Leadership and Board of Directors
Michael McNamara Michael McNamara has lived n Stamford, CT for over 35 years, providing support and participating in a variety of charitable and not-for-profit organizations. Most recently this included over 20 years of volunteering with Junior Achievement, teaching entrepreneurship to high school students; teaching fishing and environmental stewardship to parents and children through the CT state sponsored program called CARE (Connecticut Aquatic Resource Education); and as a member of the finance committee at his local church. Mike has a BS in Accounting from State University of New York at Albany and an MBA in Finance from UCONN. Mike is a Certified Public Accountant and has been employed for over 20 years at UBS AG working in the finance-technology area. |
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Bjorn Bumactao Secretary Bjorn ("BJ") is a Vice President and Banking Center Manager for Webster Bank. BJ is a banking professional with 10 years of experience in the industry and has worked in Fairfield County his entire career. He is small business lending certified and a current member of the Stamford BNI networking organization. BJ was raised in Stamford and attended the Stamford public school system . Afterwards , he attended college at the University of Bridgeport and graduated with a BA of Fine Arts with a focus on retail management. |
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David McCall David has been one of Stamford Dollars for Scholars earliest supporters. David is currently an Executive Director of Data Management at UBS and is based in Stamford, CT. David attended Aston University overseas and studied international business. David has been responsible for multiple fundraising initiatives that have enabled Stamford Dollars for Scholars to further our mission of providing opportunities to students. |
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Nancy Blasnik Nancy is a founding member of Stamford Dollars for Scholars. She is an accountant for her own firm with over 25 years of experience supporting not-for-profits and small businesses. She received a BS-ISE degree from The Ohio State University. |
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Tess Abalos Maria "Tess" Abalos emigrated with her family from the Philippines in 1970 at age 6 and was educated mostly in the Stamford public school system. She attended Franklin and Hart elementary schools, Burdick Middle School and Stamford High School (Class of 1982). She has a BS degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Bridgeport and has had careers in engineering and financial services. Since2003 she has owned and operated CT Massage and Bodywork, LLC in Stamford, a holistic wellness and massage therapy practice. She has a grown daughter, Teodora, who was also educated in the Stamford public school system (AITE Class of2013). Tess currently resides in Shippan and has been on the Board of Directors for Marina Bay Condo Association since 2021. Tess has also been a member of the business networking group BNI since 2007 and currently serves as Co-Event Coordinator in the Greenwich BNI chapter. |
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Walter Mardis Walt Mardis is retired and lives in Stamford with his wife, CIndy. He worked for almost forty years as a management consultant, focusing principally on the pharmaceutical and biotech industries and served as an IBM VIce President, managing the company's health care services practice. Walt has an undergraduate degree from the University of CIncinnati and a master's degree in Public Administration from Harvard. |
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William Liberis Bill is a Managing Partner of Liberty Payment Solutions, providing payment processing needs for any size business. Bill has held several positions in the banking and payment processing industry, including a 17 year stint with JP Morgan Chase as Vice President, Senior Product Manager. This is Bill's second stint on the board of SD4S. Bill holds a BS in Civil Engineering and MMS in Quantitative Methods, both from University of Massachusetts, Lowell Campus. |
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Erin Liberis Erin was one of the fortunate scholarship recipients in 2012, Stamford Dollars for Scholars' inaugural year. After being awarded the Nina Seward Memorial Scholarship, she went on to receive her Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Clarkson University. Now, Erin is pursuing her dream of being a Project Manager for Consigli Construction, using her almost 10 years of experience to successfully manage various commercial projects throughout Southern Connecticut. Being a Stamford native, Erin is one of the lucky ones that still calls the "Lock City" her home. She knows first hand the positive impact this organization has on our Stamford community, and is honored to be on the SD4S board to assist in their mission in making higher education possible for deserving students. |
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John Schnefke John Schnefke joined Stamford Dollars for Scholars in May 2018. He graduated from the University of Missouri with a BS in Agriculture and Forestry with a Minor in Business Administration. He is presently working at Speed Printing & Graphics as their Sales Consultant. John also has his own business creating custom furniture. He has been active in the local non-profit community for many years |
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Emeritus Advisors |
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Tony D'Amelio Founder of Stamford Dollars for Scholars, Tony has supported the Dollars for Scholars chapter in his home town of Wethersfield, CT for over 20 years. Tony has had a career in the music and lectures industries as an agent. His firm, the D'Amelio Network, manages the speaking careers of notable experts and authors. Tony received his ASEE, Electrical Engineering from the University of Hartford. |
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Jim McClafferty Jim McClafferty is a co-founder of Stamford Dollars for Scholars. He graduated from Manhattan College with a BS in Computer Science and followed with a 20+ year career in the software and information technology industries. In 2010 he founded Brain Parade, LLC and created See.Touch.Learn., an iPad application for children with special learning needs. Jim currently serves as Brain Parade's President and lives in Stamford with his wife and three children. |
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Gary Freeman Gary Freeman has over 40 years experience in information technology. During his career, Gary has managed software development for companies in manufacturing, banking, investment and the information delivery fields. Gary retired from Pitney Bowes in 2010 after 14 years of service and joined Stamford Dollars for Scholars in 2011. Gary holds a BS in Computer Science from Stony Brook University, and an MBA from the University of New Haven. |