Who We Are
Our dedicated team supports mentoring relationships and youth programs across all nine Bay Area counties. We partner with our Board of Directors and Associate Board to empower the potential of Bay Area futures.
Our Team
CEO
Lillian Samuel, MNA
Chief Executive OfficerLillian Samuel is a trailblazer in her role as CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area (which serves all nine counties of the region), as the first African American to hold the position in the agency’s history. Under her leadership, the agency has achieved several firsts: it was recognized by Big Brothers Big Sisters of America with the Quality Award for the first time in 2022 and again in 2023 when the agency was also recognized with a National Marketing Award. And 2024 marked the second year in a row of record fundraising. With a passion for making a difference in her community, Lillian has spent over 15 years working in leadership roles within the nonprofit philanthropic sector. She has a proven track record of success, having led teams to raise tens of millions in revenue for large institutions including the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), Girl Scouts of Northern California, and community health centers throughout the Bay Area before being appointed CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area in 2021.
Lillian’s career began as a retail buyer for national corporations including Bloomingdales in New York City, The Gap in San Francisco, Cost Plus World Market, and Duty Free Shoppers. However, after years of volunteering on boards and fundraising, she transitioned to the nonprofit sector. Her vision is to support creating a more just and equitable community through mentorship, ensuring young people have every opportunity to reach their full potential. In 2023, Lillian was recognized by the Marcus Foster Education Institute as a Visionary for Diversity – an individual who “embodies the belief that we are stronger together, we achieve nothing alone and bridges are the linchpins to our collective victory.” In 2025, Lillian was honored to join Generation Thrive’s “Bridging the Bay” leadership cohort. She was also recognized as a Powerful Woman of the Bay award recipient and received a USF Alumni Professional Achievement Award.
Lillian serves on the board of VolunteerMatch, is an advisory board member for iHeart Radio, and serves as a member of the Los Altos Kiwanis Club. Lillian is a devoted member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Links Inc., and Jack and Jill of America and a proud alumna of the University of Pennsylvania, where she earned her BA, and the University of San Francisco, where she earned her MA in Nonprofit Management.
Executive Team
Allison Rhodes-Baker
VP, Program Impact and Innovation(510) 770-6596
Yuka Nishino
VP, Finance and Operations(415) 503-3939
Program Team
Brad Heikes
Director, Programs(510) 439-2283
May Hallenbeck
Senior Manager, Education & Workforce(510) 270-1241
Marynoelyn Jacob-Oviatt
Manager, Program Services - Quality(408) 318-2333
Sami Rios
Manager, Enrollment & Match Specialists(415) 323-4074
Vanessa Dominguez
Manager, Match Support Specialists(415) 503-4053
Estefany Ortega
Customer Relations Specialist(415) 503-4034
Shi Page
Recruitment and Relations Coordinator(510) 751-3162
Victoria Koshiyama
Community Resources & Events Coordinator(510) 380-6229
Regina Taylor
Program Specialist, Education & Workforce(510) 296-8488
Camila Nunez
Program Specialist - EMS/MSS(408) 655-0228
Martina Williams
Program Specialist, EMS/MSS(510) 255-2344
Anna Carrizales
Match Support Specialist(408) 206-6085
Arthelle Porter Burns
Match Support Specialist(707) 215-5015
Kieyre Arnold
Match Support Specialist(510) 731-6729
Sydney Mendez
Match Support Specialist(510) 480-1678
Jenny Hoang
Match Support Specialist(510) 327-5980
Maya Vera
Enrollment & Match Specialist(510) 255-2799
Development Team
Adrianna Larson
Senior Director of Development(415) 854-7365
Rachel Gelbmann
Development Manager, Annual Funds and Events(510) 338-7900
Ally Rosales
Development Associate(510) 519-5213
Operations Team
Jaynell Ellis
Director, Data & Systems(510) 556-3637
Janae Trevillion
HR & Operations Generalist(510) 338-7250
If you'd like to reach out to us, fill out our contact form.
Contact UsBoard of Directors
Lisa Pearson
ChairAttorney, Community Advocate & Volunteer, Philanthopist
Gwen Tillman
Vice ChairFormer Chief People Officer, Tides
Mark McGowan
TreasurerSenior Relationship Manager, Empower
CJ Babb
SecretaryEnterprise Payments, Checkout.com
Martha Ehmann Conte
Campaign Committee ChairPhilanthropist & Civic Leader
Charles Taylor
Finance Committee ChairCERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and Wealth Manager, Financial Planner
Marlena Wong
Audit Committee ChairChief Financial Officer, Koret Foundation
Galen Maness
Governance Committee ChairChief Operating Officer and Secretary to the Board of Directors, The San Francisco Foundation
David Boehmer
Founder and CEO, Banff Advisors
Clarissa Clark
Partner, PwC
Tom DeJonghe
Patent Counsel (retired), Chevron Corporation
Lauren DiNapoli
Chief Capital Officer, Pando
Caroline Gaffney
VP Product, Chief of Staff to the CEO, LinkedIn
Alexandra Legend Siegel
SVP and Chief Equality Officer, Salesforce
Tonja Marcus
Enterprise Account Executive, T-Mobile
Chris McClure
Private Wealth Advisor, McClure Wealth Advisors
Heather Paquette
Partner, KPMG LLP
James (Jim) Potter
(Retired) Former General Counsel Del Monte Foods, SVP Strategic Initiatives Lineage, Chief Legal Officer Progrexion
Ashley Shaw Thompson
Government Affairs Manager, The Clorox Company
Julie Simpson
VP, Head of Internal Audit and CAE, eBay
Lori Wren Elerts
Tax Partner, Deloitte
Cassandra Lopez
Community Volunteer
Christopher Wenner
Managing Director, Carrick Capital Partners
Allan Whitescarver
(Retired) Director of Communications Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP
Jeff Kragel
Board AdvisorPrincipal, Bernstein Private Wealth Management
Associate Board
James Aman, DRG Group
John Badstubner, ServiceNow
Joshua Dorman, Bain & Co.
Manuel Garcia, Norwest Venture Partners (Wells Fargo)
Nolan Hughes, Retired
Sam Johnson, PNC Bank
Julie Larios, Helping Families in Silicon Valley
Brandon Li, KKR
Deborah Lim, TPG
Aaron Moore, JVM Lending
Chanel Moore-Khorsand, Carley & Hopkins
Jalaima Nichols, Thermo Fisher Scientific
Courtney Parks, Career Break formerly LinkedIn
Michele Reen, Direct Mortgage Funding
Jake Bloodsworth, Linkedin
Tim Dilley, Enforce Consulting
Sinclaire Jones, Google
Karen Pierce, LinkedIn
Join our Team
Join us in empowering Bay Area youth
At Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area, we’re always looking for passionate, mission-driven professionals to help us expand what’s possible for young people across our region. We’re proud to have a team of friendly, collaborative people focused on supporting youth. If you’re energized by impact and eager to be part of something bigger, we invite you to explore our open roles.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area is an equal opportunity employer. We make employment decisions without regard to race, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or expression, or veteran status.