Nine Mountain’s staff are here to welcome you to this home and land. We will nourish your body with delicious organic and locally-sourced food and warm your heart with our loving hospitality. Together, we are the space holders, stewards and co-creators of this magical place.

RESIDENT CARETAKERS

ROBYN O’BRIEN

Robyn O’Brien, General Manager and Resident Caretaker, joined Nine Mountain in November 2019. Robyn has worked for decades in the food cooperative world, and came to Nine Mountain from 17 years of service as the General Manager of the Putney Food Cooperative in Putney, Vermont. She brings a love of local food and vast experience in cultivating regional sustainability to the Hilltowns, along with her passion for community and transformational practices.  Contact: robyn@ninemountain.com

RYAN SMART

Ryan, Resident Caretaker, joined Nine Mountain in March 2018. He is a brilliant creative problem solver, land steward, eco activist and compassionate soul. At Nine Mountain he helps with a little bit of everything, mainly tending the building and grounds. He also serves as buildings and grounds staff at Earthdance, Nine Mountain’s neighboring retreat center.

VISITING CARETAKERS

KAITLIN JUNE

Kaitlin June is a vagabond songcatcher, voice doula and truth-teller. She brings just the right mix of fun, play and deep, dark fire wherever she goes and LOVES calling Nine Mountain one of her homes! She first fell in love with Nine Mountain in 2016 and is honored to be part of the visiting caretaker crew. As a full-blown Southern songstress and artivist, she is here to bring soulful music to our movements.

BRETT ROCHE

Brett was Nine Mountain’s first House Elf, as a Resident Caretaker from January-October 2018. He departed to attend massage school and become a Licensed Massage Therapist, and can still be found “elfing about” Western Massachusetts and helping support Nine Mountain events from time to time.

ALYSSA LYNES

Alyssa has always loved researching how intimacy and connection happen between people in words and movement.  She now geeks out on visioning, clarity, and on designing our lives and community. She has been visiting Plainfield all her life as her biological family is nearby, and prides herself with the story of having sat in the Nine Mountain hot tub with three generations in her family (as well as countless friends over the years).

Alyssa is a life coach, who has also been known as a bilingual elementary school teacher, a dancer (contemporary, jazz, salsa, tango), a traveling Contact Improvisation teacher, a founding Touch and Play organizer & Intensive teacher, and a co-director of the documentary “Five Ways In” (www.researchinacontactimprovisation.com).  As a coach she supports creatives to put their visions into action and lovers to show up to their relationships with a sweet sense of contribution. Alyssa has landed at Nine Mountain between events many times, and participated in and run events at Nine Mountain. She is so grateful for the land and people who make this place a home to her and so many amazing people to thrive, celebrate and develop in conscious creative ways.

COOKS, CHEFS, FOOD ALCHEMISTS

BRAHIM AINABI

Brahim Ainabi, Owner, Chef and Manager At-Large, grew up in rural Morocco and began helping run his family’s hotel in his teens. As a young man, he apprenticed with a German chef and traveled around Europe cooking. He brings his many years of hospitality service and culinary expertise to Nine Mountain, and still travels to Morocco regularly to lead tour groups through the desert. His warm smile is infectious. Brahim is the Assistant Manager at Haven Cafe in Lenox, Massachusetts and is an excellent pastry chef.

CAELUM “KALE” MASSICOTTE

Caelum is one of Nine Mountain’s extraordinary chefs. He applies his background in cooking with his family, in restaurants, and his Masters in Human Nutrition to empower guests to deepen connection their connection with healthy and sustainable food.

Kale specializes in meeting the needs of special diets with organic and seasonal food for intentional gatherings, festivals and retreats. He is currently Kitchen Manager and Head Chef at Earthdance, Nine Mountain’s neighboring retreat center.