Empowering Women Everywhere showcases successful and progressive women who are making a difference within our community. Follow us at:
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This Week’s Show Empowering Women Everywhere:

Empowering Women Everywhere 51: Neil Caplan and Christine Rolando

 

The Bannerman Castle Trust, Inc. is a not-for-profit “Friends” organization of volunteers working with the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. The Trust is dedicated to bringing together resources and funding to stabilize the buildings on Pollepel Island (Bannerman Island.)

On June 17, 2023 there will be a Benefit Screening and ‘Meet and Great’ of “Collar” for the purpose of continuing the effort to preserve the island’s natural beauty and the historic structures that are on the island as well as improving and enhancing the grounds and environment to fully accomodate toursist traffic interested in the history of the island and enjoying cultural events staged by the trust.

“Collar” is a feature filmed locally that deals with national issues and events that have unfolded since it’s release.  Written and directed by David Patrick Wilson, it features the late Tom Sizemore, Rebecca DeMornay, Richard Roundtree and some local talent, Bettina Skye and Jamie Santana. Reservations are a necessity and are limited. For more information and reservations contact  www.bannermancastle.org

Empowering Women Everywhere 50 Andrea Bierria

Andrea is a teacher, a daughter, a wife, a mother, as well as a life coach, and a caseworker for those in need of resources and services. Andrea has been helping others cope with stress and has been a mentor for the youth in our inner city. Andrea has spent over 20 years mentoring and assisting the homeless and those in need of services. And Andrea is currently working on her dissertation for her doctoral degree in Education. One of her favorite quotes is: let’s give Roses/flowers to those before they pass rather than at their funeral.

Empowering Women Everywhere 49 Linda Collins

Linda Collins is a NY based actress. Linda works in the Tri-State area primarily in television and film venues.

She can be seen in leading roles in several television shows including Redrum, True Crime with Aphrodite Jones, and Monsters Inside Me.

She trained with Catherine Gaffigan, Terry Schreiber, Peter Miner and John Howard Swain in NYC.

Linda is also an accomplished musician, and has played professionally in orchestral, theater and recording venues in the United States and Canada including Showboat with Robert Morse, Phantom of the Opera, and Evita, as well as the Winnipeg Symphony, Naples Philharmonic, and Huntsville Symphony Orchestra.

Empowering Women Everywhere 48 Deborah Glenn

Learn how natural ingredients are used to make creams and salves that heal and cleanse your skin.

Episode 47: Latyna Humphrey
Latyna Humphrey is a community organizer, mentor and activist. Latyna offers her strategies for helping young leaders in civic spaces develop their confidence and find their voice.

Episode 46: Marianne Sciucco – ALZAuthors

Marianne Sciucco is a registered nurse who cared for hundreds of dementia patients over a 20-year career.  Her novel, Blue Hydrangeas, an Alzheimer’s Love Story, is based on a couple she met on the job. It’s a tender work of fiction that brings consolation and understanding to all who encounter these diseases. Shortly after publication, she reached out to two other authors of books about Alzheimer’s for a potential marketing partnership.  The three of them created AlzAuthors, now a global community of 200 plus writers sharing their dementia stories in books and blogs. Their goal: To lift the silence and stigma that often accompanies a dementia diagnosis through storytelling. Their efforts include weekly blog posts introducing a new author, two anthologies, an online bookstore, traveling libraries, and appearances at local events for caregivers and others across the country. Marianne is a prolific writer who has also authored several other novels and short stories, all with the theme of families encountering difficulties that include poverty, substance abuse, a Wounded Warrior, and a massive blizzard on Christmas Eve. She resides in Middletown.

 Websites 

AlzAuthors: https://alzauthors.com/ 

Marianne Sciucco: https://mariannesciucco.com/

Social Media 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/alzauthors

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlzAuthors/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alzauthors/

Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/company/alzauthors/

Purchase Blue Hydrangeas in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook on Amazon:  http://amzn.to/2eeVedl

  

Epidode 45: Sandra Salguero – Latinos Unidos

 

Latinos Unidos of the Hudson Valley, Inc. is committed to the qualityof life issues effecting Latinos in the Hudson Valley. Latinos Unidos is concerned with equity and fairness for all. Latinos Unidos works to maintain the dignity and integrity of the Individual and  improve and empower the entire community through actions that are respectful of diversities within our culture.

  Episode 44: Liz Schmidt – COS (HONOR) 

Since 1974 HONOR has provided all Orange County residents in need a safe environment that is committed to rebuilding the self-esteem and dignity of all those we are blessed to serve. With the goal of self-sufficiency in mind HONOR provides:

Housing
Food
Crisis intervention
Counseling
Residential stabilization & rehabilitation
Vocational skills
HONOR is a private not-for-profit multifaceted service organization. The agency operates 15 independent yet integrated licensed programs and is under contract to provide services with Orange County Government. We are strongly rooted within the Orange County community and maintain agreements with over 60 providers of health, mental health, substance abuse, legal and homeless services on behalf of the clients we serve. Our 24 hour triage call center is the entry point into a coordinated system of care for the homeless and our primary focus is to first provide immediate stabilization (providing, shelter, food, clothing, safety and emergency health, mental health and substance abuse services) through immediate connections to specialty providers and secondary care management.

Episode 43: Ingrid Lucas

Ingrid R. Lucas, MS CCC-SLP received her Master of Science Degree at Columbia University in 2003. She maintains certification in Speech-Language Pathology from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and is licensed in the states of NY and NJ.

Before beginning her private practice, Ingrid was the Speech Pathology Supervisor at Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, NJ. Her clinical work specialized in feeding with a focus to evaluate and provide therapy for children birth to age 18 ranging who were diagnosed with language delays, articulation disorders, voice disorders, and articulation delays.

Ingrid’s experience with adult patients was cultivated during her work with Visiting Nurse Services of NY where she evaluated speech, language, and feeding/swallowing deficits in adult/geriatric population with diagnoses including Alzheimer’s, stroke, Parkinson’s, and Cancer.

As a respected member of the professional community, she has presented at Columbia’s Practicum Graduate class and for the Therapeutic Resources Company. This work, along with the combination of Ingrid’s education, her clinical training at various prestigious institutions and her hands-on experience developing treatment plans for patients with a variety of speech and eating disorders makes Lucas Speech Pathology a comprehensive practice providing outstanding services to patients of all ages.

 

 

Episode 42: Nancy Schneider

Nancy is a graduate of the University of Rhode Island with her masters in Education and Permanent Certification from SUNY at New Paltz.
Her true passion is Environmental Preservation and took many topical courses at Pace Law School while working towards her Juris Doctor degree.

After graduation she opened her own general practice including Real Estate, Family Law and Environmental Law. She was the Acting Village Justice in Harriman, NY for thirteen years; was on the Founding Board of the Wallkill Valley Land Trust, the Founding Board of Orange Environment and the Orange County Land Trust. She was also a member of the Environmental Committee of the Orange County Citizen’s Foundation.

Nancy is trained and certified as a Community Dispute and Parent-Child Mediator. She serves as an appointed Law Guardian, Court Evaluator and Court-appointed Attorney for Alleged Incompetent Persons. She worked under a special grant from the New York Kinship Navigator as Program Coordinator for Broom, Tioga, Ulster, Dutchess and Orange Counties and, in coordination with the RAPP (relatives as parents program) at the Orange County Cornell Cooperative Extension, put together a list of attorneys who would be willing to help grandparents and other people who are raising children that are not their own in Family and Criminal Court. This has been a very successful program.

Aside from her unconditional love of her three rescue pets, Lucy, an English Setter, Bella, a Clumber/Cocker Spaniel mix and little 3-pawed cat, Bonnie, she has become involved in the Blooming Grove Community Garden on Old Dominion Road, Blooming Grove.

She is also presently on the committee which is working on the upcoming FOML Meet the Authors Luncheon which is scheduled to take place Sunday, April 10th at Round Hill House, Washingtonville, NY to benefit the library.

Episode 41: Carole Hurst

I am Bringing Strength to Life!

Every day, kids are born with muscular dystrophy and adults are diagnosed with ALS and related diseases that take away their most basic freedoms – the freedom to walk, talk, hug and even breathe.

Congenital Muscular Dystrophy runs in my family, my father, myself and one of my children. It is based on a genetic mutation. Causes are unknown and symtoms affect quality of life. Support is so very important.

I am participating in this year’s muscle walk in honor of my father who recently passed away at age 88. His last few months were the only ones that he was in a nursing home. He lived a full life in spite of his physical limitations but having it myself I know that he was stoic and rarely complained. I understand now why he did not attend a lot of things as he got older. He just got exhausted and basic needs were a challenge.

Please donate to our fun walk coming up. Yes, I will be walking it with my team and enjoying the day! Thank you!

Episode 40: Ros Thackurdeen

In January of 2012, Ros’ youngest son, Ravi, went on his study abroad. He was a chemistry/premed student at Swarthmore University, traveling to Costa Rica with the Office of Tropical Studies (OTS), through Duke University. While there, Ravi studied global health and tropical medicine. He worked twelve-hour days, six days a week, at botanical stations, and with the Ngobe, Boruca, and BriBri communities.

On April 29th, 2012, OTS took students on a surprise end-of-semester celebratory trip to a beach called Playa Tortuga. Only later did Ravi’s family learn that Costa Ricans do not swim at this beach. Formed from six rivers meeting the ocean, Playa Tortuga is one of Costa Rica’s most dangerous beaches. So when Ravi stepped into the bay, he was quickly pulled from shore. For forty minutes, Ravi tread water. But OTS leaders had come without telephones, or safety devices, even rope—so help never came. Two days later, local fisherman found Ravi’s body, and the Red Cross, along with the Thackurdeens, brought his body to shore.

After Ravi’s death, Ros began searching the Internet for other study abroad incidents. “I thought Ravi was study abroad’s first death,” Ros adds, “I didn’t know what I would find.” What she “found” were students dying horrific deaths, reported as one or two days news. Ros collected these stories. She cut ‘n pasted faces with names, cause of death with country and program. Every student had a page. Gradually, there were so many pages, Ros put them in a binder. She filled one binder, then another.

Now up to five binders, Ros calls her work “the dark side of study abroad.” Gradually, she’s begun phoning newly bereaved families to tell them, “You’re not alone.

 Episode 39: Suzanne Ordas Curry

Suzanne Ordas Curry is President of the Bergen County Branch of “Casa”, (Court Ordered Special Advocates) She is very active in the Film Industry, and is currently in production of four (4) feature films as well as two (2) shows on Amazon.
Active in the ‘MeToo’ movement, she also mentors women that are now forming their own companies.

 

Episode 38: Connie Wehmeyer

In 1998, Connie Wehmeyer founded Subtle Energies as a way of providing natural health alternatives for New York’s Warwick Valley area. Our holistic approach to your health includes various types of massage, aromatherapy, energy work, natural products, holistic classes, homeopathy, and much more!

At Subtle Energies, as soon as you walk through our door, you will be greeted with a welcoming and friendly smile. With us, you’re not just a number but an individual person with your own needs and wants. We honestly care about each and every one of our clients and customers, and we look forward to working with you.

We strive to accommodate a wide variety of clients—from infants to the elderly or disabled. For that reason, we’re wheelchair accessible and have a large and easy-to-navigate parking lot. Inside our building, you’ll discover a nice classroom offering a wide variety of classes, several experienced NYS licensed massage therapists, and a highly trained aromatherapist. Soon after you walk in our door, you’ll discover that all of our staff are ready and able to help with any of your homeopathic questions.

At Subtle Energies, we always like to have something exciting going on (in a subtle sort of way, of course)! So, stop by, we look forward to seeing you.

Episode 37: ReneMarie

*Provide STROKE and APHASIA awareness:
*Annual Telethon
*To bring HOPE through Love and Music and to Raise Financial Aid – for those whose insurance coverage has ended-money should not be the determining factor in recovery.

Episode 36: Andres Standard and Lynn McDonald

Formed in 1980, the Alzheimer’s Association advances research to end Alzheimer’s and dementia while enhancing care for those living with the disease.

Episode 35: Ellie Savoy

Ellie Savoy is a Board Certified Holistic Health Coach and the author of the #1 international best selling book “Stop Dieting Start Living: 5 Foundations for Your Health to Permanently Lose Weight Without Dieting Starvation or Suffering in Silence”.

She is also the founder of the Stop Dieting Start Living Weight Loss System. Her commonsense and step by step approach has literally transformed the way people look at their body, health and life.

Episode 34: Debbie Major

ZYLOFONE is comprised of a tight knit group of friends and colleagues based in the Hudson Valley region of New York State, who are dedicated to rallying around the vision of our founder, Debbie Major, to create the ultimate performing arts experience and inspiring educational opportunities for disabled children and adults.

As a single mother, having raised highly functioning twin boys with special needs , Gage was born with Cerebral Palsy and Asperger’s Syndrome; Jacob has classical autism – Debbie is intimately familiar with the challenges, frustrations and systemic bias that people with disabilities are confronted with on a daily basis.

Having also enjoyed a long distinguished career as a renowned vocalist, musician, performer and music educator, she is also uniquely qualified to understand what most effectively works to teach, engage and inspire many special needs individuals to achieve their fullest potential. Over many years of observing, evaluating, and fine-tuning her teaching methods and techniques, she has developed a veritable plethora of ideas that would better serve people with disabilities in the performing arts community, including physical space design concepts, visual stimulation, and sensory perception.

Episode 33: Danielle Lowe

MAKING THIS WORLD A BETTER PLACE ONE BABY STEP AT A TIME!
We are a non-profit organization that works in conjunction with the Literacy Council and Hospitals to promote literacy. Currently, we collaborate with Orange Regional Medical Center so that each mother is given a baby board book when discharged from the Mother Baby Unit. Baby S.T.E.P is not associated with any for profit businesses. We are simply trying to make a difference in the lives of children by promoting a love for reading. We hope to expand to WIC offices, pediatricians, and other low-socio economic communities to inform parents of the importance of reading to babies. By providing an educational pamphlet and the baby’s first book…we are we are giving the Gift of Reading and Endless Possibilities!

Episode 32: KellyAnn Kostyal Larrier

Safe Homes of Orange County’s mission is to work toward the elimination of intimate partner violence and human trafficking by providing comprehensive support services to victims and their children, and by increasing public awareness about these issues and encouraging accountability for perpetrators.

Episode 31: Sarah Womer and Atticus Lanigan

WELCOME TO ZERO TO GO.
WE ARE AN EDUCATION-BASED WASTE MANAGEMENT COMPANY FOCUSED ON COMPOSTING AND RECYCLING. WE PROVIDE ZERO WASTE EVENT SERVICES THROUGHOUT THE HUDSON VALLEY

Episode 30: Amy Wohl

Specializing in adolescents, women and couples therapy and counseling. Offices in Goshen & Nyack New York.

I am a nurturer, cheerleader, coach and strong motivator inspiring those seeking clarity and improvement in their lives.

I team up with you to make plans, overcome barriers and achieve results with kindness, understanding, compassion and empathy.

We can work indoors or outdoors where appropriate, using nature if you choose on your life’s path; all while focusing on a more productive and positive future.

My experience includes assisting all ages. I specialize in working with adolescents, women and couples.
The unexamined life is not worth living. Socrates

Episode 29: Amy Anderson-Winchell, L.C.S.W.

Amy Anderson-Winchell, L.C.S.W.

President & Chief Executive Officer

Ms. Anderson-Winchell began her career with Access (formerly Occupations, Inc.), in 1982 and currently oversees all activities of the $85 million corporate system, providing organizational leadership to over 1,300 staff, serving more than 8,000 people per year, and guidance to an experienced leadership team in delivering diverse mental health treatment, rehabilitation, community outreach, and child welfare services. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the State of New York having received her Master’s in Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania in 1981. Prior to her graduate education, she was conferred a Bachelor’s Degree from Brown University after completing her final semester of study at Yale University.

As an active member of the community, Ms. Anderson-Winchell has throughout her career been involved in the planning of mental health services with the Orange County Mental Health Department and the Joint Membership of Health and Community Agencies. In efforts to address the needs of the region, she currently serves as the Vice Chairperson of Coordinated Behavioral Health Services (CBHS) and is currently the Secretary of the Board of Directors of New York Integrated Network for People with Developmental Disabilities (NYIN) and Treasurer of the Board of Directors of Hudson Valley Care Coordination (HVCC) Health Home in Hudson Valley. She is a past member of the Board of Directors of the New York State Rehabilitation Association and has served on task forces for multiple other state advocacy associations.

Access: Supports for Living is a valued resource to the people, families, and communities across nine counties in New York. The spirit of our founding families has continued to be honored with the shared commitment of promoting the independence, health, and happiness of every person the agency serves.

Over 8,000 individuals receive widely varied services each year and are touched by our commitment to them. As our world continues to evolve, the community can count on Access to be innovating at a time of extraordinary change with our first priority always being to support the people who live with the challenges associated with behavioral health and developmental disabilities.

Access also provides support to children many of whom have suffered unthinkable trauma, separation from their biological family and loved ones. These children may have feelings of uncertainty of their future and often need assistance to help them establish a positive and hopeful vision for the future. Access provides multiple programs to assist families and works to ensure that the social issues of housing, hunger and employment for those with challenges are addressed.

Access summarizes what we believe in four words:

Rewarding Lives. Healthy Communities.

The center of our work encompasses assisting people with behavioral health challenges, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, those who live with vulnerabilities, as well as others in recovery. Our diverse services range across the life span and focus on improving access to housing, employment, and healthcare – keys to helping individuals in our communities attain the healthiest and happiest life possible.

We believe in a world where all are included.

`Our job is to help make inclusion and diversity a reality, and for us that means taking on the challenges and problems of even the most complex issue

We have a critical role to play in enriching and strengthening the places we live and work, not least because by doing so we can change lives for many people once marginalized by their special needs.

We work to strengthen supports in the community, promote the inclusion of individuals with differences in every walk of life, and to help vulnerable people overcome challenges.

Episode 28: Bette Friedlander

Falling asleep in-love, and waking joyful next to the person you adore is Bette and Michael Friedlander’s wish for every couple. They know it’s possible because they experience it in their own life every day.

If you and your husband have grown apart, if you long for some way to reclaim your happiness and rekindle your love, the skills they teach can make all the difference. Because the information they teach has helped thousands of women transform their relationships with the men in their lives, Bette and Michael know it will work for you as well.

Though Bette and Michael are happy and in love today, their individual stories haven’t always been so bright. When they married in February of 2000, Bette’s closest friend, Karen warned her it probably wouldn’t turn out. Bette had survived one failed marriage and several unsuccessful relationships, and Michael had, count ‘em, THREE, ex-wives. Michael’s attempts to save each marriage by seeking counseling always ended the same; DIVORCE. Bette was in love, but still prayed for a way to stack the odds in favor of long-term happiness.

One year into her marriage, Bette’s prayers were answered when her friend Linda told her about an amazing workshop created by relationship expert Alison Armstrong. Bette thought “What do I have to lose?” so she signed up and what she learned took the everyday struggle out of her marriage, produced deeper intimacy, and helped her relationship grow closer over time. Michael noticed an immediate difference. “It was the first time I didn’t feel like I was broken,” says Michael.

The results they got were not unique. Over the years, Bette and Michael witnessed thousands of women create similar results with the men in their lives. Their wanting to cause a change in the lives of others is what inspired them to become certified in teaching Armstrong’s unique information. In 2007, they began three years of training, consisting of research and teaching. To date, they have helped hundreds of women improve their relationships with men through their live workshops, speaking engagements and tele-seminars.

It was Bette’s passion for bringing everyday bliss to married women that fueled the birth of Blissfully Married in 2015. Blissfully Married is dedicated to helping couples live in a happy, fulfilled and joyful marriage. Their first online workshop, Everyday Bliss: A married woman’s guide to more love, joy and satisfaction is a journey that helps married women set aside frustration and resentment while building more love, intimacy and satisfaction. Throughout their course, Bette and Michael provide the perspectives of both wife and husband in teaching the same skills they practice every day in their own blissful marriage.

Bette and Michael firmly believe there is a hero in every husband, and that the wife holds the keys to drawing him out. This means that if you are married to a man who refuses to go to counseling or attend a workshop, you no longer need to worry. Just like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, you have had the power all along.

 For more information, visit BlissfullyMarried.com.

Episode 27: Michele McKeon, COO- Recap.org

RECAP was established in 1965 and is the designated anti-poverty agency in Orange County. As a multi-service agency our varied programs offer many options for residents who need help.

·         Head Start early leaning centers in Middletown, Newburgh and Port Jervis support the comprehensive development of children in the learning centers and in their own homes.

·         Our Energy Conservation team has a variety of home improvement measures to help residents save fuel funds, reduce energy use, and enable people with disabilities to fully access their homes.

·         In the Nutrition and Advocacy program, our advocates and volunteers discuss client needs for food, identify other household concerns, and connect participants with information about other RECAP services and community resources. Awareness activities help us get people talking about hunger disparity and food insecurity.

·         Supportive Housing programs provide a variety of residences focusing on veterans, seniors, the disabled, and the homeless.

·         Addiction treatment services are provided by the the TRUST Center outpatient day treatment center in Middletown and the New Life Manor residence in Newburgh.

·         Fresh Start Cafe is a job readiness program in a cafe setting designed to help individuals on public assistance gain the skills and confidence to succeed in today’s job market. Under the guidance of culinary staff and in a restaurant setting, trainees learn culinary techniques used in a variety of restaurant positions, as well as customer service techniques and standards that translate across the service industry.

·         Orange County Reentry serves to facilitate and support the needs of individuals and their families during the transition from incarceration to successful community citizenship.

·         Our Neighborhood Preservation Company brings a range of community improvement efforts focusing on the area’s housing needs. Projects include the renovation of older homes and new construction developments, assisting homeowners with renovations and helping those trying to stay in their homes. We focus on reducing housing costs, promoting employment, and new business development.

·         The Newburgh Services office offers nutrition and advocacy assistance, translations, social services navigation assistance, help locating forms, emergency food supplies, and more.

Like many Community Action Agencies, RECAP traces its roots to Lyndon Johnson’s presidency. When President Johnson took office in 1963, he proclaimed that all Americans could live in prosperity and thought to accomplish this through reform. In his 1964 State of the Union Address, Johnson declared an unconditional war on America’s poverty and challenged citizens to build a “Great Society”. Organizations were established and they developed a model, the Community Action Program, that could eradicate poverty from the ground up. This model gave people the power to identify problems affecting their own communities and the resources to bring change.

In 1965, poverty levels reached a national high and effects were felt in Orange County. A panel of local activists decided to put Johnson’s words into action and they formed the Regional Economic Community Action Program.

A half century later we’re still as dedicated to eradicating poverty as our founders were. We’ve grown to include innovative programs in the fields of addiction treatment, job training, energy conservation, nutrition and more.

Our mission 

To mobilize and coordinate public and private resources to address the basic needs of low-income people and assist them in attaining the skills, knowledge, motivation and opportunities needed to become economically self-sufficient.

Episode 26: Irene Gutmann

Find your passion and make it happen!

Episode 25: Jennifer Vazquez Bryan

When she was little, Jennifer believed a pediatrician had special powers. She believed they had a gentle soul and that they always knew a way to make her feel better. At the age of 4, Jennifer knew she wanted to be a doctor. Now, as a family doctor, Jennifer has the privilege of being a part of people’s lives in all the different stages, from newborns just starting out in life, to grandparents wanting to enjoy everything life has to offer. Jennifer does enjoy figuring things out like a detective, but her greatest satisfaction comes from making personal connections with people leading them to improved health and happiness.

Episode 24: Christine Rolando

Empowering Women Everywhere, Host Nann Gill with Guest Christine Rolando discuss Literacy Orange and the programs available to learn to read English to prepare yourself for a High School Diploma.  Opportunities to move up! She also talks about the work she is doing with brain trauma, her books and her horsemanship.  https://empoweringwomeneverywhere.tv

Episode 23: Leigh-Ann Mosca

Leigh-Ann graduated from Mount Saint Mary College with a major in Psychology/ Political Science and earned a New York State elementary education certification. Her first education position was in Washingtonville School District. It didn’t take long for Leigh-Ann to realize she wanted to make a positive, lasting impression with children and people. She pursued Montessori Training and utilized this unique skill to help children for years. This included 5 years with the Goshen based institution, Helping Hands.

Leigh-Ann’s passion to help others soon diversified to include women in the work force. As the general manager and sales trainer for two prominent boutiques.

She is now head coach for Girls On the Run, Goshen Middle School (CJ Hooker). Leigh-Ann inspires and empowers young girls to feel confident in their skin and in who they are.  She creates a team environment and a feeling of “sisterhood”.

Leigh-Ann is a single mom with an unyielding desire to help empower woman to their fullest potential. Her efforts are apparent in volunteerism with Family Promise and Safe Home.

Leigh-Ann was hired by Quest Financial Services in 2015. She has been called entrepreneurial, quick, and nimble.  Her integrated vision created a new brand within the company called Women’s Quest. She focuses her attention on women’s holistic health; emotional, physical, spiritual, and financial.  Leigh-Ann manages women’s educational, empowering, and engaging events in the local area.   Her passion for women to succeed is her driving force. It is her grass roots and cross marketing approach that has created her reputation in the community and as a local business woman.

Episode 22: Cynthia Marsh-Croll

Cynthia Marsh-Croll is the Project Director for the Women’s Enterprise Development Center Poughkeepsie location. Ms. Marsh-Croll teaches and oversees numerous programs that provide services to businesses in Orange, Sullivan, Dutchess, Ulster and Putnam counties. Ms. Marsh-Croll is the founder of Croll Productive Synergy which has provided operation business consulting and training for ten years as well as Program Manager for a previous Entrepreneurial Assistance Program center. She has experience in a variety of industries and working with businesses of all sizes. As a result, Cynthia has significant experience training and counseling small business owners and entrepreneurs. Ms. Marsh-Croll has a BS in Management Science as well as a Lean Office Certification through the University of Michigan. Please contact Cynthia at cmarsh-croll@wedcbiz.org or call 845-363-6432 for more information regarding WEDC Mid-Hudson Valley programs.

Episode 21: Veronica Jones

Veronica Jones is the Disability Resource Coordinator/Certified Work Incentives Coordinator for the Orange Works/One-Stop Employment & Training Center. Mrs. Jones has a Bachelor’s of Science in Organizational Management (obtained through the Adult Degree Completion Program at Nyack College) and over 20 years of experience in working with people who have disabilities. Since 2003, Veronica’s role within the One-Stop has been to increase the centers ability to work with and provide services to our customers who have disabilities.

Veronica works to assist customers with disabilities to access and navigate the various programs and services that impacts their ability to gain, return to or retain employment Mrs. Jones is a resource for the One-Stop Center staff and our local employers.

In 2011 Mrs. Jones took on the role of Certified Work Incentives Coordinator at the One-Stop Center. This role has enabled the One-Stop Center to become an Employment Network. As an Employment Network the Center has been approved to provide job placement services specifically for persons who receive Social Security Disability insurance and Supplemental Security Income.

Mrs. Jones provides services in the One-Stop Centers located in Middletown and Newburgh. Monthly Social Security Informational Sessions are offered, Mrs. Jones provides 1:1 workshop specifically designed for “Job Seekers with Disabilities”.

Additionally, Mrs. Jones is a long standing member of the OSCEAN Committee. The Orange and Sullivan County Employment Alliance Network consists of local community based organizations that work together to secure employment opportunities for people with disabilities and to educate the public on the value of hiring a person with a disability.

Episode 20: Fayne L. Frey, M.D

Fayne L. Frey, M.D., is a board-certified clinical and surgical dermatologist practicing in West Nyack, New York, where she specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer. For over twenty years she has studied the safety and efficacy of over-the-counter skincare products and their ingredients and enjoys developing individual skincare regimens for her patients.  She also offers a variety of cosmetic procedures, including Botox and filler injections, facial peels, laser hair removal, and sclerotherapy. Dr. Frey is the Founder of FryFace.com, a non-commercial skincare information and product selection service website that clarifies and simplifies the overwhelming choice of effective, safe and affordable products encountered in the skincare aisles.

Dr. Frey graduated from Cornell University Medical College, in 1987, and remained at The New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center for her internship in Internal Medicine.  She then completed a three-year residency in dermatology and dermatologic surgery at The Mount Sinai Hospital, also in New York City.  After her training, Dr. Frey worked in private practice on Park Avenue and served as a Clinical Instructor in the Division of Dermatology at The New York Hospital–Cornell Medical Center.

In 1994, Dr. Frey relocated with her family to Rockland County, where she started her current practice.  She is a fellow of both the American Academy of Dermatology and the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery. 

Dr. Frey resides in New City, New York, with her husband, Roger, a classmate from medical school, and their four children.  Her hobbies include, playing piano, triathlons/running, reading, and traveling around the world with her family.

Episode 19: Nancy Schneider

Nancy is a graduate of the University of Rhode Island with her masters in Education and Permanent Certification from SUNY at New Paltz.
Her true passion is Environmental Preservation and took many topical courses at Pace Law School while working towards her Juris Doctor degree.

After graduation she opened her own general practice including Real Estate, Family Law and Environmental Law. She was the Acting Village Justice in Harriman, NY for thirteen years; was on the Founding Board of the Wallkill Valley Land Trust, the Founding Board of Orange Environment and the Orange County Land Trust. She was also a member of the Environmental Committee of the Orange County Citizen’s Foundation.

Nancy is trained and certified as a Community Dispute and Parent-Child Mediator. She serves as an appointed Law Guardian, Court Evaluator and Court-appointed Attorney for Alleged Incompetent Persons. She worked under a special grant from the New York Kinship Navigator as Program Coordinator for Broom, Tioga, Ulster, Dutchess and Orange Counties and, in coordination with the RAPP (relatives as parents program) at the Orange County Cornell Cooperative Extension, put together a list of attorneys who would be willing to help grandparents and other people who are raising children that are not their own in Family and Criminal Court. This has been a very successful program.

Aside from her unconditional love of her three rescue pets, Lucy, an English Setter, Bella, a Clumber/Cocker Spaniel mix and little 3-pawed cat, Bonnie, she has become involved in the Blooming Grove Community Garden on Old Dominion Road, Blooming Grove.

She is also presently on the committee which is working on the upcoming FOML Meet the Authors Luncheon which is scheduled to take place Sunday, April 10th at Round Hill House, Washingtonville, NY to benefit the library.

Founder and Chairperson of ArtisanDiscovery.org

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