American Red Cross Greater New York Region
Women Who Lead Luncheon
Wednesday, May 11, 2022 Bryant Park Grill 25 W. 40th Street New York, NY 10018
TIFFANY CIRCLE
The Tiffany Circle is an international society of women leaders and philanthropists. By investing $10,000 annually in their local Red Cross, these women follow in the footsteps of a long line of women leaders who have helped the Red Cross serve the public in times of war and peace with disaster assistance, blood collection, safety training and countless other community assistance services.
Mission
The American Red Cross prevents and alleviates human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors. The Red Cross is proud that an average of 90 cents of every dollar is spent on delivering care and comfort to those affected by disasters.
PROGRAM Welcome Remarks Arrianee LeBeau PIX11 News Anchor
Special Award Presentation Dorothy L. Alpert Chair, Tiffany Circle of Women Leaders Greater New York Region Jill Coyle American Red Cross Metro New York North Board Chair & Greater New York Board Vice-Chair 2022 Tiffany Circle Service Award
Regional Update Krista Coletti Regional Chief Development Officer, American Red Cross
Women Who Lead: Featured Conversation Women Empowering Women: Entrepreneurship, Philanthropy and the American Red Cross Veronica Miele Beard and Veronica Swanson Beard Founders and Designers, Veronica Beard 2022 Vanguard Award Arrianee LeBeau PIX11 News Anchor
Closing Remarks Funmi Taiwo Vice-Chair, Tiffany Circle of Women Leaders Greater New York Region
Arrianee LeBeau Arrianee LeBeau is the co-anchor of the PIX11 News at 4 p.m. An Emmy award winning journalist, Arrianee is known for her captivating and attention-commanding reports. Arrianee enjoys policy-changing reporting, with a specialty in long-form journalism, a focus on enterprise, race issues and breaking news. Arrianee has covered a wide range of national and local news stories with experience spanning across the country. One of her most memorable stories highlighted the launch of the Heather Heyer foundation, which provides scholarships to students dedicated to progressive change. The foundation was started by Heyer’s mother, Susan Bro, whom Arrianee interviewed. Heyer died in 2017 when a white supremacist plowed his car into a group of counter protesters at a “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Arrianee gained extensive military reporting experience in Norfolk, VA, where the country’s largest US Navy base resides. Including in 2012 giving aerial reports over the Navy jet crash deemed the “Good Friday Miracle”. She’s also had her fair share of severe weather coverage reporting in snow storms, hurricanes, tropical storms and monsoons. Arrianee serves as a mentor to journalism students and was an Adjunct Professor at Hampton University’s Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications in Hampton, VA. Prior to joining WPIX, Arrianee worked as an anchor and reporter at KPHO/KTVK-TV in Phoenix, Arizona, WVEC-TV in Norfolk, Virginia and KVAL-TV in Eugene, Oregon. Arrianee received her Master of Science degree in Broadcast Journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from University of California, Riverside. Arrianee’s first love is dance and she enjoys anything involving it. When she’s not working, she enjoys traveling, reading, fitness classes and mentoring. She grew up in Orange County, California and is thrilled to call New York home!
veronica swansoN beard & veronica miele beard
Veronica Swanson Beard (left) and Veronica Miele Beard (right)
e’re sisters-in-law who are married to brothers, but it W was a true friendship and a love for fashion that brought us together and inspired us to create Veronica Beard. With an East Coast meets West Coast approach to style, we launched in 2010 with our signature dickey jacket. This layering piece remains at the center of the Veronica Beard wardrobe. In the years following, our collection has expanded to include jeans and shoes — the essentials every woman needs to feel chic and effortless when time is the ultimate luxury.
With Veronica Beard we wanted to create a brand that embodied the things we are most passionate about: championing women and celebrating what inspires them. One of the ways we highlight those women is through our #VBGivesBack program, which gives back all day, every day. In addition to in-store events in support of local charities, each quarter we recognize a woman and her mission to make a change in the world by donating a portion of proceeds from every veronicabeard.com order to the cause most important to her.
dorothy l. alpert Dorothy L. Alpert is Principal and Tri-State President for Avison Young. In her role, she serves as head of Avison Young’s Tri-State Executive Committee, which is responsible for supporting strategic growth in the region and is comprised of the Managing Directors of the New York, New Jersey, Long Island and Connecticut offices. Dorothy joined Avison Young following a 30+ year career at Deloitte where she focused on strategy and operations consulting in the real estate industry, including leading the firms’ real estate services practice in the U.S. where she led significant client relationships. Building on a strong foundation within business advisory and leading large-scale client relationships, Dorothy has experience leveraging technology to enhance client service capabilities, a priority for Avison Young as the firm continues to expand and invest in data and technology that delivers the insights clients need to achieve their goals. Dorothy has been a long time member of The Urban land Institute holding multiple leadership roles. As the co-founder of ULI Women’s Leadership Initiative, Dorothy is an advocate for diversity and inclusion in the commercial real estate industry and her leadership in this space complements Avison Young’s focused advancement of women and underrepresented groups within the industry. She is a member of the Board of Trustees for the American Red Cross and The Canterbury School, and former Board Member of The New 42nd Street. Dorothy has been honored as one of Real Estate Forum’s Women in Influence: Legends, Real Estate Forum’s Women to Watch, and Real Estate New York’s Women of Influence. She holds an MBA from Fordham University and a BA in Mathematics from Bates College.
Funmi Taiwo Based in New York, Funmi Taiwo has successfully led $200 billion in capital market transactions and had P&L oversight developing and scaling new businesses in a large publicly traded company. She has led key strategic initiatives for CEOs and advised on execution of global projects. She has a record of building future-ready teams rapidly, and of building a culture of inclusivity and diversity that drives profitable growth. Her coverage spans industrials, ESG, transportation, and metals and mining and she has lived and worked in the United States, Europe, Latin America and Asia. At Bank of America, Funmi manages Fortune 500 client relationships and provides actionable insight and intelligence to C-suite executives on financings for M&A, leveraged buyouts, dividend recapitalizations and general corporate purposes. Previously at S&P Global, Funmi was known for her analytical rigor where she received the Gold ACE Award for outstanding quantitative analysis, with the #1 ranked published research report out of a global talent pool of 1,200 analysts. She also received the Women’s Bond Club Rising Star award for leadership achievements in financial services. Funmi is a board member of the American Red Cross of Greater New York, where she serves on the Diversity and Inclusion Committee. She guides the organization on strategies to foster exemplary diversity initiatives that promote and solidify an inclusive culture. Funmi holds a Master of Business Administration from the Kellogg School of Management and a Bachelor of Science from Rutgers University. She completed the cross-disciplinary Business Analytics certificate program on data and innovation at the Harvard Business School, is a Fellow of the Council of Urban Professionals, is a certified Lean Six-Sigma Black Belt, and is a registered securities professional.
jill coyle Jill Coyle is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, holding a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering. A former Consultant with Accenture, Jill worked in the Chicago, New York, London, and Sydney offices. Since retiring to raise her 3 children, 8 years of which time was spent in London, she has been deeply involved with many philanthropic organizations. She served as a devoted volunteer at her children’s schools, serving on parent boards, chairing fundraiser benefits, and volunteering her time in the school bookstores. Jill is on the Board of Directors for the American Red Cross in greater New York, currently serving as vice-chair for Greater NY and Board Chair for Metro New York North. She is also a member of the American Red Cross Chairman’s Council. Jill has chaired the Red & White Ball, as well as the Red Cross Global Women’s Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. She is the former chair of the Red Cross Tiffany Circle of Women Leaders for the greater New York region, co-chair of the NE Division, and serves on the Red Cross Tiffany Circle National Council. In 2013, Jill spoke at the United Nations for a session dedicated to the international work of the Red Cross and in 2018 participated in the Red Cross Humanitarian Forum in Geneva, Switzerland. Jill serves on the Board of Directors for the Breast Cancer Alliance and chaired their 20th anniversary benefit. Jill is also a founding board member of Horizons at Brunswick, a national organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities to underserved youth. Jill received the YWCA Spirit of Greenwich Award and Governor’s Citation in 2014 for her philanthropic work. Jill serves on the University of Notre Dame Undergraduate Advisory Council and is also a member of the Notre Dame Women’s Initiative Steering Committee. Her husband, John, is a Trustee of the University of Notre Dame, where they met as undergrads. In keeping ties to her London days, Jill also serves on the boards of the American Associates of the Royal National Theatre and the London Children’s Ballet.
Krista Howell Coletti Krista Coletti has dedicated her career to making an impact in the nonprofit sector. With twenty-four years of service, Krista is a veteran fundraising leader focused on building exceptional fundraising teams, philanthropic programs and donor partnerships. Since March 2020, Krista has served as the Chief Development Officer for the Greater New York Region of the American Red Cross. Prior to this, Krista served as the Senior Director of Development for the Northeast Division; the Chief Development Officer for the Connecticut and Rhode Island Region; and the Interim Chief Development Officer for the Massachusetts Region. In February 2018, the American Red Cross recognized Krista with The Presidential Award, which is presented at a national ceremony to employees and volunteers who demonstrate superior job performance. Prior to the American Red Cross, Krista served as the Director of Advancement at Chase Collegiate School in Connecticut. In this position, Krista was responsible for the management and oversight of the fundraising, alumni relations and communications department. During her tenure, Krista led the School through the successful completion of two capital campaigns. Krista also served as a Marketing Director for the American Diabetes Association and the Special Events & Public Relations Specialist for Foodshare. Committed to supporting both her local and regional community, Krista is presently on the Board of Directors for the Riverside Cemetery Association in Waterbury, CT, the Highfield Club in Middlebury, CT and finished her term on the Board of Directors at Family Services of Greater Waterbury. She is a 2001 graduate of Leadership Greater Hartford (LGH). Krista holds a B.A. degree in Marketing from Central Connecticut State University. Krista and her husband, David, reside with their three children, Brooke, Caitlyn and Luke in Watertown, Connecticut. When she’s not working, Krista devotes time to her children, enjoying their favorite activities like tennis, basketball, football and horseback riding.
AMERICAN RED CROSS TIFFANY CIRCLE of women leaders greater new york
Dorothy Alpert, Chair Funmi Taiwo, Vice Chair
Ashleigh Banfield
Cynthia Goldstein
Lesley Osborn
Mary J. Barneby
Heather Goodchild
Suzanne Packer
Tonia Bottoms
Joan S. Green
Elisa Rapaport
Kate Brennan
Savannah Guthrie
Linda Riguardi
Leah Butler, PhD
Rachel Halfon
Dr. Angeleke Saridakis
Anna Cappucci
Colleen Hempleman
Lissa Schiele
Jill Coyle
Sherry Hsiung
Tess Sheil
Elizabeth DaSilva
Jennifer W. Johnson
Meredith Spatz
Carmel Donovan, MD
Ann Kaplan
Jean Wackrow
Janice Ellig
Nancy Knight
Cate White
Pam Farr
Amanda Lister
Elisa Wilson
Elisabeth Fontenelli
Judy McGrath
Heather Wise
Patti Glassford
Giovanna Miller
thank you to our generous sponsors
Presenting Sponsor Jill and John Coyle
Platinum Sponsors Amanda and Thomas Lister
Gold Sponsors Avison Young
Deloitte
Brescome Barton
Elisa G. Wilson
Patron Sponsors Lisa E. Cooper Joan Shapiro Green Linda Chase-Jenkins
Media Partner
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