Maggie Silverstein moved to Santa Barbara from Connecticut in 2021. Before she recently retired, she worked in state and local government and marketing communications in Oregon, and in non-profit arts management and education in Connecticut. She lives with her husband and has two grown daughters who live too far away.
Mary Ellen Kullman, M.P.H.,C.H.E.S. retired from the Archstone Foundation in June of 2022 where she was the Vice President for twenty-seven years. She was also the Chief Financial Officer and Secretary of the Board of Directors. For the five years prior she was the Manager of Preventive Health Education for Southern California Edison. Mary Ellen also served as the Vice President for Medical and Educational Programs for the Arthritis Foundation, Southern California Chapter for 6 years. Mary Ellen received her Bachelor of Science and Masters of Public Health from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.
Melissa Devor has lived in Santa Barbara since 2009 and wonders why they didn’t move here sooner. Her career path has been varied but always in the non-profit sector. She began in healthcare, moved to academia, transitioned to museum work and is now back in healthcare. Melissa is married with three sons, two dogs, and one granddaughter.
Michele was born in Central New York State in 1962, and attended Georgetown University to pursue Intl. Economics and German and rec’d a Fulbright to study and teach in Vienna, Austria for 2 years. Subsequently, she worked in NYC, where she earned an MBA from New York University and eventually became a Vice President for Citigroup’s Private Bank. Michele transferred to San Francisco with Citigroup in 1992 and moved to Santa Barbara in 2005 with her husband, Andre, who passed away recently. Michele maintains her status as a Certified Financial Planner and does some work for friends and family. She is a board member of the Community Arts Music Association; a sustainer in the Junior League; and a Daughter of the American Revolution. The 2021/22 research cycle will be her sixth year serving on this Women’s Fund committee. Michele also enjoy tennis, baking, reading and loving her Havanese, Brody.
Patricia moved to Santa Barbara after graduating from Cornell University with a BA in art history and a BFA in painting. She worked as a self-employed flooring contractor here for 26 years. After selling her business in 2001, she started a new and rewarding career as an English as a second language (ESL) instructor for SBCC Adult Education. She retired from teaching recently and continues to manage local rental property on a part-time basis. She served on the board of Santa Barbara Middle School for 5 years and has volunteered for The Foodbank for 2 years. She enjoys her four children, their spouses, and one grandchild all living close by. She and her retired husband, Mike, love to travel the world.
Becky and her family recently relocated to Santa Barbara following 35 years in Denver and Charlottesville, Virginia. She holds a masters and PhD in Social Work and worked in the social services field before serving as a public policy analyst in health and mental health for the National Conference of State Legislatures. Becky currently directs family foundation efforts to address support service, housing, education, and health/mental health concerns. She’s been a member of the Women’s Fund since 2020 and joined the Research Committee in 2022.
Robin joined the Women’s Fund in 2017 and the Research Committee in 2018. She moved to Santa Barbara in 2006 after living and practicing law and mediation in Ithaca, NY for nearly 40 years. While in Ithaca, she served on the boards of many local nonprofits, often in leadership positions, including Planned Parenthood, Ithaca Rape Crisis Center, Neighborhood Legal Services, Community Dispute Resolution Center, and culminating as Chair of the Board of the Community Foundation of Tompkins County. She also served on and chaired several grant review committees for the Community Foundation. In Santa Barbara, she continues to practice mediation, mostly for families in conflict over separation and divorce or care of elders. She is looking forward to contributing to her new home community and learning more about the good work being done here.
Virginia moved to Goleta from Newbury Park five years ago. She earned a Master of Social Work from University of Southern California and is a mental health clinician with a deep commitment to supporting women and children in underserved communities. She is proud to be part of a community working to make a meaningful difference and is honored to contribute to this work. When she is not working you can find her with her grandchildren, husband and a good book or on the beach hunting for rocks and seashells.