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leadership

Prior to April 2021, we were run 100% by volunteers since 2013.

Leadership

Liz Duggan, MBA

Founder & Executive Director at Amenity Aid

After donating hotel amenities to shelters and discovering the high demand for hygiene supplies, Liz Duggan founded Amenity Aid in 2013. Serving in-need individuals and families throughout Rhode Island, Amenity Aid distributes toiletry necessities through its network of direct service agencies, schools, and community groups, similar to how a food bank distributes food. Liz became Amenity Aid's first employee in April 2021 and has continued to lead the organization through major growth.

Previously Liz was the Director of Marketing for the Institute for Operational Excellence, a corporate training firm specializing in operational transformation. Liz holds a Master of Business Administration from California State University, a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Salve Regina University, and has taken several continuing education courses in graphic design at the Rhode Island School of Design.

Gallup CliftonStrengths: Achiever, Restorative, Futuristic, Ideation, Focus.

Board of Directors

President

James Rajotte, MS

Director of Strategy and Innovation at the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services

Mr. Rajotte serves as the Director of Strategy and Innovation at the Rhode

Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services. Within his role, James

oversees the development of comprehensive, whole-of-government

strategies within three priority areas: (1) social determinants of health, (2)

addiction and behavioral health, and (3) continuums of care. In partnership

with the Secretariat and its member agencies, James brings the lenses of

voice, choice, and equity to each strategy and strategic initiative. Current

areas of focus include housing, post-pandemic recovery, place-based

investments, proactive communications, and performance management.

James was recently named 40 Under 40 Nationally in Public Health by the

DeBeaumont Foundation and 40 Under 40 in Rhode Island by the

Providence Business News.

Gallup Clifton Strengths: Futuristic, Individualization, Developer, Significance, Competition

Secretary

Kelly West

Senior Systems Analyst and Wellness Committee Chair at Beacon Mutual Insurance

Kelly first became aware of Amenity Aid through her work with the Amy Gallagher

Foundation as Event Coordinator for their annual fundraiser in 2017. In 2021, Kelly

joined the Community Outreach Committee for Amenity Aid as a way to be able to help

give back to the community. Empowered by the impact made by Amenity Aid through

her work on the Community Outreach Committee, Kelly increased her contribution by

joining the Board at Amenity Aid in 2022.

Kelly holds a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems from New England Tech. She

works as a Senior Systems Analyst in the IS department as well as serves as a co-chair

on the Wellness Committee at Beacon Mutual Insurance in Warwick, RI. Kelly also

shares her love of wellness by serving as a fitness instructor at ONE Strong RI in

Harmony, RI.

Gallup Clifton Strengths: Discipline, Input, Responsibility, Individualization, Strategic.

Vice President

Stacey Silva

Owner, Silva Consulting for Organizational Advancement

Stacey Silva is a life-long Rhode Islander currently residing in West Warwick. She owns Silva Consulting for Organizational Advancement, providing development, fundraising, and organizational consulting for nonprofit organizations and small businesses. Stacey began volunteering with Amenity Aid in 2020 as a member of the gala planning committee. Since then Stacey has been involved in several projects, including coordinating Amenity Aid’s involvement in Stand Down Weekend during summer 2020, fundraising, grant writing, and inventory management. Stacey brings experience working with non-profit organizations as the former community service coordinator for the Citizens Bank compliance department and volunteer for Dress for Success and Foundation Blue. Stacey holds a Bachelors degree in History and Anthropology from the University of Rhode Island, where she was a founding member of Zeta Epsilon Tau Alpha, a local sorority with a focus on philanthropy and volunteerism. Stacey also holds a Master of Science in Human Development and Family Studies/College Student Personnel from the University of Rhode Island and a Masters of Science in Business Management from Salve Regina University.

Gallup Clifton Strengths: Woo, Communication, Activator, Positivity, Strategic.

Treasurer

Elizabeth Desautel, CFP®

Banker, Vice President at J.P. Morgan Private Bank

Liz (Demers) Desautel, CFP® is a Banker in the Boston office of J.P. Morgan Private Bank. In her role, Liz delivers holistic advice and guidance, helping individuals and nonprofit organizations build and preserve wealth for future generations.

Prior to joining J.P. Morgan, Liz was a Senior Portfolio Management at TIAA Private Wealth Management and advised high net worth clients in Boston, Upstate New York and Providence. Prior to this role, she was an Institutional Portfolio Strategist at Bank of America Private Bank in Providence and Chicago. In this capacity, she worked with non-profit Boards and Finance Committees around the country focusing her significant capabilities on investment strategy design. She worked diligently to refine Policy Statements, structure investment portfolios, establish spending policies and be an impactful resource to her non-profit clients.

A native of Rhode Island, Liz received her B.S. degree from the University of Rhode Island. She went on to receive her Masters in Business Administration. Liz is a Certified Financial Professional (CFP®).

Liz is an active member of the Finance Committee for St. Mary’s Academy Bay View and serves on the Women Leadership Council for the University of Rhode Island. She also volunteers as a Mentor for Social Enterprise Greenhouse. She recently helped to launch the newly created JPMorgan New England Volunteer Initiative.

Gallup Clifton Strengths: Empathy, Includer, Arranger, Relator, Harmony.

Members of the Board

Robin Dionne

Co-Owner

Ampersand Creative Co

Robin Dionne is a Rhode Island based communications professional and the co-owner

of Ampersand Creative Co, a communications agency that produces large-scale events,

including RI VegFest, The Good Trade Makers Market, Little City Thrifty, and is a partner

in Bloom Flower & Home. She previously served as the Chief Public Affairs Officer at

HealthSource RI, as well as the Director of Outreach and Client Relations at the Arcade

Providence, Communications Director for The Lady Project and TEDxProvidence, the

Communications Director and Legislative Chair for the Rhode Island Chapter: National

Organization for Women (NOW), and as a member of the NOW national board. A

published poet, she loves writing, reading, vintage motorcycles, pugs, and working on

Little City Love Scene, a local literary/comedy event series.

Gallup Clifton Strengths: Achiever, Strategic, Individualization, Learner, Input.

Lammis Vargas

Deputy Secretary of State

Director of Administration to the Office of the Rhode Island

Secretary of State

As a member of the senior leadership team, she is responsible for leading the Department of State’s administrative functions, including the divisions of Business Service, Elections, Personnel and Finance, Public Information, the State Archives, and the State Library. In her roles, she manages these Divisions in a way that the Department of State engages and empowers all Rhode Islanders by making government more accessible and transparent, encouraging civic pride, enhancing commerce and ensuring that elections are fair, fast, and accurate.

Gallup Clifton Strengths: Includer, Positivity, Futuristic, Responsibility, Arranger.

Deb Honor

Development Director, Women's Fund of Rhode Island

Debra Honor resides in Franklin, MA. She is the Development Director of Women's Fund of Rhode Island. This nonprofit invests in women and girls, which is perfect for Deb, because throughout her professional career, Deb has fund-raised on both a personal level and a professional level. She was the first fundraising coach for the Avon Walk to End Breast Cancer in 2017 to raise $1,000,000 in 3 short months. Personally, she is currently the Team Captain for The Jimmy Fund Walk in Boston and has raised thousands of cancer crushing dollars with her team!

Deb was first introduced to Amenity Aid during her Leadership Rhode Island experience with Liz in January, 2022. She was immediately drawn to the mission...and was so proud to be part of a team building activity with her colleagues to support Amenity Aid! After attending the fundraiser, she knew that this was an organization that was near and dear to heart!

Deb received a Bachelor degree in Music Education. Her instrument is her voice which she continues to use singing weekend masses, weddings and funerals at Most Precious Blood Church in Dover.

Gallup Clifton Strengths: Woo, Adaptability, Positivity, Communication, Futuristic.

Norelys Consuegra

Director

Mayor's Center for City Services

Norelys R. Consuegra, a native of Rhode Island, is the Director of the Mayor's Center for City Services for Mayor Brett Smiley. Previously, she served as Deputy Director of Elections for the Rhode Island Department of State. She received her bachelor's degree in political science and Spanish from the University of Rhode Island in 1996 and her master's degree in international relations from Salve Regina University in 2012. Prior to her work in elections, she spent 20 years as a Senate aide for U.S. Senator Jack Reed. Norelys is the recipient of the Ralph Gabellieri Service Award from Goodwill Industries of Rhode Island, has been recognized as a Diversity Ambassador by the State of Rhode Island, received the Extraordinary Women Award for Community Work, and has been recognized by RI Latino Public Radio, the National Archives and Records Administration, and Telemundo Providence for her collaborative work in the community. She has received numerous letters of commendation from Rhode Islanders thanking her for her service and support.

In addition to her full-time job, she is an adjunct professor in University College at Roger Williams University. She is a 2022 graduate of Leadership Rhode Island, Sigma II cohort, serves on the Advisory Board of the Center for Civic Design (CCD) and the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL), and is a 2014 graduate of New Leaders Council. She has been deeply involved in community service as a past member of the Rhode Island Latino Civic Fund, where she served as the Program Coordinator for the RI Latina Leadership Institute (LLI), was a former Secretary for the Pawtucket Youth Soccer Association (PYSA), and has volunteered with many Rhode Island organizations. Her most recent community involvement has been raising awareness for congenital heart defects. In 2017, Norelys' son Tristen was born with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS). Each February, she joins members of the RI General Assembly in recognizing and celebrating Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week. She is a passionate advocate for communities of color, the immigrant community, and the LGBTQ+ community, and enjoys teaching others about the importance of civic engagement. She resides in Johnston with her husband, Salvador, and their three sons, Gabriel (22), Ashten (13), and Tristen (5).

Gallup Clifton Strengths: Input, Strategic, Communication, Achiever, Ideation.

Liz Duggan, MBA

Founder & Executive Director at Amenity Aid

After donating hotel amenities to shelters and discovering the high demand for hygiene supplies, Liz Duggan founded Amenity Aid in 2013. Amenity Aid, the only hygiene hub in Rhode Island, distributes toiletry necessities state-wide through its network of direct service agencies, similar to how the food bank distributes food. Amenity Aid was volunteer- run for eight years until Liz left her marketing career in 2021 to focus solely on growing Amenity Aid as its first employee. Over the next two years, she led the organization to remarkable success, growing revenue by 81 percent, building a staff of four, expanding the board and bringing in new leadership, and moving Amenity Aid into a 6,000-square-foot facility. Now in its 11th year, Amenity Aid is on track to serve 110,000 Rhode Islanders this year by distributing 159,000 full-size hygiene products and 23,000 travel hygiene kits.

Amenity Aid’s program has been nationally and locally recognized, appearing in Parents magazine and Forbes Travel, and has received the 2022 United Way Rhode Island’s 211 Partner of the Year Award as well as the 2023 Rhode Island Foundation’s Honoring Best Practices Award for Innovative Programming and Service Delivery.

Previously, Liz was the Director of Marketing for the Institute for Operational Excellence, a corporate training firm specializing in operational transformation. Liz holds a Master of Business Administration from California State University, a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Salve Regina University, and has taken several continuing education courses in graphic design at the Rhode Island School of Design. She is a graduate of Leadership Rhode Island’s 2022 Sigma II class.

2023 Advisory Board

Daniel Holmander

U.S. Registered Patent Attorney; Co-Chair Intellectual Property Group

Adler Pollock & Sheehan P.C.

Area of expertise: Legal

Jerome Williams

Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration (retired)

Roger Williams University

Area of expertise: Finance

Tricia Forte, Esq

Hackman & Phillips Elder Law RI LLC

Area of expertise: Legal

Lori Viner

Human Resources Manager

The Children's Workshop

Area of expertise: HR

Peter Rodriguez

Vice President Manufacturing Drug Substance Operations

Amgen

Area of expertise: Manufacturing

Jay Gildea

Finance Director

Project Weber/RENEW

Area of expertise: Finance

Joe Agresta

Vice President

AIPSO
Area of expertise: Management

Previous Board Members

Board Member, 2020-2022

Rachel Armentano, a North Kingstown resident, began volunteering for Amenity Aid while on maternity leave. She would make deliveries to organizations while her two young children napped in the car. Since then she has sorted and stickered, organized drives and events, and joined the annual fundraising committee where she launched the successful Stock the Shelves program. Rachel is an artist, designer, and most importantly, an art educator and service-learning advocate. She moved to Rhode Island for the second time in 2013, to teach at Rocky Hill Country Day, and is now on the path to opening her own community-based art studio for children and families. She holds a Masters in Art Education from Tufts University and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston as well as a Bachelor of Science in Studio Art, Art History, and Anthropology from Skidmore College, and studied with the School for International Training in Ghana.

Board Member, 2022

Peter Rodriguez joined Amgen Rhode Island site leadership in July 2019, responsible for the AR5 manufacturing plant. Peter also serves as executive sponsor for the New England chapter of the Amgen Latino Employee Network (ALEN).

Peter joined Amgen in 2012 as Engineering Director for the AML6 drug substance plant at our AML site. In 2014, he became the AML Director of Environment Health and Safety and Sustainability. Peter moved to Amgen Singapore in 2016, as Director of Manufacturing. Peter promoted to executive director plant manager in October 2016. In this role, he led the successful stabilization and commercial ramp-up of Amgen’s 1st Next Generation Biomanufacturing plant, ASM1.

Peter has over 30 years of leadership experience. Prior to Amgen, Peter led large organizations in pharmaceutical chemical, solid dosage, and medical device operations, for companies such as Boston Scientific, Eli Lilly, Edwards Lifesciences, and Patheon.

Peter has a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico, and a master’s in business administration from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, with a Major in Financial Management.

Board Member, 2013 - 2021

Rebecca has been a dedicated board member since the charity’s incorporation. Leading many projects, Rebecca has coordinated student volunteers, served on the planning committee for the annual fundraiser and organized the collection and distribution of toiletry products. In addition to her role with Amenity Aid, Rebecca is an engaged high school history teacher, cross country coach, and mentor. She holds a Bachelor of Science in History from Stonehill College and a Masters in Education from Fitchburg University.

Board Member, 2013-2019

A passionate supporter of Amenity Aid, Katie served on the board for six years. From driving donations to shelters, handling administrative tasks to taking an active role in planning the annual fundraiser, Katie managed tasks in all areas of organization. In addition to her volunteer work with Amenity Aid, Katie is a teacher a Gladstone Elementary in Cranston, Rhode Island. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Education from Endicott College and a Masters in Literacy Education from Roger Williams University.

Board Member, 2013-2016

Amy Gallagher served as a mentor influencing the development and growth of Amenity Aid in its early years. Providing valuable introductions to local nonprofit leaders, Amy leveraged every connection she had to ensure the success of Amenity Aid. A key driver behind donor development early on, Amy hosted Amenity Aid’s first fundraiser in 2013, a private wine tasting at her home for her friends, neighbors and colleagues.

Amy’s professional background in healthcare and sales extends 26 years. Her most recent role was vice president of major accounts at Hilb Group New England (Cornerstone Group). Amy Graduated from Bryant University with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and a Master in Business Administration. Before her passing in 2018 Amy retired from Amenity Aid's board to pursue the development of the Amy Gallagher Foundation, a nonprofit charitable trust singularly focused on adult brain cancer.