FOUNDERS
Jennifer Kelley - Co-Founder
Jennifer is a certified teacher in grades K-6 and has a Masters in the Art of Teaching. She is passionately dedicated to making a difference in the community and collaboratively fostering future leaders. After her daughter, Lexi, came up with the idea of creating a platform for kids to make a difference in the community around their passions, she helped Lexi form KHK in June 2009 where she served as the executive director until 2020.
Lexi Kelley - Co-Founder
Lexi works at Smartsheet as an Account Executive on the New Business team. She is working with emerging markets/companies across the East Coast to provide a collaboration and work management solution designed to assign tasks, track project progress, manage calendars, share documents, and manage other work in an effort to increase workplace efficiency. She still holds the KHK mission close to heart as she works to change more students’ lives for the better and help to make these once-in-a-lifetime experiences open to as many students as possible.
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KHK STAFF
Jennifer Bentley
Executive Director
Jen joined KHK in 2017 with the objective of promoting volunteer development, service learning and leadership skills. In 2021, she was promoted to Executive Director where her focus on on highlighting the impact of KHK and building relationships with parents, community partners and donors. She is inspired daily by the creative and thoughtful project ideas of our volunteers and immensely proud of their growth as leaders. Jen is a graduate of Boston University where she earned her Bachelor's degree in Psychology. She lives in Stamford with her husband and eight children.
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Tom Chiappetta
Board Chair
Tom is president and founder of Good Sports Solutions LLC, a consulting firm he started in 2006 that provides marketing communications, fundraising expertise, event planning, and celebrity securement for the sports philanthropy community. As a former local sportswriter, he has a
life-long career in the sports and media industries, with experience in public relations, marketing, sponsorships, television, special events, consulting and non-profit leadership. His volunteer work has been recognized on numerous occasions by a wide range of organizations in Fairfield County.
Bobby Walker, Jr.
Board Co-Chair
Bobby is the Assistant Head for Student and Community Life at Greenwich Academy. Prior to this role, he was the CEO of the Boys & Girls Club, Greenwich. Regarded as a pillar of the community, Bobby has extensive experience in nonprofit management as well as educational leadership. He is a graduate of Williams College, where he received a B.A. in history while playing football and earning numerous honors as a member of their track and field team, and he has an M.A. in liberal arts from Johns Hopkins University. Bobby lives in Greenwich with his wife, Becky and three children.
Diane Urban
Secretary
Diane is a freelance digital learning producer/content developer. She has over 15 years of experience developing award-winning educational products for companies such as Disney Citizenship, Disney Publishing, and Pokémon. She has led all aspects of digital development including creative strategy, curriculum integration, and research/evaluation.
Richard Vogt, CPA
Treasurer
Richard D. Vogt, CPA, CVA is the principal of Vogt & Company, P.C., a CPA and consulting firm. He is a Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) with the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts. Mr. Vogt has over 11 years of professional accounting experience and over nine years of professional valuation experience.
Dominick Cingari
Dominick is an owner of Grade A ShopRite, a business that began as a small family grocery store. The Cingari family prides themselves on their community service, giving back is a family tradition. For over 30 years they have been dedicated to fighting against hunger by supporting the Food Bank of Lower Fairfield County and a variety of other nonprofits in the local community. Dominick has 2 children who are KHK ambassadors and lives in Shippan with his wife, Lisa.
Allison Frattaroli
Allison is a Marketing Coordinator at Sesame Street Workshop. She graduated from Lafayette College in 2018 with a B.A. in Psychology, experience in marketing and TV production, and a passion for volunteerism -- especially with animals. She is excited to rejoin the Kids Helping Kids team after originally founding the Handled with Care Boutique project in 2012.
Esperanza Teasdale
Esperanza and her family were involved with KHK for several years before she joined The Board of Directors. She is a Vice President/General Manager at PepsiCo. Esperanza lives in Stamford with her husband, Jeff and their two children, Patrick and Isabella. Esperanza enjoys yoga, traveling and spending time with family. She is a graduate from Rutgers University, College of Engineering and The University of Connecticut, MBA.
Brian Kluberdanz
Brian is a civil litigation attorney at Wofsey, Rosen, Kweskin & Kuriansky LLP in Stamford, who focuses his practice primarily on plaintiffs’-side personal injury, employment, and commercial litigation. He received his B.A. from Boston University, cum laude, in 2005 and his J.D., with honors, from the University of Connecticut School of Law in 2014.
Judy Marzen
Judy Marzen has a B.A. in Psychology with a concentration in Criminal Justice from SUNY Binghamton and has her J.D. from St. John Law School. She specialized in securities fraud and class action litigation and handled some antitrust and employment discrimination litigation, as well as pro bono criminal and family law matters.
Charles Evangelakos
Charlie is an accomplished wealth manager and founder at Pallas Capital Advisors with over 24 years of experience helping highly affluent families, corporate executives and business owners manage the unique complexities of their financial health and legacies. Charles has advised Fortune 500 CEO’s, executives, multi-generational families and prominent business owners.
Chip Cingari
Board Member Emeritus
Chip is an owner of Grade A ShopRite, a business that began as a small family grocery store. Today, their 12 stores are thriving. The Cingari family prides themselves on their community service, giving back is a family tradition. For over 30 years they have been dedicated to fighting against hunger by supporting the Food Bank of Lower Fairfield County.
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JUNIOR BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Lexi Kelley
Board Chair
Lexi works at Smartsheet as an Account Executive on the New Business team. She is working with emerging markets/companies across the East Coast to provide a collaboration and work management solution designed to assign tasks, track project progress, manage calendars, share documents, and manage other work in an effort to increase workplace efficiency. She still holds the KHK mission close to heart as she works to change more students’ lives for the better and help to make these once-in-a-lifetime experiences open to as many students as possible.
Thomas Alvarez
Tommy is an undergraduate English and history major with a film studies minor at the University of Connecticut where he is a Stamps Scholar in the Honors Program. On campus, he is the associate news editor for the Daily Campus, a member of the Honors Guides for Peer Success, and a team leader for the service organization Honors Across State Borders. Tommy has been involved with Kids Helping Kids since 2015, having served on the Leadership Executive Team and Youth Advisory Council during his time as a volunteer. Tommy is ecstatic to be continuing his time with KHK through the Junior Board of Directors.
Sasha Clark
Sasha is a Supply Chain Inventory Planner at the online grocery store, Misfits Market. She graduated from Lehigh University in 2018 with a B.A. in Global Studies along with minors in Marketing and Spanish. She is a KHK aluma who began her involvement with the organization through coordinating the execution of the Handled with Care Boutique project. In her spare time she loves listening to podcasts, running and trying out new recipes.
Lauren Costello
Lauren is a Research Coordinator at Stanford University where she researches the cognitive and biological mechanisms that underlie the development, and intergenerational transmission, of psychopathology in children and adolescents. Her research career thus far has been motivated by her passions in promoting youth advocacy and is thrilled to support the KHK mission as a Junior Board Member.
Cristina Ferreira
Cristina is a consultant at IBM. She graduated from UCONN in 2020 with a B.S. in Financial Management and a minor in English. She has experience in accounting, financial planning & analysis, and eCommerce. Outside of work, she helps out at her family's bakery - Angela Mia Italian Bakery - located in Norwalk, CT. Besides working the register and taking orders, she works on the bakery's website and social media platforms. In her spare time, you can find her reading, exercising, playing with her dog, or planning her next trip to visit somewhere new. In 2015, she was an ambassador and led her Baking Buddies project at Angela Mia. She is eager to return to Kids Helping Kids to keep "giving back."
Tyler Marzen
Tyler is an undergraduate information science major at the University of Pittsburgh where he is currently pursuing a Certificate in Homeland Security and National Preparedness. He has been involved with Kids Helping Kids since 2013 and has served in a number of roles ranging from lead ambassador to intern to a member of the Youth Advisory Council. Tyler is excited to continue his work with Kids Helping Kids as he progresses in his academic and professional career.