Meet The Advisors
Archie Welch
Archie is a longtime Political activist, Veteran Causes supporter and a Marine. He has also been coined "The Connector" in Kansas City, since he seems to know everyone in town and can get the right people at the table together to get things accomplished. His political lobbying background has paved the way for several of our current politicians, including a direct friendship with Senator Emanuel Cleaver, which has spanned nearly four decades. Recently, Archie was declared "Veteran of the Year" by Mayor Quinton Lucas and the City of KCMO.
Courtney Thomas (Chair)
Courtney is currently the President & CEO of NEWHOUSE Domestic Violence Agency. She previously served as President & CEO of Great Plains SPCA and Central Exchange. Courtney was named one of 'KC Magazine’s Top 100 Most Influential People' in Kansas City. Courtney is also the recipient of the 'Silver Stevie Award,' earning “Female Executive of the Year” honors within her market segment and was nominated for the ATHENA Leadership Award.
Jaysen Van Sickle (Secretary)
Jaysen has spent over 25 years in leadership positions. Including working in nonprofit. Prior to that, he worked for national telecom doing operations and marketing. In addition to those roles, he is a MBA Professor, and teaches executive leadership. Outside of his professional career, Jaysen has owned several restaurants and bars in Kansas City. He has been identified as a "Who's Who in St. Louis," and most recently, was recognized by the State of Missouri for 'Recognition of a Remarkable Citizen' and with Kansas City as a "Hero of the Homeless Crisis."
Jessica Best
Jessica is one part massive email marketing nerd and one part permission-marketing evangelist. She’s stimulated ROI in customer—and data-driven marketing for a diverse clientele. In 2016, she was rated in the top 50 Awesome Marketing Women to follow by Search Engine Journal. In 2017, the Kansas City Direct Marketing Association honored Jessica as the Direct Marketer of the Year. In 2018, she was named one of DMNews magazine’s 40 Under 40, honoring the best and most accomplished marketers in the industry under 40.
Dr. Jennifer Matney
Jennifer has been in the field of finance for over 23 years. With a PhD in Economics & Public Administration, she has worked for The Federal Reserve Bank, as well as several corporate banks headquartered in Kansas City. Her corporate CFO-level leadership includes Model Risk Management, Capital Stress Testing, Third-Party Risk Management, Third-Party Insurance, Contracts Administration, Corporate Insurance, Contingency Planning, and Loss Reporting. In addition to a vast corporate background, Jennifer epitomizes the term philanthropy. She has sat on several nonprofit boards, volunteered thousands of hours, and helped capital campaign thousands of dollars. She has been recognized by the 'Independent Magazine' as a "Rising Star."
Karen Noel
Karen is the Chief Executive Officer of Catholic Charities of Kansas City-St. Joseph. Prior to that, she has already had over 20 years of experience providing senior leadership with organizations in the technology and telecommunications industries. A major portion of her corporate tenure was with Sprint, where she led various sized organizations in marketing, business development, product and operations. She also co-owns two local businesses.
Joel Goldberg
Joel is first and foremost a well respected Kansas City celebrity. But, he is also a motivational speaker, published author, podcaster and longtime television broadcaster. He currently serves as the pre-game/post-game host and in-game reporter with the Kansas City Royals. Because of his found popularity, he was able to create a podcast called "Rounding The Bases," which has gained national exposure and has hosted a myriad of large-named influencers from all over the country and KC as well.
Michael Johnson (Vice Chair)
Representative Michael Johnson, represents Jackson County (District 23) in the Missouri House of Representatives. In addition to his legislative duties, he is an insurance agent at his own agency, Johnson Hazley Agency. Michael is also an Army Veteran, where after ROTC, he went on to become an Expert Infantryman in urban warfare. Being a Kansas City native, you will find him constantly out in the community making his city greater and rolling up his sleeves to help whomever may need his assistance.
Dr. Risa Stein
Risa possesses a unique set of credentials and skills. She holds a PHD in clinical child and health psychology and an MA in Organizational Leadership. Dr. Stein has an extensive behavioral medicine research and publication record as well as 20+ years dedicated to teaching undergraduate students. Over the past decade, Risa has consulted with universities, nonprofits, large corporations, and think-tanks on design thinking and innovation. She has also dabbled in the nonprofit realm having created a trauma-informed mental health support website for students and has written a popular personal development self-guided therapy workbook, called the Best Damn Life Workbook. Risa is a sought-after speaker on issues related to mental health and socioemotional support.
Rod Carbonell (Treasurer)
Rod has 25 years’ experience working in community, public, and private healthcare systems where he has served as both a clinician and executive. Rods diverse background and experience leading large teams can be valuable for business leaders in any sector seeking unique perspective and expertise in areas of consumer service and quality, business operations, strategic planning, contract negotiations, turnaround-efforts, LEAN management principles and executive development strategies. Rod also has experience participating in healthcare legislative and regulatory lobbying.
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Rod loves his community, and his mission is to advocate for healthcare equity, access and affordability for all. Rod is also an advocate for clinicians and care-givers who work in our highly complex delivery systems. In addition to working as a healthcare consultant Rod serves as a board member for a non-profit homeless agency.