A Tucson nonprofit nursery that trains and employs adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities announced Monday that its executive director is no longer with the organization.

The Desert Survivors board did not name its former executive director in a statement posted to social media July 31, but thanked her for her contributions and said it is now focused on "returning Desert Survivors to the strong, mission-focused organization" that supporters have known for more than 40 years.

The nursery's website, which has not been updated to reflect the change, still identifies Hannah Woelke as executive director. Her LinkedIn profile says she joined Desert Survivors in November 2023, taking over as executive director in May 2024, according to a post on Desert Survivor's website.

Woelke did not respond to Tucson Spotlight's request for comment.

Board President Chris Desborough, who was elected in late January after previously serving as vice president, told Tucson Spotlight that the decision followed discussion in executive session, which limited his ability to speak about the circumstances of Woelke's departure.

Desborough was more forthcoming about the organization's underlying condition, saying that Desert Survivors' finances have deteriorated over the past two years and stabilizing them is now the board's top priority.

"We're in a mess. We have a very large deficit," he said. "(The organization's financial health is) very, very, very unwell. I don't want to say its terminal or critical, but if it had continued the way it was, it could have easily been moved into the critical or terminal status."

According to the organization's most recently available tax filing for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, Desert Survivors reported a $335,902 deficit, with expenses of nearly $2 million outpacing revenue of about $1.6 million. Its net assets fell from roughly $1.29 million to $957,000 over the course of the year.

Kenneth Brailsford, who had served as the board's treasurer, has stepped down from that role to serve as interim executive director.

 "Ken is very familiar with 98 to 100% of the staff and very familiar with the environment as far as supporting employees and that side of the house," Desborough said. "On an interim level, he’s very well qualified."

The board plans to conduct a search for a permanent executive director, a process Desborough said will take time given the administrative steps involved in transitioning accounts, banking and billing systems.

Woelke's exit follows more than two years of public criticism from an Instagram account, Save Desert Survivors, run by people identifying themselves as former nursery staff.

The account has posted nearly two dozen times since May 2024, alleging that nursery inventory and staffing have collapsed under Woelke, that non-native, unlabeled plants are now being sold in conflict with the organization's stated mission, and that more than 100 years of combined professional growing experience left when nursery leadership resigned as a group.

Desert Survivor's most recent tax filing shows the book value of its plant inventory fell from $308,253 to $128,321 over the fiscal year, a roughly 58% decline, and the nursery separately reported $179,932 in inventory losses.

Desborough, who described the board as largely new, said members were aware of the account, confirming some of the claims.

"There has been a mission drift and we want to make sure that stops and Desert Survivors returns to original mission," he said, confirming that most of the nursery's veteran propagation staff resigned. "As far as how many staff are left from back in the day, it's not many at all."

Desborough said the board's broader goal is to restore the nursery to its former operations while also strengthening the organization's supportive-employment program for clients with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

"Our intention is to stabilize the financial health of the organization," he said. "We won't be able to fix the deficit in one hit, but if if starts to stabilize and starts to reverse, we can return back to a native plant nursery (and a) supportive employment site ... for people with developmental disabilities.

In a follow-up statement posted Tuesday, the board said it would hold a series of community engagement sessions in the coming weeks to gather feedback from supporters, customers, volunteers and donors "who care about Desert Survivors." The board said its goal is to restore the organization to what it called "the thriving, mission-driven organization" it has been for decades, and pledged to strengthen its mission, rebuild trust and support the people it serves.

"We want to return it back to the special beloved place that we know Desert Survivors occupies for many people in the community," he said.

Caitlin Schmidt is Editor and Publisher of Tucson Spotlight. Contact her at caitlin@tucsonspotlight.org.

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