About Us

Our Mission

At Oakwood Community Center, we envision a city where strangers become neighbors, and neighbors join together for the common good.

Our mission is to bring neighbors together and build bridges among grassroots organizations in the city of Troy, New York. We do this by maintaining the historic Oakwood building as a welcoming and nourishing space.

We maintain our historic building in order to:

• make the Food Pantry at Oakwood available every Saturday;

• provide free or low cost meeting and event space for neighbors and small groups;

• to support individuals who want to develop programming that focuses resources in our neighborhood and would like help with space, resources or organizational development skills.

OCC relies on donations from supporters, grants from local foundations and rental income from organizations who rent out space in our building and share our worldview.

Most of all, volunteers are at the core of all we do!

Our Values

Diversity

Neighborliness

Hospitality

Civic engagement

Social justice

Our History

Oakwood began as a Presbyterian Church and was the first multiracial church in Troy.

The building at 313 Tenth St. was Oakwood Presbyterian Church, supporting a mostly working class congregation, founded in the 1860s. With great sadness, the church shut its doors in November 2010.  Church members like Linda O’Malley, Edna McCauley & David Hains knew they could not board up the building & walk away.  They continued to take care of the building that housed three small congregations and a variety of neighborhood organizations, including the Troy Larger Parish Food Pantry, the James Connolly Forum, Alcoholics Anonymous, Transition Troy, and the Just-Us Prison Support Group. Over time Linda, Edna & David expanded to a committed group of volunteers from Hillside North & beyond who became stewards of a building, members of a board, and founders of what is now a place of service, culture, education & celebration for folks in Hillside North & all of Troy. 

In 2012 Oakwood was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. 

In 2020 Oakwood Community Center purchased the building from the Presbytery (who held it in Covenant with the community center, until OCC was ready to take ownership.) 

Our Board

2024 Board Members

Debra Garrett, Co-Chair
Ruth Pierpont, Co-Chair
Angela Beallor
Renata Gwozdz
David Hains
Shania Jackson
Vicky Kereszi
Maggie Mang
Patty O’Brien

Our Staff

Executive Director

Shanna Goldman, LMSW

Shanna worked as a community organizer for 10+ years and found that in order to make change in the world, we must first make change from within. She received a Masters of Social Work to be a facilitator of that work. Shanna was a founding board member of Oakwood since 2013 and was excited to step into the role of Executive Director where she brings her skills in community building, strategic planning and organizational development.

Food Pantry Coordinator

Dan Oropallo

Dan is the food pantry coordinator at Oakwood, where he helps people get signed up, makes sure the pantry is stocked, and recruits/supports volunteers to pack and distribute the groceries. Dan is also a studio artist, illustrator, graphic designer, welder, builder, and devoted volunteer for many other organizations in the community. He began his relationship with Oakwood as a food pantry volunteer in 2021 — fast forward to today where he is joined in his work every Saturday by his wife, daughter, best friend, and mother in law!

Performance Coordinator

Justin Relf

Justin T. Relf is a performing artist and educator with over 15 years of experience in vocal performance, acting, dance and choreography, stage performance and production. He is passionate about serving the Troy community by creating spaces and opportunities for youth expression through the performing arts.

Youth Program Coordinator

Gregory Marsh

Gregory Marsh is an award-winning choreographer, arts educator, director, and performer. With a career spanning nearly two decades, he has had the pleasure of working with hundreds of young people as they navigate their experience through the arts. His holistic approach to the arts emphasizes that the work we create as artists is a representation of who we are as people. At Oakwood Techniques, it is his goal to expand the reach of arts education in Troy to cultivate a space where young people can have their voices heard. 

Administrative Coordinator

Catherine McTague

Catherine McTague is an artist and florist living in Albany, NY. She received her MFA from SUNY Albany in 2021 and in 2022 co-founded the artist-run exhibition space Melrose House in her old house. Her background is in non-profit/arts administration and she is excited to be helping Oakwood run behind the scenes.