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Our Chapter Leadership

 

SHARE YOUR TIME AND TALENT!

Our chapter relies on a network of dedicated adult volunteers to help recruit and prepare young Volunteers for the Summer Program, and to govern our chapter.   The San Francisco Chapter Board positions are volunteer positions held by parents, veteran Volunteers or set up as internships that come with letters of support and provide the experience of working in a small business. If you would like to give your time and talent to the San Francisco Chapter, contact us! 

 

PRESIDENT

Mark Laws

Mark is an Administrative Analyst, Contracts Management for the San Francisco Department of Public Health. He is a parent of 2009 Amigos volunteer; San Pedro, Paraguay project.
 

Paperwork COORDINATOR

Tenaya Martinez-Smith

FUNDRAISING COORDINATOR

Jody LeWitter

Jody LeWitter became involved in Amigos de las Americas when her daughter, Jackie Van Der Hout, volunteered with the East Bay Amigos chapter in 2010, diligently schlepping to various areas in the East Bay to train for her summer in Nicaragua.  Jody always wondered why San Francisco did not have its own chapter, and eagerly joined the San Francisco Board to support this new chapter.  Jody serves as the chapter's Fundraising Coordinator.  She is also happy to talk to parents about the Amigos experience and any questions they might have about it.
 
By day, Jody is a lawyer who represents employees in employment discrimination and wrongful termination cases.  She has traveled in Central and South America, and lived in Brazil during part of her high school exerience. Jody also serves on the Board of the Nicaragua Childrens Friendship Committee, a San Francisco based non-profit dedicated to assisting children and teens in Nicaragua, and volunteers with a variety of other non-profits including the National Lawyers Guild and Equal Rights Advocates.
 

DIGITAL CoMMUNICATIONS

Jackie Ortega

TRAINING DIRECTOR

Chelsea Matthews

ASSISTANT TRAINING DIRECTOR

Maya Smith

Maya travelled to Lempira, Honduras with AMIGOS in 2006 and joined the Peninsula Chapter training staff after her experience. She is happy to be involved with AMIGOS again and now in San Francisco! She studied psychology and international studies at Cal Poly Pomona and hopes to return to school to get her PhD in community psychology. She currently works at Habitat for Humanity and enjoys playing board games, ultimate frisbee and exploring Bay Area cuisine in her free time.

 

SENIOR TRAINER

Theresa Preston-Werner
Theresa spent the better part of the last decade studying women, work, and inequality in Costa Rica while completing her PhD in Anthropology at Northwestern University. Never satisfied unless she's running at full speed, Theresa has also published several articles on foodways in Costa Rica and Nicaragua, volunteered at San Francisco’s Women’s Building and 826 Valencia, assisted the development staff at the Women’s Funding Network, cooked delicious meals for too many dinner parties at her home in the Mission, and birthed a beautiful son. Most recently, she has been working with Women Work Together to develop and evaluate their programs, which focus on keeping indigenous Guatemalan girls in school. All of this began in 1998 when Theresa spent the summer building latrines and teaching nutrition classes in Costa Rica as a volunteer for Amigos.

Upcoming Events

Amigos de las Américas

5618 Star Lane | Houston, Texas 77057
(713) 782-5290 | (800) 231-7796
F: (713) 782-9267 | info@amigoslink.org

Amigos de las Américas (AMIGOS) hosts programs for young adults to volunteer abroad. AMIGOS' volunteer opportunities focus on youth leadership training and community development in Latin America.

AMIGOS is a proud partner with United Airlines. Booking your travel through the logo above directly supports AMIGOS!