Chair: Diane Tipton Land

Directors:
Stephen Adler
Beth Bellanti
Richard Bennett
Darlene Byrne
Jane Chambers
Diane Gonzales
Christie Horne
Celia Israel
Becky Jolin
Diane Land
Trish Murphy
MariBen Ramsey
Cookie Ruiz
Kim Soechting
Kim Todd
Kelly White

Diane Tipton Land is the owner and president of DT Land Group, Inc., a commercial property management company based in Austin. Prior to creating her own business, Diane was the Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of Property Management for Trammell Crow Central Texas, Inc.

Her career with Trammell Crow Company lasted nearly 18 years, which she began as a Tax Manager at the Dallas Headquarters in the early 1980s. Her role with the company expanded over the years, encompassing more responsibility after demonstrating herself as a successful negotiator in real estate joint ventures, construction loans, and permanent loans for Austin real estate projects. Her portfolio included over 40 centers totaling in 17.9 million square feet, with 18 centers in Austin and 12 in Dallas/Fort Worth.

A graduate from the University of Texas in Austin with a BBA in Accounting, Diane is a Certified Public Accountant, a Certified Property Manager, and a Texas Real Estate Broker.

Stephen Adler is an attorney at the Barron and Adler Law Firm.

Stephen served as the president of the board for Ballet Austin and is still a current board member. He is also a co-chair for the Ballet Austin Capital Campaign for a new building, a member of the Long Center board, and a member of the Anti-Defamation League board.

As a father of 3 girls he understands the need for girls to establish a strong foundation of self confidence and the need for good decision making.

Beth Bellanti is the first female employee and Brand Manager for Tito's Handmade Vodka (Fifth Generation, Inc).... the world class award winning vodka from the first legal distillery in Texas and fastest growing distilled spirit in America.

She has also managed marketing campaigns and traveled extensively around the country for companies such as Visa, Pepsi, Exxon, and Futurebrands since graduation. She received a B.A. degree in both Communication and Fine Art from Avila University in Kansas City, MO. Mr. Tito Beveridge, the geophysicist behind the vodka, allows her to contribute to numerous charities and non profits with product/event planning around Texas and beyond, however, personally, Beth has volunteered in the past for nonprofit organizations that save historical buildings, groups that provide safe havens for women/children and with various animal rescue groups. Her goal is to help young women realize every woman has the right to an extraordinary life despite any odds. During Beth's time as a volunteer for GENaustin, she served on the Resource committee, contributed to the Benefit CD "OriGENal Voice" and helped coordinate various PR and fundraising events

Richard Bennett has over twenty-five years of experience working with affluent individuals, families and their closely held entities and serves as Strategic Planning Partner of Durbin Bennett Peterson.

Richard graduated from The University of Texas at Austin and prior to co-founding Durbin Bennett Peterson in 1987 was a manager in the tax section of the Austin office of Price Waterhouse Coopers, serving as Director of Financial Planning Services. Richard is a Certified Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Texas Society of Public Accountants, the Estate Planning Council of Central Texas and the International Board of Certified Financial Planners. Richard serves in a variety of community and professional activities and is currently serving on the board of the Austin Ballet.

Darlene Byrne is an elected District Court Judge. Prior to her election in 2000 she practiced for thirteen years in the areas of employment, commercial and governmental entity litigation.

She is a member of the National Council of Juvenille and Family Court Judges, is a member of the Permanent Judicial Commision on Children Youth and Families. She is a past Secretary of the Texas Administrative and Public Law Council for the State Bar of Texas, a fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation, Austin Bar Foundation Founding Life Fellow, past co-chair of the ABA Vanishing Jury Trial Committee, a past chair of Ballet Austin Barre, a past Board Member and Treasurer for the Austin Rape Crisis Center (Safe Place), a graduate of Leadership Austin and chair of the Austin Bar Associations Law Day Banquet for 2008.

Personal Coach Jane Chambers spent 18 years as part of the management team of a Fortune 500 Company. This experience gave her expertise in the areas of people management, team development, coaching, project management, mentoring, leadership and organizational development. She is the author of a monthly electronic newsletter, "Food For Thought" which features principles of coaching and encourages the reader to implement the suggested path to goal attainment and overcoming the obstacles that we create. Uniquely, each newsletter concludes with a favorite recipe and the encouragement to try something new, even in the kitchen!

Jane received her coaching training at Coach University, America's foremost leader in personal coach training, and at Corporate Coach University Inc. She is a member of the International Coach Federation and works with a mentor coach. Additionally, Ms. Chambers earned a Bachelors of Arts Degree in Sociology at Washington and Jefferson College in Pennsylvania and a Bachelors of Science Degree in Computer Science at the University of Texas at Austin. She has been a volunteer for many non-profit associations throughout her career. She and her husband reside in Austin.

One client described the benefits of professional coaching as "Jane Chambers gave me strength, courage and the ability to open up my eyes to see that I am capable of doing so many things." Another client remarked, "Both at work and at home, my stress level is down, my skills for dealing with life have improved. Jane Chamber's wisdom taught me a great deal. I really appreciate having been able to learn from her." Yet another client said, "As a Personal Coach, Jane has the gift of knowing what it takes to help someone understand their true potential and the tools and techniques that one can use to reach that potential."

According to Jane, professional coaching services can help a client discover inner values, strengths, interests, and beliefs that contribute to an authentic, happy life. She adds, "I believe that our possibilities are limited only by our vision of ourselves and our fears. I support my clients by providing them with the tools, structure, focus, support and accountability that helps them to accomplish more in many areas of their lives."

Diane Gonzales is the financial manager for the City of Austin's Watershed Protection and Development Review Department. Diane's prior experience is a as senior analyst in the City's Budget Office and before that as a financial compliance monitor and information systems manager at SafePlace. GENaustin�s appointed treasurer, she joined the board with over 10 years� experience working with local non-profits including: ALLGO/ Informe-SIDA and SafePlace. She earned her MBA with a concentration in Finance at UT-Austin and has 10+ years non-profit financial auditing experience.

Diane strongly supports GENaustin�s mission and looks forward to playing a part in helping girls define their personal values and build their skill sets so that they can ultimately become capable, confident women.

Christie Horne has a diverse background in consulting, editing and fashion retail. After earning her B.S. and M.S. in Tax Accounting from Brigham Young University, Christie worked as a tax consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers, where she got the opportunity to live and work in Milan, Italy for six months. Upon returning to the states, Christie pursued a career in fashion, working at Neiman Marcus in Boston. She was then accepted into the Executive Development Program in Dallas, where she worked as an assistant buyer in Neiman's contemporary buying office.

In 2004, Christie and her husband, Kevin Lalande, moved to Austin. While she sometimes misses the fast paced and colorful world of fashion retailing, she enjoys working with various non-profit organizations in the Austin community. In particular, Christie and her husband are interested in the advancement of social causes, specifically those involving women and children. They devote their time, energy and resources to not only GENaustin, but also to Breakthrough, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and ZACH Theatre. Christie serves on the Executive Committee of GENaustin and plays a key role in GENaustin's fundraising endeavors such as the JIVE Gala. She was also instrumental in the development of oriGENal voice, GENaustin's benefit CD featuring Sheryl Crow, Blues Traveler and local artists Trish Murphy, Bob Schneider and Matt the Electrician.

Christie enjoys swimming, running the trail around Town Lake, traveling, golfing, and spending time with friends and family.

Celia Israel serves the Central Texas District of LAN Engineering. LAN is the project manager for the soon-to-begin commuter rail project running from Leander to Downtown Austin and the firm does a wide array of civil engineering projects for private and public interests.

By virtue of her active community leadership background, Ms. Israel was asked to join LAN Engineering to help promote awareness of the firm’s diverse capabilities.

Celia began working in the public sector for Governor Ann Richards, the last GREAT Governor of the State of Texas, in 1991 serving in the Appointments Division helping diverse and outstanding Texans get appointed to various boards and commissions. During her ‘Governor Years’ Celia got involved with the local Austin Women’s Political Caucus. She served as President of the AWPC for 5 years, made many local friends and developed what she calls her “good old girls network” that she relies upon heavily to this day.

Known locally as someone who just can’t say no to politics and one of those strange creatures who actually thrives on politics, Celia continues to be involved in local campaigns and progressive efforts at every possible opportunity.

Becky Jolin is in the Environmental Law Section at Thompson and Knight, LLP.

Prior to law school, she worked as an occupational therapist for 13 years, first in child psychiatry, then on the faculty of UTSAHS, then as Director of Occupational Therapy for the Memorial Hospital System in Houston, where she was responsible for programs in psychiatry, physical rehabilitation, and pediatrics.

She has served on the Board of Austin Child Guidance Center. She is also a current member of the Town Lake Trail Foundation.

Austin-based recording artist Trish Murphy officially launched her music career after receiving a B.A. in philosophy from the University of Dallas and quitting her college job at The Wall Street Journal. Critically esteemed as a gender-defying songwriter who "stands toe to toe with the boys and rocks just as hard as they do," her discography includes four solo albums, three of which she released on her own label. She tours the U.S. and Europe, and the annual all-female Lilith Fair tour was a career highlight in the late 1990s. Her songs have also been recorded by fellow Texan Pat Green and CMT favorites Cross Canadian Ragweed. Her latest CD, titled "Girls Get In Free," was written during her term as a board member. Trish celebrated its local release by throwing a skating-rink bash with the Texas Roller Girls, to benefit GENaustin. Girls under 18 got in free!

Trish has been involved with many Texas-area charities addressing the needs of young people, including Transplants for Children, the Texas Music Project, and the Sims Foundation. She has performed as a guest artist with high-school orchestras in Houston, her home town, to raise awareness for music education. She also enjoys participating as a guest speaker with GENaustin's Speaker Series and contributing her writing skills to the ClubGEN Curriculum Guide. She has lived in Austin since 1996.

MariBen Ramsey is what some might call a super-volunteer. She has been a valuable asset to so many local and international non-profits that it's hard to list them all. Throughout the years, MariBen has used her time and talents to serve on the board of a diverse array of organizations including the Junior League of Austin, Habitat for Humanity, United Way, SafePlace and the Austin History Center Association just to name a few.

MariBen is a lawyer by trade, with a law degree and an undergraduate accounting degree from the University of Texas at Austin. She is currently associate director and legal counsel at the Austin Community Foundation.

The Austin community has taken notice of MariBen awarding her numerous accolades for her extensive volunteerism. She received the "Silent Samaritan" award and the Girl Scout's Lone Star Council's prestigious "Women of Distinction" award and was even named the city's "Best Volunteer" by the Austin Chronicle in 1998.

MariBen joins GENaustin with a desire to focus her energy on empowering girls.

Cookie Ruiz has more than 25 years experience in the areas of strategic planning, program development and non-profit fund-raising/management, which includes work with the United Way and the American Red Cross. In 2002 she was awarded the professional designation of Certified Fund Raising Executive (C.F.R.E.) by the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Her community honors include Austin Business Journal's "2005 Profiles in Power" award, the American Red Cross "Clara Barton Medal of Honor," Volunteer of the Year for the Austin Independent School District, the Lone Star Girl Scout Council "Women of Distinction" award, and is a former President of the Junior League of Austin. As a 1995 graduate of Leadership Austin, Ms. Ruiz co-founded the diversity/principle-based curriculum for the Teen Leadership Austin program and was a member of the Board of Directors of Leadership Austin for four years. Additionally, Ms. Ruiz provided the research and development for the nationally recognized Junior League of Austin Hispanic Mother/Daughter Program, as well as three other nationally replicated social service programs.

She has served as a speaker, facilitator and presenter for a variety of leadership conferences, including the National Conference on Community Leadership, the 2004 National Performing Arts Conference and the Texas Commission on the Arts. Ms. Ruiz is currently the Chair of the national Board of Trustees of Dance/USA, the Chair of the "Create Austin" cultural planning process, and is a member of the national Board of Directors of the American Arts Alliance (Washington DC), the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the Austin Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Board of Directors of GENAustin, the Board of Directors of KMFA, the Board of Governors of KVUE's "5 Kids Who Care" awards program, the Advisory Council of the Center for Community Based & Nonprofit Organizations at Austin Community College and is a community advisor to the Young Women's Alliance (YWA). In 1996 Ms. Ruiz joined the staff of Ballet Austin as development director, became general manager in 1997 and executive director in 1999.

Kim Soechting has a Bachelor's degree from the University of Mary Hardin Baylor, and she has made it a lifelong endeavor to provide resources to others. For twenty years, she has worked in the business world, the sports arena, and the non-profit world to encourage people to try new and different challenges in their lives.

In 1996, Kim co-founded GENAustin (Girls Empowerment Network), a non-profit organization that provides positive resources for young women, and she still serves as a board member. She is an avid athlete, playing volleyball, tennis, and golf, and she has coached girls' volleyball since 1993.

Kim and her husband Greg are longtime Austinites, and they own The Austin Wine Merchant. Her entrepreneurial spirit along with her ability to work with company details keeps everyone on their toes!

Kim Todd is a senior account manager for Texas Monthly. She has won numerous awards as the top salesperson of both Clear Channel Communications (KASE) and Emmis Broadcasting (Texas Monthly). She has been in the broadcast and publishing for over 15 years.

While volunteering and serving on the board of American Women in Radio and Television, she supported the advancement of women in the communications industry. She supported efforts to make equal opportunity rules for women in communications.

Kelly White - As a non-profit executive, she spent over 25 years leading and growing community-based, non-profit corporations. Most recently, she spent a decade, from July 1993 through November 2003, serving as the executive director of SafePlace, the leading domestic violence and sexual assault services program for Austin and Travis County. Under Kelly's direction SafePlace became one of the largest and most recognized organizations of its type in the nation - and in the world. She grew the budget from $1.4 million to $9 million and the staff from 44 to 160.

During her tenure Kelly led the effort to raise more than $20 million in capital campaign funds to develop and build a 40-unit transitional living apartment community, a 24,000 square foot resource center, a 100 bed family shelter, and an on-site school and child care center. She also worked to create a Community Housing Development Organization (CHODO) that successfully applied for Low Income Housing Tax Credits to build a 184-unit affordable housing apartment complex adjacent to the SafePlace campus.

Kelly has received numerous awards, including the United Way/Capital Area Non-Profit Executive of the Year, the Austin Community Foundation Beverly Sheffield Executive Director of the Year, the Girl Scout's Women of Distinction, the ROSE Foundation's National Award for formerly battered women and Leadership Austin's Essential Alumni Award for 2007.