Meet Our Board of Directors
Robin Portman
Board Chair
Robin is a former CEO for a health-services firm, and retired as the Chief Growth Officer for Booz Allen Hamilton, a Fortune-500 company headquarters in Tysons Corner. Robin is the current Chair for Belong!’s board of directors, where she has served since 2018. As chair, her efforts focus on strategy, partnerships, and development. Her deep passion for inclusive communities where all of its members can live healthy, productive, and joyful lives has led her to become an active member of Vienna Presbyterian Church (VPC), serving as a Deacon and an Elder, and teaching adult English classes for VPC’s ESOL program. Additionally, Robin serves on the Advisory Board for the Elizabeth Dole Foundation and until recently, served as Board Chair for Easterseals of MD, DC and VA. She has also served on the University of Maryland’s College Park Foundation Board, the Capital Hospice Board of Trustees, and the boards for Service Source and Psych Armor Institute. A graduate of the University of Maryland (BS & MS), Robin lives in Vienna with her husband, her 91-year-old mother-in-law and their dog Creedence. Robin enjoys all things outdoors—hiking, biking, swimming and skiing.
Robin Portman
Board Chair
Jim M. Zinn
Treasurer
James M. (Jim) Zinn has served as a Belong! Board member and its Treasurer since 2018. He brings to this role years of experience in the finance industry, including CFO/Senior VP for CapitalOne Financial Corporation, Regional Partner for Ernst & Young and founder/consultant for a number of start-up technology companies. Prior to joining the Belong! Jim was treasurer and board director for 6 years at Kingsmill Community Services Association. He also served on the board of directors/ chaired the audit committee for a publicly traded investment advisory/asset management firm and a publicly traded REIT. Hailing from Ohio, Jim graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in Business Administration. Jim lives with his wife and crazed 2-year old labradoodle in Northern Virginia and is an active member of Vienna Presbyterian Church and former Elder. In addition to golf and traveling, Jim enjoys spending time with his 3 adult kids and 6 grandchildren.
Jim M. Zinn
Treasurer
Board Chair
Treasurer
Board Chair
Sue Hamblen
Sue has been part of Belong!’s board of directors since 2018. She has been an active member of Vienna Presbyterian Church since 1985, serving as an Elder, and most recently as the Mission Director overseeing 29 strategic partnerships and numerous Mission activities and events. The CARES Act partnership launched during the COVID-19 pandemic is dear to her heart as the program successfully provides groceries to 400 families and engages over 100 volunteers. Sue has also been a special education teacher, Presbyterian Women’s moderator, PTA President at James Madison High School, Coordinator of America’s Youth Teen Outreach program, Founding Member and Past President of Vienna Teen Center Foundation, Girl Scout and Boy Scout troop and den leader, VPC small group leader, and leader and coordinator of several domestic and international Mission Trips. Sue and her husband have lived in Vienna since 1979. She is a graduate of James Madison University.
Board Secretary
Sue Hamblen
Board Secretary
Thomas C. Black
Head of Governance
Tom’s passion for serving others and deep interest in working with immigrants prompted him to become a member of Belong!’s Board of Directors. As a long-time member of the Vienna Presbyterian Church (VPC), he has taught several courses in VPC’s ESOL programs and participated in VPC Summer Mission Projects in the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico. He was a strong supporter of VPC’s assistance to the Presbyterian Church in Colombia, including the “Land of Hope” project, which purchased land allowing an entire village to raise their own crops. Tom worked for the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington DC as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and then as an Associate Director in the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs. Tom and his family have lived in Vienna for over 42 years. He enjoys family life, playing golf, reading and working on his Spanish skills.
Thomas C. Black
Head of Governance
Rod Nuñez
Board Member
Rod has served on the Belong! Board since 2018. He is passionate about using our God given gifts and strengths in serving the people of our community and calling people to know Jesus Christ and to grow and walk in faith. He serves on staff at Christ Church Vienna, an Anglican church in Vienna and works extensively through Student Ministry (Middle School, High School, College) and within the local Spanish speaking community. As a first generation American citizen, born in Santiago, Chile - first in his family to graduate from college (Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University in Civil Engineering) he knows first hand the challenges and victories possible to young men and women who are new in our community from Spanish speaking home countries. Rod lives in Vienna with his incredible wife and has two sons, that are away at college.
Rod Nuñez
Board Member
Bob Gambarelli
Bob is a long-time Vienna resident. He recently retired after a successful 40-year career in education. His keen passion for education and children led him to be counselor at James Madison High School for 30 years, and Director of Counseling for the last 15 years at the same school. Now that Bob is retired, his passion for helping and teaching others has been channeled towards the ESL program at St. Mark's Church and Food for Others. He has also served as a volunteer for Belong! and is excited to continue supporting Belong!’s mission. He enjoys traveling, photography and reading.
Board Member
Bob Gambarelli
Board Member
Treasurer
Hellen Cortez
Hellen has served on the Belong! Board since 2018. Born in Bolivia, she migrated at a young age to Mexico, where she studied Drama & Literature, before moving to the United States. Her early experiences as a young mother in a foreign country contributed to her relentless passion and conviction that all children are capable of learning, given the opportunity. In 2007, she joined Cunningham Park ES as a Parent Liaison, to serve multicultural families in Vienna, and help them navigate language and social-cultural barriers. Hellen helped co-found Bridges Harmony, a non-profit organization dedicated to further kids’ education through music enjoyment, and has collaborated with nonprofit and faith-based organizations to coordinate tutoring, mentoring, summer camps, academic enrichment programs, and community events. She has also volunteered for many years at the Probation House for Boys and Girls and served as an interpreter for the Fairfax County Juvenile and Family Court. Currently, she facilitates workshops with a focus to ingrain the love for education, compassion, and growth among newly arrived multicultural families to the USA. Hellen lives in Centreville with her husband and 93 old mother and adores her three independent boys.
She is excited about the future and believes that a free education is a right for everyone, because, as she always says: “Education is the force that transforms dreams in realities.”
Board Member
Hellen Cortez
Board Member
Treasurer
Karen Mokate
Karen Mokate represents Vienna Presbyterian Church’s Session of Elders on the Belong! Board. She is an active member of VPC, participating in Women’s Bible Study and Growing Your Soul, serving in the past as a Deacon and currently as an Elder. She teaches in the church’s ESOL program and serves on the team that supports Afghan refugees. Karen started her career as an Economics professor and then worked in International Development, focusing particularly on work with Latin America and the Caribbean. She is originally from the Chicago area and lived twelve years in Bogota, Colombia. When she moved to the Washington DC area, she became passionate about support to immigrant and underserved families. Karen and her husband brought up a son and a daughter in the Vienna community and continue to live in Vienna. Karen loves to spend time with her family and enjoys running, biking and water sports.
Board Member
Karen Mokate
Board Member
Treasurer
Barbara Benoit
Barbara is a patent attorney who has been involved with Belong! since its early community meetings in the summer of 2017 and the meal-packing project of May 2018. She has a passion for the Vienna community and the vision for Vienna as a loving and inclusive community where all belong and have equal opportunities for social, spiritual, educational, and economic success. She has been a member of Vienna Presbyterian Church since 2003. A graduate of The College of William and Mary (B.A.), George Mason University (M.S. and Ph.D.), and George Washington University Law School (J.D.), Barbara has lived in the Northern Virginia area most of her life and has resided in Vienna since 1994. Having raised their two sons, Barbara and her husband now have time for their passions of hiking and backpacking, venturing to somewhere along the Appalachian Trail most weekends.
Board Member
Barbara Benoit
Board Member
Bill Browning
Board Member
Bill Browning is currently Manager of Workforce Innovations with Fairfax County’s Department of Family Services. Bill brings diverse perspectives about learning and workforce development drawn from management experiences in many different types of organizations. Prior to joining Fairfax County in 2021, these included corporate training in the banking industry, regional nonprofit job training programs in Northern Virginia, a community college (NOVA), and a national workforce development research and policy organization.
Bill Browning
Board Member
Meet Our Staff
Lynn O'Connell
Executive Director
Lynn O’Connell is a nonprofit professional with more than 30 years working in the nonprofit sector. She has served 23 years as an executive director at three different organizations prior to Belong - Computer CORE, Docs In Progress (an arts nonprofit) and the Physician Assistant Foundation. Before her work with nonprofits, Lynn served 12 years as a Foreign Service Officer. Most of her time overseas was spent in sub-Saharan Africa although she served on shorter assignments in western Europe and in countries of the former Soviet Union.
Lynn holds a Masters in Philanthropy from Indiana University, a Certificate in Executive Non-Profit Leadership from Duke University, and is a Fulbright Scholar. Lynn is also on the faculty teaching nonprofit courses at Catholic University and at Northern Virginia Community College.
Lynn is a past board chair of Volunteer Alexandria as well as Empowered Women International. She currently serves as board chair for Together Women Rise, a national giving circle which supports organizations in developing countries that are working to educate and empower women and girls; she is also a member of the local chapter, Vienna/Fairfax Together Women Rise. A strong supporter of giving circles, she was a member for many years with the Giving Circle of HOPE and is currently a member of Giving Together and the Awesome Foundation. She is a member of AAUW-Alexandria and the Junior League of Washington. She attends National Community Church-NOVA.
In her spare time, she enjoys live theatre, and one of her recent favorites was "A Child's Christmas in Wales" produced by the Vienna Theatre Company.
Lynn O'connell
Executive Director
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Laura Kolhoff
Education Program Manager
A former kindergarten teacher at a dual-language public school in DC, Laura loves working with children and figuring out how to best support English language learners. As Belong!’s Education Program Manager, she plans and oversees Belong!’s play-based, academic summer camp and after-school program. She enjoys collaborating with volunteers to create the best learning experiences possible. Laura speaks Spanish and German fluently, having lived in Costa Rica and Germany, and loves traveling and learning languages. She also enjoys reading, baking, drawing, swimming, and hanging out with her cat. She is passionate about immigrants’ rights and the need for educational equity in order to create a just society. She holds a BA in German and Latin American Studies from Oberlin College and an MAT from Trinity Washington University. She is delighted to be working with Belong!
Laura Kolhoff
Education Program Manager
Karen Covell
Director of Programs and Engagement
Having a deep concern for social justice and community development, Karen helped to launch Belong! in 2017, and became Belong!’s Director of Programs and Engagement in February, 2020. Prior to Belong!, Karen managed educational programs for 200 children at Vienna Presbyterian Church (2010-2020). She has extensive experience developing programs, managing budgets, recruiting volunteers and overseeing systems and processes. She has held various volunteer positions, including Youth Group Leader, Deacon, Naomi Project Mentor, Girl Scout Leader, Childcare Coordinator for Moms of Preschoolers (MOPs), and PTA volunteer. Before coming to Vienna, Karen spent over 5 years in Honduras as a Peace Corps volunteer and as the Resource Coordinator for a local nonprofit, where she led planning and evaluation processes for 3 large integrated community development projects. Karen is fluent in Spanish, and has a M.A. in International and Community Development from the University of California at Davis. She enjoys hiking, sewing, playing games, and spending time with family.
Karen Covell
Director of Programs and Engagement
Angelica Friedman
Communication Manager
A native from Peru, Angy loves working with the immigrant and under-resourced community in Vienna. She was part of a team who worked to bring back a public bus service to her neighborhood and has been involved in the PTA to engage Hispanic parents in the school community, which inspired her to become part of Belong!. Angy is passionate about immigration, diversity, and serving the youth in Vienna. Angy provides support to Belong! as part-time Communications Manager bringing her enthusiasm for keeping the Hispanic community informed. She continues helping Belong! provide equity, empowerment and engagement through information and resources. Angy has a BA from Connecticut College, a MA from The George Washington University, and previously worked as an international trade consultant earlier in her career. She enjoys being active in her kids’ life, and loves hiking and going for bike rides with her family.
Angelica Friedman
Communication Manager
Amy Sawyer
Offfice Administrator
Amy brings a great attitude, enthusiasm, and a lot of experience to our team! She concurrently works as a Business Development Manager for Asher Strategies supporting the CEO and its small sales team. Prior to that, she worked at Oakton United Methodist Church as a preschool teacher when her children were young. Amy grew up in Loudoun County and has lived in Oakton with her family for 21 years. When she is not busy working or taking care of her family, she goes to concerts, the beach, hikes, knits and croches, and hangs out with her family and dog Winnie.
Amy Sawyer
Office Administrator
John Joseph
Volunteer
John has recently joined our team of volunteers helping with office work and tutoring after-school students. After a successful career as a senior financial consultant, providing CFO-level support to a variety of businesses, John retired at the end 2022 and had a calling to give back to the community. He approached Ignatian Volunteer Corps (IVC) to help him find an organization that would be a perfect fit for him and his skills. John was drawn to Belong immediately because of our focus on underserved children and their families.
John Joseph
Programs Volunteer
Belong! also offers paid Summer Internships. It is an excellent opportunity to get hands-on experience working in a nonprofit. For more information click here.