Our Team
Holly Martin
Executive Director and Founder
Holly has been working in the field of food and nutrition her entire career. She has worked in a variety of clinical and community nutrition settings including working in hospitals, a food bank, children’s nutrition programming and managing a farmers market. The complex and challenging work in the food system and the devastating health effects that lack of access to healthy food has on communities allowed her to see the true need for an improved local food system. The real need was to bring the entire community back to understanding their connections to food.
Outside of work, Holly enjoys adventures with her family and working on her children’s school gardens installing native plants and promoting outdoor learning though ecological landscaping.
Reach out to Holly:
hmartin@thegainingground.org
Cori Cruz
Programs Manager
Cori’s role at Gaining Ground is all things programmatic — she oversees the Project Diabetes-funded cooking and nutrition education classes, Double SNAP program, events like Second Saturdays and the Good Food Fair, and manages student interns from partner school sites.
Cori is deeply committed to creating an equitable and sustainable food system, with an interest in policy work, agroecology, and food sovereignty. She is currently enrolled in a Master’s program at Boston University to receive her degree in Gastronomy with a concentration in food policy.
When Cori isn’t working, she loves to thrift, travel, read, cook, and transform her yard into a native landscape!
Reach out to Cori:
ccruz@thegainingground.org
423.225.4365
Callie Bennett
Grocery Manager
Callie grew up in West Tennessee and came to Chattanooga to attend UTC and never left! Her love for cooking blossomed during Covid, which soon led her into gardening and learning how to live closely connected to her food sources. While volunteering at local farms, she developed a deep appreciation for fresh, locally grown food. That search for the best organic, local produce brought her to Gaining Ground as a customer—and for years, she was a devoted shopper before stepping into her current role.
Now, Callie is even more passionate about our mission to make healthy, delicious food affordable and accessible to our community.
When Callie’s not at the store, you can usually find her covered in clay whether that be at the pottery studio, digging in her garden, or building her off-grid cob home. She strives to live an organic, sustainable lifestyle and loves sharing that journey—and tips—with our customers.
Reach out to Callie:
423.402.7455
Emma Clarey
Grocery Assistant
Emma, originally from Athens, TN, has always loved the kind of work that brings people together in a meaningful way. She was drawn to Gaining Ground because she cares about supporting local food systems and making good food accessible to everyone.
When she’s not at the shop, she’s probably hanging out with her cat, crafting, or thrifting! Emma is really happy to be part of a mission that feels so grounded and community-focused.
Reach out to Emma:
eclarey@thegainingground.org
heather herweyer
development coordinator
Heather is a passionate leader and energetic coordinator with a talent for bringing people, programs, and purpose together to create meaningful change, with over 15 years of experience in nonprofit leadership and community revitalization. Previously, as Director of The BLVD Project, she led a grassroots effort to revitalize Rossville Boulevard in Chattanooga. She joined Gaining Ground as Development Coordinator in 2026, drawn by the organization's commitment to advocating for better food access in low-income communities, and now supports marketing, event organization, and donor connection.
When Heather isn’t working on a spreadsheet, she's hiking on Guild Trail, visiting the library, or grabbing ice cream and pizza at Mr. T's with her family.
Reach out to Heather:
hherweyer@thegainingground.org
904.838.8885
delilah miske
Grocery Assistant
Delilah grew up in Pennsylvania where she received her bachelors degree and spent years working on sustainable farms. Before pivoting her focus on organic food distribution, she studied and learned the complexities of sustainable farming and the many trials and tribulations that follow such pursuits. Working to bridge the gap between farmers, fresh food and people is where one of her many passions lie.
Delilah knows first hand how hard farmers work and wanted to be part of an organization that helps their goods become accessible to the local community. Being part of a third space that creates access for everyone in the community is a way for her to have a connection to sustainable agriculture, help feed people and hopefully make everyone’s lives a little easier.
When Delilah isn’t at the store you can find her painting, mixing medicinal herbs, outside working with plants or dressed up at a Ren Faire.
Reach out to Delilah:
dmiske@thegainingground.org
Board of Directors
Executive Committee
Ashley Valencia, President
Eric Stocking, Secretary
Erica Beckelhymer, Treasurer
Other Board Members
Chloe Krueger, Meghan Lewis, Heather Cross, Zach Camp, Dan Hekman, Rachel Edwards, Tamela Knapp, and Jeff Bethune.
