Consulting Grants Managers
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Diana Abellera - Director
Diana was born and raised in Atlanta and after spending 20 years in the Bay Area, she recently moved back with her husband, daughter and dog. She enjoys hiking, camping and playing games. Throughout her career Diana has worked with nonprofits, mostly in the food justice and food systems. She has directed programs and fundraised; worked in finance and operations. She loves helping groups that are doing systems-changing work on the frontlines by making things easier on the back end.
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Ryana Barbosa, MBA
Ryana has an MBA in Nonprofit & Social Enterprise Leadership from San Francisco Stat University as well as a BS in Management, Global Business & International Studies from Manhattan College. While she currently lives in Chicago with her husband and 10 month old, she has lived in quite a few places! Ryana grew up in Fall River, Massachusetts. After living in Boston for a short stint, she moved to Oakland, CA for six years and then moved to Lisbon, Portugal in 2019. She enjoys cooking and reading, but mostly playing with her 10 month old daughter!
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Katy Brooke
Katy has a Masters of Public Administration with a Nonprofit Administration concentration from the University of Montana, along with a BS in Communications from Montana State University. Her first job out of college was as an Office Manager for a small nonprofit. She fell in love with the sector there and the knowledge that the work she does contributes to something meaningful; that the work she does is her small part in making the world a better place. Katy grew up in Oregon then moved to Montana for ten years. She is not currently in North Dakota with her two rescue (and sibling) cats, Archie and Newt. Katy loves hiking and fossil hunting.
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Mandy Childers
Mandy was born and raised in Wyoming. She went to the University of Wyoming on a presidential scholarship where she received a BS in Economics and an MBA. She started working in mortgage lending, but found it did not make her happy. She moved into working in finance with private companies and K-12 public schools, as well as private and public nonprofits. Her true passion is social justice and education. Mandy has two daughters and two dogs. They love to explore new places in their Jeep, listening to music and attending music events.
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Jōssie Orense
Jōssie lives with her husband and they are celebrating the recent graduation of their daughter from San Francisco State University and their son who is a chef at a Michelin star restaurant. Jōssie is a native of San Francisco and graduated with her BS in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management from Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont, CA. She began working in the international development sector but truly appreciates that what she does directly affects people in need. Jōssie lives with her husband and they are celebrating the recent graduation of their daughter from San Francisco State University and their son who is a chef at a Michelin star restaurant. Jōssie is a native of San Francisco and graduated with her BS in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management from Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont, CA. She began working in the international development sector but truly appreciates that what she does directly affects people in need.
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Cassandra Pali
Cassie has a Bachelors in Marketing & International Business from Iona College and a Masters in Business, with a concentration in Finance from Fairfield University. She began her journey in the nonprofit sector during her time in the Ukraine as a Peace Corps volunteer where she worked for a local NGO by assisting them with improving their business functions. She has lived in many places, including New York, California, Chicago, Connecticut, Albania and Ukraine. She is married to her husband, David, and they have 3 children and one dog, Oreo. In her free time, Cassie enjoys gardening, lounging at the beach with her family and playing with Oreo.
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Megan Sabato
Throughout her career, Megan has worked with small businesses and non profits to enhance their communications and grant management strategies. She finds it very rewarding to help organizations to streamline and improve internal processes so they are better equipped to influence change. Megan grew up on the East Coast; after living in Northern CA for 15 years, she now resides in Michigan. She enjoys spending time with family, reading, gardening, hiking.