MANAGEMENT & BOARD OF DIRECTORS

MEET OUR U.S. MANAGEMENT

MANAGEMENT TEAM

Brett Caywood

President

Experienced in operations and management, Brett strives to always bring a fun, collaborative, and data-driven approach to the workplace. His meaningful experience volunteering in India with Rising Star Outreach back when he was a young student at the University of Utah left an impact on Brett and eventually led him to join our organization full time in 2019. He has an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management, a top-ranked school of international business, and is continually seeking to learn through good books and classes.

Tawna Fowler

Development Director

From mentoring youth in after school programs, to working with refugees in Greece, Tawna loves volunteering in her community and abroad, helping others reach their potential and feel their self-worth. She received a Masters in Public Administration from BYU, with an emphasis in Non-Profit Management and International Development, and a Masters in Educational Psychology and Philosophy from The Ohio State University. Tawna now uses her skills to oversee major donor relations, grant writing, fundraising initiatives, and events.

Kristen Edwards

STARS Program Director

Kristen manages our STARS program. She spent the last few years at a non-profit telling the stories of historical Utah women and was amazed how knowing these stories inspired Utahns to develop their potential. She received her economics degree from BYU and completed her MPP at the University of Utah. Her passion is ensuring that non-profits are true to their missions and that their results are data-backed and data-driven. She is thrilled to be working at RSO and wants to do all she can to bring opportunity and hope to our brothers and sisters in India.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Amy Antonelli

As the first Executive Director of Rising Star Outreach, Amy Antonelli spent seven years working in rural India helping those afflicted with leprosy.

Prior to her work in India, Amy acted as a spokesperson for Apple’s executive officers, including CEO Steve Jobs, and was instrumental in building PowerSchool, Inc., leading up to its acquisition by Apple in 2002.  In 2014, she led an initiative with the leadership at Facebook to develop a more mission-driven community, and another initiative with the LDS church to develop a global self-reliance mentoring strategy. In 2016 she became the CEO of  Deseret Network International, the parent organization of Humanitarian Experience for Youth (HEFY), Youth Summit Jerusalem (YSJ), and the Youth Refugee Coalition (YRC).

A Center for Social Innovation fellow at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Amy received a B.A. Brigham Young University and a Master’s degree from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.  She also served as a missionary in Italy and Malta.

Amy is a one-time marathon runner, a calligrapher, an explorer of ideas, and the author of the blog Kadalmangalam Road.  She considers Palo Alto, California home, where she can often be found hiking the Stanford hills with her friends and family.

Margaret Archibald

Margaret has devoted most of her life to raising 7 boys and one daughter and she has 30 wonderful grandchildren. Margaret graduated cum laude from Weber State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and a minor in Child Development.  She is co-author of the book, An Emotional First Aid Kit for Mothers, and has spoken at several seminars and conferences on raising children.  Margaret currently serves as a member of the International and Government Affairs Committee for her Church, the National Advisory Committee for the BYU Marriott School of Business, the President’s Leadership Council for BYU, the Board of Directors for The Tuachan Center for the Arts, and as a board member for Rising Star Outreach.

Jeri Colton

Jeri graduated in 1986 with a BA in Humanities from Brigham Young University, followed by a Master’s in Communication from the University of Virginia in 1988. For many years, she has served as a volunteer in her church and in a variety of leadership positions in her community. Jeri currently lives in Johns Creek, GA with her husband Steve. She is the mother of four children.

Christine Cronquist

 Christine Cronquist has been involved with the work at Rising Star Outreach since our earliest days. She has always worked as a volunteer. Her first job for several years was to direct our Volunteer Program. She was perfectly prepared for this job as she has been to Rising Star many, many times as a volunteer herself. She has also had her children volunteering at Rising Star Outreach. Two of her daughters even became our volunteer leaders. In more recent years, Christine has served as a member of the Executive Committee of our Board of Directors and is now Chairman of the Board of Directors.

Mark Cronquist

Mark Cronquist is currently the Chief Financial Officer at Southern Healthcare Management in Atlanta, Georgia.

Becky Douglas, Founder

As founder of Rising Star Outreach, Becky is motivated by the belief that every person deserves opportunity and a life of dignity.  Her humanitarian work has been featured in numerous national and international journals, books, and in several TV series.  She was the recipient of the John Houston Allen Humanitarian of the Year Award, and has been named as one of five “Classic Women” by Traditional Homes Magazine.  She is the subject of the PBS Documentary, Breaking the Curse. Becky Douglas and her husband, John are the parents of ten biological and adopted children.

John Douglas

John Douglas is Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Oversight & Advocacy Officer at TIAA, a non-profit organization that is the leading provider of financial services in the academic, research, medical, cultural and governmental fields. Prior to this position, John was with Davis Polk’s Financial Institutions Group, heading the firm’s bank and regulatory practice and also formerly served as General Counsel of the FDIC during the savings and loan crisis. Rising Star Outreach is thankful for the benefit of his legal background and experience.

Kaye Gunnell

Kaye has been involved with Rising Star Outreach for many years in the volunteer and sponsorship programs. Kaye attended BYU for three years with an emphasis in Organizational Behavior. She served an LDS mission to Taipei, Taiwan and Los Angeles. Kaye’s workplace experience includes: working as a personal assistant to the Director of the Research Administration Office at Brigham Young University and working at the fundraising arm of LDS Hospital, raising funds for people needing financial help for various costly medical procedures. From a philanthropic point of view, Kaye has been a contributor to Operation Kids, a conglomerate of charities to help underprivileged & disadvantaged children. She was on the BYU Marriott School National Advisory Board along with her husband Ron and established a scholarship program for entrepreneurs. Her philanthropic interests include underprivileged/disadvantaged children, homeless and involuntarily displaced persons, and sexual abuse of women and children. Kaye has supported her husband, Ron Gunnell, who has been extensively involved in Rising Star Outreach and other philanthropic and charity work for many years, most notably the Tabernacle Choir & Orchestra at Temple Square. Kaye’s music interests have been as a singer with Mormon Youth Symphony & Chorus, Viva Voce (all-women vocal ensemble), Jay Welch Chorale, and currently the Salt Lake Singers. She also served as a member of the Board of Utah Chamber Artists (a premiere vocal ensemble in SLC). Kaye and Ron are the parents of 3 daughters, one adopted son and have 2 grandchildren.

Ron Gunnell

Ron founded The BroadStreet Group, LLC. Which focuses on International Commerce. With partners in the United States, Sao Paulo, Brazil, and India. He has been heavily involved in charitable and volunteer work, including, Rising Star Outreach – India, Mentors International – Philippines, Honduras, Guatemala, Peru, El Salvador. He also serves on a number of Educational and Arts Boards including Hale Center Theatre, Utah State University Cain College, BYU Marriott School, UVU Presidential Advisory Board, U of U School of Music, Legacy Film Foundation, and National Advisory Board Best of State. In 2000 he was called and set apart as Assistant to the President of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and Executive Producer (Talent), responsible for securing all guest artists who perform with the Choir.

Bala Guntipalli

Bala Guntipalli serves as a Senior VP of Technology & Operations at TechVelocity Partners, a global technology services company offering Digital Strategy/Transformation Services, Healthcare, as well as Cybersecurity consulting.

He’s an accredited professional through Harvard University & The Indian Institute of Technology, and earned his MBA from Madurai University. He is a well-recognized public speaker with multiple boards experience and a community leader. He helped companies move effectively, efficiently, and with Agility, into the future.

Bala’s IT and business advisory processes are honed over the past two decades across the globe in a variety of SMBs and large enterprises. He’s responsible for corporate growth, strategy, operations, and product management. He has leadership experience at Cox Enterprises, CUNA, IBM, DataPath, Corcoran Real Estate, BCBS, Global Healthcare Rehabilitation and more.

Bala became involved with Rising Star in February 2006, and he is active in civic organizations serving local and international communities through Rotary. In the past he served as a VP, Public relations chair, President-elect and currently serves as the President of Plymouth Rotary Club in MN, USA, whose motto is Service-Above-Self.

Randy Guynn

Randall is the Head of the Financial Institutions Group at Davis Polk & Wardell.  He received a B.A. from Brigham Young University in 1981 and a J.D. from the University of Virginia in 1984.  Prior to joining Davis Polk, he was a law clerk to Justice William H. Rehnquist of the U.S. Supreme Court.  Randall has also provided legal advice to Our Courts, a non-profit organization established by former U.S. Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.

Robin Guynn

Robin received a B.S. from Brigham Young University in 1980 from the College of Family Life.  She has taught high school and served in a variety of leadership positions in her community. Robin and her husband are co-founders of the Constitutional Sources Project.

Joyce Hanson

Joyce is a graduate of Stanford University, where she and Ron met as undergraduates. She worked in San Francisco after graduating while her husband continued his studies in law at the University of California at Berkeley, Boalt Hall. The Hanson’s are the parents of 4 children, with 18 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren and have been married for 57 years. She continues to volunteer for causes in and around Laguna Beach, California, while they divide their time between Laguna and their home in Utah.

Rondell Hanson

Ron received his law degree from Berkeley in 1962 and has spent most of his professional career in development and management of various real estate projects. He has served as President of the Pacific Symphony, the Western Mobile Home Park Owners Association, the Emerald Bay Community Association, the local Stanford Alumni group, and in several leadership positions in their Church.

David Harding

David Harding is a business executive in the Medical Devices and Diagnostics industry. David received a degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Southern California followed by an MBA degree from the University of Pennsylvania’s Warton School. He worked as an engineer on the Space Shuttle program, at a Japanese automotive components manufacturer and later became an associate/partner at McKinsey & Company. David then joined Cytyc Corporation, where he served as the VP of Marketing and the President of the International business. David now leads the company’s Interventional Breast Solutions division.

Steele Hendershot

Steele Hendershot graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in business management. He has been working in business management for over ten years and has been working with the Rising Star Outreach since 2009. He is currently the Vice President of business development for CircusTrix, a recreational facilities and services company based in Provo, UT and founded Humanitarian Doctors, a group dedicated to improving the quality of life for as many people as possible.

Ann Herlin

Ann Herlin graduated from Brigham Young University, where she studied Elementary Education. She taught first and third grades for eight years. She has volunteered for many non-profit organizations around the country.

Rich and Ann have four children and seven grandchildren. They served a 23-month church mission in Moscow, Russia, from 2018 to 2020. Before leaving for their mission, they served for several years on the Rising Star Outreach Board of Directors.

Rich Herlin

Rich Herlin is a retired partner of Deloitte after working for them for 37 years. He began his career with Deloitte in Salt Lake City and has worked in New York City, Atlanta, Wilton, CT., Dallas, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Midland, MI. Rich is a graduate of Brigham Young University with a Master’s of Accountancy. 

Rich and Ann have four children and seven grandchildren. They served a 23-month church mission in Moscow, Russia, from 2018 to 2020. Before leaving for their mission, they served for several years on the Rising Star Outreach Board of Directors.

Claudette Jones

Claudette has a zest for life and a passion for people and for serving. She has taken her family to various places around the world and served in diverse capacities. She enjoys learning about and experiencing new cultures and getting to know different people. Together with her husband Mike, the Jones family is active in their local community and church, where Claudette has held various leadership positions. Claudette’s greatest passion is in loving and serving her six children. Within Rising Star, Claudette serves as the International Programs and Outreach Committee Chair.

Brian Murphy

Brian P. Murphy is a founder and the Managing Member of Portfolio Advisors, LLC. Portfolio Advisors specializes in delivering customized, private equity, private real estate and private credit solutions to its limited partners and clients. Portfolio Advisors has raised approximately $18 billion across 30 funds from over 1,000 limited partners from around the world. Brian graduated with a BA from Brigham Young University in 1986 and an MBA from Columbia University in 1988.

Louise Murphy

Louise Murphy graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in English. She and her husband, Brian, have four children and 12 grandchildren and are in the process of moving from their home of 35 years in Connecticut to a new home in Midway, Utah.

Louise has served in numerous callings for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, including institute teacher, seminary teacher, and president of each auxiliary organization-Primary, Young Women, and Relief Society.

Louise currently serves on three boards: Chair, National Advisory Council, Marriott School of Business, BYU, Women’s CommitteeBoard Member, Rising Star Outreach; and Board Member, National Advisory Board, Utah Valley University.

MaryAnn Parsons

MaryAnn has spent most of her life raising eight children and serving in various civic and community positions, including as a member of the National Advisory Council for the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University for the past 25 years. She has visited the Rising Star Outreach facilities in India, where she served as a volunteer. MaryAnn loves to read, travel and serve others. She attended Brigham Young University. MaryAnn lived most of her life in the Washington, D.C. area but currently lives in Utah with her husband, Robert. They have 23 grandchildren.

Robert E. Parsons, Jr.

Robert is the Executive Vice President, Strategy and Business Development for Exclusive Resorts, the preeminent luxury travel destination club. Previously he served as Chief Financial Officer from 2004 until 2020. He was the chief financial officer of Host Marriott Corporation from 1995 to 2002. Robert currently serves as the lead independent director of Watermark Lodging Trust, a multi-billion-dollar real estate investment trust focused on the ownership of luxury hospitality real estate and as a director of Kids on the Move, a non-profit organization focused on helping children with disabilities.

He has also served as an independent director of Excel Trust, Inc. and CNL Hotels & Resorts and as chairman of the Hotel Development Council of the Urban Land Institute, Chair of the National BYU Management Society, and Chair of the National Advisory Counsel of the Marriott School of Business at Brigham Young University. Robert graduated from Brigham Young University in accounting and later earned his MBA from the same alma mater. He loves to travel and is an avid bird watcher. Along with his wife, MaryAnn, they have visited over 100 countries around the world.

Larry Pressler

Senator Larry Pressler served in the US Senate for 18 years (3 terms) and was the first Vietnam veteran elected to the US Senate. While in the US Senate, he served as Chairman of the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committees. He was also an active member of the Foreign Relations Committee. He was the principle author of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and of the “Pressler Amendment,” which limited foreign countries from using USA to develop nuclear weaponry. Prior to his election to the US Senate, Larry Pressler served two terms as a member of the US House of Representatives from 1975-1979. He was an announced candidate for the presidency in 1980 and drew national fame and praise for flatly turning down a bribe on tape in the ABSCAM scandal.

Keith Read

Keith received his B.S. degree and his Masters degree in Accountancy from the University of Utah. He worked at Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce where he was a member of the U.S. Management Committee.  Keith is currently a Managing Director at Cerberus Capital Management.

Sally Read

Sally graduated with a B.S. in Education from Brigham Young University and received a Masters of Education from the University of Utah.  She has taught in a Gifted and Talented Program in Utah and at the Browning School in New York City.  She is a community activist, church volunteer, and a full-time mother.

Nancy Sorensen

Nancy B. Sorensen holds a PhD from the University of Utah in Educational Administration, as well as a masters degree from Utah State University and a bachelors degree from Brigham Young University. She has spent 17 years in the classroom and 21 years as principal of four different elementary schools. Currently Nancy is the principal of Manila Elementary School in Pleasant Grove, Utah. Nancy loves to travel and to serve, which brought her to Rising Star Outreach, which she has visited several times. Nancy is the mother of four children and the grandmother of 11.

Brian Sheets

Brian Sheets completed his undergraduate work at the University of Utah and my graduate work at the University of Southern California, where he received his Master’s Degree in Corporate Taxation. He worked at Hansen, Barrett and Maxwell in Salt Lake and Grant Thorton in Los Angeles. I then left public accounting and worked in various non-profit companies as their Chief Financial Officer, including the Weingart Center in Los Angeles, The Great Salt Lake Council of BSA. He is currently employed at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah. He taught non-profit classes for the AICPA throughout the country and the UACPA in Salt Lake. He has been married to his wife, Emilie, for 42 years, and together they have four married sons and 16 grandchildren. His hobbies include snow skiing, gardening, fly fishing, and playing with my grandchildren.

Sharon Thompson
Steve Thompson
Philip Webb

Philip is serving as the Executive Director of Operation Kids Foundation. Prior to Operation Kids, he managed a wilderness therapy program for at-risk youth in southern Utah. He completed his bachelor’s degree at Brigham Young University and received his MPA in nonprofit management from The George Washington University in Washington, DC. He and his wife, Micaela, are the proud parents of five children.

Chris Wilson

Christopher Wilson has practiced with some of the nation’s most prestigious firms, including O’Melveny & Myers and Pillsbury Winthrop. Wilson has been advising clients on securities and transactional matters for more than 23 years, and has been involved in virtually every type and size of transaction, from small public offerings and private placements, to large public company mergers and acquisitions. Wilson represents many emerging businesses and small public companies and advises them on the diverse legal issues arising from starting, financing, growing and selling a business.

Jenny Wilson

Jennifer Wilson became a member of MV Law in 2009, practicing in the areas of Estate Planning and Asset Protection. Jennifer graduated from Brigham Young University’s J. Reuben Clark Law School, cum laude, in 1986. She has a passion for assisting others in the protection of their most important assets, and is delighted to be of assistance to MV Law clients.

“My reason for practicing law is to help people to navigate through uncertain waters during transitional moments in their lives, such as death or a change in fortune, or in planning for those moments. It is my goal to make each client feel understood, appreciated and completely satisfied with the results he or she achieves through the assistance of our team at MV Law.”

Jennifer is a member of the Trusts & Estates and Elder Law sections of the Orange County Bar Association. She is a member of the Executive Committee of the Orange County Chapter of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society and of the international Women in Law Committee in the same law society. She is also a board member of Rising Star Outreach, a non-profit organization dedicated to eradicating the effects of leprosy in India. Outside of work and volunteer activities, she spends most of her time with her husband, five children, and nine grandchildren.

Wondering how you can help?

There are so many ways to contribute.

CONTACT US

PHONE
801.820.0466

EMAIL
hello@risingstaroutreach.org

OFFICE
3355 N. UNIVERSITY AVE, STE 200A
PROVO, UT 84604

 

GET THE LATEST NEWS

SIGN UP FOR EMAIL UPDATES

STAY CONNECTED