THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Officers
Luke Turano, Board Chair, of Turano Insurance & Financial, has been an Insurance Professional and Financial Advisor since 2006. Luke’s father, Robert Turano Jr., started Turano Insurance in Honesdale in 1974 and Luke has grown the business into a network of agencies with seven locations throughout Northeast and Central Pennsylvania, since taking over the family operation in 2015.
Prior to joining the Greater Pike Community Foundation Board, Luke served both his personal and professional communities by way of the Milford Borough Council, and as a board member of the Milford Enhancement Committee, the Chamber of the Northern Poconos, Pike County Chamber of Commerce, and Wayne Economic Development Corporation.
A 2005 graduate of Marywood University, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and is FINRA licensed Series 6, 63, & 65. In 2016, Luke and his wife Krista purchased a home in the Borough of Milford and are raising their two daughters – Mackenzie and Charley – here.
“I joined the Greater Pike Community Foundation for a few reasons – one, look at the past and present board of directors and committee members. It’s a rather astute group of people who have done a beyond amazing job here. Two, I’ve always had interest in organizations that support, nurture, and maintain other organizations around them (like the GPCF Mission Statement). And lastly, I joined for the perpetuity of the organization. I’ve had the privilege to sit on a handful of councils and/or boards, and one of the keynote themes for me has been my concern for the long-term succession…I, hopefully, still have many years ahead of me to give to the greater Pike community.”
Edson Whitney, Vice Chair, a native of Port Jervis, now consults and is Associate Director of the Center for Communication Programs at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. He was employed at Johns Hopkins for 26 years in social behavior change communication strategy design, conducting needs assessments, and designing and managing national programs in the areas of Family Planning, Maternal and Child Health, Adolescent Health and HIV/AIDS.
After completing his undergraduate degree at Gettysburg College, Edson returned to teach in the Port Jervis Middle School for 2 years before marrying his wife, Barbara, in 1975. They left their US teaching positions after their wedding and traveled and worked overseas as educators in Swaziland, Peace Corps Volunteers in Thailand, and teacher trainers and curriculum development specialists in a refugee camp in Indonesia.
Upon returning to the US, Edson completed his Masters degree in Development Communication at Cornell University after which they lived and worked in Bangladesh, Vietnam and Jordan where Edson managed national health communication programs for the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health.
Edson and Barbara have two sons, one in Eagle, Colorado and the other, and a grandson, in Ladson, South Carolina. They relocated back to Shohola in 2013 and continue to consult and travel.
Carol Witschel, Secretary: Bio and picture coming soon…
Peter Maio, Treasurer, is a member of the Board of Directors of Valley National Bank where he serves on the Investment, Audit, and Risk Committees. Additionally he is the chairperson of the Cyber and Technology Risk Subcommittee. Peter is a former Chief Information Officer at Ally Bank with responsibility for Customer Information, Analytics and Corporate Technology. Prior to joining Ally, he held various technology leadership positions at large financial services companies including CIT, Charles Schwab, and Fidelity Investments. He served on the Board of Advisors of the North Carolina Technology Association from 2015 to 2018.
Peter holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Economics from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a Masters of Business Administration in Information Systems and International Business from the Stern School of Business at New York University. In 2020 Peter earned the Computer Emergency Response Team Certificate in Cybersecurity Oversight from the CERT Division of Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Mellon University.
Directors
Omar Brown has over 30 years of experience in financial services, advising institutional investors in both the public and the private market. He has been active as an Investment Banking advisor to private companies and as an investor (endowment and hedge fund) in the alternative investment space throughout his career, with a transaction history across most financial products (debt, equity, and derivatives) plus exposure to all major industry groups.
Prior to Young America, Omar was a senior manager at RedTail Capital markets, Merrill Lynch & Co, Bank of America, Cowen & Co, and BTIG. He has also managed both debt and equity risk with responsibility for convertible bond and exchange-traded funds businesses.
Omar received his BS in Economics from Amherst College. FINRA licenses 7, 63, 24.
Terri Christensen: Bio and picture coming soon…
Jackie Damian is a writer and editor with a background in newspapers, magazines and technology publishing. She moved to Pike County in 1986, first as a weekender and then fulltime, becoming something of a pioneer telecommuter and literally phoning it in (via CompuServe) to a New York-based employer. In 1997, she and her husband, George Borecky, bought a home in Milford Borough, where they have been involved in a variety of community activities over the years. The former editor of Antiques World magazine, Jackie runs a dealer space at Old Lumberyard Antiques with her husband. She manages a charitable showcase there to benefit Jill’s Ferals, a TNR (trap, neuter, release) program for feral cats.
Curt Goering is the former executive director of the Center for Victims of Torture (CVT) an international humanitarian organization providing comprehensive care for victims of torture and war atrocities, and conducting research, training, and engaging in policy efforts to stop torture and support torture survivors. He oversaw an international staff with offices in multiple locations in the U.S, Africa and the Middle East.
Prior to CVT, he was the Chief Operating Officer at Amnesty International USA, where he worked for nearly 30 years in several positions in several locations. He frequently led Amnesty International investigative missions, including many to conflict zones.
He also served Head of the Gaza Office for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Most recently he completed a fellowship at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School.
Jenni Hamill: Bio and picture coming soon…
Jennifer Liu is a marketing professional, having served in executive positions at both Procter & Gamble and L’Oreal and handling international businesses in Europe and Asia. She relocated to the area to start her own business and recently moved to Milford. She now serves as Financial Controller at Cedar Lakes Estate, an event facility in Port Jervis.
Jennifer holds an MBA from the University of Florida, with part of her master’s studies being completed at Mannheim University, Germany. Prior to that, she earned her Bachelor’s at the University of California and moved to China to learn Chinese. She is excited to join Greater Pike as her first foray into philanthropy and is already learning from the team.
Ann Morey has called Milford her second home since 1986 when her lifetime friend, Richard L. Snyder, purchased Foster Hill Farm. She served as Trustee of his Charitable Remainder Trust that left over $2.3 million to Greater Pike Community Foundation.
Upon retirement, Ann was Dean, College of Education and Distinguished Research Professor at San Diego State University. She is author of over 200 books and articles on higher education, diversity and teacher education. She is the recipient of several national awards for her professional career achievements and leadership in higher education. Morey has served as leader and member of numerous international, national and state non-profit boards and commissions.
Maggie Niles has lived in Blooming Grove Township full time since 1999. In addition to participating on the Greater Pike Community Foundation, she is active locally as a board member at the Peters Valley School of Craft, the Wayne Memorial Hospital Foundation, and on a committee for the Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem.
Before moving to Pike County Maggie did community work in social services, schools and churches as well as working occasionally as a freelance editor and potter. She and her husband, Nick, have two children and two grandchildren.
Justin Pfaff, of Mincer & Pfaff Law, is a general legal practitioner operating out of Milford, Pennsylvania. Justin primarily works in the fields of criminal defense and family law, though also serves on Milford’s Historical Architectural Review Board, and as solicitor for the Milford Borough Zoning Board and Milford Borough Civil Service Commission.
Justin is a 2013 graduate of Temple University Beasley School of Law. He moved to Pike County in 2016, where he initially worked as a prosecutor at the Pike County District Attorney’s Office before moving into private practice. Justin presently resides in Dingman Township with his husband and three dogs.
Mary Virtue has worked as a consultant to nonprofits and foundations in many parts of the world. Offering strategic planning and evaluation services to community-based organizations in the US and overseas, Mary worked with people who were building stronger communities through the arts, economic development, social services, environmental improvements, and small business lending. Mary also offered consulting services to foundations as large as the Ford Foundation and as small as rural community foundations that supported this community work through targeted grant making and community engagement. Mary earned her Masters in Finance from Columbia University.
Since 2020, Mary has lived full time in Pike County, grateful for the chance to be in this beautiful environment and enjoy this friendly community.
Adriane Wendell is new to the Greater Pike Board, having been active in numerous community groups since moving to Milford in 2008. After 29 years in the telecommunications industry in Atlanta and Washington DC, she retired to Milford for a new venture as an innkeeper and managed the Harrington House Bed & Breakfast in Milford for 12 years. She has served on numerous boards including the Pike County Chamber of Commerce, Black Bear Film Festival, Historic Trust of Pike County, Milford Borough Council, Milford Enhancement Committee and Milford Presents.
Adriane holds a MS/EdS degree from the State University of New York at Albany and a BA from the State University College at Oswego, New York. She has one son, Christopher in Austin, Texas.
“I am excited to join the board and learn more about the great work of the Foundation. Having been on the receiving end of several grants from Greater Pike, I look forward to enabling even greater support to the community through our work.”
