Our Team
Your neighbors are board members of the Garden! We are a small group of volunteers who strongly believes in community service and have dedicated many hours to this project!
Board Members & Directors
Janet Maxian
President
Janet Maxian graduated from Catherine Spalding College in Louisville, Kentucky with a BSN and worked as a Registered Nurse for 48 years, primarily in pediatrics. Janet has been a resident of Braeswood Place since 1975 and became involved in the homeowners’ association early on – as a block captain, area director, Vice President. She served on the BPHA Board of Directors for over 30 years. She headed a group of residents that led to the establishment of the Constable Patrol – currently hiring 5 deputy constables from the office of Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen to provide supplemental security to that provided by the Houston Police Department. She also was a founding member of the Braeswood Place Garden Club, now called the Braeswood Place Home and Garden Club. She served this group in various capacities over the years, most recently as President from 2017 until 2021. In November of 2020, she put an article in the neighborhood monthly newsletter, The Sentinel, seeking to judge residents’ interest in the concept of a community garden in Braeswood Place. Interest was expressed and the idea is becoming a reality.
Elaina McNulty
Vice President
Elaina works at Chevron and has a finance and project management background. She earned her BS in Finance from Lamar University and began her career in the trading space at Texaco. She is a proud mom of two amazing boys who are active in sports. She is also interested in nutrition and its impact on our health and wellness. She has a Function Diagnostic Nutritionist (FDN) certification and enjoys trying out new recipes with healthy, organic ingredients. The McNulty family has lived in BraesHeights since 2011. Elaina likes to contribute to her community and has participated in many public-school activities, such as PTO boards, lacrosse president, and Huckleberry Park project chair at Mark Twain. Elaina is an area director for the HOA and volunteers at Strake Jesuit.
Nicole Shah
Secretary
Nicole is the co-owner of Garden Girls, a garden design and installation company that has designed and installed over 500 gardens in Houston. With a Juris Doctorate from the University of Tennessee, Nicole’s career began in regulatory affairs at Reliant Energy before she shifted her focus to her family and the Braeswood community. Since moving to Braeswood Place in 2006, Nicole has been an active leader, serving as a block captain, Vice President, National Night Out leader, and in various PTO roles. She is a proud Mom to two wonderful children. Nicole and her husband try to lead by example in giving back to their community. In 2020, Nicole combined her passion for gardening with her entrepreneurial spirit, transforming her love for plants into a full-time career. Nicole knows that gardening changes lives, not only through its beauty and connection to nature but also by offering culinary rewards and a sense of community. She is excited to help create a vibrant, productive garden for the Braeswood community – a space where neighbors can come together to relax, enjoy nature, and grow.
Mary Kimmel
Treasurer
Mary Kimmel started her career in healthcare as a medical coder and medical transcriptionist at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital in California. Attended USC California Cancer Surveillance school for certification as a Cancer Registrar. She was an instructor at the American Cancer Society for breast health. She moved to Houston working in that field until moving into the technical side of software for cancer surveillance programs with Elekta, Inc. She became involved with the National Cancer Registrars Association as Educational Director and trainer for standard’s coding for American College of Surgeon, Commission on Cancer. She initiated a Cancer Registrars program at San Jacinto College with in class instruction moving to developing the online instructions program. She was involved with the Texas Tumor Registrars Association serving roles as President, Vice-President, Education Director and served multiple boards such Ways and Means for fund raising. She is currently retired and on the board of Braeswood Place Community Garden serving as Treasurer with the responsibility of receiving all cash intake and deposits as well as paying all valid invoices. Maintaining the financial books and records as well as presenting the organizations financial status to the Board of Directors, taxing authorities and/or legitimate stakeholders.
Gwen Hulsey
Gwen Hulsey has a BBA in Accounting from the University of Houston and a Juris Doctorate from South Texas College of Law. She started her career as a CPA in the tax practice at Arthur Andersen and continued on from there to work at El Paso Energy and Baker & McKenzie as a tax attorney. She currently works as a tax advisor for Baker Hughes’ oilfield services and equipment sector. Her professional background made her ideally qualified for helping us obtain our 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. Gwen has lived in this neighborhood since 2011. She loves to garden! In addition to helping with our project, she gives her time to women’s organizations, fundraising efforts of her son’s school and her church’s youth ministry. She currently serves as the Treasurer for the Braeswood Place Homeowners’ Association.