Applicant Display

Bought what will be our second home and plan to spend most of winters and part of summers in Naples.

I have held off until now. I am shifting to leaving full time work, and at most I will stay as a Consulting Advisor to certain clients. As such will put the next phase of my life to work helping the communities in which I live. I am very active in Cincinnati now with a near exclusive focus with the homeless/poor. In Naples I want to find a way to a broad immersion into the needs that exist in the community and find those areas where servant leadership I might offer could have the most impact.

I have been Managing Partner of major practice areas in several consulting firms and CEO of several firms. My most significant contribution will be looked at differently but I am a Christian and believe that I have always been a servant leader, or leading from within and developing the talent and impact of those more junior or less experienced to me. I have done this many times over – and that is what makes me most proud. Now I lead a 500 person Global Strategy Practice for PA Consulting – which is a billion dollar UK based consulting firm. I built a company that PA acquired and most of that coming from my leadership. But that is all business – and nothing like the challenges I want to take on now.

I have been on Board in Churches and American Red Cross and Homeless Shelters. But my most important leadership contribution is again leading by example and I shifted from just setting direction and took on the one-on-one mentorship of several destitute and homeless men. I started with them 5 years ago and honestly had no idea how I could help them attain the goals they had. Both are now in their own houses, with income, are more healthy and safe – and are no longer “homeless guys” but my friends. I have leveraged my impact with many others now following to do the same. One life at a time.

The less fortunate or poor and/or homeless. This can go many different ways like abused women, or drug addicted, enslaved children or the like.

I have worked a career and pretty successful in all forms of business. I am delighted to help at a Board level – and fundraising is usually one of the most complex functions a not for profit has. I will gladly do that. However, I am a problem solver. I am action oriented. While a very senior executive in business, I like to roll up my sleeves and get to the absolute core of a problem and solve it. I would gladly bring my funds and time to a board, and be effective. But I want to get hands on in the field and make a difference.

I took a small mens group of Christians that were studying the bible. This group has shifted from “navel gazing” to now active in the world to make a change. They are helping the homeless, serving meals, and this week will all work with the Ronald McDonald House. I lead by example and have them all enthusiastically active. I believe there are so many that want to do something but need to be lead. Flip that and look at business and I am an extremely gifted consultant to Fortune 500 companies and I have hundreds of examples of taking small teams in side the worlds largest company and create sources of major new growth.

We took years to pick a place to make home beyond Cincinnati. Beach, golf, pool, restaurants, church and friends are superficial. I am not RETIRING. I am ready to start the second half of my life. As a Christian – that is making my God’s vision for me visible in the community that I live. When I get up – I want a focus to help the greater Naples area. I want to learn where the problems are and what needs this wonderful community has. I do not want the simple challenges. I want to find the really tough areas that will take years to address.

Welcome Home Collaborative
– 5 years of very very heavy involvement taking on 2 homeless men that I work with twice a week for 5 years. I have made this my primary focus.

SouthShore Condominimum – Finance Committee 2014-2020
Ronald McDonald House – Food Service organizer 2018 – 2021
American Red Cross – Board member 1988 – 1992
Easter Seals of Chicago – Board member 1995 – 2002

I have a long history with Naples with so many special memories. My first visit was with my grandparents and parents in 1978 to the (now former) Naples Beach Hotel.

My parents have lived full-time in Naples since 2000, and we have frequented their guest room many, many times!

My husband, Steve, and I purchased our first Naples investment property in 2007.

I recently retired after a 30+ year career, and in 2021 we finally purchased our own home in Pelican Bay. I now have the time, and I am ready to give back to the community that has given so much to me since my first childhood visit.

I have come to know GNL through several friends, and especially through my sponsor. Each have shared positively about the GNL program, and the impact it has had on their lives.

I look forward to contributing time and talent to our Naples community.

I am a former executive with The Walt Disney Company where I was responsible for the US Central division Portfolio Sales and Marketing team. I spent 14 years with Disney, and led the organization during periods of industry, market and organizational disruption, continuously scaling scope and responsibility as the organization grew fifteen-fold during my tenure with revenue in excess of $500MM.

I am the past president for Lincoln Park Zoo Women’s Board in Chicago, Illinois. It is a very rewarding experience to represent and fundraise for the only free cultural institution available to our Chicago community that welcomes over 3 million visitors each year.

Women’s leadership; Leadership mentoring; Technology for seniors; Animal related services/endangered/protection initiatives;
Youth development; Education – Business skills, technology/social media, brand building; Audubon/environment sustainability issues

I was a Fortune 100 leadership executive from 1998-2019 with roles at GE, Sony and The Walt Disney Company. Transferable skills that can positively impact our Naples community include community relations strategy, operations, financial P&L responsibility, digital strategy, human capital management, stakeholder excellence, digital transformation and change management.

I led the Disney sales organization through a period of deep consolidation taking siloed businesses into a portfolio model. Leading with clear communication and embracing change was critical to our success.

My portfolio of Corporate Board work has been very rewarding as I contribute in a strategic advisory capacity. In 2021, I completed the Corporate Director certificate program at Harvard Business School.

I am an avid games and puzzle player. I am an active member of the Mahjong group at Club Pelican Bay, and last season I was asked to lead and teach a group of 27 new Mahjong players at our Michigan summer club.

My husband and I have a 4-legged child. He is a Brussels Griffon, and his name is Lou Piniella. Named for the former coach of the Cubs!

Steve and I are summer golf members at Club Pelican Bay awaiting our full golf membership. I am a beginner golfer, and Steve started his love of golf at a young age while being a caddie.

Chicago Advertising Federation- past President and Board Director, 2015-present;

Private Directors Association- National co-chair, DEI, 2020-present;

Chikaming Country Club- Long Range Planning committee and Co-chair, Games, 2021-present

Lincoln Park Zoo- past President and current member, Women’s Board, 2010-present

Junior League Chicago – Sustainer, 2000-present

Woman’s Athletic Club of Chicago- Corporate Secretary and Exec Committee, 2013-2019

Kim is an outstanding individual who has been quite successful in her business career with Walt Disney, Sony and General Electric. While being a busy executive, she still made time for several not-for-profit committees in Chicago, IL, as listed above. I am impressed by her desire to give back to the Naples community as she has done in the Chicago. Kim has such a warm, outgoing personality. Everything she does, she gives 120%. The GNL program would be fortunate to have her as part of the program. I whole-heartedly endorse this candidate.

The course was recommended to me by a family friend. I am new to Naples and I am looking to be more involved in volunteer organizations in Collier County.

From 2018 to 2020, I was the Co-Chair for the Albemarle county Historic Garden Week Tour for Virginia. Over 2000 guests were expected to visit our county and we planned to conduct a bus tour of the homes and gardens on display. Personally, I managed a team of 30 other volunteers to coordinate the event.

I hosted a 200 person art auction at my home in Virginia in 2018. All of the attendees were women and the funds raised supported the domestic violence shelter.

Charities that help children and women.

I am extremely organized and personable. I am willing to listen to others and value their contributions. Our family lives full time for the school year in Naples and we are invested in the community.

The most important group that I lead is my family. On a daily basis, I encourage my family to do their best in all aspects of life: school, sports and helping others. I demonstrate my commitment to volunteering and being a positive person at all times. Although my husband and daughters sometimes question my plans, they are always appreciative of my efforts and the positive effect is has on our family life. Being an excellent role model is my life goal.

I regularly volunteer in my daughters’ school: Community School of Naples. I assist the sports teams and I have trained to be a Substitute Teacher.

2018-2020 ALBEMARLE GARDEN CLUB – Historic Garden Week Tour Co-Chair

2016-2020 VILLAGE SCHOOL, Girls Math Tournament Committee

2017-2020 WOMEN’S INITIATIVE FUNDRAISER, Committee Member

2016-2017 MERIWETHER LEWIS SCHOOL, Birthday Book Club Chair

2013-2014 ST. ANNE’S BELFIELD SCHOOL, Silent Auction Committee

2012-2014 VCCA GALA, Decor Committee

2010-2013 UVA CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL GALA, Decor Committee

2010-2014 ST. PAUL’S IVY CHURCH, Sunday School Teacher

2001-2009 JUNIOR LEAGUE OF LONDON, Holiday Bazaar Chair

She is bright, educated, committed and easy to get along with. She was an outstanding student at Columbia and has led an honorable life since. She has the experience and the energy to be of service to our communities for some time.

I have been volunteer with the Conservancy of Southwest Florida since 2009 and served on the Board October 2017-March 2021.. Volunteer with and have served on the board of Step Smart, which my late husband cofounded. Served on the House Committee of Naples Elks Lodge 2010.

I always enjoyed attending events with my late husband. I admire what GNL does to support local community efforts.

I have been Volunteer Coordinator for the von Arx Wildlife Hospital at the Conservancy of Southwest Floride since 2012. I also served as President of the volunteer organization and on the Conservancy’s Board of Directors.

Advocating for preservation of Florida’s environment–water quality, land preservation and protection of native wildlife. Have attended almost all workshops on Eastern Collier’s RLSA issues, participated in beach cleanup, helped educate beachgoers during Black Skimmer and Tern nesting season and generally educate those I meet on the importance of protecting the environment that brought them to SW Florida.

I have been long focused on the environment and am interested in exploring what other avenues of our community need help.

Communications skills, willingness to address large groups, willingness to pitch in and get dirty.

I’m not sure that I have single-handedly ever brought about a change.

Literacy Council of Northern Virginia, Volunteer, 2000-2002
Arlington Free Clinic, Silent Auction Chair 2006, Gala Chair 2007
Commonwealth Circle (Arlington, Virginia) Member/Volunteer, 1994-2010
Dominion Guild, Arlington, Virginia, Member/Volunteer, 1996-2010
Women in Government Relaitons, Wash. DC, Member, 1984-1993
Tax Coalition, Wash. DC, Member, 1986-1993
American League of Lobbyists, Spearker co-chair 1992-1993
Golden Retriever Rescue, Education and Training (GRREAT) 1994-2010 Volunteer

Jean is from a volunteer family–her husband was a driving force in GNL. She enthusiastically supports her volunteer efforts with the Conservancy, is always seeking new knowledge and ways to help the community. Her enthusiasm is contagious and she well-respected in the Naples community. I can see her taking a leadership role in GNL administration as well as reaching out to other volunteer organizations. I wholeheartedly support her inclusion in GNL.

While I have visited the Naples area for over 30 years, I recently moved here full time from Chicago and am looking forward to getting involved in the community. I have been quite involved here this past year in the Naples Players Theater and done some ad hoc volunteering in other areas in the community. I am interested in learning more about areas in Naples where I can offer any expertise that I possess and also introduce those areas to others for volunteer work. Additionally, I look forward to meeting other like-minded individuals in Naples.

Having worked in sales performance coaching and facilitation, I believe my most significant would be my ability to harness talent, encourage enthusiasm and motivate the performance of a variety of individuals, teams and organizations. My career enabled me to enter a variety of corporate environments that were charged to grow revenue, embrace change and collaborate.

In terms of leadership role, I would submit that it would be my establishing the Chicago Butler University Alumni Chapter. Due to the balancing of a career involving extensive travel, my other civic and community contributions were as an individual contributor.

Arts and culture
Education

When I believe in a cause or organization, I feel compelled to promote it. My enthusiasm gets me charged up and I hope that is contagious. Additionally, my career in facilitation allows me to work with groups easily-both leading and participating. My intention is to reside here in Naples, and I hope to be active in the community.

While most all of my sales training career was focused on enhancing/changing sales behaviors, there was a specific initiative to which I can speak. I had a client that needed to work on a diversity initiative as the employee base faced challenges embracing other cultures. I/we helped the organization with skills to better appreciate, understand and work with these diverse cultures.

I am also interested in helping with children. My volunteer work at The Naples Players has allowed me the opportunity to assist with some of the classes and a production. I very much enjoy working with our youth.

Butler University _Alumni Board
Butler University Chicago Alumni Chapter, Founder and Past President
Girls on the Run-volunteer coach
Kappa Alpha Theta, member
The Chicago Lighthouse for the Blind, radio announcer

I believe Nancy’s recent move to Naples bodes well for the community. She has the capacity, interest, affinity and energy to make a difference to any nonprofit organization she chooses. Her family was part of the fabric of Indianapolis community where her pharmacist father built a chain of drugstores which the family eventually sold to Walgreens. Nancy grew up in the spirit of community service. Her passion for service is evident in her sorority work at Butler University, establishment of its Chicago chapter, her business that focused on training/motivating sales professionals for success, and her volunteerism in Chicago. Since meeting Nancy in January I have experienced first hand her service as a volunteer with The Naples Players and her ability to lead projects with intelligence and enthusiasm. As Board President of The Naples Players, I am pleased to report that Nancy was recently appointed to our Board. She will be co-chair of our Enrichment Committee. In summary, I believe Nancy will benefit from the GNL curriculum of all things Naples and will, in turn, contribute to future endeavors and leadership positions with the GNL organization.

Since the purchase of my house in Naples, I have been developing all my local contacts and relationships while at the same time downsizing and moving all my belongings from my former primary residence in NJ. Right after we purchased the house, my family (including college kids) were on covid lockdown. In order to continue running Rainetree Capital and my other interests, I became a zoom expert. I also started working on areas where I can help locally, including joining the Boys and Girls Club of Collier County board, the Old Naples Association and of course, pickleball!!! Although I am new to Collier County, I truly feel this is my home now and I love being here. I will also be attending the upcoming Naples Womens Club new member prospective event in the coming weeks. My husband and I also joined the Edgewater Beach Club to meet more people and we are members of the NCH Diplomat Program in Naples.

I am new to Naples and recently became a Florida resident. I sold my home in NJ in 2021 where I was very active in my community over the years. I had planned to continue with volunteering and charitable ventures in Naples when Covid came about. I am now getting back to pursuing my interest in learning about Collier County and helping the local community as I have always done. My sponsor thought I would be a good fit for this program and encouraged me to apply this year. I would love the opportunity to learn from the GNL program and give back to organizations that are most aligned with my interests and skills and truly immerse myself in my new community.

My partners and I acquired Physicians World in 2015 and won best places to work in NJ in 2018 for a medium sized company. In 2 years, we made great strides in growing our speakers bureau company while creating a great environment for the employees before we sold it to Veeva (NASDAQ: “VEEV”) in 2019.
https://njbiz.com/njbiz-best-places-to-work-in-nj-2018-medium-companies/

We have also grown and sold other companies including Atlas certified to Clear (NASDAQ: “YOU”) and are now focusing on investing in companies making a difference in the communities they serve such as OxGlobal- see the attached video..
https://vimeo.com/733528123

I founded the NJ Kids Care chapter of Blessings in a Backpack at the Greater Brunswick Charter School (“GBCS”) in NJ which provides food for kids with meals over the weekends to ensure they won’t go hungry. They usually get subsidized breakfast and lunch during the school day but the weekends can be challenging for them due to food insecurity. Every eligible student gets a backpack filled with food on Fridays. I also partnered GBCS with the New Jersey Institute for Food, Nutrition and Health at Rutgers University to start the first pilot program enabling the students to receive professional fitness training and learn about healthy nutrition on the college campus. This has had a huge impact on the children’s lives. I am passionate about helping kids- especially about teaching them about good nutrition and study habits so they can do well in school. I am hoping to make a difference in Collier County and I joined the board of the Boys and Girls Club for that reason. I also have a charitable trust to help organizations that can change lives for the greater good.

Education and Physical and Mental Health

I have always had a passion for helping others especially children with pursuing higher education and health and wellness. I seem to gravitate to these types of organizations. NJ Seeds is an organization that prepares high achieving, low income students for admission to private schools and colleges. I have helped families prepare for admission interviews and college applications and hope that one day when they are a success they will pay it forward and give back to others.

I have recently become interested in mental health of children due to the impacts of covid lockdowns. I had kids in college during covid and saw the lasting effects on these students from social isolation to the struggle from online learning . There is a huge crisis that needs to be addressed in the US and this is a new area that I would like to get involved in. The pandemic and quarantine played a huge role in this increase and learning to live in a post-Covid world has complicated matters for many students.

I also invest personal funds in companies that make a difference in their communities as well as charities through our charitable trust and would love to learn more about the local organizations that are in need.

I am very eager to learn! I am extremely detail oriented and possess great organizational, multitasking and planning skills. My determination and persistence help me communicate very well as a team player team leader. I’m caring, compassionate and always thinking about how to help others and better my community in a positive way. I always go way beyond what people expect of me.

I wanted to make sure that Blessings in a Backpack program would be able to run after I moved to Florida so I held a fundraiser in NJ and raised additional funds to keep the program alive for the kids. It was a huge success and also a lot of fun. It was at a speakeasy in Morristown, NJ and some of the kids from the program spoke about what an impact this had on their lives. It was extremely moving to hear when the kids discussed that our backpack of food helped them with the stress of having to worry about going hungry on the weekends. I also raised funds to help the parents buy diapers and formula and necessities.

In addition to the many of the organizations that I have been a part of, I have also encouraged my family to give back to those in need. When my kids were younger and living at home, I encouraged them to have bake sales to raise money for much needed causes that stye chose. We ran coat and shoe drives and collected them for those less fortunate. We volunteered together as a family at the food party at GBCS while distributing backpacks for Blessings in a Backpack program. My kids were involved in sports and they collected gently used baseball and softball equipment and their donations were sent to communities that needed it the most. We also collected women’s professional clothing and items to help them dress for success and feel better about themselves during interviews.

I also tried to change peoples lives by bringing joy to the senior citizens and confidence to the young kids. I had a pet therapy dog, Chloe and I visited the senior centers to put a smile on peoples faces. I also visited the local libraries where kids would choose a book and read it to my dog.

I am currently involved in trying to set up internships for high school students at the Boys and Girls Club of Collier County(BGCC). I am working with a start up company called Introducely, that is testing a pilot internship program enabling google certification in Camden, NJ starting in January. I am working with them to offer internships for the BGCC as well. It would be an online format that would teach the students the skills needed for jobs after they graduate. This program is in the early stages but I am hoping that it will become a success and help high school students that are not on the college track develop the skills needed for employment after high school graduation.

I am also an investor in OxGlobal (“OX”) which is changing the way commercial transportation is done in the 3rd world countries and designing next generation vehicles with the worlds first clean-transport system while teaching the local population how to bring their goods to market. OX’s focus is targeting the people in emerging markets who would never afford a vehicle and struggle from a lack of transport. The vehicles are shipped in a flat pack and the locals are educated on how to build the trucks as well as maintain them and deliver local goods from rural areas to markets all over the world. My husband and I are looking to invest in more companies that make a difference.

I am excited to learn and understand the needs of my new community. I have an intense love for travel and learning about other cultures and teaching it to kids. When we traveled to countries less fortunate than ours, I organized visits to local orphanages and brought school supplies in Guatamala, Equador and India. During the holidays, I arranged for the distribution of Christmas gifts for the kids in local villages.
I was also very active in my children’s school Gill St Bernards in NJ and held various positions at the school over the years- Executive Steering Committee, Auction Committee, Nutrition Committee, Care Network, Class parent, Parent Admission Network and numerous others. I also brought a local farm market to campus every week in the fall and they gave back part of the proceeds to the school.
I will jump right in and tackle anything that I believe in!!

-Blessings in a Backpack, Founder of NJ KIDS CARE Chapter (2014-present) at the Greater Brunswick Charter School
-NJ Seeds volunteer sponsor and interviewer (2017-present) A nonprofit organization that prepares highly motivated, high achieving, low income students for admission to private schools and colleges.

-Greater Brunswick Charter School (GBCS), Liaison/Volunteer to coordinate programs between GBCS and Rutgers University (2014-2019)
-Executive Steering Committee Member, Gill St Bernards School (2011-2017)
-St Huberts Pet Therapy Program (2016-2019) Brought my therapy dog to hospitals to visit patients as well as schools and libraries to facilitate young kids reading to the pets and increasing their confidence in their reading abilities
-St Jude Fundraising Committee 2011-2013
-Head of Program Research, Kid Fit Program, Morristown Memorial Hospital Children’s Center) 2010

Listening to Sheree’s enthusiasm for so many years, that she consistently stays involved and search’s new ways of giving and my having gone through GNL, one can’t help but see the benefit of Sheree being knowledgeable and involved in our community. Sheree has not only been involved in educational and nutritional development programs, but has put together innovative companies and charities together. She comes from a family of negotiators, deal makers and innovators. Let’s get those skills to work in our community.

GNL gives me and many others the opportunity to better understand and serve the beautiful community of Naples.

I have been blessed to have a wonderful career in Financial Services and lead many others to achieve success, but my biggest achievement is fatherhood. My wife and me have raised four beautiful children to be hardworking and faith filled citizens in society.

I started the Dupage County chapter for an organization called Legatus. Legatus was founded by Tom Monahan who started Ave Maria University and Dominos Pizza. The organization was created to allow Catholic leaders to pass values and stewardship to their employees. Our chapter won several awards and something I am very proud of.

Faith based and nonprofit. Have gotten involved and supported Nash to Naples most recently.

Good motivation and leadership skills and comfortable speaking publicly.

I ran the East Coast for a distribution company under Met Life and was responsible for 16 individuals. We were ranked #1 every year in revenue. I was also the #1 specialist at Merrill Lynch all 14 years I was employed at the firm. These results helped to cultivate a culture for the firm going forward.

It’s very simple…I think it’s all about giving and trying to make this community a better place to live.

Legatus – Naples Chapter Vice president becoming President 1/23

Legatus – Dupage County Chapter President 2013 to 2016

I believe Jeff would be an excellent addition to GNL. Jeff is a “doer” and would certainly serve on local, Collier County non-profit boards, as well as contribute his time. He has a wealth of knowledge that would help our community, and resides here in Naples full time. I believe we need more full time residents who can help some of these local organizations during the summer months. Hurricane Ian is a prime example of local people helping local people.

Since 2016, I have been serving in vatious volunteer capacities for the Pelican Bay Foundation. In 2016, I was selected to serve on the Strategic Planning Committee. In 2019, I was elected to the Foundation Board and selected first as Secretary and then as Vice Chair. I was reelected in 2022 and currently serve as Chair of the Foundation Board. Recently, I am back to traveling and I also enjoy the arts, gardening and reading.

My time since moving to Naples has been focused on Pelican Bay. I would like to learn more about our community and see if there aren’t other volunteer opportunities with broader impact. I also look forward to meeting more people with varied interests who live outside Pelican Bay.

As the Head of Corporate Strategy and M&A at Prudential, I partnered with the then new CEO and the Board to revamp the company’s entire business mix and growth profile. I then proceeded to execute the sales of businesses that did not fit the new profile and engaged employees around the revised Mission. At the time, my own staff was fewer than 10 people, but the pleasure of engaging staff that did not report to me, along with consultants, bankers and regulatory personnel in support of the revised strategy set Prudential on the path it is still broadly following.

I hope that leading Pelican Bay forward after Hurricane Ian will add significant value, but it is too soon to tell.
One experience that stands out for me occurred when I was on the Board of the Cabrini Foundation which at the time acted as a holding company for local operations. The Cabrini High School in upper Manhattan was continually losing money which required the Foundation to subsidize the school. I worked with the school’s staff and Board to help them understand how to budget, what to charge for and generally how to operate the business of the school. We also looked at tuition which was well below their peers. The school got on a better financial footing, although it ultimately merged with another school to ensure all the attributes of a fine education were available to students. I was proud to impart some of the skills I have to people who really needed them.

There is much to explore and learn about, but I have generally been attracted to human services — elder care, mental healthcare — and environmental issues. Also, if there were opportunities to test affordable housing concepts, I would be interested.

I am best at aligning strategy with resources. The strategy needs to be developed based on data, customer input and the art of the feasible — what resources are available? what is the competition doing and how will our strategy allow us to succeed? I have a good deal of experience getting buy-in with good communication both one-on-one and at a mass level. I also believe in developing metrics to let people measure their work and then significantly delegating execution.

During the process of finalizing Prudential’s revised strategy, I worked with HR staff members and outside consultants to create the content and the implementation process to convey the new strategy to all 60,000 domestic employees in small group settings. It was successful in engaging employees with the data the Board used to make its decisions. It reinforced to me the adage that if you don’t engage people in your decision-making process, they will tolerate what you say and go back to doing what they were doing before.

I started my career after business school as a credit analyst. I learned how to pull apart a company’s financials; how to analyse its strategies relative to its peer and how to look at its success metrics.
Having these skills has stood me in good stead throughout my career and my personal life. It also helps me focus on areas that data says need help — mental healthcare, the environment and affordable housing. I would like to be useful in addressing some of these or other issues affecting Collier County.

Alzheimer’s Association, Connecticut Chapter, Board member; 2013 – 2016
Cabrini Foundation, Board member; 2002 – 2007

Jane is a true professional – measured, bright, warm and strategic. Her leadership skills have been evident to me through many meetings and discussions.
Over the past several years of working together, our relationship has evolved into a friendship, which has allowed me to get to know Jane at a deeper level.
Jane has often expressed an interest in GNL, and has been impressed by my own positive experiences. She is a hard worker who would be an asset to Class XXVII and beyond. She is eager to serve our community and hopes to further her service with the knowledge gained in GNL.

I am retired from full-time work but serve on two corporate boards (S&C Electric Company in Chicago, Board Chair and Southwire Company in Georgia, Lead Director) and four non-profit boards (two in Chicago: Adler Planetarium, former Board Chair; American Writers Museum, former Board Chair; and two in Naples: The Shelter for Abused Women & Children, Board Director; Naples UCC Church, Vice Chair – Board of Trustees).

I also play golf and am a member at Hole-In-The-Wall Golf Club. Cathie and I travel to visit family in California, D.C. and Canada and also enjoy international trips.

I am interested in learning more about organizations in the Naples area, particularly those involved in childhood education and housing. I get enjoyment and fulfillment from my work on The Shelter’s board but it is term limited so I am looking to find suitable organization(s) with which to work when my term at The Shelter is up. I also am very interested in meeting new people in Naples who have similar philanthropic interests. The GNL members I have met have all been
outstanding, some of whom have become good friends, and I would like to meet more.

When S&C Electric Company was almost 100 years old, I became just the third CEO in its history, succeeding the son of the founder who was the majority shareholder and who stayed on as Chairman. When he passed away in 2005, the ownership succession plan he had put in place failed as his three daughters, who became instant shareholders through trusts, said they wanted nothing to do with it. The employees, who at the time numbered about 2500, had always been told by the son of the founder not to worry about the future as the company would remain privately held. That left the CFO and me with the challenge of finding an ownership solution while keeping employees comfortable. It took two years of strenuous negotiations with a very contentious lawyer for two of his daughters who threatened all kinds of undesirable outcomes including converting the company’s 45-acre site in Chicago to condos and moving the business overseas. The ownership structure was very complicated but we finally negotiated the purchase of the daughters’ stock by a new employee stock ownership plan which gave the sellers some significant tax benefits and kept the company privately held. As part of this, the defined-benefit pension plan had to be curtailed and replaced with the ESOP, including transition payments to keep the long-service employees whole. It took a lot of communication over several months but in time the employees understood the changes and were pleased with the outcome. The company has remained privately held which is important for the business S&C is in and, because of the company’s subsequent success, the employees’ ESOP accounts have grown tremendously, building substantial wealth. This was the most significant event in the company’s history and the success of it has so far served the employees, customers, and communities very well.

I have contributed positively to strategic planing work at a number of community organizations including The Shelter, the Adler Planetarium, and the American Writers Museum. Of those, the American Writers Museum in Chicago was the most challenging. I was one of the original founders of this first and only museum in the country to honor the wide array of American writers. A great deal of strategic thinking was required to plan the museum and develop the donor value propositions. The Founders Council then needed to sell that plan to potential funders. It was a challenge getting people to understand what a writers museum would contain and how it would work but we sold the idea and were successful in raising the money to construct the museum and get it up and running. The strategy was a success as the AWM is now over five years old and is consistently rated in the top five museums in Chicago on TripAdvisor and it has a national reach as school children from underserved neighborhoods anywhere in the country can take field trips and other classes at no charge.

I am very interested in childhood education, especially early childhood education. Studies have shown that children who do not achieve third grade literacy by the end of third grade face a significantly lower probability of graduating from high school and will be disadvantaged in finding success in the workplace. That is a problem that can be dealt with successfully and I believe it is crucial that we tackle it. I am also interested in housing, particularly the issues with the availability of affordable housing for Naples’ essential workers.

Strategic planning
Marketing, especially effective messaging to potential donors
Lean systems techniques to streamline processes
Engineering knowledge.

When I joined the board of the Adler Planetarium, the CEO had been there for over two decades, the various departments were working in silos, and the museum was not growing. Many on the board and in leadership felt a change at the top was needed but no one had taken any action. When I was elected Board Chair a few years later I discovered something unknown to anyone involved I
n the board or senior leadership – the CEO had put his house on market and was planning to retire when it sold. It was clear that it was finally time to take action on CEO succession. I engaged McKinsey to work pro bono with a task force of board members and key museum leaders to develop a strategic direction for the future. When that was developed we rolled out a communication program to sell the vision to the museum leadership and the rest of the board. Happily, I was able to get the CEO to understand that we needed to search for the next CEO and he agreed that he would retire when the new CEO was found, whether or not his house had sold. We created a committee on which I served to do a nationwide search to find a CEO who would be capable of taking the museum in the agreed direction and build on it. The arrival of the new CEO, who had zero museum experience but who we believed was more than capable of taking us where we wanted to go, resulted in some significant changes to how people worked and what they worked on. Because of that, I agreed to extend my term as Chair another year to add stability and to help the CEO get off to a good start. The CEO is now in her tenth year, has built out the strategy, reorganized and energized the staff, including a number of replacements, and has the museum working at a much more rapid and nimble pace with the result that the programming and reach of the museum have been expanded and the Adler has earned a reputation as one of the most innovative museums in Chicago. The present team did an amazing job or handling the pandemic as they pivoted very quickly and effectively to digital programming that is now accessible to classrooms all over the world. The change since the retirement of the former CEO has been very impressive and has transformed the museum into the 21st century museum that was envisioned in the study preceding the search.

Nonprofit
Adler Planetarium, Trustee (2007-present), Board Chair (2011-2013), Chair – Nominating & Engagement Committee (2014 -2018)

American Writers Museum, Founders Council Member (2010-2013), Trustee (2014-present), Board Chair (2019-2021)

For Profit
S&C Electric Company, Board Director (1976-2013), Executive Chairman (2013-2016), Chairman of the Board (2016 – present)

Southwire Company, Board Director (2011-present), Lead Director (2016-present), Governance Committee (2019-present)

Nonprofit
Glenview Community Church, Supervisor of Confirmation Program (1985-1992), Chair – Board of Trustees (1992-1995), Moderator (1995-1997), Chair – Senior Minister Search Committee (2000-2001)

National Electrical Manufacturers Association, Board Director (1998-2015), Chair – Standards and Conformity Assessment Committee (2000-2002), Treasurer (2002-2005), Vice Chair (2005-2006), Board Chair (2007-2008), Executive Committee Member (2002-2015)

Executives Club of Chicago, Board Director (2005-2015), Chair – International Committee (2007-2013)

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Member (1988-2018), Elected Fellow (2007) Life Fellow (2018-present), Board Director (2004-2005)

IEEE Power & Energy Society, Governing Board Director (1994-2005), Treasurer (1998-2001), President (2002-2005)

For Profit
Nutrien (formerly PotashCorp), Board Director (2003-2018), Chair – Compensation Committee (2007-2012), Chair – Governance Committee (2012-2015), Board Chair (2015-2017 including serving on the negotiating team for the merger between PotashCorp and Agrium to create Nutrien), Chair – Safety & Sustainability Committee (2018-2020)

John is a brilliant leader. He’s extremely bright and thoughtful. He’s understated and has proven he works well with others. When John joined The Shelter’s Board, he joined the Risk Management Committee, where he was be very insightful, and brought credibility to this rather-young Committee. John and I worked closely togetherbon The Shelter’s Strategic Plan for 2023-2025. His business and nonprofit expertise were extremely valuable. John has a “can-do” attitude and I believe he will be very successful in GNL, as his personality and presence fit so well into GNL’s culture. John’s interest in early childhood education and affordable housing make John a very strong candidate for future Board positions in Collier County.

I have been an active volunteer throughout my life and was attracted to the mission of GNL where I can learn first hand the issues and the needs of the greater community. I was excited to learn of the process and the educational opportunities that GNL gives to its members to really learn about the community. Although there are central issues that affect all communities, regardless of geographic concerns, I am learning there concerns here that I have not encountered and need to understand when making decisions to volunteer.

I was on successful career path as a lawyer in a corporate practice, but made the decision to become a stay at home mother and full-time homemaker. Because of that decision, my leadership skills were redirected as a Community Volunteer. My children accompanied me to Junior League meetings, volunteer projects, and later board meetings. They were observers and often participants in my volunteer activities. As they grew, they each participated in their own volunteer organizations and projects. Today, as adults, both of my children are involved as active volunteers in their communities. This is my most significant and proudest leadership contribution.

I spent nine years on the United Way of Siouxland Board of Directors. During that time I helped change our focus from merely distributing funds to creating data based impact funding. We created the Siouxland Community Impact Process which resulted in community led solutions to support programs and initiatives in three focus areas, health, education and financial stability. United Way saw increases in donations, volunteers and collaborations between agencies.

Issues surrounding food insecurity and resources that build financial stability for families.

I am organized, forward thinking and focused about the impact that community decisions can have on individuals and families.

When serving as a leader on the Community Impact Team at United Way of Siouxland, we were changing our funding model from funding agencies to funding programs in three focus areas and changing the funding cycle from annual to biennial. Agencies were in an uproar about how this would impact their budgets and operations. We met with the agencies and their boards, in groups and individually, to listen to their concerns and educate them how this new funding would benefit them. This was time consuming and required a lot of patience, negotiation, assurances and research. We were able to successfully get all the agencies online, our fundraising efforts were more successful and the agencies learned they ultimately benefitted from the changes.

The aftermath of Hurricane Ian will be felt for a long time. In 2011, my family was mandatorily evacuated from our home for 3.5 months under threat of historic flooding on the Missouri River. The devastation from that incident pales in comparison to Ian however the emotions and the issues surrounding recovery are similar. I participated in emergency recovery fund management with our local United Way. I was amazed at the resilience and recovery efforts that our community made and I’m confident SW Florida will do the same.

*Junior League of Sioux City 1993-present
currently a sustainer, past President, Provisional Chair, Secretary, Education and Meetings Chair, Art Center Liaison, Nominating and Placement Chair, other various committees and volunteer activities.

*Siouxland Community Foundation 2013-2019
Grant Committee, Scholarship Review, President-Elect, President
*United Way of Siouxland 2009-2017
Board Member, Allocations Chair, Board Chairman-Elect, Board Chairman
Womens Power Lunch- President and Committee
Women United- Committee
*Dakota Valley School Board Financial Committee 2008-2018
* Dakota Dunes Home Owners Association 2008-2014
Neighborhood Representative, Board Member
*Dakota Valley PTO 2000-2010
Treasurer, Carnival Co- Chair, Fundraising Chair, various committees and classroom volunteer
* Sioux City Art Center Beaux Art Guild 2001-2004, Board Member, President, Fundraising Chair, Art Center Board Representative
* Mary Treglia Child Care Center-board member
* Boys Club of Siouxland-board member

Marie, is a very sincere, giving, and empathic woman. She is dedicated and is a hard worker
and strives to understand and support “our” community. Her leadership skills along with her organizational, collaboration, and implementation/follow through strategies support team work and commitment.
.

I have been coming to Naples since I was 20 (42 years). My husband’s parents had a condo then retired to Naples Bath and Tennis Club. We have spent virtually every Christmas with the entire family in Naples since then. Once we were able to work remotely, we bought a condo in Naples.

We will eventually retire to Naples, and as I am now spending 5+ months there (increasing each year) I would like to become more involved in, and give back to, the Community. I have for 40 years volunteered or served on nonprofit boards where I have lived, and I consider it an essential part of my personal growth, happiness, and moral responsibility. I want to meet more people in Naples as well. My good friend (and sponsor) has provided me with encouragement and guidance re GNL.

In my current position I am an Executive at Winrock International (General Counsel and Chief Risk and Compliance Officer) at my organization, which is the most senior position I have achieved. I report to the CEO and to the Board of a $100M nonprofit dedicated to empower the disadvantaged, increase economic opportunity, and sustain natural resources. Winrock is a nonprofit organization that implements a portfolio of more than 100 agriculture, environment and social development projects in over 40 countries. I am one of the top 7 in the organization. I value my leadership role and love my job because of it.
https://winrock.org/about/

My most recent volunteer role as Chair of the Fresh Farm Markets (FFM) Board. FFM is a $10M, 30 staff nonprofit in the Washington DC area that manages 30 farmers markets, provides food and nutrition-based primary school programming, and provides numerous food access programs to underserved communities in DC. I helped lead the organization through a major leadership (Executive Director) change, a merger with another nonprofit, and a complete redo of its bylaws, mission, and strategic goals. Second – Girl Scout Troop Leader. Third – Professor at American University Law School (unpaid adjunct).

From the GNL list: Cultural Arts, Human Services, Environment; more generally, women’s issues, food and food access, human rights, fair housing, arts

1. Legal skills (I am the General Counsel of a large nonprofit and have been a lawyer for 40 years)
2. Change management – I have taken numerous organizations through significant change
3. Collaborative style – I am a collaborative and inclusive leader
4. Passion, excitement, and dedication to whatever cause I am supporting

Most recently, I have become a mindfulness practitioner and am licensed to teach mindfulness skills by the Potential Project. In support of my company’s strategic plan to build heathy habits, I have taught a six-series course to about a hundred staff and I help lead daily mindfulness practices. My post-session surveys and feedback have shown a marked change in our staff’s balance and self-awareness. Our work is in developing countries and can be stressful and lead to burnout; I hope to have helped ameliorate that for our staff.
• Avoid action addiction and enhance your focus, energy and effectiveness throughout the day
• Adopt mindsets that enable greater awareness of your biases and increase your sense of resilience
• Lead and communicate more intentionally with peers, teams and stakeholders

I would be honored to be a part of GNL. As I shift my time and energy to Naples, I intend to be a supportive and involved member of the Naples community. I am drawn to and inspired by your mission -“To provide proven leaders with a unique
opportunity to learn firsthand about the issues and needs in Collier County and to encourage the use of
their skills individually and collectively in bettering the community.”

Pathfinder International President’s Council (2022 to present)
Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (member, 2011-present)
Capital Area Business Ethics Network (Membership Coordinator, 2017-present; Board Chair, 2015-17 and 2021 to present; Membership Coordinator, 2017-2019; member, 2008-present)
Non-Profit Compliance Professionals (informal group with 50+ members) (founding member, 2008-present)
International Development Ethics Professionals Working Group (INDEP) (member, 2016 to present)
International Association of Privacy Professionals, IAPP (US) certified (2018)

Freshfarm Markets, Director and Chair, Governance Committee (8/2015-2021); Board Chair (8/2018-2021)
Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, Director and member, Governance Committee and Audit Committee (5/2015-8/2018)
Board member, Lake Bethany Community Association (2018-2021)
Board member circa 1990-2010, Washington DC:
New Endeavors By Women (homeless shelter);
Legal Clinic for the Homeless;
Westmoreland Children’s Center (Board Chair)
Girl Scout Troop Leader 1999-2006

This is the first time I have sponsored a candidate for GNL. When Calvin and Charlotte decided to become residents of Naples I was thrilled. Charlotte’s lifetime achievements speak for themselves. She has devoted herself to community service throughout her entire career, her accomplishments are legion, she is brilliant and a tireless worker, and she is a delightful person. I cannot think of anything more important I could do for GNL and for Naples and Collier County than to sponsor Charlotte Young for membership in the coming year’s class.

Having bought our property in 2015 and extensively renovated it, we moved to Naples in January 2016 and made it our permanent home. The first year was spent setting up our home, getting to know our neighbors at The Brittany and exploring the community. We immediately subscribed to the Master Works of the Naples Philharmonic and joined Naples Botanical Garden. With each passing year I have become more involved with several groups and our church, and each time we return to Naples it increasingly feels I am “coming home.” As we include friends from these different groups in social events, we have enjoyed the various connections they make with each other.

Several people of whom I think highly are members of GNL, and they are the reason I looked to find out more about the organization. They did not “recruit” me to join, but after I examined the GNL website to learn about the Master Class and the mission of the group, I asked one of those friends to sponsor me. Initially, my thought was to become even more familiar with this amazing community, Naples, that we chose to become our new home. After almost 50 years in Oklahoma City where you know everyone, it became important to me to do more than walking the dog, water aerobics and golf in Naples. After a year or so in Naples, I have found and joined several great organizations that support the community as does our church and my sorority alumnae association. The process of applying has given me new insight into my reasons. In listing, and thinking about my community involvement outside of SWFL, I realized the experiences most meaningful to me were those in the later years of my involvement in OKC. Not the committee chairmanships, the board memberships, or the recognized achievements, but my efforts “in the trenches” with the Girl Scout troop I led in a low income Middle School and Oklahoma Lawyers for Children when I represented children who had been placed in the foster care program of the state. As I used the pull down menu on the NGL website, I realized how little I know about the many nonprofits in Naples and how much there is to learn about this community. Perhaps GNL can help me to find those meaningful volunteer experiences.

I was the first woman lawyer (there were actually two of us) in what is now the largest law firm in Oklahoma. At the time we were the 24th and 25th lawyers there. During the interview process at the University of Oklahoma, while interviewing a Dallas law firm, there were a number of questions about how I would manage to practice while being a wife and mother, questions that could never be asked today. I simply felt the interview was a waste of my time and cut it short and left. Unbeknownst to me, the law firm apologized to the school administration and the law school made great effort to make the interview experience more meaningful for its female students. I was asked to speak to the student body. I was surprised to learn years later when my daughter attended the same law school that the incident was still remembered and used to educate the female law students.
While practicing law, I was able to integrate the all male dining room at The Petroleum Club during a business meeting with oil and gas clients and an accountant from one of The Big Four accounting firms. Within a few months, it became a common occurrence to see female lawyers, bankers, accountants and business people in that dining room. This change was done without confrontation or controversy. I had no intention of being a spokesman for women’s rights, but the fact of being competent and respected in the legal community by my peers and my clients resulted in positive change at the University and in Oklahoma City.

I founded a group known as The Awesome Friends of OSSM, the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics. The school was created in 1983 as a 2 year residential high school for outstanding junior and senior students. The first buildings were classrooms and laboratories, using a mix of federal, state and private funds. When its dormitory we being built, the development director needed $100,000 by the end of the fiscal year to meet a state match for the final $1 million in funds. If that match was not met, the funds would expire and not be available. That deadline was only one month away. I invited 25 women to my home to meet Dr. Edna Manning, the outstanding woman who was the first president of OSSM. I asked each of them to contribute or pledge $1000 and ask 3 of their friends to do the same. The $100,000 was raised within the month without a luncheon or organized fundraisers. The group expanded to more than 250 women and continued to support the school’s building and endowment funds. OSSM was recently named #24 Public High School in the nation by Newsweek magazine.

I am interested to learn more about efforts to help the migrant community and those in our community who have immigrated to Naples within the past 5-10 years. In particular, I am interested to explore what programs exist to help them learn more about our country and our state in an effort to become a legal citizen of the United States.

I have fairly good writing and speaking skills, and I am comfortable in front of small groups. I enjoy collaborating on projects, including those requiring new ideas.

I was a member of the committee of Junior League whose purpose was to plan the first food drive for the Oklahoma City Food Bank. After a brainstorming session of 4 to 6 of us, (it was a small committee) I, being the lawyer I was, created a memo from my notes to be used for our next discussion. The memorandum was in outline form with bullet points and to my utter surprise and shock, the committee decided to take on all the ideas such that the first OKC food drive had a different focus for each day of the week, including a day for school children to contribute, a day for leaving food at your mailbox, a day to take food by your local fire station, a day to contribute at your local Safeway. As the years went on, the most successful of these days continued and the others were dropped. The Oklahoma Food Bank led the way in the area for leadership in how to promote community support. I felt my participation in the committee played a small role in that.

I am currently serving as President of SWFL Alumnae of Kappa Kappa Gamma. This group is the first nonprofit group I joined in Naples after a pledge sister who lives in Houston gave my contact information to a friend who has a home in Naples. I was immediately impressed with the friendships made so easily among the women who were members of chapters throughout the country, unlike in Oklahoma City where almost every member had graduated from the University of Oklahoma or Oklahoma State University. SWFL Alumnae is now a merger of Lee County and Collier County groups and my focus is to continue to find ways to increase the membership and the opportunities for fellowship despite the distance among our homes.
Trinity by the Cove Episcopal Church becomes more important in our lives as we learn more about its outreach. We participate in the Art of Giving and support the Sunday afternoon music concerts as a Friend of Music.
I usher at least once a month and recently have joined Altar Guild.

Oklahoma Art Center Association, women’s support group of Oklahoma Art Center, Board member and President
Oklahoma Art Center, Board member and Executive Committee (Secretary) , now Oklahoma City Museum of Art
University of Oklahoma, Board of Visitors College of Arts & Sciences, Chairman, Chair of Kaleidoscope Evening
Junior League of Oklahoma City, several committee chairmanships
All Souls Episcopal Church, Altar Guild, Musician for Children’s Chapel and Sunday School teacher
Casady School, Parent’s Group Newsletter editor, Book Fair chairman, and numerous volunteer committees
Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics, OSSM, Board member and founder of Awesome Friends More than 10 years
Oklahoma Lawyer’s for Children, Volunteer, Represented children who were put into Oklahoma foster care system due to negligence or drug addiction of parents. Included in several instances of following children through to adoption. 4 years
Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma Troop leader of low income middle school troop 4 years. I was joined by 2 other women and the three of us found a sponsor for each member of the troop (within 24 hours) to purchase a vest, Girl Scout manual and other support. We held a vesting ceremony that included the “creme de la creme” of OKC society holding a Girl Scout vest for a middle school girl who had no idea to this “nice lady” was. Those nice ladies loved the experience.

Board of Visitors College of Fine Arts, Chair of Once Upon A Dream

Connie has given much of her time to the communities in which she has lived. She is a very capable individual with a proven track record, both professionally and in her community efforts. She is also a delightful person to be around. She has a history of working well with others in getting things done.

Am still working for a real estate development company based in Oakland, CA

I had been very involved in my prior community in California. I recently moved to the Naples area and would like to understand more about the area and how things work here. I’ve been very impressed so far. My goal is to get more involved and find a way to contribute to the area over the next 20 years

I am CFO of a private real estate development company that has successfully operated for over 10 years. I was CFO of the same company when it was publicly traded. We sold the company to another public company and years later I led a group to buy it back privately.

In my prior community in Piedmont, California, I created and led a budget committee for many years and developed the philosophy and processes for better budgeting and planning in the town.
I also took over as President of my country club during covid due to illness of the sitting President and successfully steered the ship thru the pandemic

My background is in finance and so that always draws my interest. I not only ran a finance committee for my prior community but was also head of finance for my country club before becoming president.
Also, I am interested in understanding community growth issues given my background in larger scale real estate development.

I think my background in finance including municipal finance and long-term planning and budgeting fit into most organizations

My experience with my prior community, Piedmont, really started when there was a significant budget shortfall due to some poor project planning and management. I was assigned to a tax committee where two separate groups in the committee were at odds over how to proceed. Ultimately, I got all to agree on a report laying out recommendations to put the city back on a solid footing. The recommendations were adopted and included the formation of a budget advisory committee which I ran for 10 years and for which I ultimately received a community award. When I left the city had surplus capital and pension funding after suffering deficits for years, and we implemented a more rigorous capital planning process for the future.

My wife and I have had seven children together and recently moved to Naples to make our home for the rest of our lives. We have been very impressed with the area, and we would like to contribute to continue to make it a most desirable place to live.

Claremont Country Club – President
Piedmont Budget Advisory Committee – Chair
Piedmont Pension Fund – Chair

I have chosen to nominate Bill based on his character and experience. He has great leadership skills as evidenced by his achievements professionally, in the community and in his family life. He represents a composite background that matches perfectly to a profile for success in GNL and to make a meaningful contribution to Naples and Collier County post program completion.

Lived in Naples since 2000, moved from PA. Employed with Moorings Park since 2002.

I am interested in giving back to the community as well as, continuing to grow as a leader and learn from other distinguished members of our surrounding community.

Creating and building a new department of Wellness at Moorings Park. In 2007 I was chosen to be the first Director of Wellness at Moorings Park. I was able to lead our organization over the time span of 11 years in a Wellness philosophy which continues to play a significant role in our mission of successful aging. With that came a redesign of a small fitness center and later the creation and build out of the 38,000 square foot Center for Healthy Living. During my tenure I also successfully piloted, created and developed a thriving Personal Training program for residents and worked collaboratively with FGCU to integrate Exercise Science interns into the Wellness program which has continually helped to back fill our Exercise Specialists positions.

At age 50 I became a grandmother for the first time, however due to unfortunate circumstances revolving around alcohol and substance abuse by my daughter and her partner, at age 51 I became a grandparent raising a grandchild. I quickly had to realign my life and seek out resources in our county which I had no idea existed. As I muddled through I met so many grandparents in similar circumstances, many older than me and raising multiple children both here in Collier and Lee County. I realized grandparents needed support and resources and decided to initiate a county Task Force. The Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Task Force was created with many local non-profits involvement. After a year of meetings and preparations the first Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Support Group was held. Word spread and grandparents were even coming from Lee County. The group was successful but became too much for me to continue to organize and maintain. Luckily one of our community partners (Valerie’s House) stepped up and took the group over and it continues to provide support as needed to grandparents raising grandchildren.

Mental health, addiction, child advocacy, and seniors, dementia.

I enjoy facilitating groups, training, and making presentations. I am social, friendly and am adept a building relationships. I have experienced the results of the opioid crisis first hand and can relate to those who have been impacted. I have worked in the field of senior care, wellness and hospitality for my entire career and have a specialty in dementia training.

I was chosen by Moorings Park to lead and adopt our “Best Friends” dementia philosophy. This entailed creating a “Best Friends” Task Force and leading them through the strategies needed to implement the program. I worked closely with David Troxel, creator of The Best Friends Approach to develop campus wide training and signature programming that still exists today and is an integral means by which we care for residents who have neurocognitive impairmennts so that they feel safe, secured and valued.

As a professional in Collier County for over 20 years I have met many leaders who have inspired me, many of whom are residents at Moorings Park. I have always sought out mentors who have guided me, especially strong females. I hope to do the same for others. My mother was a former Rockette and owned a Dance School for over 50 years, so I grew up dancing which provided me with opportunities to dance in nursing homes as a child and see the joy it brought to those who we were performing for. This engrained in me a love for seniors and volunteering and it is the reason I chose my profession. This experience when I was a young child provided me with an invaluable foundation for life, it gave me confidence, empathy and an understanding of the importance of service to others. I hope to continue to evolve in these ways and pass on the love for community and service, to my 8 years old granddaughter.

Celeste is a special person. She combines a high level of efficiency with a very warm and approachable manner. Each person that engages her finds that she concentrates on their needs. Importantly,
she also has a Get Things Done approach which is delightful when it is your concern she is working on. I have always thought that you can obtain a sense of how a person would engage as a volunteer by how they behave in dealing with colleagues and friends. Celeste is hallmarked by her leadership qualities, her curiosity, and her ability to join together people of like interests and needs. That is the true measure of a volunteer! I have known many GNL candidates in my time and I can say that GNL would be proud to include Celeste among our Master Class members and would be even more proud when we see how she would reflect against the high standards of GNL service. I strongly recommend her acceptance as a Masters Class member.

I HAVE HEARD WONDERFUL THINGS ABOUT THE GREATER NAPLES LEADERSHIP PROGRAM FROM TWO FRIENDS THAT COINCIDENTLY WENT THROUGH THE PROGRAM AT THE SAME TIME. THEY’VE SAID THAT IT’S A GREAT WAY TO MEET INTERESTING, CIVIC MINDED PEOPLE AND GET INVOLVED IN THE COMMUNITY. THEY ALSO SAY IT IS A WONDERFUL CRASH COURSE IN ALL THINGS NAPLES – PAST, CURRENT AND FUTURE. AS A NEW NAPLES RESIDENT, GNL’S MASTERS PROGRAM SOUNDS IDEAL AND I WOULD BE HONORED TO BECOME PART OF YOUR NEW CLASS OF MEMBERS.

I AM RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL FINANCIAL, EMPLOYEE BENEFITS, INSURANCE AND GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE ASPECTS OF OUR EXECUTIVE RECRUITING BUSINESS.

I HELPED START AN EDUCATION FOUNDATION FOR OUR EIGHT K-8 SCHOOLS IN 2001, THAT CONTINUES TO THRIVE TODAY. THE GLENVIEW EDUCATION FOUNDATION WAS STARTED TO RAISE PRIVATE FUNDS TO SUPPLEMENT THE BUDGET AND GIVE FORWARD THINKING TEACHERS AN OPPORTUNITY TO APPLY FOR A GRANT, OUTSIDE OF THEIR CURRENT CURRICULUM, TO TRY SOMETHING NEW.

CHILDREN, EDUCATION, FOOD

I AM A FINANCIALY ORIENTED, ENTHUSIASTIC COMMUNICATOR WHO IS PRETTY GOOD AT GETTING OTHERS INVOLVED.

WE HAVE A SUMMER COTTAGE IN A CLUB IN WISCONSIN THAT HAS BEEN IN MY HUSBAND’S FAMILY FOR YEARS. THE CLUB HAD NEVER ALLOWED DOGS DURING THE SUMMER SEASON UNTIL I ORGANIZED AN EFFORT TO GET THE 125 YEAR OLD RULES CHANGED. I PULLED TOGETHER A COMMITTEE OF MEMBERS – BOTH DOG OWNERS AND NOT, WE DRAFTED RULES INTENDED TO ASSURE ACCOUNTABILITY, BEST BEHAVIOR AND RESPECT FOR ALL MEMBERS WHILE ALLOWING OUR FOUR LEGGED FRIENDS TO LIVE WITH US DURING THE SUMMER. WE RECEIVED APPROVAL TO RUN A 2-WEEK “TRIAL PERIOD”, WHICH WAS VERY SUCCESSFUL AND OUR RULES WERE SUBSEQUENTLY INCORPORATED INTO THE CLUB. I’M PLEASED TO REPORT THAT 65% OF CLUB MEMBERS NOW BRING THEIR DOGS TO THEIR COTTAGES.

PRIOR TO HELPING START OUR EXECUTIVE RECRUITING BUSINESS IN 2010, I HAD A FABULOUS 22 YEAR CAREER SPANNING CORPORATE AMERICA, INVESTMENT BANKING AND CORPORATE/COMMERCIAL BANKING WITH DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN BANKS.
I ENJOY TRAVEL, PICKLEBALL, GOLF AND BRIDGE.
I AM THE MOTHER OF THREE LOVELY ADULT CHILDREN.

JUVENILE PROTECTIVE AGENCY, CHICAGO IL VOLUNTEER & DONOR 1994-PRESENT

GLENVIEW EDUCATION FOUNDATION, CO-FOUNDER, 2001-2010
NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL – MIDWEST COUNCIL 2009-2019

I met Becky Holden when we founded the Glenview District 34 Education Foundation together 21 years ago. We have been friends ever since. I was immediately wowed by her intelligence, problem solving skills, and the easy manner which she used to generate enthusiasm in others for diverse causes. Becky is new to Naples and has just begun to consider where she will become involved. It seems to me that GNL was exactly designed for someone like Becky Holden. I enthusiastically recommend her to GNL. Any organization that has her on board will be incredibly fortunate.

After nearly 31 years of employment at Wyeth Laboratories in executive roles in Marketing and Sales, my wife Kathy and I and decided to live in our condominium at Lely Resort to determine if this was where we ultimately wanted to retire. After 3 months we decided that Lely and Naples were the locations we wanted to live. Although this move took us away from our family of two daughters and one son in law in Pennsylvania, we felt this was the best move for our lifestyle.

I am an avid tennis player and golfer. However, I always felt I could “do more”. I started volunteering at my Alma Mater, Villanova University, as an Ambassador for the Admissions Department. In this role, I was an interviewer for the prestigious Villanova Scholarship. In 2016, I was named Ambassador of the Year by Villanova. At this time, I was asked to be a part of the Villanova School of Business Mentoring program and was also on their advisory board. I mentored a student for 3 years and she has successfully moved on to Graduate School in Arizona.

In 2016, I was introduced to Champions for Learning in Naples and mentored a student for 5 years. We met on a weekly basis, and I provided a safe, understanding and accepting space for this young man.

My wife began to volunteer at The Shelter for Abused Women and Children in 2014 and in 2018 I joined her. We were named the Co-Chairs to The Shelter’s charitable event, “Mending Broken Hearts with Hope” in 2019. Included with this responsibility was the challenge to seek sponsors and funding in 2020-2021 during Covid. I have been active with The Shelter with its Gentle’men Against Domestic Violence (GADV) Men’s program and have taken a leadership role in the annual “Take A Stand” initiative. I believe because of the successful leadership with MBH, The Shelter has reached out to me to help in other areas. These include an outreach to faith-based organizations, as well as, securing retail organizations for donations to The Shelter’s Options Thrift Store. Over the past 2 years, I have been volunteering with The Shelter’s Grants Manager attempting to secure needed grants for The Shelter.

I view GNL as an organization that is constantly looking for leaders to help improve the quality of life for the Naples Community. I believe my passion and drive matches the mission of GNL, as I have always been viewed as a leader who seeks to help others, listens, collaborates, and resolve problems. Although I have begun my time in Naples volunteering at Champions for Learning and The Shelter, I feel I can learn and contribute more to the Greater Naples Community. With more retirees moving to SW Florida, there is a need to ensure that our community thrives. It is up to leaders like me who not only “know the way” but “go the way” and “show the way” to others. That to me is what GNL is about…an organization with high integrity, proactively examining the future Naples landscape and helping Lead the Way to a brighter Naples future.

I spent my entire career with a global pharmaceutical company called Wyeth. In my three decades with Wyeth, I was often charged with leading the organization to introduce new products to the US market. As the leader of a new product launch, I was required to bring together a very broad range of professionals, from both within the company and from the external medical fields. In those situations, I found leadership required a great deal of listening on my part. This prepared me to find a path to bring together the best of each discipline and craft a comprehensive and successful launch plan. At no time was I as challenged as with the introduction of a biological product called Enbrel. Enbrel was a product that would help revolutionize the care of rheumatoid arthritis patients. To realize that potential, I would first have to help Wyeth transform itself from a large, traditional pharmaceutical company into a multidimensional biotechnology leader. To accomplish this goal, I successfully partnered the efforts of our large pharmaceutical operation with those of a start-up minded, small biotech firm from the Seattle region. I integrated these very different teams and secured agreement on the challenging launch efforts. I accomplished this by keeping everyone focused on the brand and the transformative impact it could have on patients and our companies, rather than to let the teams focus on differences between our two companies. Enbrel proved to be the most successful product launched in 1998 and was one of the most successful products in the more than 150-year history of Wyeth. While there were real “miracle drug” characteristics built within Enbrel, it took the leadership of the people from our two companies to help bring that full potential to fruition. While success is frequently measured in terms of sales volumes. Enbrel’s success was evident in the number of lives changed and, in the change, it brought to our two companies.

After the 2020 Mending Broken Hearts with Hope (MBH) event, my wife, Kathy, and I were asked to co-chair the event for a second time. On March 12, the world changed with the COVID outbreak. Not knowing what the future would bring, we needed to lead our team of volunteers, and ensure them that the 2021 event, either live or virtual, was going to be a success for The Shelter. We had to be sensitive to the needs of the community. Seeking sponsorships and donations for silent auctions in lieu of ticket sales and the fashion boutique was going to be a challenge. This was a real test of our leadership – to keep our team focused and innovative in resolving this issue.
Once the decision was made to move forward with MBH in a virtual setting, we needed to be creative in our approach. We renamed the 2021 event as “Mending Broken Hearts with Hope from Home”. We continued to reach out to past sponsors and contributors, but we also needed to do more. We sought out new contributors to The Shelter, which included home interior designers and local furniture stores. We received much support from these organizations, with both sponsorships and donations. As a virtual event, we were limited in our ability for face-to-face interaction. MBH from Home was streamed from The Shelter website and viewers were able to receive the message of HOPE from CEO Linda Oberhaus. The success of our focused and creative team successfully helped The Shelter achieve their goal. We were very grateful to the Naples community for their continued support for The Shelter.

My time with The Shelter has been extremely rewarding. Although I have been involved with the procurement of funding for general operating needs, I feel my leadership has allowed me greater exposure for new opportunities. In my role with The Gentle’Men Against Domestic Violence, I have led a team of male volunteers to canvass several neighborhoods within Naples to raise awareness of The Shelter through our “Take A Stand Against Domestic Abuse” initiative. Champions for Learning enabled me to collaborate with the staff, to determine the best solution for my student. Both organizations have provided to me an exposure as to how I might be able to utilize my skills as a leader, marketer, and collaborator, to help bring about a favorable solution. Recognizing the many opportunities that GNL potentially offers to its graduates via the website listings, I would need to learn from these nonprofit organizations as to where my skills could best be utilized. I believe I have already proven this with my experience with both The Shelter and Champions for Learning.

I would describe myself as a leader with great empathy and exceptional communication skills. I pride myself on my ability to listen to others. I am an extremely positive person who brings great enthusiasm & commitment to any goal or objective. From my previous comments, I am a very goal-oriented person, and this has been demonstrated by my professional career at Wyeth as well as my volunteering at The Shelter.

When my wife and I bought our first condominium in Naples in 2004, we joined The Players Club and Spa (PCS) which is owned by Stock Development. During 2010 and 2012, Lely had a significant expansion of new housing developments. With this growth, the PCS exponentially grew with new members. Initially there were 7 tennis courts, 2 bocce courts and 2 pools at the PCS. The tennis community was growing more significantly than initially expected and court time became a premium for all players. This created a greater need for more tennis courts. A group of individuals from the tennis community met to determine what solution could be developed and how could Stock Development be convinced to invest in expanding the tennis facility, without increasing their revenue. I along with 4 other members, built a business plan to present to Stock management, to help them realize their goal of being “The #1 Lifestyle Community in SW Florida”. Our team suggested a new state- of- the art 13 tennis court and 6 bocce court facility be built. By doing so, Stock could validate their marketing of the PCS for the active lifestyle. Stock did not want to tear down the existing tennis facility. Our convincing presentation made the difference, as the PCS now boasts 13 tennis courts, 6 bocce ball courts and 2 pickleball courts. The new PCS facility was designed to include a “stadium court” for special events, which brings spectators from the Naples community. This state-of-the-art facility proved to be a win-win for Stock Development, as well the PCS members.

Villanova University, Mentor, 2016- ( current)

Villanova University. Ambassador for Admissions Department 2011-2016
Received Goodwill Ambassador for Villanova, 2016
Villanova School of Business Advisory Board Member, 2018-2021

I view David as a strong leader who is dedicated to helping others. This is demonstrated by his willingness to co-chair the Shelter’s major fundraiser and as a team leader of about 20 men during the Shelter’s week-long promotion of “Gentlemen Against Violence”. The Shelter’s management has also reached out to him to assist with fundraising grants. David has been a mentor for Champions for Learning. At his alma mater, David, was selected as “Ambassador of the Year” for his participation in scholarship and mentoring programs. He brings a great deal of enthusiasm and leadership to any assignment he accepts. While he is retired now, the skills he learned as a long time employee with a major drug company and his history of volunteering for good causes, these skills can be used to help organizations in Collier Co. I met with David and reviewed the time demands of GNL both for the first two years and the volunteering expectation of him thereafter. He is on board with this commitment and excited about expanding his volunteer leadership work.

We’ve had our condo for the past eight years. We typically used it for vacations and weekend get-a-ways until last June when I retired. Since June 2021, I’ve been transitioning into retirement by spending more time in Florida getting to know the people in our community, supervising renovations in our condo, golfing, boating, doing Pilates, playing Mahjong, walking and helping our daughter and son-in-law and two grandchildren relocate to Naples.

In November 2021, we sold our CT home and I became a resident of Florida. I am now ready and excited to become more active in the community and give back to those who can benefit from my experience.

Last winter, I had dinner with (my sponsor), a past graduate of GNL, his stories and enthusiastic support of GNL immediately peaked my interest. I subsequently spent time on your website learning about GNL and gaining an understanding GNL’s goals and objectives. I am extremely impressed with GNL and would love to become a member of this very influential and exciting organization.

As a new member of the community, being a part of GNL is a great way to learn about the history, culture and important issues surrounding the greater Naples area. I love the fact that the session delivery is varied and “hands-on”. The program also provides a great way to meet and network with experienced people who are curious and committed to giving back to the community. The icing on the cake is the access to GNL’s numerous board and volunteer opportunities. I am looking forward to actively volunteering and making a difference in the greater Naples area.

I also love the fact that participants are charged with designing and running a session for the following year’s class. I really enjoy developing and facilitating programs.

Transforming the culture at Hubbard-Hall, a multi million dollar privately owned chemical company.

As a member of the executive team, we identified the core behaviors we wanted employees to exhibit. The values became the basic building blocks for our culture going forward. The next step was to communicate the values and get buy-in from employees. I created and facilitated training for all employees to introduce and explain the core values. The training was fun and interactive and was followed up on a regular basis with a number of communication pieces and new processes that included the values such as:
1. We incorporated a core value discussion into the performance evaluation process to ensure that employees discussed the values with their managers on a regular basis.
2. We also incorporated the core values into our hiring process and asked behavioral based questions to see how candidates exhibited the core values in the past and determine their cultural fit.

The next step was to introduce The Growth Mindset based on Carol Dweck’s book. Using a growth mindset encouraged employees to try new things and step out of their comfort zone and grow. Using a Growth Mindset leads to:
Seeing failure as a learning experience.
Coping better with the challenges of life.
Recovering from from setbacks more easily.

Finally we introduced and trained all employees on Emotional Intelligence.

The results of this effort were rewarded by being name a Best Place to Work for 7 years.

Currently, I serve on the Board of Bristol Health in Bristol, CT my hometown. Bristol Heath consists of Bristol Hospital and its ancillary services. Bristol Hospital is one of a couple of small community based hospitals left in Connecticut. I am on a sub-committee called the Partnership Committee which is focusing on finding a larger Hospital to partner with going forward. We are still working on finding the right match, however, this initiative is imperative to Bristol Hospital continuing to serve the community needs going forward. This initiative is very important to Bristol and the community, and although not completed it is extremely important and I am sure it will be completed within the next year or so. I am very proud to be involved in this very important process.

I am interested in:
Hospital Board positions
Arts and Theater
Promoting and helping Women and Children
Environmental issues facing south west Florida

Being cheerful, hopeful, and enthusiastic.
Believing in what’s possible.
Expecting and contributing to positive outcomes.
Willing to take action.
Outcome focused with a desire to perform.

When I began my role at Hubbard-Hall, I introduced the Executive Team to a brand new process for Organizational Development . Initially it was treated with skepticism. It consisted of quarterly meetings to discuss:
1. Organization Structure
2. Key Organizational Issues
3. Talent Management Matrix
4. Succession Plans

The Executive Team soon saw its value and embraced the process and it became an integral part of how the organization was run and improved outcomes.

I just wanted to say that I am extremely interested in participating in the next Greater Naples Leadership Masters Program. I believe I will learn a lot and hope that i will eventually be able to give more than I received.

Thank you very much for your consideration and I look forward to my in-person interview.

Member of the Bristol Health Board of Directors 2016 – present
Member of the Bristol Hospital Executive Compensation Committee 2012 – present
Member of Bristol Health Partnership Committee 2021- present
Ambassador for the Bushnell Performing Arts Center – 2018 – present
100+ Women Who Care 2022 – present

Member of the City of Bristol’s Board of Ethics 2018 – 2021
CWC – Connecticut Women’s Council Board Member 2010 – 2016
SHRM – Society for Human Resources
HRACC – Human Resource Association of Central CT
Bristol Board of Finance Commissioner May 2010 – May 2014
Connecticut Fuel Oil Conservation Board Member– Appointed by Governor Rell 2008 – May 2011
Member of the State of Connecticut Workers’ Compensation Advisory Board Appointed by Governor Rell May 2010 – May 2011
Annual Gala Committee for New Britain Museum of American Art – 2 years.

She is bright, competent and extremely outgoing. She has skill sets which would be extremely useful to charitable organizations in the Naples area. Healthcare and women’s issues are key areas where she could add value. She would be an asset to any GNL class.

As a new resident of the Naples area, I would like to find ways where I can both learn more about the community and, more importantly, find ways where I can make a positive contribution to the community through my skills and experience. My engagement and leadership roles in other non-profit organizations have always been highly rewarding, and I believe GNL membership can likewise help me gain that knowledge and also hopefully identify some opportunities to be engaged with.

One of the most significant leadership contributions occurred while I was General Counsel and senior management team member during a period of time when the Consumer division of J&J ($15 billion in sales) was undergoing significant political, regulatory and legal scrutiny due to some product quality issues. I was able to provide calm and objective advice, analysis and support to our senior leadership team to help work through a series of recalls, media scrutiny, congressional hearings and financial challenges, as well as to help navigate the internal management and Board ramifications. While it served as one of the most stressful and demanding situations one might encounter in the business world, we worked through the crisis and I ultimately found it to be one of the biggest educational opportunities I ever experienced.

My role as Chairman of the Children’s Specialized Hospital Foundation, where I helped steer its critical relationship with it’s long-standing hospital partner during a time of extreme turmoil (the hospital partner was independent from the foundation and was being acquired by another large hospital organization). I was able to provide strong support to the foundation President on how we should operate in a changed world, where our relations with the hospital we had historically supported for over 100 years had deteriorated due to their desire to gain control over the foundation and its assets. Management of the Foundation Board also became much more complicated as the changing environment drove certain Board members to become disruptive, which ultimately led to my managing a board member out of the organization using a process that maintained the dignity of all the players and kept the Board operating as a productive team. My term as Board chair was ultimately extended by 2 years in order for me to continue helping our transition to a new relationship. Although this volunteer role historically took up little time, during my tenure it routinely represented almost 10% of my work day, which also required delicate balancing against the demands of my very full-time Chief Compliance Officer role.

Areas involving healthcare and also the performing arts are of greater interest to me given my background in both. More importantly, something that I can add value to, which may be in a completely new area I have little background in.

A seasoned executive with extensive leadership and advisory experience in both the business and the non-profit world. An ability to work and collaborate across diverse cultures (domestically and internationally) and operational areas. Highly practical and focused on identifying the most critical issues needing prioritization and attention where resources and time are always limited. A highly-respected and trusted ethical partner and leader.

I was asked to take on the role of Chief Compliance Officer to “fix” a global 500 person group that was not operating at the standards we wanted. I had limited background in compliance when I accepted the challenge, but understood from my own experience and from my due diligence with senior executives that the group operated more like a dictatorial policeman rather than a business partner helping to make our businesses successful and compliant. My first 12-24 months in the role involved not just changing and adjusting the mindset and standards of performance by my group, but also convincing our business leaders around the world to embrace our group as business partners. Lots and lots of communication tools within my group and within the business organization were involved, as well as significant in-person engagement around the globe. We got there but it was a journey and, given the nature of the function, will always be a bit of an on-going journey.

-Grey Oaks (Naples) Philanthropy Committee member (2020 to present)

-International School Services organization (non-profit based in Princeton, NJ); Board Member and Governance Committee Chair (2018 to present)

-Seton Hall University Law School (based in NJ); Board Member (2017 to present)

-Children’s Specialized Hospital Foundation ($100 million foundation) in NJ, Chairman of the Board and Secretary (2005-2018, termed out)

-Children’s Specialized Hospital in NJ (largest pediatric rehabilitation hospital in the US), Board Member (2013-2018, termed out)

(Just arrived in Naples to live in early 2022)

Having been here since early 2022 (minus the summer in Vermont), I’m already fascinated by Naples and how very differently it operates vs. the places I’ve lived in New England. I’m eager to learn more about all facets of the community – its business, government, environment, social services, educational system, non profit sector, and vibrant arts community, in particular.

I can see that although Naples’ local/ state governments are more efficient/effective than the local governments up north along many dimensions, there is no comparable “social safety net” down here, despite the clear need for it. There is such wealth, adjacent to communities where social/ economic needs are clearly pressing. I’m an “educator” in spirit and particularly love finding ways to help people realize dreams through education & learning, so am eager to contribute here.

I’m at the point where my professional work only takes up about 40-50% of my time, and is very flexible since I have my own executive coaching/ training business. The rest of life is an exciting “canvass” that I’m now blessed to be able to fill with meaningful activities. Most important to me is the chance to finally give back in a more significant way (i.e. with more hours & focus each week). I’ve had an extraordinary life with many opportunities/ much learning, and now I can finally devote a large chunk of my time to helping others build the same for themselves.

The timing of this application and chance to join GNL is perfect. I’ve only spent about 5 months so far living at our new home in Naples. I’ve been slowly “disconnecting” from my service activities in Boston (which I moved away from 18 months ago to move to Vermont). Now that all our geographic upheavals are in the rear view mirror – I’ve just started searching for new opportunities to give of my time & energy down here.

GNL sounds like the perfect organization to help me get to know my new home of Naples in a deeper way – and to help me connect with the right organization(s) to give my time, talents and resources to while I’m still highly energetic, healthy, and eager to engage & learn. I know I can make meaningful contributions – and would love to join a community of like-minded individuals who feel the same way!

Between 1998 and 2022, I pioneered a cost effective and innovative form of leadership development that has helped my clients — mostly mid sized organizations — overcome the problematic issues with 2 traditional types of leader development: namely, 1:1 executive coaching (which is too expensive to offer to more than a few lucky leaders) and “leadership training” (which can be expensive – and whose results are rarely “measurable” or tangible).

Because my leadership development approach was so innovative and focused on “real, measurable, next day behavior change” – I was brought into Harvard Business School to help rewrite executive leadership programs to make them less academic and much more practical and impactful, even in the short term. We dialed back on academic case studies and dialed up on self assessment and custom goals based on 360 feedback. We dialed up on learning new behaviors we all could “try on for size” in our real world leadership laboratories…later today or tomorrow. We measured leadership in a “before/ after” format so participants could tell whether they had improved in the eyes of their colleagues and direct reports over the course of our 8-10 month programs.

Here is an interview I did during a leadership conference with one of the Harvard Business School professors I worked with and taught alongside frequently: Professor Ethan Bernstein. I taught an HBS course with Professor Bernstein in 2017-2020 for hundreds of young leaders from around the world. In the absence of much funding for leader development – we taught these great executives how to “self develop” their leadership skills. This discussion with Prof Bernstein captures the flavor of our approach and was published as part of an online Harvard leadership forum during the pandemic: https://www.facebook.com/onlineHBS/videos/2064645823563469

I also co-authored a Harvard Business School Press learning ‘NOTE” with Prof Bernstein in 2019 titled: “Developing Yourself as a Leader: A Framework for Millenial High Potentials and Emerging Leaders: How to PACE Your Self-Development” (see https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=55451)

So I’m most proud in my career of giving leaders –at all career stages — an edge up on understanding themselves, their leadership approach, and how they can become significantly more impactful as professionals.

For 10 years, I orchestrated a program in Sudbury, MA whereby local children in families with limited resources were given backpacks brimming with colorful & practical school supplies each September.

This involved managing several groups of volunteers. First – those involved in collecting appropriate items to fill the backpacks – many of which were donated items from companies like Staples. Secondly – those involved in identifying children whose families’ economic situations meant that buying the annual set of school supplies was a difficult burden. And finally – those who “built” the backpack gifts , filling them with practical items (notebooks, pens, calculators) but also items that made learning more fun, such as vocabulary building puzzles books & illustrated dictionaries, fun containers for healthy homemade lunch items, and other age appropriate back-to-school items.

First – I’d love to get involved in ensuring the leadership of local non-profits is as strong as it can be. This might entail helping them to recruit volunteers or board members (pulling on my HR background), or might involve bringing the same sort of leadership development/ teamwork-building training to local non profits that I’ve brought to many companies during my career.

Secondly, after helping to produce & edit multimedia/ video materials for non profits / companies for over a decade of my life, I’d be eager to help Naples non profits to create powerful “storytelling” videos that bring their missions to life for more effective fund raising, awareness building/ advertising, or recruitment purposes. I’ve done this kind of communications work for schools, colleges, museums (such as Boston’s Museum of Science), and performing arts organizations in the northeast and would love doing this kind of work here in Naples with organizations in need of this kind of support.

Finally – I’ve always loved working “one to one” with individuals in need. As an executive and life coach, I love drawing people out, asking them powerful questions, bearing witness to their hopes/ needs/ difficulties, and co-creating strategies/ answers to their pressing problems. I also love creating environments where this kind of work can be effectively done by others. For example: I managed groups of executive coaches at Harvard. I’ve worked on a suicide hotline in Boston and then helped teach others to do the same kind of work.

Many people at my stage in life love exploring “places” via travel. For me – I’m mostly interested in exploring people….and their lives and stories. THAT is truly nirvana for me…not trotting off to distant locations. People are just too endlessly fascinating to me!

1 – organizing/ project management
2 – leadership development – with groups or individuals
3 – multimedia communications production (video, audio, online learning, etc.)
4 – advertising/ communications strategy (after 10+ years in advertising)
5 – teaching/ curriculum development
6 – one-on-one & group coaching skills
7 – nutritional counseling/ healthy food cooking/ planning

When I was at a small multimedia company between 2001 and 2006 (DigiNovations, in Acton MA), I pushed our ownership to develop an easy online technology which our clients could use to “teach” their customers or employees online. Such a thing was VERY new then – it was practically unheard of. There was “YouTube” but YouTube was all about putting up plain videos — not about creating an enriching, multifaceted, interactive online learning experience.

As background: I had worked from 1995-2001 in corporate learning, continually orchestrating learning sessions for the 500+ new hires we brought into our ad agency annually. From that experience (i.e. constantly begging the experts to come yet again to talk to ANOTHER new hire class!)….I realized how problematic it was for the same experts or inspiring speakers to have to be wheeled out again and again to speak to crowds of recruits, customers, or investors. These leaders (in for-profit organizations like TD North Bank as well as non-profits like the Appalachian Mountain Club)…were the very individuals who were the busiest with fulfilling their organizations’ missions. They just didn’t always have the time to speak to/ educate others!!

So my thought during those years in advertising was: could we somehow “bottle” the magic of leaders as they educated and inspired customers and donors and employees? So that they didn’t have to appear live quite as often – or say “no” to those wishing to learn from them? Unfortunately in the 90s we were still in the age of awkward VHS tapes – so video was still a clumsy, expensive solution – although we tried it!

But by 2003-2004 I found myself at a small video production firm with the appetite and resources to invent and patent a software to overcome this “can’t-always-get-the experts-to-speak-live-to-us” issue I had identified while in corporate education in the 90s. DigiNovations invented a digital solution that made it very easy and inexpensive for any organization to take video of any leader or educator…and marry it with powerpoint, a table of contents, a transcript, quizzes, and handouts for easy and interactive online viewing and education.

That product — at first called KnowledgeView– slowly grew in usage between 2006 and 2019, getting renamed KnowledgeVision (for companies) and “Knovio” (for education/ individuals) once venture capitalists got involved to back this innovative software.

Now, that formerly small firm that invented this product to fill my “dream” of making online education and knowledge sharing much, much easier…is known as “Open Exchange.”

During the Pandemic, Open Exchange exploded from 50 to 2500 employees. Its online learning software (which originally grew out of my dream) now fuels much online education work by teachers and students around the world (through “Knovio”), and also by non profits and corporations. In particular, the US’s biggest 10 Wall Street banks now use the Open Exchange software to reduce their annual carbon footprints by over 60%; they use it to host over 70% of their investor conferences and investor road shows.

It was incredibly exciting to “define the need” for a product like this back at DigiNovations almost 20 years ago – a product to to make this kind of online learning and knowledge sharing possible and enjoyable/ smooth…and has been even more exciting to watch its usage explode in certain corners of the US economy including K-12 education and Wall Street banking.

Given my backgrounds in advertising, teaching/ learning, and multimedia storytelling, I am very interested in finding new ways to tell and share the stories of Naples and its non profits to the betterment of this community. In particular -.those non profits who trying so hard to meet the needs of those in this community who are struggling.

I love GNL’s mission and how the organization is set up. I’m captivated by how it facilitates making Naples a better place to live for individuals at all ends of the economic spectrum. And I wonder if there is a way for GNL to keep innovating ever-more-innovative and effective ways to encourage a broader swath of Naples’ citizenry to get involved and to give of their time and resources. I’d be honored to help with this.

Revels – national performing arts non-profit organization – volunteer videographer/ video archivist (2000-2022)

Williams College, class agent/ fundraiser (2019-present)

Red Serenity EMF – do pro bono work helping families create safer, lower radiation environments for children/ adults (EMF measurement/ mitigation work)…one family at a time. Trained by Geovital (In Austria) for this work.

Boston Museum of Science – volunteer videographer, producer (2003-2009)

Samaritans crisis hotline – volunteer counselor (1996-2006)

Backpacks for Kids, founder/ lead coordinator, 1998-2009

Kirstin seems like a perfect fit for GNL — a new to Naples, semi-retired person who wants to learn and get involved in the community. She came to the Volunteer Fair with me and is actively assessing nonprofits she may want to support. Kirstin is an impressive leader with outstanding skills that any nonprofit would be happy to put to good use. I wish I could recruit her to serve on the GNL Communication Committee now! She is a people person who wants to meet others in Naples.

I have spent a number of Years supporting community programs to include Legacy Imperative, Florida Gulf Coast University, Vester Marine Research Center, and starting not for profit Boards. I also spent 18 months in doing research and writing a book.

To further hone my abilities and understand better the opportunities in the area to serve

40 years of health care leadership , 8 CEO ships and Chair of a hospital that treated the underserved.

Chair of a hospital that served a minority, underserved population in our nations capital.

Yet to be determined

Management, epidemiology, public health, strategic planning, corporate visioning, board structure, turn around

United Medical Center, a large primary hospital that had about 30 days left to operate and the team that I led was able to turn the hospital around in what The JCAHO called the most amazing change they had ever seen.

Legacy Imperative

Fund Raiser

Eric is a strong leader. He has capably founded and led the Community Advisory Board for the Vester Marine Field Station. His passion for the effort has raised the visibility and importance of the Field station within the still new FGCU Water School. Eric has engaged multiple key local resources to help with the Board activities and has been steadfast in assuring that the organization is run professionally. Along with his activities as Board Chair he is also the primary benefactor in the establishment of one of Vestor’s key initial activities. That is the effort to establish an artificial reef in the Gulf of Mexico located 8 miles off the coast at Wiggins Pass. This reef which had been in discussion for several years finally got the forward momentum it needed through Eric’s support (financial and sweat equity) and guidance. The Vestor experience is diverse with multiple influences from the scientific community, the academic community, local economic interests and of course fundraising. Eric engages effectively in all of these arenas.

Eric has a broad “bandwidth” and he shares interests with many other areas that are central to to GNL’s mission. He would be a great addition to the XXVII Master Class

Prior to 2021 I was working full time and my activities in Naples were recreational–golf, exercise, social events and lectures. I was also involved in a Bible study and small group at Covenant Church of Naples. I am now retired and as a resident of Naples desire to expand my interests and activities. Recently I discovered Champions for Learning. I look forward to being a judge for the “Shark Tank Project” through the Collier Public School Entrepreneurship Program.

In Chicago I have connections with several non-profit community organizations and understand the importance of using skills and resources in underserved areas. Now that I am a Naples resident I have the time and desire to become more active in this community. Several close friends have greatly benefited from GNL and encouraged me to apply.

Throughout 43 years of practicing medicine I have devoted much time and energy teaching and mentoring residents at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. As a professor of ophthalmology I was one of the first oculoplastic surgeons to develop this new subspecialty in Chicago. The position involved teaching residents surgical techniques, but also mentoring them in starting their own surgical practices and developing relational skills with patients and staff. Along the way, I held a variety of leadership positions In the American Academy of Oculoplastic and Reconstructive Surgery including Program Chairman, Secretary and Board Member. It has been very rewarding to see the society grow from 200 to over 800 surgeons.

Breakthrough is a nonprofit community organization in East Garfield Park, considered one of the most dangerous zip codes in the Chicago area. The vision of Breakthrough targets Holistic change in the neighborhood so success becomes the norm for every individual. For the organization, tutoring and mentoring students, preparing meals it the homeless shelter, and encouraging the incredibly devoted staff past 25 years I have had the privilege of being involved in many aspects of the work including fundraising, introducing donors to the leaders. Breakthrough’s work has literally changed the community and I have seen students grow up in the community, attend college, and then return to work in the neighborhood. As a result, violence has been reduced, the community has been revitalized and most of the volunteer duties are now being accomplished by neighborhood residents.

Because of my experience in medicine I have great interest in health care organizations and non-profits working with underserved people. I’m also excited about mentoring and encouraging students who want to pursue a career in medicine, which is not an easy path. In addition, I am intrigued by environmental issues we are facing in Florida. As a chemistry student in college I had the experience of working in an environmental lab developing a test to measure sustained solids and BOD (biologic oxygen demand) in waste water. This experience has peaked my interest in environmental issues in the Naples area, particularly water pollution and water conservation.

After a lifetime in medicine, I understand the complexities of the health care delivery system, hospital administration, and practicing physicians, and have the knowledge and patience to assist people in navigating the complexities of health care. I also enjoy teaching and mentoring students of all ages by helping them understand the learning process and how to tackle complex subjects such as chemistry and biology. The difficulty of the subject matter discourages many students from pursuing a career in medicine, however with proper academic assistance and much needed encouragement students can be prepared for the rigors of a career in medicine.

After 40 years of teaching and mentoring hundreds of interns and residents I have seen a transformation in their lives from academic students who understood their textbooks to surgeons who practiced the art as well as the science of medicine and truly cared for their patients. In a totally different setting, as a leader in Bible Study Fellowship, I taught a group of school age children how to study the Bible and apply the wisdom in scripture to their lives. I greatly enjoyed talking with them about their questions and seeing them grow in their understanding of various life issues.

Over the past 30 years I have been owner and president of a real estate company, developing apartment building complexes. It began as a family venture and became an enjoyable interest outside of medicine. I would be interested in exploring housing issues in the greater Naples area as well.

Breakthrough Urban Ministries, fundraising, tutoring, mentoring,1995-present
Circle Urban, fundraising 2015-present
Chicago Investors Society, member, 2022
Illinois and Florida Club, 2021-22

Hinsdale Golf Club, nominating committee, 2017-18
Rush University Medical Center, professor, 1980-2021
American Society of Oculoplastic and Reconstructive Surgeons, Secretary, Program Chair, Board Member, 1979-2021

Dan is a very engaging and social person. He had an outstanding medical career in Chicago. He was one of the top eye surgeons and medical professors in the Chicago land area. I could see him volunteering at the Neighbor Health Clinic or the Light House for the Blind. He has an avocation for real estate investment and is a knowledgable and long time investor. Dan is involved in our Entrepreneurship Program we have in the Collier County Schools. After retiring, he is now spending more time in Naples. This is a great time to expose Dan to the many organizations and volunteer opportunities here in Naples. Dan is a great guy and I consider a good friend. If chosen, Dan would be a great member and asset to GNL
I will always be thankful GNL for lighting the way to my volunteer path and wanted to pass the opportunity forward in recommending Dan.

My wife and I have been coming to Naples for family visits since the mid-1970’s. With retirement from our respective careers, we have spent more time here and in 2020 made the commitment to become Florida residents and spend the majority of the year in Naples. I spend my time with Junior Achievement (awaiting reactivation of this program) as a classroom instructor, Collier County Parks as a volunteer sailing instructor and as a part-time employee of Park Shore Marina. My wife is actively involved with the Garden Club of Naples and Naples Botanical Garden. We are golfing members of the Moorings Golf and Country Club.

I believe that I have skills, experience and enthusiastic commitment to offer the Collier community to define and enhance success. My career in investment banking and equipment finance offered exposure to a wide range of individual and organizational challenges in corporate, governmental and non-profit entities. Parallel to this has been a long-term commitment to volunteerism at the ground and governance level in a variety of settings over the past 50 years. Many of these have been focused on the care and development of our youth.

Early in my career, I was recruited by a Cleveland-based investment bank to join its young public finance department and specifically to establish a presence in the the growing field of tax-exempt bond financing for health care facilities. First I immersed myself in the legal aspects of the business at the state and federal levels with the view that my competitive edge would be industry knowledge. I was selling my own expertise as much as the firm’s reputation. My other edge was ethical behavior and I gained the nick name, the “Boy Scout”. Lastly, I developed a systematic program to enlist the support and referrals from the firm’s 20 branch offices in Ohio and Michigan, encouraging them personally and rewarding them for business generated. These efforts were quickly successful and in the third year I was made a General Partner. I spent the next 12 years successfully following this same approach and established the firm as an important player in this field of finance. Significant to me in establishing a practice of analyzing the competitive landscape, defining differentiating skills, executing the plan, adjusting along the way.

Midway in my tenure as a 19-year board member of Health Hill Hospital for Children, a non-profit children’s rehabilitation hospital, I recognized that the composition of the board, while “nice and comfortable” was not in any way diverse. I challenged that make-up and created a special committee to identify and recruit diverse candidates. Through my position on the Executive Committee and eventually as Board Chair, this was successful, adding people of color, race, religion and physical challenge. Simultaneously I developed a program for board members to study (with IRB approval) a patient family and report the results to the board. All of this was designed to close the gap in understanding between the board, hospital management and staff, patient families and the surrounding community. This ultimately led to intense strategic planning with the CEO and a fundamental shift in the mission of the institution from a narrow focus on physical rehabilitation to a broader view of pediatric health care, which included renal dialysis, a school for autistic children and primary care for patients and siblings.

I am particularly interested in education and the related topics of career planning and execution. This includes both the skills component and the motivational.

I believe that I have unique experience in board organization and how boards make decisions. These come from events which resulted in both success and disappointment. The latter is often the most meaningful and enduring.

I have significant experience teaching, starting with my duties as a Military Leadership Instructor in the U. S. Army and continuing throughout my career in the Public Finance business, educating my clients on the nature and benefits of using tax-exempt bonds to finance expansion projects. I spent considerable time as a mentor to high school entrepreneurship students and was a judge in business idea competitions. My career concluded with teaching positions as Lake Erie College and the Directorship of it’s Center for Entrepreneurship.

I served as a Board Member, Member of the Executive Committee and Board Chair during my 19-year service to Health Hill Hospital for Children, a 32-bed rehabilitation facility. This dual-accredited (CARF and JCAHO) institution was merged with The Cleveland Clinic to become the genesis for it’s Children’s Hospital.

In addition, I served as one of three independent Directors of a NASD-listed, airline industry service provider as it struggled with significant internal and external challenges.

I was promoted from Instructor in Finance and Entrepreneurship to Director, Center for Entrepreneurship, Lake Erie College and developed a more robust program for entrepreneurship students, focusing on the development of critical thinking and productive action.

I served for 8 years as a board member of the Entrepreneurship Education Consortium, a developer and coordinator of programs of among 11 colleges and universities in Northeast Ohio, funded by the Kaufman and Morgan foundations.

I am a co-founder of three equipment leasing companies. One for a health care device manufacturer/NASD listed equipment lessor joint venture, one for a NYSE listed medical device and accounts receivable finance company and one personally. As a borrower and lender I appreciate the challenges of large and small businesses and non-profit entities.

I have a long history of service to a wide variety of non-profit organizations principally focused on youth. The most recent actions were
1) the development of a business plan and financial forecast model for a maple syrup product being introduced by the local council in Northeast Ohio, with the promoted national rollout of a BSA branded line of products.
2) the development of a financial feasibility study for the planting of a vineyard and the resulting production of wine on property owned by the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Ohio.

As the Board Chair, i worked closely with the CEO in the organization’s transition from complete dependence on referrals from Northeast Ohio’s acute care pediatric providers and dependence on the largest referral source (63%) for physician staffing to a free-standing institution with its own medical staff and a care spectrum beyond physical rehabilitation. This included personally asking the board members from the three largest referral sources to kindly resign due to potential conflicts of interest. With the hospital’s CEO, designed and executed discussions with the CEO of the largest source as to our intentions and was assured that “..we will not do anything to interfere.” Six months later, that hospital announced plans to create its own rehabilitation facility. The CEO we had met with had been unceremoniously replaced. This led to a crisis response which ultimately resulted in a merger with The Cleveland Clinic.

Volunteerism is a personal commitment of time and energy which should result in positive relationships and positive change. My career has provided many lessons for learning to “plan plans, not outcomes.” I am an optimistic person who has some burned edges. I would call it cautious optimism. I like and trust people and have a good sense of humor. I follow the rules, but politely challenge those that hinder positive change. My normal response to a call for help is “what needs to be done?” I look forward to increasing my involvement as a volunteer in the Naples community during and after completion of the Masters Program.

American Red Cross Blood Donor (152 donations) 1975-present
Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Certified Ohio Boating Course Instructor (40 plus classes) 2008-2015

Boy Scouts of America Consultant 2018
Episcopal Diocese of Northern Ohio Consultant 2017
US Coast Guard Auxiliary Member 2007-2015
Entrepreneurship Education Consortium 2010-2018
ECITY Cleveland High School Mentor/Competition Judge 2008-2016
Painesville High School Mentor/Competition Judge 2008-2018
Health Hill Hospital for Children Board Member 1987-2006
Boy Scouts of America Council Advancement Chair 1987-1997
Boy Scouts of America Unit Leader 1979-1987
Cotillion Society Scholarship Fund Board Member 1975-1983
Jaycees Member 1972-1974

I admire Jeff’s personal leadership skills. He has a passion for volunteer community service. He has a long history demonstrating executive ability in his business career. He is passionate about early education and mentoring students in entrepreneurship. He will be an excellent addition to GNL.

We have been In Naples increasingly more often during the past four winters as my career winds down. My time has been largely split between working remotely and vacationing/snow-birding during that period.

As I wind down my commitments to WestView Capital and spend more of my year in the Naples area, I am very interested in learning more about the workings of Collier County, understanding where I can devote my time and leadership skills to make a difference in volunteer organizations in the area and meeting and networking with similarly like-minded leaders looking to help make a difference.

My most significant leadership contribution has been the co-founding of WestView Capital Partners, a Boston-based private equity firm. During our 19 years in business we have built a top-quartile performing fund that has worked with over 50 entrepreneur-led companies. During our involvement we have helped may of these companies grow by over 100%, helped drive strategies through board level involvement, recruited and rounded out senior management teams and driven operational improvements. As a result of our efforts, we have been named a top 50 founder-friendly firm, raised five institutional funds totaling over $2.5 billion with such institutional investors as Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, and The University of Notre Dame. Finally, as I transition to an advisor capacity at the firm, we have developed a next generation of leadership that will perpetuate the firm to the next generation.

I have been involved on The Paul Business School’s Board of Advisors at my alma mater, The University of New Hampshire, for the past decade. During that time, I founded and endowed the The Internship Opportunity Fund, a fund focused on aiding students secure and finance meaningful internships during their academic careers. Many UNH students are first generation college students who have never had the opportunity and confidence to work outside of the state. The Fund was founded with the idea of helping these deserving students access and accept meaningful internships in Boston, New York and other areas of the country with the knowledge that the financial burden of traveling, rent and other incidental expenses would be largely offset by a $2,500 scholarship which at a minimum would allow them to focus solely on performing at their internship and in many cases make the difference on whether the student could afford to take the internship at all. From my founding of the Fund, with the help of other contributors, we have awarded over 125 scholarships allowing students to access internships at such firms as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, PWC, as well as many non-profits across the United States and abroad. As a result of the students’ performance during these internships, over 80% of them were able to secure full-time offers.

Based on my experiences and personal background I would say areas that most interest me would include working with needy, be it housing, food, or other areas of need; helping the less fortunate access educational and employment opportunities and working with people struggling with recovery from addiction issues. My areas of interest are largely driven by previous volunteer work including the aforementioned IOF and my involvement with the Appalachian Service Project as well as through my personal family journey with my son who is now six years sober in his battle with alcoholism.

I believe my community work as well as my professional skills can positively impact the community. Among those skills I would suggest leadership, communication, organizational, mentoring, empathy, team-building and listening.

When I first became a board member of Apex Technologies, a leading healthcare revenue cycle business that we invested in 2012, the Company had a very sticky recurring customer base but was having trouble growing its new business. After careful analysis, I determined that the problem was in the compensation plan for the sales force which overly rewarded salespeople for the recurring nature of the revenue stream. The plan had the unintended consequence of demotivating salespeople to aggressively sell new accounts as they were quite well compensated as long as their existing accounts remained customers. I strongly encouraged the CEO and VP of sales to develop a new sales plan focused on new logos to drive growth. They were very apprehensive initially as they feared losing their current sales team at a time when we had just partnered with the Company. Through multiple meetings and calls I helped the team develop a new plan, but more importantly assure them that short term turmoil would pay off in the long run. We ultimately implemented a new sales plan, which did indeed result in losing a sizable portion of the sales team and a short-term dip in performance. We very quickly recruited a new outwardly focused team which ultimately led to driving the value of the firm from $40 million when we invested to $200 million when we sold the business five years later.

As I transition in my life from one that had been largely focused on my career and family, I am now looking for the next challenges in my life where I can devote my energies and skill set to more altruistic endeavors. An old mentor of mine once told me that your life is divided into thirds: the first for learning; the second for earning; and the third for returning. I recognize I have been very fortunate in my life to have had opportunities that have allowed me to develop a very useful and transferable skill set while rewarding me monetarily for my efforts. I feel I am now at the precipice of that third stage of life, returning, and want to really focus on where those efforts can make the most difference. I believe getting involved in GNL will give me much greater insights as to where to best devote my efforts in the coming years to make the greatest impact while allowing me to network with like-minded leaders who have reached a similar stage in their journeys.

The University of New Hampshire, Paul College Board of Advisors
2012-2022

Duxbury High School Advisory Council, 2008-2011
The Appalachian Service Project, 2007-2010
Turf Field Project, 2006-2208

I manage a 65 person golf group and John is one of the members. For that reason, I get a chance to meet many different personalities. There are a few men in the group that I feel have the fit for GNL. They are gracious, unassuming and always ready to help or assist as needed. In my conversations with John he understands that life is more than personal achievement, but to take what we know and what we have learned and make a difference in the lives of others less fortunate. He has shown himself to be man of strong values and character consistent with GNL service.

We bought a condo in Naples in 2012. I was an elementary school teacher and came to Naples for weekends and vacations. When COVID hit, I taught remotely from Naples in 2020 and retired at the end of the year. We have since moved to a house and made Naples our home. This is my third year spending the majority of the year in Naples.

While living in Boston, I was very actively involved in many volunteer activities and served on several boards. I am interested in becoming a GNL member to learn more about volunteer and leadership opportunities in Naples and get more involved in the community. I am also looking forward to forming relationships with community minded volunteers. I am newly retired and have a lot of energy and I am motivated to serve.

I was a leader at my elementary school. My principal regularly tasked me with mentoring new teachers, serving as the teacher liaison to parents and representing the school on various town committees. I started many new programs including a before- school exercise program and a midday meditation practice for students, which was eventually picked up by the whole school system as it was successful at reducing students’ anxiety.
The meditation program I am most proud of and the time and efforts implanting the curriculum was so fulfilling to me. As data has shown recently, meditating reduces anxiety with all ages. It is best to begin practicing while young like brushing your teeth. Most of my students, other colleagues and many others continue to benefit daily from this practice.

I served on many boards, but I consider my work at St. Columbkille Partnership School in the city of Boston as my most significant contribution. St. Columbkille was very close to shutting down. I got involved shortly after it’s near death experience as a Board member. I eventually became Board Chair. While serving as Board Chair, I was also serving on The Boston College’s Board of Regents. I leveraged my experience at both institutions to formalize a relationship, where Boston College made St. Columbkille the official laboratory school of the University. As Board Chair, I also helped conduct a national search for a new head of school, which resulted in bringing in a highly regard school leader from Chicago. Today, St. Columbkille is a thriving city school with true economic and racial diversity. Test scores are above grade level and enrollment and fundraising are at all-time highs.

I have several areas of interest. Mainly I would like to leverage my experience as an educator. I am also interested in serving the underprivileged in regards to food, shelter and mentoring. As a cancer survivor, I also have interest in this area and many organizations often are grateful from any help from survivors who could support cancer patients through their treatment.

I am very organized, a hard worker and a good leader. I have an extensive background in education and athletics. I am motivated and willing to do everything from working on the front line to being a committee member to a Board member and then Chair. I was very flexible with various tasks assigned to me and always willing to pitch in.

Above I spoke about St. Columbkille School becoming the official laboratory school of Boston College, while I was Board Chair. There were significant and legitimate concerns from all groups involved including University officials, school leadership and teachers and the parents of the students. This required a lot of listening and leadership to allay each group’s concerns. It was a large undertaking and team effort and I am proud of the role that I played and more importantly the results, where many people’s prospects and lives have been improved.

I have had the “volunteer” bug as long as I can remember. I love giving back with a “boots on the ground” mentality. My husband and I also provide financial support to many local and national organizations but I feel it is also important to get involved at the ground level and to help people one-on-one. Naples has so many underserved needs not openly visual to many. But the need is great.

Boston College Board of Regents 2018- current, board member,

Saint Columbkille Partnership School Brighton MA- Board Chair 2016-2020, Board member 2011-2020
Saint Joseph’s Elementary School Needham MA 2016-2018 Board member
Needham Pool and Racquet Needham MA Board President
2000, Board member 1998-2000
Needham Education Foundation, Board Member, 2010-2018
Boston College Alumni Association, Board Member, 2013-2016
Boston College Council for Women, Chair, Student Advisory Board, 2013-2016

Peggy is one of those people who you like immediately. She has a very engaging personality, is energetic and sincere. She’s very outgoing and inclusive; never holds back from any task. She’s a kind person who shares her generosity of spirit readily.

Last year I talked to her about GNL. Unfortunately, it was too late for me to nominate her for Class XXVII. As soon as she and her husband returned to Naples, we got together and here’s her application!

She is just retired! The perfect person to become a GNL member… Even though she “knows” Naples, she’s really looking forward to finding out more! I love her willingness to stretch her horizons by volunteering in our community. You will see that from her long list of community work, she will be a tremendous asset here in Naples.
I have talked to her about my wonderful experiences going through the Master Class program and she lights up with excitement at the prospect that she, too, could experience this.

I cannot recommend Peggy enough … she will be the star of her class!

Community education and involvement is very important to me. I am from a smaller village in upstate NY, Skaneateles, and lived there for over 30 years. It will always be a part of my soul as I was very involved and part of the community. I wish for the same integration, involvement and ways to contribute and make a difference while living in Naples, which is my new hometown. I was speaking with my friend who is a member (& my sponsor) for GNL, and in conversation, she told me about GNL & we both felt it was exactly what I was looking for and needed to achieve being involved and to feel a greater sense of purpose here. I am super excited to learn more of the history, environmental issues which we face and ways to contribute to this great small city!

Although I am a realtor for my career; for many years I taught yoga and lead retreats, both domestically & internationally. Teaching yoga to others has been my most significant career leadership contribution as I have made a profound, positive difference in many people’s lives. With yoga, I teach full spectrum wellness: yes, physically, how to become stronger, better balanced and more supple, along with ways to heal the body, but perhaps more significantly are ways I have helped others to overcome obstacles of lacking in confidence and to move towards their full potential.

I was on the board of Skaneateles Festival for several years, which is a non-profit organization that brings incredibly talented musicians to play in the summers. When I was involved many years ago, the festival was in its infancy stages and it was wonderful to be a part of its tremendous growth. The Festival now brings in such talent as Wynton Marsalis, Hilary Hahn and The Silk Road Ensemble to mention a few. I am still an active member of the Festival, but no longer on the board

The environment gives me great concern. It is very important to me to learn more about our environment, red tide, and building which can effect our environment. I also am a lover of music and culture and would like to see more growth in this area. And of course, wellness is my passion.

I am a great communicator and connector of people. I am energetic and practice positive wellness which I put into all that I do. I am a creative thinker.

Besides yoga, which when I teach brings change to all, in some manner or another; our neighborhood was flooded out by Hurricane Ian. I live in a small community of 20 individual homes but we are in a Condo association. As is natural with a disaster of this magnitude, the emotions that one experiences with a lost ran the magnitude. I believe that I was quite influential to pull us together and to work towards rebuilding our homes and making our little street the sweet gem which it was. I was the best communicator amongst us, responding to group texts and spreading positive hope. My neighbors have asked me to run for president of our association which I have agreed to do. The new term begins in January, 2023.

Clean water is my passion. I like to boat, swim and play in the water. I am a lover of nature. I also crave creativity. I enjoy adventures, travel and new experiences.
I had a home furnishings store for 9 years in Skaneateles, NY, which specialized in antique pine furniture which I hand selected while in Denmark and imported to my store, called “Windward Passage”
I created a line of white linen clothing trimmed with European lace called “Linen Dreams”. I am friends with Tommy HIlfiger and he was kind enough to help guide me through this process.
I also created an online business, called Scarlet Ribbon, that sold designer jewelry and accessories marketed towards men for their spouses’ birthdays and anniversaries.
I am a mother of one son, Sam, who resides in LA and has his own successful product design company.
I’m an innovator who likes to make things happen and would very much like to be an active member of GNL!

Bonita Arts, Volunteer

Skaneateles Festival Board Member, 2010-2014

Susie is a wonderful person who truly wants to help people and be more involved in Naples. She is a proven leader in her community in Naples and Skaneateles. She is a strategic and creative thinker and has an incredible ability to motivate and inspire people. When I spoke with Susie about my experience so far with GNL she became very excited and said that she was searching for something exactly like that. She has determination and a strong work ethic and I know she will be a great asset to the community.

Retired but active within local community on committees such as finance and seawall. Having just completed a remodel of our home, I’m interested in exploring other community activities.

I think it’s always important to be aware of the community environment and to find ways in which to engage. I have a passion for helping people to see opportunities, especially in the areas of business growth and personal development.

Seeing and identifying potential. Building foundations through careful planning and execution.
My greatest test of those skills was in turning around a company that had been purchased over 4 times in eight years, had a major product failure, lost trust within their customer base, and a demoralized staff of over 400 people.

I was president of a site council for a large middle school, and during that tenure, I developed a private fund raising effort. I was fortunate to be involved with the school when it was awarded a National School of Excellence award and went with the Principal and number of students to Washington DC to accept that award. I was a member of the University of Minnesota Advisory group to the Dean during a major transition in the Department of Computer Science, I was a member of the business council at the United Nations which worked to provide reaction to UN initiatives from the US business business perspective.

I am interested in contributing to improvements in the community in the areas of safety, growth, and affordability for all sectors of the population. I’m especially concerned about retaining excellence within our police, fire and teaching resources, as well as providing housing for those who serve the community.

Leadership, knowledge of key factors in business growth, communication and project leadership.

One of the most exciting opportunities of my career was to provide the leadership, motivation, and plans to bring about rapid change in a failing company.

David has not only had many and diverse business experiences, but he is focused on giving back to the community. He is patient, dedicated to quality and process improvement for long term success. He can make exceptional contributions to any project/ organization!