Board of Directors

Robert Balentine, chairman of Balentine, the Atlanta-based wealth management firm, was elected to the Garden Conservancy board of directors in June 2015 and became vice chair in September 2018 and chair in December 2023. An inveterate, dirt-under-the-fingernails gardener whose father was a rosarian and whose mother was a horticultural judge for the Garden Club of America, Robert's love of the natural world developed at an early age, when he enjoyed hiking and camping as an Eagle Scout.

In 2002, Robert founded the Southern Highlands Reserve, a nationally recognized native plant arboretum and research center in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina. He has also held many other leadership positions in his community, including founding president of the Southeastern Horticultural Society and chairman of the board of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

He is the past president of the Rotary Club of Atlanta and a graduate of Washington & Lee University, where he served as a trustee for nearly a decade. Among other civic and business honors, he received the 2013 Business Person of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award from the Metro Atlanta Chamber and was named to the Atlanta Business Chronicle's list of “Most Admired CEOs” in 2018. His wife, Betty, shares his passion for gardening and is past president of her Garden Club of America chapter in Atlanta and chair of the State Botanical Garden of Georgia.

An Atlanta native, Sharon Jones Pryse attended the University of Tennessee and has never considered leaving Knoxville. After graduating with a degree in finance, she began as a clerk in the Trust Department of Valley Fidelity Bank. While still in her 20s she became the bank's youngest senior vice president; at age 35, she founded The Trust Company. Today, The Trust Company manages over $4.7 billion in assets and employs 100 people across three cities. Sharon's long-standing community commitment includes social service, the arts, economic development, and education. She has served as board chair for the Knoxville Chamber, Leadership Knoxville, YMCA, and United Way, and has also chaired United Way's annual fundraising campaign. Sharon supports the university that made Knoxville her home and has previously held a position on the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees and board of directors for the U.T. Foundation.

An avid gardener as well as traveler, Sharon always happily heads home to her plot on the Tennessee River. Sharon and her husband, Joe, became members of the Garden Conservancy Society of Fellows in 2018. She was elected to the board of directors of the Garden Conservancy in June 2020 and became treasurer in 2021 and vice chair in December 2023. Sharon and Joe also have a home and garden in Cashiers, NC, which was included on the 2018 Society of Fellows garden-study tour of Highlands, Cashiers, and Lake Toxaway, NC.

Camille has been a Garden Conservancy member since 2000, and in 2018 joined the Society of Fellows. Since then, she has traveled extensively with the Conservancy, generously supported our education and grant programs, and is now closely involved in the Conservancy's documentation of Louise Wrinkle's garden in Birmingham. Camille also served on the Garden Conservancy's Grant Advisory Committee in 2022.

Camille and her late husband purchased their Mountain Brook home in 1996 and spent two years restoring the house, which was built in 1931, and completely redoing the gardens with the guidance of garden designer Mary Zahl and architect James Carter. Camille has opened her garden for Open Days, and the garden was recently on the Southern Garden History Society tour. Camille previously served on the boards of Aldridge Gardens and the Birmingham Children's Theatre and served a term on the State Ethics Commission.

Bruce Addison is a vice chair of the J.P. Morgan Private Bank in New York where his career has spanned almost 40 years. He is a longtime board member of the Horticultural Society of New York, a social services organization whose mission is to bring horticultural education, therapy, and training to New York's most underserved communities. He also sits on the boards of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, one of New York's largest and oldest genealogical organizations, as well as the Planting Fields Foundation, a supporting organization for Planting Fields, a 409-acre Olmsted-designed property in Oyster Bay, NY.

Introduced to the pleasures of gardening early on by his father and grandmother, both of whom were keen amateur horticulturists, Bruce is an enthusiastic gardener at his house in Glen Cove. He is also looking forward to a new gardening chapter in West Palm Beach, FL, where he is taking up residence.

James Brayton Hall was appointed in June 2017 as president and CEO of the Garden Conservancy where he oversees strategic planning, preservation work, capital and endowment campaigns, public programming, development, marketing and communication strategies, and board development. His leadership has secured the fiscal health of the organization, and he has developed a strategic plan that will solidify our Open Days program, raise national awareness of the organization, diversify the organization's leadership and staff, and secure new funding opportunities. His focus is on building on the legacy of the organization and its future prosperity by fostering continued stewardship through engaged governance, commitment to financial sustainability, and operational excellence.

Previously, he served as the deputy director of the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach, FL, where he worked on the museum's Norman Foster-designed expansion and sculpture gardens. From 2010 to 2013, he was executive director of the Providence Preservation Society in Rhode Island, overseeing all programming, fundraising, and relations with the board, donors, and community. From 2006 to 2010, James served as assistant director of the Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), after holding various other management and curatorial positions at the school since 1985.

James has a bachelor's degree in architecture from the University of Virginia and a master's in landscape architecture from RISD. In addition, he was awarded a Royal Oak Scholarship to attend the Attingham Trust Summer School in Architectural and Landscape History in London and, separately, participated in the Victorian Society's summer program in architectural history, also in London. In 2016, he was accepted to and completed Attingham's Royal Collections Course. He has spoken widely on architectural and landscape design and has been a member of RISD's graduate program faculty.

Courtnay Daniels joined the Garden Conservancy board of directors in 2006, became vice chair in 2011, was elected chair in September 2018, and became chair emerita in December 2023. She has opened her garden to the public through the Garden Conservancy Open Days and for our Society of Fellows garden-study tours. Courtnay is a longtime member of the Garden Club of America and a former partner in a small greenhouse business. She has served on the boards of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello and the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, VA, and has supported a variety of projects at the University of Virginia.

Over the last twenty years, Courtnay has created a series of garden rooms, diverse shrub borders, greenhouses, and arboretums on more than 29 acres at her home, Whilton Farm, an expansive pastoral landscape in the Blue Ridge Mountains. In 2008, the Wall Street Journal described her garden as having “one of the largest collections of rare plants in the country.”

Ben Lenhardt retired in 2003 as chairman and CEO of Americas-UBS Asset Management and member of the UBS AG Group Managing Board. He has long been an avid gardener in Charleston, SC, as well as Winnetka, IL, participating in Garden Conservancy Open Days in both locations. His interest in garden preservation combines his keen interests in gardening and architecture, including historical preservation in Charleston, where he is on the board of Drayton Hall, Gibbes Museum of Art, Preservation Society of Charleston, and the Easement Committee of Historic Charleston Foundation. In Chicago, he also serves on the boards of the Chicago Botanic Garden, Shedd Aquarium, and Notebart Nature Museum. He joined the board of directors of the Garden Conservancy in December 2004, becoming vice chair in 2007 and chair in 2011. In September 2018, he stepped down as chair, as required by term limits, but continues serving on the board as chair emeritus.

Mary-Randolph Ballinger has been an avid gardener since childhood, starting under the mentoring of her grandmother, whose garden in St. Louis she is now restoring. It was designed in the 1920s by Warren Manning of the Frederick Law Olmsted firm. An ardent Garden Conservancy supporter from the very beginning of our organization, Mary-Randolph has been a significant donor, member, and force in our Society of Fellows program. She was elected to the Garden Conservancy board of directors in June 2015. She has also served as president of the Garden Club of St. Louis and is a member of the Nantucket Garden Club and the Garden Club of Palm Beach.

Mary-Randolph retired after 25 years in residential real estate and has served on many civic and cultural boards. She is an emeritus trustee of the Missouri Botanical Garden, a past member of the boards of the St. Louis Art Museum, Kemper Museum, and National Council for the Arts at Washington University, among others, and has been honored by the local newspaper and radio station as a "Woman of Achievement" for her volunteer work. Mary-Randolph is also on the Collector's Committee of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, a member of the Explorers Club in New York City, and chairman/CEO of the Pitchfork Land and Cattle Company and Forks Energy Company in Guthrie, TX. She serves on the boards of the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC; the Society of the Four Arts and the Palm Beach Preservation Foundation, both in Florida; and the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts and its Kemper Museum. She is also the person behind the beginning of a successful organic incubator farm on Nantucket Island, MA.

Kreis Beall, the multi-talented co-founder of the acclaimed luxury destination Blackberry Farm, defies simple description. As entrepreneurial as she is artistic, the Tennessee native's varied experiences — hotel proprietor, chef, photographer, interior designer, intrepid traveler — all share a common thread. That thread is Beall's passion for the art of living, her love of beauty and her knack for transforming big dreams into real, uncontrived elegance.

Like her mother and grandmother before her, Beall works tirelessly to curate thoughtful, hospitable environments and experiences. Ever the gracious host, she's often overheard saying, “the answer is yes… what's the question?” — and she means it. Intuitive in approach, yet relentless and disciplined in execution, Beall's projects reflect another can-do credo she attributes to her southern, matriarchal predecessors: “Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Till the good is better and the better is best.”

Drawing on that philosophy, and years of celebrated commercial and residential design work, Beall founded Blackberry Design in response to numerous design commissions and client requests. From rustic to refined, coastal to contemporary, her work quickly earned recognition and commissions not for their signature, singular aesthetic but their easy, approachable attitude — optimistic, inventive spaces that effortlessly balance classic style with modern comfort.

Today, Beall is Director of Design Emeritus for the full-service group Blackberry Farm Design, which includes a talented team of associates who share her tenacious spirit and commitment to truly livable luxury. The team's work focuses on creating Blackberry Farm's serene, award-winning interiors, as well as select private commissions on and off the property.

Gardening has been Kreis's passion since 1988. She has enjoyed building 3 gardens—the one that remains is our Blackberry Farm Garden. Her other non-profit work includes having served on the board of East Tennessee Historical Society, Knoxville Museum of Art and Great Smoky Mountain Heritage Center. Along with her husband, Michael White, she is building a small garden at their Maine cottage. Michael is a passionate grower of dahlias, and Kreis is a passionate macro botanical photographer. We both love to cook, hike, read and travel.

Shelley Belling, long active in Garden Conservancy activities in Southern California and elsewhere, was elected to our board of directors in 2014. She has been a member of our Society of Fellows since 2007, participating in a number of garden-study tours with the Fellows, and is also a member of our West Coast Council.

Shelley has served on many boards and committees of schools (most recently, the Yale Parent Fund), sailing organizations, decorative arts organizations, and local philanthropies.

Allison Bourke tackles her rocky Connecticut soil with a backhoe, a gift from her mother. She has a soft spot for peonies, dahlias, and Solomon's seal. For many years, she was an avid student in classes at the New York Botanical Garden, earning her certification in commercial horticulture from the Garden, and now serves on its Horticulture Committee. She is a member of the Greenwich Garden Club and is co-chair of horticulture. Most recently, she joined the board of the Land and Garden Preserve in Seal Harbor, Maine, where she is both head of the Facilities Committee and co-chair of the Azalea Garden. She joined the Garden Conservancy board of directors in 2009.

Susan Burke gardens in multiple locations, beginning 35 years ago with a cottage garden around an 1805 farmhouse in Bedford, NY. She has been working on her “garden by the sea” on Nantucket Island, MA, for twenty years, and began work on a quasi-Japanese garden at her home in Florida three years ago. Her Nantucket garden was archived for the Smithsonian in 2012. She serves on the board of the New York Botanical Garden and on the Horticulture Committee at Wave Hill, Bronx, New York, and on the board of the Irish Georgian Society. She is a member of the Bedford Garden Club, which was a founding member of the Garden Club of America. In addition, Susan has served on the board of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. She is former public relations and publicity director for Bergdorf Goodman, vice president of Calisch Associates, and advertising director at Frances Denny, and worked in marketing and public relations for Moet & Chandon.

Susan has been involved with the Garden Conservancy since its early days, serving on the founding Advisory Committee in 1989. She joined our board of directors in 2002; in 2019, she was elected secretary. Susan organized the first and many subsequent Garden Conservancy Open Days on Nantucket and has hosted many Open Days at her garden in Bedford.

Barclay Collins, a longtime executive in the energy business, was elected to the Garden conservancy's board of directors on September 17, 2015. He is the former executive vice president and general counsel of Hess Corporation, the New York-based global energy company. Prior to joining Hess, he was general counsel of City Investing Company; before that, an attorney with Cravath, Swaine & Moore.

Throughout his business and professional life, Barclay has been a committed volunteer leader in healthcare, education, and the arts, as well as with organizations involved in environmental sustainability and historic preservation. He is currently chairman of the board of trustees of the New York Botanical Garden and past chairman of both the United Hospital Fund of New York and the Mystic Seaport Museum in Connecticut. He also serves on the board of the Cary Institute for Ecosystem Studies and numerous other organizations in the greater New York area. Barclay is a graduate of Harvard College and Columbia Law School.

Kate Cordsen is a fine art photographer well known for her ethereal, large-format landscapes. Her work, which she prints in her Essex, CT, darkroom, is housed in public and private collections, including at Harvard University and American Express, and has been published in numerous publications including the New York Times. Kate studied art history at Harvard University and has a master's in public policy from Georgetown University. Passionate about arts education, she has served on many arts-related boards including Aperture Foundation, The Japan Society, NYCSALT, and Lyme Academy of Fine Arts. Kate lives in New York City and the Connecticut River Valley. She was elected to the board in March 2023.

(Bio to come)

With a historic landscape in Greenwich and a contemporary garden in Palm Beach, FL, Alease Fisher is a true plant-lover at heart. Alease's father's work as a research scientist in plant pathology influenced her passion for botany from an early age, and her enthusiasm for plant science and gardening is truly contagious. Her expert knowledge was put on display as she organized and led the Garden Conservancy's garden-study tour of Greenwich and Bedford, NY, in June 2022.

Alease and her husband, Paul Tallman, have opened their Greenwich garden for Open Days and hosted Conservancy events including a Salon Series program in 2019. She has been a Fellow since 2016 and is a devoted and generous advocate for the Garden Conservancy. Alease is a clothing designer and has served on the boards of the Greenwich Historical Society, Bruce Museum, and Brunswick School.

Mary “Missy” Bailey Fisher is a partner of MJD Ventures, a Florida-based real estate holding company. She is a member of the Kennedy Center's National Committee for the Performing Arts, a sustaining member of the Junior League of Dallas (formerly she was underwriting chair and a member of the Nominating Committee), and she has served on the board of Community Partners of Dallas.

Missy Fisher is a graduate of Southern Methodist University and is the mother of two sons, William and Jack. She is married to Richard Fisher, the former president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. They reside in Dallas and have homes in Vail, CO, and Jupiter Island, FL. The Fishers are members of the Dallas Country Club, Chevy Chase Club, and Eagle Springs Golf Club.