weeded, watered and harvested. The Farm grows nearly 50 varieties of flowers, ranging from spring tulips to late summer dahlias, as well as greens such as our famous eucalyptus plants in the high tunnels. Kim ensures they are all taken care of properly for peak harvest.
Board
Anne Hills Holland Board President & Cofounder (she/her)
A cut flower growing hobbyist, Holland was inspired to found What Cheer Flower Farm after she saw the impact of giving flowers away to the elderly. She is a serial entrepreneur, having successfully founded multiple, for-profit, publishing companies, as well as another local nonprofit, What Cheer Writers Club. She has been quoted by dozens of media outlets including the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times, and served as a keynote speaker at business events across the US.
Robert Alan Matthews Board Member (he/him)
A former florist, Matthews has headed his eponymous landscape design and gardening firm for nearly 20 years, serving clients across the state. In 2013, he won the Design and Execution Award at Rhode Island’s Spring Flower & Garden Show and was named Young Nursery Professional of the Year by the New England Nursery Association. Matthews was also the designer behind Providence Preservation Society's famous annual fundraising Bash for many years.
Edward Neubauer Board Member (he/him)
Ed has a Masters in Architecture and is the former Co-Chair for Sustainable Architecture for RI Architects for Social Responsibility. He has served as the Executive Director for a nonprofit community development corporation in Providence as well as a Project Manager for the Providence Preservation Society Revolving Fund. He is a critical member of the Farm's buildings and remediation team planning our future development.
Meg DuPont Board Member (she/her)
Meg is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker based on Newport RI. She is also the former proprietor of Rockford Gardens which provided custom terrariums and other live botanical decor to commercial spaces throughout Providence prior to the pandemic. Meg donates her famous hydrangea blossoms to the Farm's bouquet making every summer, and is a key part of our events committee.