About The East Joffre Community Association

The East Joffre Community Association is a Tennessee 501(c)(4) Social Welfare Non-Profit organization.

The EJCA Board

Representatives are sought for each of Holmes St., Palisade St., Alexander St., Reese St., Joffre Ave. East of Holmes St., and Central Ave. between Holmes St. & Reese St.

Congratulations to the following street representatives elected November 2023:

• South Holmes St. (1/1/24-12/31/25): Ali Asaad

• Palisade St. (1/1/24-12/31/24): Claire Ryan

• Alexander St. (1/1/24-12/31/25): Peter Kauffmann

• South Reese St. (1/1/24-12/31/24): Wesley Ashley

• Joffre & Central Ave. (1/1/24-12/31/25): TBD

Board Bios

WESLEY ASHLEY - REESE STREET

My name is Wesley Ashley and I am a lifelong Memphis-area native and have been an actual Memphian for 17 years. I’ve lived in the East Joffre Neighborhood for 6 years - on Joffre from 2006-2010, and after getting married and deciding to grow our family, my wife and I quickly purchased a home on Reese and have been here since 2021.

I am a Project Manager for a local construction company, I enjoy all things Memphis Grizzlies, and am an avid Broadway enthusiast. I am married to my wife of 4 years, Brianna, and we have one son, Lawrence.

I hope to bring more social events to the East Joffre Neighborhood - to promote a sense of community and security.

CLAIRE RYAN - PALISADE STREET

I live on Palisade on the Poplar end. My partner, Susie Ratner, and I have owned our home since 2016. We absolutely love Joffre! I work full time as office manager at a non-profit in Memphis and have vast board experience; at Hope House, Literacy Mid-South, Memphis Heritage in the past, and I volunteered at Memphis Animal Services for 2 years as a foster home for dogs. I have had 6 grandchildren since then and got too busy with them to be on so many boards! Now they are growing and I’m ready to get back into giving to the community. What I love about our neighborhood? So many things! It’s beautiful, well cared for, with friendly neighbors and a diverse range of ages. My grandchildren are here a lot and they love walking around with us and talking to people. My favorite hobby is photography and I hand hundreds of photos of Joffre! I look forward to getting to know everyone.

Claire Ryan
Palisade Street (Right next to Regions Bank, ugh!)

ALI ASAAD - HOLMES STREET

Hello East Joffre Neighbors,

I'm Ali, a proud resident of S Holmes street for the past 2 years. I've cherished the sense of community here, having witnessed the neighborhood's growth and its vibrant spirit.

By day, I work as a project Engineer and my evenings are often filled with walking my Chocolate Lab Theo who's now famous in the neighborhood.

My favorite aspect of living here are my sense of community from the Neighbors and keeping this neighborhood safe and secured as it truly embodies the essence of our community. However, I'm also mindful of some of the safety and maintenance concerns. and I'm committed to working together to address any concerns. I had the chance to meet all the neighbors on S Holmes getting the petition for the speed bumps signed that are now working in preventing speeding in our neighborhood.

I'm excited to connect with all of you and contribute to the continued warmth and unity that makes East Joffre such a special place to call home.

Best,
Ali Asaad

PETER KAUFFMAN - ALEXANDER STREET

Greetings! My name is Peter Kauffmann and I’ve lived on Alexander Street with my wife Julia since 2018.

We of course appreciate Joffre’s central location within Memphis, but if I had to list my favorite thing about the neighborhood it would be the robust tree cover throughout Joffre and all the fascinating birds that visit our feeders throughout the year. An undervalued asset!

I’ve been involved with neighborhood activities for about a year and a half, first participating in at the Feb 2022 “Coffee in Joffre” event and eventually joining the EJCA Establishing Committee, where I helped the group secure a Neighborhood Crime Prevention Grant from MPD and organize several community events in 2023. If you live on Alexander Street, Julia and I are the ones who left flyers on your door in advance of the May and September coffee gatherings on Palisade and October’s “National Night Out” event on Joffre.

Professionally, I am a traffic engineer and transportation planner for a consulting firm, with a focus on multimodal transportation and traffic safety. Naturally, these would also be areas of interest for me within East Joffre if elected to the Board, along with a desire for more community-building events and the ever-present issues of crime and public safety.

JOFFRE + CENTRAL AVES

Please note that no candidate was nominated or written in for the Joffre Ave. & Central Ave. positions. Per the Association Bylaws Article V, Section 1, the Board of Directors shall endeavor to nominate a member residing in one of the other districts as an interim representative until such time as a member residing within the district(s) can be appointed.