Who we are
Together with thousands of volunteers, a coalition of partners across child care, disaster and crisis response, and volunteerism, we are delivering CHILD CARE FOR ALL IN CRISIS.
Dave Meader, Ph.D., has 30 years experience working in industry, academics and with nonprofits. Dave is currently a professor at Fowler College of Business, San Diego State University. Previously, Dave served as the Director for the Center for Socially Responsible Business at Mills College in Oakland, California, and also taught social innovation strategies, project management, and information technology strategy to business students at the Eller College of Management, University of Arizona , Haas School of Management, University of California – Berkeley, and Mills College. Dave has served on the Board of the Social Venture Partners Silicon Valley and currently continues that work with the Social Venture Partners of San Diego.
In 2015, Dave traveled to 28 countries and provided pro bono business consulting services to small social enterprises in 7 countries. He is writing a how-to book based on that experience, The Lean Volunteer: Traveling The World While Doing Good With Your Business Expertise. The book will be out in the Summer of 2024.
He has a B.S. in Computer Science, M.A. in Psychology, and Ph.D. in Computer and Information Systems from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. Dave is the father of twin boys, of which he is very proud.
David Dripps is the Managing Partner at Augi Capital and a Partner at Tinman Group where he acquires profitable B2B services companies then deploys proprietary systems and technology to drive long-term, sustainable growth. Previously, David spent 8 years at Facebook, as a Senior Engineering Manager where he led his team to become the world’s largest digital marketing platform for SMBs – growing from 80M to 140M active businesses in 4 years. By unifying the data-delivery infrastructure across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and Oculus, his team was able to highlight possible issues and make recommendations that drove record-breaking impact for Facebook. David spent the last two years leading the Capacity & Efficiency team to drive over $1B per year in ongoing cost savings during the Covid-19 pandemic.
David is an active real estate angel investor and an entrepreneur. After building the world’s first HTML5 rich media advertising platform to replace Adobe Flash® on iPads, David started his first company, a social media platform which was sold to Lockerz, Inc. in 2013. David’s next company, Brik, manufactured Lego®-compatible laptop cases and adhesive wall tiles and was acquired in 2019. Presently, David is a board member of Mark My Words Media. When he is not working with entrepreneurs, David enjoys perfecting his pour-over coffee, playing the piano, and skiing.
Catherine Holbrook Clark became the Director of the Wildcat MicroFund (WMF) at Weber State University in the fall of 2021. The Wildcat MicroFund assists entrepreneurs as they launch and grow new business ventures. Born and raised in Utah to an entrepreneur and an educator, Catherine has the ideal foundation for helping entrepreneurs succeed.
Also, as a former WMF award recipient, she has a vested interest in the future success of the Microfund and its recipients. She obtained her education at Weber State University. Go Wildcats!
In addition to running the Wildcat Microfund, Catherine owns and operates a business with her husband, so she understands the complexities of managing a small business. Catherine has more than twenty-five years of professional experience, which includes working in non-profit, government, academic, and for-profit sectors.
Erin leads Cisco’s Crisis Response (CCR) team, which partners with emergency response agencies and NGOs to securely connect and empower underserved and vulnerable populations in crisis. CCR provides cash and product grants to nonprofits focused on humanitarian aid and disaster response, technical assistance and consulting on security and emergency solutions, as well as deployment expertise and capabilities to provide connectivity for agencies and affected communities responding to crises.
Prior to joining Cisco, Erin spent over a decade in the NGO sector, managing post-disaster, financial inclusion and technology-for-development programs in Asia and East Africa. Erin has a B.A. from the University of Michigan, and an M.A. in International Development from American University.
Brenna Maddox, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist with expertise in autism and co-occurring mental health conditions. She is the co-chair of the Autism and Suicide Prevention Workgroup and an adjunct faculty member at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (UNC) TEACCH Autism Program.
Dr. Maddox is particularly interested in preventing suicide and improving mental health outcomes for people on the autism spectrum, training and supporting community mental health clinicians to work with this population, and prioritizing authentic engagement of autistic people in community-partnered research.
In her free time. Dr. Maddox enjoys spending time with her family, running, and coaching a local Girls on the Run team.
Silke Knebel is the Founder and CEO of National Emergency Child Care Network (NECCN). NECCN’s program services have been featured in NPR, 19th and Forbes. Silke inspires change and reminds all of us that through her everyday bravery, we can make a difference for families in hardship. Silke is an Awardee of The Courage Project.
Silke spent half a decade in disaster response and recovery in various roles with the American Red Cross in California, including as a Board Member and Disaster Response Volunteer. Silke opened Red Cross disaster shelters for victims of wildfires and spent time talking with many families who lost their homes, pets and immediate belongings from disasters. During this time, Silke recognized that many families with children expressed a critical need of emergency child care so the families can work through the insurance claims, FEMA forms, Red Cross vouchers, and where they will live for the remaining year. Silke has a deep interest and passion for helping children and families with disaster relief and humanitarian aid and providing a critical resource that doesn’t exist today -- Free Emergency Child Care.
Silke has a M.A. in Sustainable International Development from the Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University, and a B.A. in Psychology from Sonoma State University.
Silke was a US Peace Corps Volunteer in Guyana, South America in 2000 and led one of the most successful projects in the history of Peace Corps in Guyana. Her work is featured in LeanIn. Silke has been invited twice to present at the World Affairs Council / the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco on the power of volunteerism and philanthropy.
Silke is a proud mom of three young boys. Together, her family enjoys hiking, camping, volunteering, and being in nature.
Dr. Julie Anderson is a school psychologist and education advocate with 25 years of experience in North Carolina public schools. She has led the Trauma Informed team at her elementary school and trained teachers and staff on the effects of trauma and how to support children during and after crisis events. She exhibits professionalism in her schools helping inform instruction and learning with potential results in well-being and full development. She consults with learning teams and parents and evaluates students exhibiting learning challenges in the areas of behavior, health, and academics. Julie lives with her husband and dog in Fuquay – Varina. She is a proud mother of two girls, loves to garden, shop and will soon be a certified yoga instructor.
Diane Bevan is the President and CEO of the Idaho Technology Council (ITC). The ITC is committed to the success of Idaho’s technology ecosystem, that specializes in developing talent, access to capital, and the commercialization of products and services.
Driven by her passion for equity, Diane was the first CEO of the Idaho Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in 2017, where she grew the organization and established the Idaho Hispanic Foundation. Her efforts led to significant achievements, including securing over $10 million in federal and non-federal support for underserved communities and winning prestigious awards like the Marsha Bailey Award from the Association of Women’s Business Centers.
Diane has served on the boards of the Idaho Foodbank Valley Region Transit Authority and is currently a Commissioner for the Meridian Development Corporation, Inspire Excellence Foundation, and Idaho Women for Education. She has been awarded Idaho’s Top 50 Most Influential Business Leaders and Top 50 Women of the Year honoree.
Mariianne Crary is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of M10 Society and the COO of Mcule, an online drug discovery platform. With M10 society, she leads a group of experts and mentors with extraordinary experience in turning cutting-edge innovations and startups into economic drivers.
Mariianne is a series entrepreneur and founder with over 30 years of experience starting, structuring, and implementing innovative models to create change. She founded Silicon Valley Real Ventures, Floodlights Software, Newallstreet, HubSV and ChoiceManager. She works closely with the European Union Commission and funding agencies focusing on building an efficient user interface between Silicon Valley and the EU. Mariianne is currently a Startup Advisor for Class Junky Inc., Global Cleantech Impact Expo, and WeShareApps Ltd. Previous to these roles, she worked at Oracle for three years.
Mariianne’s educational background from Denmark is in Business Administration and Organizational Development. Mariianne lives in Silicon Valley with her physicist husband, where they enjoy nature, the Silicon Valley talent-cluster, music, travel – and breaking barriers in each their field.
Mark Steele advises on all marketing and design materials. He brings “new eyes” to every vision and campaign.
Mark is currently the Chief Marketing and Design Officer of Boulder Luxury Group and the founder of New Moon Multimedia, a freelance design company specializing in interactive digital technology. With some +20 years of digital and print media under his belt, he tapped into his intuitive understanding and technical expertise to effectively communicate unique, committed, elegant messages for profit and nonprofit entities alike. One client, a 50 year old investment management firm in Chicago, rearranged its project schedule to accommodate Steele’s availability in order to “get” his excellence. Mark was also the Chief Marketing Officer for Blue Planet Network, a technology and water nonprofit dedicated to empowering over 2 million people in 27 countries with safe, clean drinking water.
National Emergency Child Care Network is proud to partner with universities and students from across the US to help families in crisis.
Natalia Choruzek is a dedicated social work student currently enrolled in the Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) program at the University of South Florida. She is passionate about supporting children and families, with a strong focus on creating safe, nurturing environments where kids feel seen, understood, and cared for.
Natalia brings hands-on experience as a Behavior Technician, where she works closely with a 7-year-old child using principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Through this role, she has developed strong skills in patience, empathy, communication, and de-escalation. She also has experience supporting children with autism and is familiar with the use of AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) devices, allowing her to effectively connect with children of varying communication needs.
Driven by a genuine love for working with children, Natalia finds the most fulfillment in being able to brighten a child’s day, even in small ways. She is known for her sweet, caring, and compassionate nature, and she approaches every interaction with gratitude and understanding. Her calm and empathetic presence helps her build trust and create meaningful connections with the children she works with.
She is CPR certified and committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of every child in her care.
Looking ahead, Natalia’s goal is to become a hospital social worker, where she can continue advocating for children and families during some of their most vulnerable moments. She is deeply motivated to make a positive impact and provide comfort, stability, and support to those who need it most.