Community Food Navigator Team
The Community Food Navigator embraces a community-stewardship model for our governance, direction, and leadership. Our stewards are supported by our core staff team, who are responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Navigator. Each member of our team brings rich experiences and talents that contribute significantly to our mission. Learn more about us below!
Atara Young
Senior Project Manager
She/Her/Her’s/Our/Our’s/We
Atara B. Young, a Chicago-based social worker, consultant, and community health leader, has over two decades of experience building programs that strengthen communities, improve health outcomes, and center equity for Black women, families, and communities. She holds an AM in Social Work Administration from the University of Chicago Crown School and a BA from Xavier University, integrating trauma-informed care, restorative justice, and systems change with community-driven practice.
As lead consultant at AB Young Consulting LLC, Atara partnered with various organizations to design curricula, coach staff, and deliver culturally responsive training in social work, violence prevention, and social justice, utilizing frameworks like Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD), Goal-Oriented Therapy (GOT/GIRP), and the Black Resilience and Restorative Practice Framework (BRRP).
Currently, Atara is the Senior Project Manager for the Community Food Navigator (CFN) at Urban Growers Collective (UGC), overseeing expansion across Chicago’s 77 community areas and surrounding counties. She manages grower engagement, enhances the Navigator digital platform, and builds partnerships within the food ecosystem.
A lifelong reader and music enthusiast, Atara balances her leadership with family life as a mother of three. Her mission is to restore and build systems that honor resilience, amplify Black voices, and strengthen community well-being.
Email Atara at Atara@urbangrowerscollective.org
Jade Fortenberry
Events & Outreach Manager
She/Her
Jade Fortenberry is a connector, creator, and community-builder. As Events & Outreach Manager at Urban Growers Collective, she designs spaces where neighbors, growers, and partners come together to celebrate food, culture, and collective power. With more than six years of experience, Jade has built programs that uplift food justice, youth leadership, and neighborhood transformation.
Before joining UGC, Jade helped shape and amplify Black- and Brown-led organizations. Known for blending creativity with strategy, she has a knack for turning ideas into gatherings that spark healing, joy, and movement toward food sovereignty in Chicago
Email Jade at jade@urbangrowerscollective.org
Jayln Seals
Community Food Navigator
He/Him
Jayln Seals is a dedicated professional with experience in construction, community service, and hospitality. He has worked as a Field Technician at ECS Midwest, supporting site preparation and concrete work, and as a Community Apprentice with Public Allies Chicago, where he helped plan and implement service projects that supported youth development, education, and public health. Currently, Jayln serves as an Admissions Assistant at GCJ Hospitality, where he provides guest support and ensures smooth event operations. Known for strong leadership, teamwork, and communication skills, Jayln thrives in dynamic environments and is passionate about making a positive impact in his community.
Email Jayln at Jayln@urbangrowerscollective.org
Dameiko Blackmon
Community Navigator
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Dameiko Blackmon is a dedicated community advocate and creative project professional with a background in public health, business consulting, and city policy. With several years of experience supporting community-based initiatives, Dameiko brings expertise in project management, community outreach, event coordination, and graphic design to their role as a Community Food Navigator. Previously, Dameiko worked with several CDCs and nonprofits, supporting business districts, assisting local business owners with planning and securing city grants, and leading outreach teams that provided vital health resources to underserved communities. Their passion lies in connecting people and local organizations to resources that strengthen neighborhoods and promote equity in black and brown communities. Dameiko is driven by creativity and curiosity. They enjoy spending time designing digital artwork, sketching out concepts, experimenting with new visual styles, and bringing bold ideas to life through graphic design.
Email Dameiko at Dameiko@urbangrowerscollective.org
Josh Campbell
Full Stack Developer
Joshua Campbell is an experienced software developer driven to understand complex systems of all types. He has hands-on experience with every aspect of building and maintaining modern software applications as well as passing familiarity with gardening, animal husbandry, and haymaking. In his spare time, he enjoys cycling and rock climbing.
Email Josh at josh@communityfoodnavigator.org
Maimuna Touray
RCPP Technical Service Coordinator
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Maimuna Touray is a Scorpio, multimodal artist, disabled farmer, researcher, bug-lover, and a forever learning educator. He has spent the last six years learning extensively about food justice, farming, and herbalism, from his home in LA to as far as Malawi. His love for food, community, education, and farming were seeds planted by their grandma. At a very young age, they learned from their mother and grandmother how to be an architect of abundant worlds. It was always his community, pooling resources, joy, and love, that provided a safety net. This duality between resource apartheid and “spirit richness” taught him that being at the center of a matrix of oppressions is impossible without stewarding deep relationships with your people, Spirit, and Land. Maimuna is a visionary, forever shaping and being shaped by change.
Email Maimuna at maimuna@communityfoodnavigator.org
Wyatt Dozier
RCPP Technical Service Coordinator
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Coming from a rural Illinois upbringing, Wyatt brings a passion for agricultural sustainability, conservation, and stewardship to the team. With experience in the Ag tech industry, as well as time spent with the Illinois Department of Agriculture, Wyatt aims to apply the knowledge gained in those spheres in an effort to benefit those within Chicago’s food ecosystem. Outside of his work with Community Food Navigator, you can find Wyatt engaging with the local arts scene, playing bass and tuba with various bands throughout the city and suburbs, or in the crowd at another local band’s show.
Email Wyatt at wyatt@communityfoodnavigator.org
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