Friends In Deed Welcomes Five New Board Members

Friends In Deed has brought on five new board members in the last 16 months to help guide and provide oversight for the local charity. Ursula Hyman, Rev. Marlene Pomeroy, Lana Slavitt, Jeff Salcido, and Leslie White have joined the 19-member board to guide the nonprofit organization strategically into the future.

Board President Bret Schaefer says, “Friends In Deed has expanded rapidly in the last five years, and our board has grown in size and expertise to match. Each new board member brings critical knowledge and valued insight to position FID appropriately in the community and in homeless services.”

Friends In Deed is a social services agency founded in Pasadena in 1894 that focuses on reducing and preventing homelessness and alleviating the effects of poverty for the community’s most vulnerable citizens. The nonprofit has five core programs: Food Pantry, The Women’s Room, Eviction Prevention and Rental Assistance, Bad Weather Supplies, and Street Outreach and Housing. Friends In Deed is committed to providing compassion, connection, and dignity for all clients experiencing times in their lives when they need assistance most.

“We are thrilled to welcome these five board members,” adds Executive Director Rabbi Joshua Levine Grater. “They each have a unique skill set that will help us set up for many years of future success in helping our community members in need.”

The nonprofit provided the following biographies for each new board member.

Ursula Hyman is a retired partner from the Los Angeles office of Latham & Watkins after practicing with the firm for 30 years. During most of her tenure, she led the firm’s Public and Tax-Exempt Financing practice and at times served as chair of the firm’s global Mentoring Committee and the Los Angeles Pro Bono and Women’s Committees. Ursula was listed in the 2010 through 2013 Best Lawyers in America survey. Since the award first started in 2004, she was annually named as one of Southern California’s Top-Rated Lawyers until her retirement. With a long list of volunteer and board work over the years, Ursula currently is the president of the Assistance League of Pasadena and sits on the Finance Committee of the San Gabriel Valley Planned Parenthood Board.

Rev. Marlene Pomeroy is currently co-pastor at the First Congregational Church of Pasadena with her husband Jake. She was ordained in the United Church of Christ and has served on staff in churches for 35 years. Marlene has always been interested in advocating for the health and wellness of others. She volunteered for years in the area of women’s domestic violence and sexual assault prevention and has made compassion and outreach a key part of every ministry setting she has worked within. She has been involved with the work of Friends In Deed over the past two decades and previously served on their board. Marlene graduated from Duke University, both undergraduate and with her Masters of Divinity.

Lana Slavitt brings a focus on grass roots activism, philanthropy, and government engagement to Friends In Deed, after spending more than 20 years working in strategy and corporate development business roles. Of particular focus at Friends In Deed for Lana are strategic planning, nonprofit development, and community member relations and communications. Lana previously held executive roles at McKinsey & Company, Universal Studios, Yahoo! and Target Corporation. Lana holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Northwestern University and lives in the local Pasadena area.

Jeff Salcido has been a realtor at Compass, Pasadena for almost fifteen years. A former member of the Pasadena Jaycees, Jeff participated in many community service projects in the local area, including Operation Gobbler held in partnership with the Friends In Deed Food Pantry. Jeff has also been on the Alumni Council at Mayfield Junior School for several years and is the Co-Chair of Optimist Professionals with Optimist Youth Home and Family Services. He brings skills in young professionals engagement and local Pasadena knowledge to the FID board. Jeff holds a Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology from San Diego State University.

Leslie White specializes in project based nonprofit and small business development. She collaborates with organizations to develop strong strategic and organizational objectives to maximize long-term success. Leslie’s decades of expertise include strategic planning, fundraising, team collaboration, problem solving, and risk taking. Leslie has deep experience in new business strategies and product development from years of work at The Disney Store Worldwide, bringing a dynamic, versatile knowledge base to Friends In Deed. Leslie comes to the FID board with a desire to help develop and enhance program and outreach efforts through strong alliances. Leslie holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business and Marketing Management from San Diego State University, and was most recently a board member at Young and Healthy.

FID is an interfaith organization and provides supportive services to meet basic human needs, so homeless and at-risk individuals can rebuild their lives. For more information on Friends In Deed, please visit friendsindeedpas.org or call (626) 797-2402.