I have spent my entire working life in the clinical diagnostics, pharmaceutical, and life science industry, and after almost 35 years of working, I retired as a Research Scientist in March 2021. Since joining Catchafire as a volunteer, I have helped several non-profits with their projects. I have been creating videos for over 20 years now which started off as a hobby, and remains to be my lifelong passion. I have used Adobe Premiere Elements, and currently using Final Cut Pro and Davinci Resolve as editing software.

Danielle has over 20 years’ experience in brand management, marketing & product innovation.  Throughout her career, she has led global category-leading brands – driving profitable growth and shepherding new products from concept to commercialization.  A creative problem-solver & strategist by nature, she is always ready to identify untapped opportunities & implement innovative solutions.  She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from DePaul University and M.B.A. degree from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University.   

Eric is a brand and digital marketing professional. He graduated from the New England School of Communications and later worked in marketing for brands such as Samuel Adams, Townsquare Media, and Berkshire Bank. Eric is passionate about mental health, diversity and inclusion, and in his spare time, he loves exploring the city of Boston!

Hi, I’m Elly and I’m a second year studying history and sociology at the University of California, Davis. I am excited to contribute to this project and see how we could help seniors retain their own lives to the max extent possible. I hope this will make their life better, in the meantime. In my spare time, I like watching random cave diving horror stories and drinking boba.

Jen has a thing for big ideas. In fact, she started her career as a research assistant at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, where she took complex ideas and presented them in a way that the public could get excited about. After leaving the museum and moving across the country to Portland, Oregon, she joined Second Story Interactive Studios where she had the opportunity to produce installations designed to inspire, inform and engage museum audiences around the country. 

Currently the director of creative development at HUB Collective, Jen provides strategy, vision and leadership for the studio’s projects. Well-versed in guiding clients through branding and messaging exercises, Jen seeks out opportunities to engage with the audience in new and compelling ways. Behind the scenes, she also orchestrates, coordinates, schedules and manages the studio and team members. While it keeps her busy, Jen still finds time to head to her cabin in Zig Zag for action-packed weekends hiking, biking, and exploring with her family. 

ACADEMIC BACKGROUND

Bachelor of Arts, Anthropology, St. Lawrence University

Sahar Wilson is a recent marketing graduate with a strong background in executive support and project management. Currently holding the position of Marketing and Communications Coordinator at the Portland Refugee Support Group, she is dedicated to driving awareness and engagement for this vital organization.

Beyond her professional role, Sahar is a member of our task 40, leading the University Outreach piece of the 40th anniversary marketing campaign. Prior to that she served on the internal marketing/storytelling team conducting interviews with current and previous volunteer caregivers to help shine a light on the importance of volunteer caregiving to the health of our communities.

Shelia recently served as the Communications Director for the National Motorists Association and is now a freelance content writer for nonprofits. Her expertise inhabits many forms of content planning, writing, and editing: blogs, newsletters, magazines, persuasive copywriting, social media, how-to guides, and reports.

Hi everyone! My name is Delaney Jones and I am a 4th-year Communications student interning with the NVCN as my Capstone Project at California State University, Channel Islands. With 4-years of education and my current position of Communications Chair for my sorority, I am excited to bring what I have learned to the table and hope to learn more from the wonderful professionals we will have on our Task Force. I am honored to be a part of this team and plan to work towards creating a memorable celebration for Volunteer Caregiving in 2024.

For more than 20 years, Michael Lang has partnered with clients to translate ideas into design solutions that elicit emotion, build brands and influence customers. He views every project as a conduit that connects clients with their audiences to achieve intended results. During his career he has worked with clients from a myriad of industries including municipalities, non-profits, entertainment, commercial real estate, fashion, education, and numerous small businesses. His work can be seen in print, online and on social media.

Michael holds bachelor’s degrees from the University of California, Santa Barbara and the California College of the Arts. He and his wife Lisa have been married for 27 years and have two amazing children. He is an active volunteer in his community, donating his time and talents to Habitat for Humanity, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Conejo Valley, the Agoura Hills Cultural Art Council, the Westlake Village Cultural Recreation Advisory Board, The Foundation for Las Virgenes Schools, National Junior Basketball and United States Youth Volleyball League.

Hi everyone! Nice to meet you here! My name is Yilin Lu, and you can also call me Lurisa. It is my pleasure to work with you! I am an undergraduate student studying strategic management at the University of Toronto. It is exciting to learn more about volunteers in caregiving!

I have been active in several community-based activities, especially after experiencing the impact of a community fire firsthand. My focus has been to find ways to give back to my community through sharing my strengths and saying yes to unfamiliar or new opportunities. I have helped non-profits better understand their value and strategy through interactive workshops resulting in an active and measurable business plan. I believe it is important to share our gifts, whether it is volunteering, funding, or guiding the organization to meet its collective mission. My goal is to make a difference through people, by helping them achieve their objectives and grow in the process. I believe in solution-oriented approaches that bring the best out of each individual and develop the collective strength of the overall team.

Sharon is always looking to run happy. With over 25 years of experience in building small businesses, marketing, event management and business development, creating organized and fun experiences is what drives the passion. Speaking of passion, this is what has fueled her enthusiasm throughout her career! As a graduate of the University of Texas at Dallas, with work experience including brand development, marketing, entrepreneurship, and event management she enjoys a good challenge and loves to come up with creative solutions that attain goals for all stakeholders. Just a few previous and current clients include Foote Cone & Belding, Pfizer Inc., H-E-B/Central Market, Dallas/Love Field Airport, many small Texas Craft Breweries (Saint Arnold Brewing Company, Rahr & Sons, Deep Ellum Brewing and Peticolas Brewing Company) plus some national and local non-profits too. An avid supporter of dog rescues, you can find Sharon enjoying the sun with her fur kids, Han Solo Dog (a rescue husky/Australian shepherd mix), her cats, Arbor (an abandoned tuxedo rescued at a preserve) & Memo (a grey tabby, creatively marketed at the Dallas animal shelter)! She spends her spare time volunteering in the community, running, walking, enjoying hiking trails, mountain biking and spending time at the beach, swimming through waves and is looking forward to helping spread the love of volunteer Caregiving with the NVCN team.

Cindy has over 35 years of experience as a newsletter creator/designer/writer, writer, columnist, and in public relations. As a publicist for non-profits and other organizations—before social media and cell phone cameras—her publicity skills required ‘A nose for news’ and press release writing skills in attracting media attention for ‘free publicity’ from newspapers, TV assignment editors, and radio stations.

As a volunteer writer with the Merging Vets and Players (MVP) organization, she wrote over 30 staff and member website stories of transitioning veterans (males and females) from all military branches, former professional athletes (including the NFL), and former U.S. Olympian medalists. At the time, Cindy was a Jewish grandmother who was retired and lived in southern Arizona. The MVP members always felt comfortable sharing many of their personal feelings and experiences with her they couldn’t share with their family or friends.

Transitioning from a team to civilian life—whether it be a military unit or a sports team—MVP members shared similar experiences as they moved from a structured life to now overcoming and living with serious physical injuries and ongoing emotional and mental stress.

She also worked for the California Veterinary Medical Association as a Publications Coordinator;
as an Interim Managing Editor of the San Joaquin Physicians Medical Society; served on the board and as a publicist and newsletter editor of the Calaveras Humane Society; as a digital newsletter editor of the Los Cabos Humane Society and wrote a monthly pet column for the Calaveras Enterprise Newspaper.

Over the years, she has donated her skills to local community groups as a publicist and writer,
including editing and preparing a bimonthly newsletter for the food pantry clients at the
Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona in Tucson, Arizona.

Gail Morgan has more than 35 years of communications experience in the public-sector and nonprofit arena. She currently serves as Chief Strategist at SMPA, Inc. where she puts her three-plus decades of strategic communications experience to work serving SMPA clients.

As the City’s first Communications Manager for Santa Clarita, Gail created a comprehensive city communications division from the ground up. During her 27 years at the City, Gail developed and implemented a host of creative communications tools and tactics. These included innovative projects and programs for marketing, public participation, social media and outreach that were integral to the City achieving positive regional and national exposure.

For six years, Claire Petersky served as the executive director of Eastside Friends of Seniors, a Washington State volunteer caregiving nonprofit organization. She also was the executive director of the Wallingford Community Senior Center [Seattle WA] for three years. She currently is the manager of the Multifamily Housing and Community Facilities Division of the Washington State Housing Finance Commission. She’s also the primary caregiver for her 92 year old mother, who continues to live independently with Claire’s help. Claire is engaged in the 40 year anniversary of NVCN because she knows the value of volunteer services. In her role at Eastside Friends of Seniors, she would say that the organization’s middle name was FRIENDS, and its secret was that the volunteer got as much out of the relationships that were formed as the senior served. 

Uma Ravi completed her doctoral degree with a specialization in Behavioral Marketing. She has a committed research background and has published several articles in high impact journals. Prior to her PhD, she completed her bachelors and masters in commerce. She has a keen mind for data and is fascinated about the field of data analytics and has a knack for deriving insights based on statistical models.

She is passionate about teaching and is currently volunteering with other NGOs, where she helps students in learning, monitors their progress and adjusts methodologies to suit their individual needs.
A health enthusiast, she is also a Nutritionist and a Certified fitness instructor and loves to help people in their fitness regimen by counseling them on an appropriate diet.

CEO Mike Reese has been a Signarama franchisee for more than 20 years.  He first purchased the Ventura County-based business in 2000, and has become one of the long-standing members of the Franchise Advisory Council for Signarama’s Corporate Headquarters out of Florida.  He is a respected member of the Ventura South Rotary Club and former Ambassador for the Ventura Chamber of Commerce.  In addition to his passion for marketing, Mike is an avid fisherman and family man.

I Graduated from NIIT (Durgapur, India) in Computer Science. I have been involved in the design industry for more than 2 years and have had the pleasure of working on a variety of projects. No matter the challenge, I have always been passionate about finding a creative solution. I love to help people. Presently working as a Volunteer UX Designer in catchfire platform and with Save the water and full time Special need (Autistic) Instructional Assistant  in a public school

Hi, I’m Malinda K. Steele. In 2018, I became a full-time caregiver for my mother. Since my mother’s passing, I vowed to become a caregiving advocate and leverage my know-how in the community. My passion for creative problem-solving led me to Catcahfire. In prior years, I worked in private wealth management, sales & marketing, nonprofits, and project management. I am honored to be a part of the NVCN Task 40 and look forward to working on future projects.