Nonprofit Village Board of Directors

Lesley-Jane Dixon. Lesley-Jane leads CEI’s Investment Management Group which manages the firm’s financial market investment portfolios. Prior to joining CEI in 2007, Ms. Dixon was a Partner and Portfolio Manager at Lord Abbett where she focused on Small- and Micro-Cap strategies. She developed a robust skill-set over a 20 year career on Wall Street that centered on research, analysis and portfolio management. Ms. Dixon earned the Charted Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and the CIPM (Certificate in Investment Performance Measurement) designation. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University with a B.S. in Business and resides in Washington, D.C.

Matthew Freeman. Matt is a media consultant based in Montgomery County, working with nonprofit advocacy organizations. His clients include groups committed to protecting health, safety, the environment, civil liberties, religious freedom, and access to health care for all Americans. He has more than 25 years experience working with nonprofit organizations, including four years with the League of Women Voters of the United States, 12 years with People For the American Way, and 13 years consulting exclusively with nonprofits. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia, and a 20-year resident of Rockville.

Lindsay Garland. Lindsay joined Highline Wealth Management in early 2009, after five years at Convergent Wealth Advisors, another local wealth management firm. She has extensive experience working with families and their private foundations, donor advised funds, and investment committees through her roles at the aforementioned firms. Lindsay holds a FINRA Series 65 license and the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) designation, co-sponsored by the Investment Management Consultants Association and The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, with a concentration in Finance, from American University. Lindsay enjoys being an active member of her community and has been an integral member of company-sponsored service programs throughout her career.

Kevin Hailstock. Kevin is a technology entrepreneur born and raised in the local Greater Washington DC area. Shortly after graduation from the University of Virginia he cofounded Web Emerse. In the years following its inception, Hailstock has continually demonstrated the ability to build, motivate and lead globally oriented teams; serving such clients as The African Development Foundation, DC Chartered Health, National Dental Association, Howard University Hospital, Hilton, Marriott, and a host of others. Achievements early in his professional career earned him recognition as a 2003 Top “40 Under Forty” awardee, by The Network Journal of NY. He was also named as one of 12 Top Minority Business Leaders 40 & Under by The Source Magazine/ MD/DC Supplier Development Council, and profiled as “One to Watch” by the Minority Enterprise Advocate magazine. He currently chairs the Technology Committee for the local chapter of an international mentoring organization, and was a Founding Donor and Charter Class mentor of the BEST Kids Mentor Program in Washington, DC. All of which led him to being named an Essence magazine “Do-Right Man ” (2007).

Patricia Harris. Pat is a law partner in the Bethesda office of Holland & Knight, LLP and practices in the area of zoning and land use. She focuses on representing multi-family developers, land owners, major retailers and religious and educational institutions in zoning and land use matters before various administrative boards and commissions, including the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission Planning Board, Montgomery County Historic Preservation Commission and Board of Appeals, and the Montgomery County Council. Pat also is very active in land use matters in the City of Rockville and represents interested parties before Rockville officials. Pat received her bachelor's degree from the University of Delaware and her law degree from Georgetown University.

Kim Canavan Jones, Vice-Chair. Kim has more than 15 years of experience in national and international nonprofit program development with an emphasis on capacity building, training, cross-cultural communication and building strategic alliances. She operates an international development company assisting organizations in program development and governance. Kim also directs an honors course on leadership and career development for Montgomery County high school seniors. Previously, she served as director of international exchange programs at the British Embassy and was the founder of an international nonprofit organization. Kim holds a bachelor's degree in political science from Spelman College and a grantsmanship certificate in proposal development from The Grantsmanship Center.

Betsy Mead. Betsy is the President and Treasurer of the Mead Family Foundation. She has served on the Board of Directors at the foundation since it was founded in 1989. Previously, Betsy worked extensively as a registered nurse and social worker in the Montgomery County area. In addition, she is a graduate of Leadership Montgomery and a member of the Council on Foundations and the Association of Small Foundations. Betsy earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Georgetown University and a Master of Social Work from Catholic University.

Sherry Rockey. Sherry is the Chief of Operations of EnCompass LLC. She has more than 20 years of experience in building and managing effective, innovative and adaptable organizations. She has led start-up nonprofit operations as well as those with long-established traditions; worked with both high-profile international programs and domestically at the grassroots level. Her work has focused on strengthening organizational capacity through strategic planning, sophisticated business and marketing initiatives, and building effective teams. She has experience in the fields of women’s empowerment, media and communications, nonprofit organizations, and U.S. foreign policy. Ms. Rockey holds a Master’s Degree in Comparative Politics from American University.

Laura Sildon, Executive Director. Laura was named Executive Director of the Village in November 2009 after consulting on the Village project for four years. She has been involved in all aspects of the organization's development and is thrilled to be a permanent member of the team. Laura brings over 20 years of management and marketing experience to the Village. Furthermore, she has managed grassroots and fundraising campaigns for local, regional and national organizations. In addition to working with the Nonprofit Village in recent years, other clients have included The First Tee, Montgomery County, BAE Systems, Junior League of Washington DC and National Retail Federation Foundation. Laura earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Psychology at the University of Michigan and Master of Social Work from the University of Maryland. She completed, all but her thesis, for a Master of Business Administration at George Washington University. She is a graduate of both Leadership Montgomery and Leadership Maryland.

Jeffrey Z. Slavin, Chair. Jeffrey is a former Montgomery County Community Foundation board member as well as he houses a fund at the Foundation. He was selected by the Foundation as Philanthropist of the Year in 2011. He is also vice president of the Sanford and Doris Slavin Foundation, a generous supporter of many non profit organizations in Montgomery County. Jeffrey was elected Mayor of the Town of Somerset in 2008 and serves as treasurer of the Maryland Mayors Association. He is the president of C.J. O'Shaughnessy Inc. REALTORS and co-chairs the Family Philanthropy Affinity Group at Washington Grantmakers. Jeffrey is a graduate of Georgetown Law Center and Tufts University.

Andy Stern. Andy, a native of Montgomery County, is the owner of Andy Stern’s Office Furniture, Inc – a full service office furniture dealership with four showrooms in the Washington Metro area. He also serves as managing partner of three commercial real estate partnerships. He believes strongly in his family’s tradition of giving back to the community and over the years has served as: Founding Board Member, Leadership Montgomery; Past President, Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington; Past President, Green Acres School Board of Directors; Past President, Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington; Past Board Member, University of Maryland School of Public Affairs; Past Board Member & Chair of the Education Committee, Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts and he currently serves on the Board of Directors and Vice President of the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Chamber of Commerce and The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington.

Susan E. Tabach. Sue has worked in the public sector at the local and national level for Montgomery County Government under two county executives, Charles Gilchrist and Doug Duncan, and for United States Senator Barbara Mikulski. She has worked in the field and in fundraising for numerous political campaigns. Sue has nonprofit experience as staff and as a board member for various community organizations throughout Montgomery County. She also currently teaches a course at Montgomery College. Sue has a graduate degree in public policy from the University of Maryland. Sue is a native of Montgomery County and currently lives in Rockville.

Greg Trimmer. Greg has over 10 years of experience in mixed-use real estate development. His current focus is on several large scale redevelopment projects in the Twinbrook and White Flint areas of Montgomery County, and on GSA build-to-suit commercial office buildings. He is the Project Executive for JBG’s successful award and on-going development of a 575,000 SF build-to-suit for a new research campus for The National Cancer Institute, the 935,000 SF renovation of the Parklawn Building for Health and Human Services, and the development of a new 491,000 SF headquarters for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at Twinbrook. Prior to joining The JBG Companies in 2007, Mr. Trimmer was a Development Executive for Clark Realty Capital and had a previous tenure with JBG as an Associate. He holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from The University of Virginia and a M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Bob Troutman, Treasurer. Bob is a founding board of the Nonprofit Village and previously served as a board member and chairman of the Grants Committee for the Montgomery County Community Foundation. In addition to a long history of nonprofit involvement, Bob is a technology entrepreneur. He was founder and CEO of Zylaya Corporation, and was co-founder of Visual Networks, a company that was an early tenant in the Montgomery County's Rockville technology incubator. Bob is a graduate of Princeton University and lives in North Potomac.

Kim Watson. Kim is the Vice President for Corporate Philanthropy and Community Partnerships in the office of External Affairs for Pepco Holdings, Inc. (PHI). Ms. Watson is a member of the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship; The Conference Board (Philanthropy II Council); the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (Business Civic Leadership Center) and the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CECP). Ms. Watson also serves on the Board of Directors of the Pepco Holdings, Inc. Community Foundation. She is also a member of the Board of Cultural Tourism DC, which links the public and private sectors in promoting tourism as well as economic development. She serves on the board of the Women’s Leadership Group of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington and the advisory board of Take Charge Juvenile Diversion program. Ms. Watson also serves on the Board of the American Diabetes Association of Greater Washington. Ms. Watson was honored as one of the twenty-five outstanding women in business and she was recognized by the Montgomery County Office of Human Rights Hall of Fame Committee for her humanitarian efforts on behalf of the community. Additionally, Ms. Watson was recognized by the Maryland Legislative Black Caucus for outstanding leadership in the areas of growth and development in the State of Maryland.

Doug Wrenn. Doug is a Principal with Rodgers Consulting, Inc., where he directs the firm's work on a broad range of urban planning and site development projects. Before joining Rodgers Consulting, Doug was the director of redevelopment programs for Montgomery County, Maryland. He was responsible for the management of all aspects of the county's participation in a $400 million public/private partnership to revitalize downtown Silver Spring and the county's redevelopment office in Wheaton, Maryland.