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alison qualter berna and bobby berna
co-founders


Alison Qualter Berna Co-Founder
Alison grew up in Short Hills, New Jersey and has lived in New York City since 1994. After working for four years at NBC News, she changed careers and received her Masters degree in Public and International Affairs from Princeton University, focusing on children. Alison then spent five years at the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) where she managed a global program using sports as a vehicle to protect children and foster their development in countries around the world. Alison met Allison Schlanger and her adorable sons in music class and instantly connected.

Robert Berna Co-Founder
Bobby was born in New York City and raised in Maryland. Bobby returned to New York in 1997, working within the Marketing division of New Line Cinema. He transitioned to a career in advertising after receiving dual MBA degrees from Columbia Business School and the University of California at Berkeley. He joined one of the pioneer online advertising firms, L90 and its technology division adMonitor, as a business development executive. Bobby then joined the start-up team at BoxTop Media, a non-traditional advertising company, where he led all aspects of business development and served as partner.

Alison and Bobby live in Chelsea with their twin daughters Madeleine and Sydney and son Jack.

allison leikind schlanger and craig schlanger
co-founders


Allison Schlanger Co-Founder
Allison was born in New York City and raised in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. After college, she moved back to New York and has lived in the city for the past fourteen years. Allison is an Emmy-nominated television producer who worked at MTV Networks for over ten years. In 1996, Allison began volunteer teaching at a West Harlem elementary school. Over the course of eight years, she taught 3rd-5th graders current events and conflict resolution. Allison met Alison Berna and her beautiful daughters in a parent/child music class.

Craig Schlanger Co-Founder
Craig grew up in Oceanside, New York and has lived in NYC since 1993. After graduating from the University of Michigan, Craig pursued an equity trading position at Spear Leeds & Kellogg and by 1998 was co-managing the new issue trading department on the NASDAQ desk. In 2002, after Spear Leeds & Kellogg merged with Goldman Sachs, Craig was one of the first to transition onto Goldman's trading desk in their Biotechnology/Healthcare sector. In 2005, shortly after his sons Sam and Ari were born, Craig left Goldman to spend more time at home and eventually take on his current project.apple seeds.

Allison and Craig live in Chelsea with their 5 year old twin sons, Sam and Ari, and new baby boy Dov.
  the apple seeds team
Photo by Jefferson Siegel
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