CARITAS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Child and Family Resource Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Recovery Services Senior Manager
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- Women 's SOTS Coordinator
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- Program Coordinator - THPW
Job Titles:
- Volunteer Engagement Manager
Job Titles:
- Chief Development Officer
Clara was born and raised in Charlotte, NC and has lived in the Richmond area for the last 13 years. In Charlotte, Clara worked in the nonprofit field for 10 years. She served on several local boards, participated in Leadership Charlotte and was very active in her church and children's schools. A job relocation sent the Stokes family to Richmond. Clara returned to the nonprofit arena five years ago as the Chief Development Officer for CARITAS. She is a 2016 graduate of Leadership Metro Richmond.
Job Titles:
- Administrative Coordinator
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- Women 's Emergency Shelter Coordinator
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- Accounting and Finance Senior Manager
Job Titles:
- Chief Financial Officer
- Director of Human Resources
Elly is a licensed CPA and a Society of Human Resource Management, Senior Certified Professional. She holds an MBA from Columbia University, where she focused on strategy and operations, and a BA in Psychology from Vassar College. Elly brings a valuable blend of knowledge and nearly three decades of experience with non-profit organizations. She has demonstrated success growing organizations, managing turnaround, and advising startups. Elly provides strategic insight to the CARITAS leadership team by focusing on the financial picture.
Job Titles:
- Director of Community and Donor Engagement
A Richmond native, Emily has a wide breadth of experience volunteering and working in the local nonprofit community. An alumna of William & Mary and Auburn, Emily worked for higher education nonprofits for nearly a decade prior to coming to CARITAS in 2019. She serves on the leadership committee for Impact 100 Richmond and is a graduate of the Emerging Nonprofit Leaders Program in 2018 and Leadership Metro Richmond in 2020. Whether it's the next CARITAS event or an international adventure with her husband, Emily is always planning!
Job Titles:
- Kitchen Senior Coordinator - Dinwiddie
Job Titles:
- Director of Emergency Shelter
Job Titles:
- Program Operations Manager - THPM
Karen has been a leader at CARITAS for more than 10 years. She has helped drive the growth and vision of the agency, including founding the CARITAS Furniture Bank and turning the CARITAS Center project (opening 2020) into a reality. She leads and oversees the operations for all of CARITAS's programs and facilities. She is passionate about effective leadership, powerful partnerships, and sustainable change.
Karen graduated with a BS in Business Management and a minor in math from Hartwick College. While her business background started at a Fortune 500 company, Karen's entrepreneurial spirit and expertise sharpened as a co-owner of a GE distribution center in Richmond, VA. Karen is a 2014 graduate of Leadership Metro Richmond, a 2016 Stettinius Leadership Award winner and recipient of Boomer Magazines "IT" list award for 2013. As the founder of WINGS, a 17-year-old woman's faith group in Chesterfield County, she is thrilled to be breathing life and hope into The Healing Place for women.
Karen has been working in the non-profit sector for more than 30 years as both a volunteer and a staff member. She began the role of Executive Director for CARITAS in 2000. In 2007, Karen took on the dual role as Executive Director for The Healing Place, a long-term residential recovery program for men struggling with substance use disorders. Effective July 1, 2012, she guided the efforts to merge the organization with CARITAS making CARITAS the largest homeless services organization in the metro Richmond area. She is a 2007 graduate of Leadership Metro Richmond, a recipient of the Stettinius Award for Non-Profit Leadership, United Way's "Champion for Change" of 2008, a 2010 YWCA Outstanding Woman Award winner and the 2010 Better Housing Coalition's "Creative Collaborator." She has served as an appointed member of the Governor's Advisory Board on Service and Volunteerism and on the boards of Homeward and Leadership Metro Richmond. In October 2012, Karen was inducted in the Virginia First Lady's FLITE Hall of Fame for Women in Business. She currently serves on the vestry of St. James's Episcopal Church.
Job Titles:
- Senior Development Coordinator
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- Housekeeping and Janitorial Supervisor
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- Property Management Assistant
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- Grants and Communications Senior Manager
Job Titles:
- Director of Workforce Programs and Training
Marilyn has more than 25 years of experience in education and training, program development and management, non-profit leadership and community development. She is passionate about and dedicated to adult education, social justice and equality, and uniting resources to strengthen the community. Marilyn is very active throughout the Richmond community and is a 2019 graduate of Leadership Metro Richmond. She served as a past president of the Historic Jackson Ward Association. She enjoys the arts, the outdoors--most notably the James River Park System--food, and spending quality time with family and friends.
Job Titles:
- Kitchen Coordinator - Dinwiddie
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- Senior Case Management Coordinator
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- Marketing and Communications Manager
- Media Inquiries
Job Titles:
- Senior Director of Food Service and Facilities
Originally from Salt Lake City, Utah, Paul and his wife moved to Charlotte in 2003 for career opportunities. They have three children - one son and two daughters. Paul left his 30-year hospitality career and found time to reflect, attend therapy, and begin his road to long-term sobriety. While working as a hospitality consultant in recovery, Paul connected with Hope Haven in Charlotte, where he served as Vice President of Food Services for three years. After following his wife to Richmond in 2018, Paul joined the CARITAS team in 2020 in preparation for the CARITAS Center to open amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that our doors are open, he's focused on refining many processes and creating new ways for the team to accomplish our mission every single day.
Job Titles:
- Men 's Emergency Shelter Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Kitchen Coordinator - Stockton
Job Titles:
- Furniture Bank Program Manager and Customer Service Specialist
Sandy has worked in the nonprofit sector for more than 15 years in a variety of roles. She is passionate about helping people and building relationships. As Furniture Bank Manager, Sandy coordinates our collaboration with 100+ community partners. In addition, she helps manage the complex logistics of working with thousands of case managers and clients. Sandy is an active community volunteer outside of CARITAS as a mentor to young women within VCU's alumni organization, as a big sister with Big Brothers Big Sisters, and much more. Sandy is a 2011 graduate of the Emerging Nonprofit Leaders Program.
Job Titles:
- Director of Data and Evaluation
Steph came to CARITAS with over 20 years of experience as an innovative data leader in the healthcare industry. She specializes in business intelligence and data storytelling-- turning program data into impactful insights, narratives and graphics. Steph was recently recognized as a national leader in healthcare data visualization and is excited to bring her passions for data culture and digital literacy to Caritas. Steph is a "Double Hoo" with a BS in Engineering and a MEd in Kinesiology from the University of Virginia. Steph and her family moved to the Richmond area in 2010. She is an avid explorer and enjoys boondocking in her Airstream trailer, listening to local music and spending quality time with family and friends.
Job Titles:
- Program Director for the Healing Place
Originally from New Jersey, Stephen studied Architectural Design and Engineering before owning a general construction business. Stephen entered The Healing Place in 2011 and went on to serve as a peer mentor and Transition Coordinator. Stephen is a Certified Peer Recovery Specialist and a Certified Recovery Dynamics provider. He earned the James E. Ukrop Scholarship to attend the Emerging Nonprofit Leaders Program and was awarded a Manny Award from My Brothers' Keeper, one of CARITAS's long-time nonprofit partners. Stephen became Program Manager of The Healing Place for Men in 2019. Following the opening of The Healing Place for Women, Stephen became Director of both campuses of The Healing Place in June 2021. Stephen is happily married, a landowner, and the proud father of two adult children. Talk to him about woodworking and mountain biking!
Job Titles:
- Case Management Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Career Development Senior Coordinator