Our Team

Executive Director

Kristi has spent most of her adult life in non-profit leadership, fundraising, and organizational development. In a wide variety of roles, she has helped to lead, fund, and strengthen organizations committed to progressive social and spiritual change.

In 2001, Kristi founded a values-based fundraising consulting and training, and leadership coaching business, and in this capacity worked with organizations such as the Institute for Jewish Spirituality, Buddhist Peace Fellowship, Spirit in Action, Wisdom 2.0, and The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society. During this time, she was also founding Director of the Soul of Money Institute with Lynne Twist, Director of Development at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health, and Director of Development and Community Relations for the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society.

Kristi received her BA from UMass/Amherst, a graduate certificate in Business and Sociology from Boston College, and her Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) with a concentration in Leadership Studies, from Harvard University.

Kristi is a stage IV cancer survivor who feels blessed to work with her beloved colleagues in sharing the gifts of gratefulness with people around the world. She lives in Western MA with her family, and gives thanks every day to be surrounded by the glories of the natural world and a vibrant, loving community.

You can peruse a selection of Kristi’s writing and podcasts, and learn more about her book, Wake Up Grateful, here. To contact Kristi, send her an email at:
kristi@gratefulness.org

Director of Education

Sheryl is a lifelong educator, passionate about designing innovative and beautiful spaces in which people are inspired to learn and grow. She has spent nearly three decades teaching and leading in schools and organizations, creating transformative learning experiences rooted in both scholarship and heart. In 2013, she founded the Sofia Center for Professional Development, whose professional offerings support and honor educators in their sacred work.  

Sheryl received a BA in English from Trinity University and an MA in Women’s Studies from George Washington University. In 2004-05 she was a Klingenstein Fellow at Teachers College, Columbia University. 

When not engaged in this work she loves, Sheryl can be found connecting with beloved family and friends, traveling to new places whenever possible, creating ritual and ceremony, or camping by a river several miles down a mountain trail near her home in New Mexico. Throughout all, she embraces the lifelong learning and blessings offered by aspiring to live gratefully each day, by over and over saying grace.

To contact Sheryl, send an email to her at:
sheryl@gratefulness.org

Director of Finance and Human Relations

Prior to joining a Network for Grateful Living, Muthoni served as the CFO for Proteus Fund and as a program leader for a global educational enterprise. Inspired by grateful living, Muthoni is passionate about health and vitality. In 2018 she opened her own wellness practice where she coaches individuals towards their goals for health and wellbeing. She also joyfully serves as treasurer of Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity.

For leisure, Muthoni enjoys adventure, traveling, and being outdoors — especially in the summer months. Some of her adventures have seen her climb Mount Kilimanjaro, skydive, and visit the Taj Mahal.

One of six siblings, Muthoni was born and raised in Kenya. She remains closely connected to her roots, frequently visiting her parents and other close family and friends.

Muthoni received her MBA from Duquesne University and currently lives in Western Massachusetts. She firmly believes in the power of self-care, compassion for others, and living gratefully.

To contact Muthoni, send an email to her at:
muthoni@gratefulness.org

Director of Digital Engagement

Jeseph brings over nine years of digital marketing and web development experience to the team. His marketing specialties are in search engine optimization, social media marketing and conversion rate optimization. He has a passion for all things digital and can often be found digging into a spreadsheet to uncover creative growth opportunities.

The recent years of Jeseph’s career have been especially fulfilling as he has been lucky enough to work with organizations such as Minka, ChangingAging, and A Network for Grateful Living; each organization is dedicated to making the world a better place. Born in Ithaca, NY, Jeseph now lives in Evansville, IN where, when he is not trying to keep up with the ever-changing world of tech applications, he is often found taste-testing at new or lesser-known establishments.

To contact Jeseph, send an email to him at:
jeseph@gratefulness.org

Content Strategist

Stephanie’s passion for creativity, connection, and service are the guiding principles that led her to join the team at A Network for Grateful Living. With more than 10 years of professional experience as a writer, editor, photographer, and marketer, her career has seen her serve multiple roles as a digital marketer, business owner, and website editor. Her dual passions for creativity and organization find her thriving whether she is diving into creative work or crafting and implementing a detailed content plan.

Stephanie earned her BS in Photography from The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. In addition to her fulfilling work, she also owns a photography business specializing in travel and food photography.

Outside of work, Stephanie enjoys photography, traveling, gardening, cooking, getting lost in a good book, and spending time with her favorite people. She currently lives in Central Florida with her longtime partner and their goofy dog.

To contact Stephanie, send her an email at:
stephanie@gratefulness.org

Board Member, Chair of Governance and Nominations Committee

Adetola Abiade is an Executive Director of Organizational Effectiveness in Consumer and Commercial Banking at JPMorgan Chase & Co, with 20 years of experience driving global business transformation, organizational development, technology, innovation and intrapreneurship initiatives for startup, not-for-profit and Fortune 500 companies. She has a proven track record launching internal innovation programs and competitions, managing the implementation of global ideation technology platforms, managing entrepreneurship training programs and incubation initiatives. Her other skills and interests include mentoring, singing/performing arts, travel, writing, community partnership and volunteering.

Board Member

Michael W. Barton is Managing Director of Michael Barton Consulting, LLC in Los Angeles, California. He works with start-up founders and executives to help them achieve significant growth in their business, raise funding from top Venture Capital Funds, move through major business transitions, and develop their personal leadership skills. Michael started his career in banking, then was a consultant with the Boston Consulting Group. He has since spent 20 years as a senior executive in technology startup companies.  He has an MBA from the University of Chicago and is currently in process of becoming certified as a Life Coach.

Board Member, Treasurer

Rocco served as CFO for a large multi-national advertising agency before running his own agency that specialized in Conversion Optimization using predictive modeling, statistics and advertising technologies. In his spare time, he created a best-selling, award-winning board game and introduced the nation to one of its first energy drinks and is currently learning Italian and traveling. Rocco is extremely grateful for the life he is living and has devoted the rest of his life on the planet to his soulmate as well as assisting non-profit organizations which have the potential to greatly improve the human condition.

Board Member

Ailsa, whom many people call Ace, grew up in the high desert of Santa Fe, NM, and later studied Humanities at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, CA. After college she was faced with a choice: follow the status quo or pursue something more meaningful. After moving to New York and beginning to work in sales, she realized it was more important for her to respond to the call of her heart which was yearning for spiritual growth. Ailsa went to Europe and participated in a silent retreat and spent two more months studying yoga in Madrid. She now spends her time honing the skill of being a bilingual yoga teacher under the guidance of her teacher and mentor in Mexico. Ailsa is also a KonMari consultant and Feng Shui practitioner, helping people to bring more harmony into their homes and lives.

Board Member

Smita Garg is a San Francisco Bay Area artist, arts educator and holistic healer-therapist. Along with her therapy practice, Kinder Way Healing, she is an active public servant serving as arts commissioner for the city of San Jose since 2017. Smita also co-founded an educational non-profit that serves over 8000 students in a local school district. As a passionate advocate for the transformative power of the arts, Smita has been working on developing practices that bring a deep level of healing, calm, and peace through meditation and mindful artmaking.

Smita has been a lifelong volunteer serving on many local boards, working as a grassroots community activist, and a healer. She brings to the table a deep and diverse experience from the fields of art, non-profits, social justice, and spirituality. Smita would love to see more peace, kindness, and compassion in the world for all beings and nature. In her work she strives to embody those qualities. Smita attended the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign for graduate studies where she earned her MA and doctorate in Arts Education.

Board Member

As Co-Founder of BetterManager, Wendy is proud of her company’s mission to help leaders at all levels create a workplace where people can thrive. She firmly believes that when companies invest in their managers, they provide the tools to create a positive culture. Wendy draws from more than 20+ years of management, executive coaching, education experience, and commitment to continuous learning.

Wendy has a BS in Special Education and has developed programs for folks with disabilities for 20 years. She earned a master’s degree in Education from Antioch University of New England in Organization and Management. In 1999, she received her coaching certification (PCC) from the Coaches Training Institute (Co-Active). Wendy co-authored The Sassy Ladies’ Toolkit for Start-up Businesses and has an ongoing podcast, Building BetterManangers.

Board Member, Secretary

Mary E. Kostel is a lawyer, wife, and mother of two school-age boys.  A life-long Episcopalian, Mary serves as Special Counsel to the Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church and Chancellor to the Episcopal Diocese of Washington.  Her work involves litigation for the Church in the secular courts as well as advice on and resolution of matters within the Church arising under Church canon law.

Board Member, Vice President of the Board

Jennifer Long was appointed by Council, in February of 2022, to fill Tim Rood’s seat after he resigned in December of 2021. Council member Long began her volunteer work in Piedmont as a member of the Piedmont Racial Equity Campaign (PREC) steering committee. She then went on to become a board member and co-president of the Piedmont Anti-Racism Diversity Committee (PADC), an organization that has been a fixture in Piedmont for over 20 years. Long obtained her B.A. from William Smith College, and her law degree from Howard University School of Law.

Board Member

Marta Martinez, a Nicaraguan immigrant, found herself amidst a war when she was growing up. Despite all the conflict, her family was surrounded by love. Her parents were steadfast in their affection and presence. This sense of security modeled at home set Marta on her spiritual journey as an artist and a self-made entrepreneur. She is an avid student of finances, strategic planning, tai chi, and the healing arts. Marta holds a doctorate degree in acupuncture and integrative health and has been practicing acupuncture for over 20 years. She is also adjunct faculty of Smith College where she teaches Health Behaviors.

A mother and a peace activist, Marta is part of her community by being a steward of others’ most authentic selves. Her spiritual practice is distilled from the principles of mindfulness, gratefulness, and the work of Brother David Steindl-Rast. Through gratefulness, her hope is to develop an age-appropriate curriculum to expand the practical applications of gratefulness in everyday life. Marta also sits as a board member for the distinguished Leah Ryan’s Fund for Emerging Women Writers.

Board Member, President of the Board

Stuart McFaul is president of Stuart McFaul Associates, a marketing strategy and management firm helping purpose-driven entrepreneurs.  He is the creator the Living Brand™ Marketing System, an empathy-based approach that has been leveraged by over 100 companies and has been recognized by The Smithsonian Institution as a groundbreaking way to introduce companies, products and services to consumers.

He most recently founded and led Spiralgroup, an internationally-focused full service brand marketing agency.  A seasoned business strategist, Stuart has guided B2B / B2C marketing efforts for over 200 companies all over the world, including Apple, Cisco, Getty Images, HP and Oracle to multiple startups to foreign governments.  His efforts have earned clients billions of dollars and program ROI as high as 23,000%.  He is a frequent lecturer at major universities, including Wharton, Stanford and USC Marshall School of Business.

Board Member, Vice President of the Board

Steve Rio is a social impact entrepreneur, futurist, psychedelic medicine and breathwork coach, investor, and musician. His life’s work is helping people realize their full potential in order to expand global consciousness and transform the world.

Steve is Co-Founder and Founder of multiple ventures including Nature of Work, a work-wellness program, Enfold Institute, offering retreats and research based on psychedelics, breathwork, meditation, and somatic modalities, and NOW with Steve Rio, a podcast that explores what it means to live a good life.

Steve has two decades of expertise in digital, branding, communications, and organizational strategy, and close to a decade of expertise in performance and wellness, mindfulness, and personal development. Steve donates 25% of his time to mentoring, advising, and non-profit board roles. He mentors through the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs and YELL. He is VP of the Board for Grateful Living, an inbound board member of the CPA, and a strategic advisor to Therapsil. Steve lives on Bowen Island with his wife and dogs, has a 21 y/o daughter living in Vancouver, and is an engaged and proud step-dad and husband.

Board Member, Vice President of the Board

Chuck Roppel was trained and functioned as Catholic Priest in the early years of his career. From this role his professional life evolved into health promotion and disease prevention work within the framework of Community Mental Health Centers in Kentucky and California.  He has been the Director of the San Francisco Mental Health Association, and for 13 years the Director of the California State Department of Mental Health’s Office of Prevention and Mental Health Promotion.  He is a Master Certified Coach through the International Coaches Federation. Since 2000, he had been a faculty member of the Coaches Training Institute, maintaining a private coaching practice and training Co-Active coaches throughout the world.

Co-Founder, Senior Advisor

David Steindl-Rast, OSB, studied art, anthropology, and psychology, at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts (MA) and the University of Vienna (PhD).  In 1953, he joined Mount Saviour Benedictine Monastery in New York State. In 1975 he received the Martin Buber Award for building bridges between religious traditions. His books include Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer; A Listening Heart; and Deeper Than Words.  Currently, Br. David serves as senior advisor of Gratefulness.org.

Emeritus Board Member

Emeritus Board Member

Co-Founder, Emeritus Board Member 

Emeritus Board Member

Emeritus Board Member

Emeritus Board Member

Emeritus Board Member

Emeritus Board Member

Emeritus Board Member

Emeritus Board Member

Emeritus Board Member

Co-Founder, Senior Advisor

David Steindl-Rast, OSB, studied art, anthropology, and psychology, at the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts (MA) and the University of Vienna (PhD).  In 1953, he joined Mount Saviour Benedictine Monastery in New York State. In 1975 he received the Martin Buber Award for building bridges between religious traditions. His books include Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer; A Listening Heart; and Deeper Than Words.  Currently, Br. David serves as senior advisor of Gratefulness.org.

Co-Founder, Emeritus Board Member 

Co-founder, Emeritus Board Member 

Co-Founder