Charlottesville NOW 

PRESIDENT ~ Charlotte’s employment history includes facility management and marketing at the student center of the University of Cincinnati, where she received her degree in business administration, and launching the Newspaper in Education program at the Daily Progress in Charlottesville. After incurable chronic illness ended career endeavors, she became a dedicated community volunteer. She mentored students and helped develop school programs in Albemarle County Schools, including competitive creative problem-solving teams, and has served in significant roles in political organizing.

1st VICE PRESIDENT ~ Julie, a professional genealogist, is a transplant to Virginia, most recently from Augusta, Georgia, where she served on the local and state genealogy boards. While there she was able to introduce fresh perspectives and new techniques that enabled these organizations to grow their membership and expand into the digital world. Julie enjoys collaborating with community members to solve problems and nurture relationships, and she especially wants to protect and advocate for women’s reproductive health and LGBTQ rights.

2nd VICE PRESIDENT ~ Betsy moved to Earlysville from Falls Church, Virginia in 2001. She worked for several years for Marriott International before pivoting to earn a master’s degree in Information Science in 2000. In 2011 she created a part-time one-woman dog walking business for clients in Earlysville and enjoys being outside every day with her doggy clients. Betsy loves spending time with her family, walking her dogs, and drinking coffee with friends. Her goals are to bring equality for all and to put a microphone to marginalized voices.

3rd VICE PRESIDENT ~ Nikki is a rising fourth year student at UVA from London! In high school she campaigned for awareness about sexual assault on public transport and pitched the idea for Transport for London and the Metropolitan Police to wear red wristbands to show allyship on the London Underground. She ran the social media pages and websites for a mayor’s office in a small French town and worked for Teens Unite Against Cancer, a local organization near her home. Nikki wants to help Charlottesville NOW reach a younger audience through social media.

SECRETARY ~ Leslie has over a decade of experience working with community organizations and agencies advocating for her clients, especially women experiencing serious trauma. Her advocacy and data tracking led to funding for a women’s center where women and children could receive substance abuse and mental health treatment. She has served as the PACEM Shelter Director and is the Drug Treatment Court Care Coordinator for Region Ten Community Services Board. Passionate about women’s rights, especially reproductive rights, ending violence against women, and constitutional equality, Leslie is excited to be part of a group making a difference in the lives of women.

TREASURER ~ Before his current “retirement job” at the University of Virginia, Doug used his Master of Computer Science Degree in a 37-year career with the federal government, starting as a software programmer for the Air Force and ending as Chief Information Officer at the Army’s National Ground Intelligence Center in Charlottesville. He has also volunteered in the community, for schools, nonprofit organizations, and political campaigns. When not occupied by his job, he can be found outside working in his two-acre yard.

After a career in Federal service, most recently with the IRS in Massachusetts, Lisa retired to Stuarts Draft in 2018 to help care for her elderly father who lived in Charlottesville. In retirement she finally has the time and ability to advocate for those causes she is passionate about, especially reproductive freedom. Growing up in a family of professional women, and seeing how hard it was for them, made equal rights and pay of special importance to her. She also volunteers with local organizations, including Shenandoah Green, a Staunton-based environmental group.

Virginia, a former city councilor and Mayor of Charlottesville, has been active in women’s rights and local politics for years. She started a NOW chapter in Norfolk, was a professional organizer for the National Welfare Rights Organization in Nelson County and was active in the National women’s Political Caucus (NWPC). She co-founded a chapter of VOKAL (Virginians Organized to Keep Abortion Legal) and the Charlottesville Rape Crisis Group, which is now SARA (Sexual Assault Resource Agency). After chairing the NWPC, VOKAL and SARA boards, Virginia became active in C’ville NOW, pushing police and courts to handle sexual assault cases properly. She also owned and operated Papercraft Printing & Design for 26 years, and plays piano in the Flashbacks, a local band.

Kathe graduated from Cornell University with a degree in English Literature. She had a career in the hospitality industry, rising to the position of VP for Hilton Hotels Corporation in Beverly Hills, CA before leaving to raise her children and serve as a school, church, and community volunteer. The election of 2016 led to a deeper involvement in politics, and she was further activated by the white supremacists’ rally which happened when she had just moved to Charlottesville. She is especially passionate about ending systemic racial inequity.

Jane has degrees in Theatre and Psychology. She spent 30 years in professional performing arts management and radio management, gaining extensive experience in volunteer coordination, promotions, sales, and operations. As an actor and singer herself, as well as a certified transformational life coach, she also has a good deal of experience in front of audiences. Jane has felt strongly about women’s rights all her life, having learned “woman pride” from her grandmother, mother and sister while growing up, and looks forward to this opportunity to be an advocate.

Kristin O’Donoghue is a rising fourth year student at the University of Virginia studying History and Political and Social Thought. She is an intern for Resilience Education, a non-profit that seeks to end cycles of incarceration through in-prison business education and a post-release mentorship community. Kristin leads SERV (Students for Equity and Reform in Virginia), a club she co-founded in 2020. She is also doing research on gendered disinformation for Professor Danielle Citron at UVA Law. For the summer of 2023, Kristin will intern for Washington Writers Network.

Brezhana (Bre) has a degree in Rehab and Human Services from Pennsylvania State and is working toward a master’s in leadership and management from Western Governors University. She has a passion for working for nonprofit organizations, such as Westminster-Canterbury of the Blue Ridge and most recently Boys and Girls Club of Central Virginia. Bre’s human resource management, volunteer coordination and community engagement experience has also been useful as a volunteer, including for the National Coalition of Negro Women, Commonwealth Cares (Commonwealth Senior Living) and Black Women of Central Virginia.

Carrie, originally from New York, received her Ph.D. from Yale and is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Charlottesville. She has been active in the fight for women’s rights and LGBTQ rights since her 20’s. With Charlottesville NOW she especially wants to work on abortion and LGBTQ rights and on building coalitions with other community groups. Carrie has been an active community volunteer for many years, doing voter registration and restoration of voting rights events, campaigning for candidates, and fundraising. She is a potter and an avid gardener, with a penchant for travel, vegetarian Thai food, and engaging socially with friends, family, and felines.