 |
|
Board of Directors
Karen Kozlowski Graham, LCSWPresidentKaren, mother of two internationally adopted children, is a licensed Clinical Social Worker with a graduate degree in Social Service Administration. She has held executive leadership positions in for profit and not for profit organizations and developed and run social services agencies focused on services for Deaf and for mentally ill individuals, as well as had a clinical practice specializing in couples, families, and people with disabilities. Karen has won national awards from the American Psychiatric Association and from the University of Chicago for her human service work in mental health. Karen is fluent in American Sign Language and part of her current work has been in providing appropriate translators for Deaf people who need assistance with accessing services. She is passionate in her advocacy for people with disabilities and for disadvantaged children, and served as the president of the Washington State Chapter of Families for Russian and Ukrainian Adoption for eight years. But the most important passion for Karen and her husband are their two children. They have a daughter adopted from Georgia and a son adopted from Russia. Michael Garabedian, Esq.Vice President Michael Garabedian is the managing partner of Rayano & Garabedian, P.C., a general practice firm located in New York, specializing in litigation and transactional matters for domestic, closely-held corporations, partnerships and business professionals. He received his undergraduate degree from New YorkUniversity in 1982, and his juris doctor (i.e., law degree) from Union University, Albany Law School, in 1985. Along with being admitted to practice law in all of the courts of the State of New York, Michael is admitted in the United States District Courts for both the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York, as well as the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Brenda SmithFounder and SecretaryBrenda Smith, owner of a branding agency in New York City, is the adoptive mother of Ella, who came from one of the orphanages of the Republic of Georgia. Adopting Ella was a challenging and time consuming process that included four lost referrals, a political coup in Georgia, three adoption-related trips to Georgia, scant support from the adoption agency she used (not Hopscotch) and scores of delays. After Ella came home safe and sound, Brenda started working with Robin Sizemore to build the adoption agency she wished she had worked with: one that offered personal support, knowledgeable and accessible employees, and a transparent process. Brenda’s three trips to Tbilisi in 2004 gave her unique opportunities to see and experience in stark reality what life in an Eastern European orphanage is like for children. Since bringing Ella home, Brenda has been an active fund raiser for humanitarian aid for these orphanages, and she is committed to improving both the physical and emotional environments in which the children live. Kristen Coppola Ph.DKristen Coppola, is a former professor and researcher in cognitive psychology, and has been published in national psychological and medical journals. During her career, she taught at the undergraduate and graduate levels at Monmouth University and The College of N.J., focusing on medical decision-making and research methods. Kristen and her husband have 2 biological children. Kristen’s career path dramatically changed when she and her husband decided to adopt their first child with Down Syndrome from Hong Kong. This decision, motivated by their faith, changed the course of their lives. Kristen and her husband are active advocates for special needs adoptions and have completed their family with their second adoption through Hopscotch (a daughter who was the first child with Down Syndrome to be adopted from Georgia). Kristen hopes to continue her work advocating for the most vulnerable orphaned children. Sirka Louca, LCSWAdvisorSirka Louca is a New York State Licensed Clinical Social Worker with Psychotherapy Privileges. She attended graduate school at Stony Brook University and has focused her career on working with youth and families. Sirka’s experience has included working in a community mental health clinic providing psychotherapy and support services to at-risk youth and their families; school social work in an alternative high school program; and director of a community residence for adolescent males. She currently holds the position of Senior Education Specialist in the Child Welfare Training Program in Stony Brook University’s School of Social Welfare. In her position there, Sirka teaches seminars to foster parents, group home staff and Department of Social Services caseworkers on issues related to working with children in foster or residential care. The seminars are diverse but primarily focus on loss, separation, trauma and adoption. Sirka and her husband have two children they adopted internationally. Tamara Martin, M.D.Honorary MemberDr. Tamara Martin is a highly regarded orthopedic surgeon, Department Head of Orthopedic Surgery at Boston V.A. hospital and Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School. She is the founder and president of the Pediatric Orthopedic International Foundation (POIF), a humanitarian non-profit organization which provides free surgery to orphaned children and provides free surgical training to surgeons in Georgia. In addition, Tamara collects and organizes the shipment of containers filled with modern and indispensable surgical and post operative supplies. POIF takes teams to Georgia twice a year. Tamara and her husband Dr. Scott Martin are proud parents to a biological daughter, biological twins, twin Georgian daughters and one Georgian son. |
|
Not for profit. |
Just for kids. |
