Dana Wade is the Development Director at Emmanuel Gospel Center in Boston.  Emmanuel Gospel Center is a 67-year old faith-based non-profit organization whose mission is to understand and nurture the vitality of urban churches and their communities.  Through research and training, consulting, and programs, EGC builds the capacity of urban churches to serve urban residents well and operate effectively at the grassroots level, particularly in Boston’s low-income and immigrant communities.  By working with and through churches, EGC seeks to build a community that supports and cares for individuals of all backgrounds throughout the city.

Dana is responsible for EGC’s fundraising and special events.  EGC has 11 programs and a budget of $1.5 million.  EGC receives support from churches, individuals, foundations, corporations, government grants, and fees for service.  Dana also oversees EGC’s communications, including newsletters and website.

Prior to joining EGC in 2002, Dana was the manager of contributions at John Hancock Financial Services.  Her responsibilities included reviewing proposals, conducting site visits, and providing technical assistance to non-profit organizations.  During her 15-year tenure in Community Relations at Hancock, Dana designed, implemented and led two corporate volunteer programs, and also helped plan and run many corporate events.

Dana has offered workshops and provided individualized technical assistance on proposal writing and fundraising for small non-profit organizations.

Dana earned a bachelor’s degree from Gordon College and a master’s degree in urban affairs from Boston University.  She has lived in the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston since 1997.

Freddie Velez has been on the Career Development staff at Youth Opportunity Boston for 5 years as well. Freddie has strong relationships with our local community-based organization partners and has an expertise in subsidized employment opportunity development. Prior to his coming to YOB, Freddie worked at Madison Park High School. Also, a life-long Boston resident, Freddie also is fluent in Spanish.

Paula Paris is a professional “small shop” fundraiser and non-profit executive for a local organization.  She has been treasurer of several non-profit boards, and was recently appointed chair of the development committee of the Cambridge Historical Society.  Ms. Paris teaches fundraising at Southern New Hampshire University’s School of Community Economic Development, and has previously taught fundraising workshops for CBO’s and FBO’s in Boston’s Empowerment Zone.  This is Ms. Paris’s third year as workshop facilitator for the BCT.

Harold Sparrow, M.Ed. Faith Community Mobilization

As the executive director of Black Ministerial Alliance, one of Boston’s oldest and most effective social service organizations, Harold Sparrow acts a servant leader who is committed to empowering the community.   His oversight of the coalition of eighty minority churches has provided nurture, direction, and tangible assistance for high-risk populations throughout Boston.  More than two million lives have been directly touched by the efforts of BMA in the forty years of the organization’s history.

Harold’s passion – and the lifeblood of BMA – is resourcing, training, and equipping black congregations throughout greater Boston for more effective service to those in need.  Specifically, Harold leads the organization’s activities in providing individualized technical assistance to black church and faith-based organizations that are operating community service programs.  He also spearheads BMA’s programming for minority youth in the city – through after school programming and education reform advocacy.  More than 22,000 youth have been impacted to date through BMA’s services.

Harold is also involved in assisting local faith- and community-based organizations to build capacity through a new initiative called the Boston Capacity Tank Program.  Through this program, BMA and its partners provide capacity-building assistance including grants and workshops to faith- and community-based organizations.  The funding for the Tank initiative were won in the form of a two million dollar grant that BMA and several partners were awarded by the federal Compassion Capital Fund in 2002. Boston Capacity Tank has provided more than $ 2,000,000 in funds impacting ninety six faith-based and community-based organizations. Harold’s expertise in working effectively with urban congregations has proved indispensable to the BMA’s successes in the Tank’s work.

Under Harold’s leadership, the BMA hosted a gubernatorial “Urban Agenda Forum” – a media-covered event that drew an attendance of more than 1,500 people and in which all five candidates for MA governor. Following the subsequent election of Mitt Romney as MA governor, Harold and his team hosted the Inaugural Prayer Service for the new governor.

Before becoming executive director of BMA in 2002, Harold worked in community development and programming through several Boston organizations.  At the Medical Foundation Prevention Center, he developed community prevention and programming, focusing on public health promotions in alcohol, tobacco, and other drug and violence prevention. At the Urban League of Eastern Mass., he also implemented and managed “Positive Futures,” a curriculum-based after-school program for minority males that promotes education, self-esteem, and values clarification within the Boston public school system.  As executive director of the Roxbury YMCA Family Branch, Harold led the center through a renaissance that included quadrupling revenues, boosting membership from 300 to 3,300, and supporting a two million dollar capital campaign. His efforts won him the Golden Triangle Award for programmatic excellence from the Association of Professional Directors of the YMCA in 2001. Harold also received the Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s African-American Achievement Award in 2002.

 

David Wright born and raised in Roxbury, is a native Bostonian. A product of Boston Public schools, he is a graduate of both the Boston Latin School and holds degrees from Harvard College, cum laude, and Harvard Law.

Mr. Wright is a bar certified attorney with skill in litigation, contract and employment law. Since 1999, Mr. Wright has served as the president and CEO of the African American Federation of Greater Boston, Inc. (the “Federation”) a collaboration of 35 community-based organizations located in inner-city Boston. In this capacity, Mr. Wright has worked with boards and organizations to build infrastructure, do strategic planning, develop and strengthen boards, and obtain other resources critical to the sustainability of community organizations.

Mr. Wright is also a consultant for the Boston Capacity Tank of the Black Ministerial Alliance. He specializes in Board Development and Strategic Planning for community and faith based organizations.

Mr. Wright is an ordained, minister at the Abundant Life Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He also serves as a director and trustee of several community-based organizations. David is a husband and a proud father of two boys, Nathan, “The Boy Wonder,” and Micah, “The Boy of Steel,” and one daughter, Elizabeth, “The Girl Without Fear.” He currently resides in Boston, Massachusetts with his lovely wife, Shelbey.

Greg Bunnett has been on the Career Development staff team at Youth Opportunity Boston for 5 years. He is a skilled facilitator in job readiness and also a strong employer recruiter. Greg also has a great deal of experience in leading teams and youth development. He worked at City Year before coming to YOB. In addition to his professional experience, Greg is a life-long Boston native, having grown up in Roxbury.

Bob St. Julien is the CFO-Controller for the Black Ministerial Alliance of Greater Boston. He has more than 18 years of accounting, finance and tax experience in both local and international operations

Mr. St. Julien has worked for both profit & not for profit organizations and held senior finance and accounting positions in companies like Digital Equipment Corporation, Textron Systems and United Way of Massachusetts. Bob is involved in training and capacity building with various organizations and serves as member of various boards of Directors.

Bob has received a BA with Pace University and MBA at Suffolk University in accounting and finance. He is well-known for his passion to help build the capacity of faith and community based organizations.

Nika Elugardo is founding director of Applied Evaluation Systems, the consulting arm of the Emmanuel Gospel Center. She has been actively involved with the Emmanuel Gospel Center since 2000, where she has served in capacities such as strategic management consultant and vice chairperson of the Board of Directors. Her professional experience includes national low-income advocacy and training, research, not-for-profit development and outcomes measurement consulting. She currently chairs the Board of 1head1body, a ministry that serves Christians in furthering racial reconciliation in churches. Ms. Elugardo received her Master's degree in Public Policy from Harvard's JFK School of Government and her B.S. in Urban Studies and Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Nika, her husband and their daughter live in the Mission Hill area of Boston and are active members of Cambridgeport Baptist Church