Staff & Board of Trustees

Bryan Evans serves as senior vice president at Greater Trenton, where leads key aspects of the organization’s strategic plan including cultivating partnerships, building community engagement, championing Trenton’s economic development narrative and catalyzing key development projects and initiatives in the city. His role sees him work closely with prominent leaders in Trenton and throughout the state and with regional and national partner and board member organizations. Evans has more than 20 years of leadership experience that spans positions in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Recent positions include serving as vice president of marketing at The Goldenberg Group, vice president of outreach at Trellist Marketing & Technology, and director of public relations, publications and policy at the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

I joined The Father Center of New Jersey to accelerate pathways to success for hardworking fathers across New Jersey.

David Howe is a Human Resources consultant to small and medium sized businesses and nonprofit organizations. David spent 27 years in HR leadership roles at Merck & Company building expertise in talent management, leadership development, organization design and executive coaching. His vision is to build better workplaces by raising the leadership effectiveness and strategic management of organizations that have a positive social impact. David has served as interim Chief Human Resource Officer at several companies and is strongly connected to the New Jersey nonprofit community, having served on two Boards of Trustees, consulted with numerous nonprofit clients, and served as a member of the Princeton Area Community Foundation’s Committee on Impact.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

I joined the Father Center of New Jersey because I believe in the importance of role models and family love in raising children to be successful and happy members of our community.

Wayne Mernone has a long history with The Father Center of New Jersey. As a child, he attended a Christmas Party hosted by Union Industrial Home, a previous name of our organization. Years later, Wayne attended a local Chamber of Commerce event where he met the then Executive Director and decided to get involved. Now fast forward over 25 years and Wayne is still serving on the board. Having been born in Trenton, Wayne has lived in Mercer County all his life, where he raised 3 children and has 2 grandchildren. Professionally, Wayne works in the life insurance and financial services industry, helping personal and business clients since 1992. Other volunteer work includes the Robbinsville Hamilton Rotary Club.

Surabhi is a scientist, writer and editor who brings her passion for health care strategy and communication to the world of non-profits. Through her consultancy, SDG AdvoHealth LLC, Surabhi provides scientific and communication expertise to patient advocacy groups, assisting with content development, grant writing, program development, strategic partnerships, and meeting planning. Her consultancy supports non-profit groups in their mission to help patients and caregivers navigate the healthcare journey. Surabhi has served on the Board of The Father Center of New Jersey since June 2020. She earned her Master’s in Pharmacy from the University of Mumbai, doctorate from the University of Maryland, Baltimore and conducted post-doctoral research at the University of Chicago and Northwestern University.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

Being a part of the Board at The Father Center of New Jersey helps me support a better future for the children in our state.

Joanie is employed at Rowan University, where she is responsible for financial trend analysis, outcome assessments, policy formation and contract negotiations. She has been in the healthcare industry for over 30 years and has a comprehensive background that includes administration, supervision, compliance monitoring and project management. In her spare time, she does additional volunteer work with other local organizations within the Mercer County area.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

I joined The Father Center to help advocate on behalf of individuals whose voices often go unheard.

Douglas Blair is Professor Emeritus of Economics and Political Science at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, where for 38 years he taught a wide range of classes, including most recently courses on the causes and consequences of growing income inequality in the U.S. He served at Rutgers as Executive Vice Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Dean of the Social and Behavioral Sciences, Chair of the New Brunswick Faculty Council, Director of the Bureau of Economic Research, and Chair of the Departments of Economics and Anthropology. He has served on the boards of directors of the Planned Parenthood Association of the Mercer Area, Planned Parenthood of Northern, Central, and Southern New Jersey, and the Princeton Junior School.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

My commitment to the work of the Father Center stems in part from honoring my own father’s profound
role in my life and from appreciating the challenges and rewards of working to be a good father to my
own son and daughter.

Dwane King is an Internal Investigations Manager at Wells Fargo Bank, where his team is responsible for investigating employee misconduct. Dwayne has been employed with Wells Fargo for 26 years. In addition to his managerial role, Dwayne is also the President of the PA/DE/Southern NJ chapter of Wells Fargo’s Black/African American Employee Resource Network. As a member of the Delta Upsilon Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., Dwayne serves as the Keeper of Finance.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

I joined The Father Center to: further the mission of an agency which provides unmatched assistance to men without prejudice or judgement.

For over 20 years, Lynn Schwartz has been a dedicated fundraiser and development leader in the healthcare, human services, and education fields. Throughout her career, her singular focus has been on supporting entrepreneurial and innovative priorities for the many organizations she has served. Her firm, H3 Philanthropy Partners, allows Lynn to use her expertise to provide consulting services to small-to-midsize nonprofits to help them reach their fundraising goals and achieve their missions. Lynn is most proud of her work with organizations, like The Father Center, whose mission and practices reflect a commitment to racial and gender equity and work in support of social justice.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

I joined the board of The Father Center because I am passionate about opening access to opportunities for underserved men who are seeking living wage employment and to become a stable force in their families.

Dr. Kulkarni is the Principal Attorney at the Kulkarni Law Firm where he focuses on the needs of life science companies and their service providers. He currently also teaches at Drexel University School of Law, has written numerous book chapters for multiple textbooks, is a vociferous podcaster, entrepreneur and also serves on multiple advisory and editorial boards.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

I joined The Father Center because I think fathers don’t have enough advocates and I wanted to be the change that I want to see in the world.

John Santana serves as the Director of Strategic Partnerships at the United Way of Greater Mercer County, managing the planning and implementation of key strategies for corporate engagement activities, workplace giving campaigns, and other fundraising, donor growth and retention efforts, as well as, providing insight and input in community impact initiatives and government affairs. John has worked for over 30 years in the non-profit, government and public sector fields including positions at the American Red Cross, New Jersey State Government, New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, and the Government of Puerto Rico. He has a breath of experience in effective stakeholder engagement, collaborative strategies, consensus building, economic development, and government affairs.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

I joined The Father Center to actively engage with a dedicated team that is providing initiatives and strategies to develop upstanding fathers.

Bill retired from a major healthcare company at the end of 2016 where he was the Chief Investment Officer for the company’s pension funds and savings plans worldwide.  His investment experience includes many Treasury roles for companies in the Eastern US.
Bill has served with many not-for- profit organizations including serving as Vice Chairman of the Board of Pensions, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and as past President of Pension Group East. He currently serves on the Advisory Board of GIA Partners, LLC a bottom-up global fixed income firm based in New York City and as a member of the Board of Directors of Sapience Investments, LLC, a small and SMID US Value equity manager based in Newport Beach, CA.

MY MOTIVATION TO BE ON THE BOARD

I joined The Father Center of New Jersey to support men in their never-ending quest to be their best for
their families.