OUR TEAM AND OUR MISSION
Brooklyn Wild, LLC is a mission-driven company in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. We function as a low-profit LLC and measure success through our positive impact on our students, families, employees and community above considerations for our bottom line. Our mission is providing the space, time and permission for outdoor exploration and unstructured play to the young and the young at heart. We operate all outdoor classes using the principles of forest schools and adventure playgrounds, with a staff
trained in playwork--a professional approach out of the UK that supports play without judgment. We believe children have the right to play freely and to access the outdoors and communal spaces, and that adults have the right to play too.
Scroll down to meet our playworkers.
STACY BOYD
Founder, Executive Director, and Playworker
Stacy (she/her) is a Sunset Park resident and mom to two boys, ages sixteen and seven, who thrive when they get outside. When her older son entered school, she knew he needed a program with hands-on projects and lots of movement, but she didn’t realize he needed those things because his brain was wired differently. Through her advocacy for him within the school system, and what she learned from experienced teachers and therapists, Stacy started taking him outside for play. It helped him regulate his emotions and develop better balance and gross motor skills—the essentials for sitting still in class! But during the school year—with long schedules and short recess times—getting outside was harder. Her son was often indoors, in an adult-led environment for the school day plus after school. When her younger son headed to pre-K, she wanted something different. So, in 2018, she founded Brooklyn Wild. Stacy has been a playworker since 2018. She is certified in Advanced First Aid and Pro CPR, and has completed playwork training with Play:Ground NYC and Morgan Leichter-Saxby, a leading international play researcher who has worked in the field for more than a decade.
Stacy has a bachelor’s degree in cultural anthropology and is a former member of Community Board 7. In her day job, she edits commercial fiction and manages branded product lines at Harlequin/HarperCollins.
JENNY POOLE
Lead Playworker
Jenny (she/her) is an educator, composter, bicyclist, mender, and novice gardener. She was an early childhood/elementary classroom teacher for twenty years, fostering play, inquiry, and a little bit of nature into the school day. In 2018, she helped launch forest school once a week for her kindergarteners, and then in 2019, shore school for her first graders. This experience, being outside in all weather for most of the school day, exploring the land, creatures and changing seasons with her students, was transformative. Eventually, it was those experiences that led her to transition out of the classroom and into the outdoors. Jenny believes in the importance of outdoor play for all people–whether it’s a grown-up tending to their pepper plants or a young child creating an imaginary world under the low hanging branches of a tree.
HANNAH BOYSKO
Playworker
Hannah (she/they) is an educator, writer, beekeeper, gardener, and proud parent of two adorable cats. While at Barnard College and in the more than eight years since graduating, Hannah has worked as an educator, coach, babysitter, camp counselor, tutor, curriculum creator, field trip leader, program manager, and more. In Spring 2021, Hannah directed an all-outdoor nature-focused after school program for fourth and fifth graders. Hannah is passionate about exploration, social-emotional learning, silliness, and play and is endlessly inspired by young people. Their happy place is in nature.
SYLVIE FRIED
Playworker
Sylvie (they/them/theirs) is a lifelong New Yorker, avid doodler, musician, and rat enthusiast, with over a decade of childcare experience. Sylvie comes from a background rooted in gender and feminist studies, abolitionist dreams, and an unapologetic reverence toward children and their unbridled imaginations. As a non-binary, mixed race individual occupying multiple intersections of identity, Sylvie has a deep love for fostering children’s profound creativity and limitless potential.
TARAN KILGOUR
Playworker
Taran is a graduate of Millennium Brooklyn High School, and a current student of Buddhism. One of his favorite things to do is play and hang out. He enjoys all kinds of play, though he prefers more physical activities. He has been babysitting for more than two years and loves helping kids grow and learn. Taran has worked with Brooklyn Wild for three years as a junior playworker and playworker.
CHARLIE DEWITT
Playworker
Charlie was the very first kid to play at Brooklyn Wild, since Stacy is his mom. He comes to Brooklyn Wild with three years of experience as a junior playworker and playworker and two summer seasons as a counselor-in-training and junior counselor at Frost Valley YMCA's Farm Camp. Charlie thrives on being with friends and playing outside. You'll often find him at the Sunset Park playground swinging as high as possible and gathering folks for big games of tag. A graduate of The Summit School in Queens, and current student at Winston Transitions', he loves animals and working with children.
YASMAN YUDEH
Substitute Playworker
Yasman--a beach, park, and water lover--is a Brooklyn native, mom of a young son and daughter, a nurse, and a nurse educator. As a teenager, she babysat nieces, nephews, and cousins, and enjoyed attending camp with The Center for Family Life in Sunset Park. She believes in learning through play in nature. Nursing taught her the impact the outside environment has on our health, in improving healing and promoting longevity. The best memories she has are camping and kayaking near the Delaware River. Yasman has a Master's Degree in Nursing Education and a vast array of experience with all ages across the lifespan. Joining Brooklyn Wild is a self-reflection of her childhood and she enjoys working with children of the community!