2022 – 2023 Board

Kathleen Buchholz (Treasurer) currently serves as Vice President/Controller for Lightpath Fiber. Prior to Lightpath, Kathleen served as Senior Vice President of Financial Systems and Integration for Zayo Group, where she led the seamless integration of people, systems, and processes during business acquisitions. She is known for her mentorship, development and support of both the individuals and teams that she manages over her career. She has led several initiatives to support the people of Paix-Bouche, the village where she was raised in Dominica. Kathleen was a wonderful proponent of the partnership between YWCA Boulder County and Zayo Group, including hosting the YWCA STEM E3 Program.

Gayle Doud leads Product for JumpCloud’s Growth Engineering team, which uses data driven experiments to improve user experience and improve core metrics for the business. A member of Boulder’s Tech community for nearly a decade, she’s passionate about empowering female leadership and equality. Gayle is a board member of Ellevate Boulder, a mentor for the University of Colorado Leeds School of Business, and a contributing member of the Feed the Frontlines effort for Boulder County during the Spring 2020 pandemic response. Gayle and her partner, Jeff, live in Boulder and enjoy cooking, traveling, and fly fishing together.

Betsy Doughty is the Vice President of Corporate Marketing for Spectra Logic Corporation, a Boulder-based technology organization. Betsy is co-chair of two industry groups, the Active Archive Alliance and the Tape Storage Council. She is also chair of the WILD Council, a non-profit in Boulder, Colorado, for women leaders to network, mentor students, and give back. She earned a BBA in Management and Marketing from the Price School of Business at the University of Oklahoma. She is an avid traveler, reader, fitness enthusiast, and bulldog mom.

Angelique Espinoza

Angelique Espinoza is a political consultant and activist and has served on multiple non-profit boards such as Open Boulder, Impact on Education, Dairy Center for the Arts, and Boulder Business and Professional Women. She served as interim director for the Museum of Boulder in 2019. She served as the campaign manager for 2H Boulder Sugary Drink Tax in 2016 and was a 2016 candidate for Colorado State House. Angelique has collaborated with YWCA Boulder County in the past, and looks forward to contributing her political and multicultural acumen to the Board of Directors.

Deidre Farrell (President) is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional with Thrivent Financial where she specializes in retirement distribution and tax planning. Deidre received her BA in Accounting from Carthage College in Kenosha, WI and her MBA from the University of Connecticut. A strong volunteer in our Boulder community, she is active with the Boulder Rotary Club, Trinity Lutheran Church and Habitat for Humanity. She enjoys swimming, reading, playing pickleball, trying new restaurants, walking her dogs and travelling with her family.

Karen Furlani (Vice President) is Vice President, Enterprise Risk Program Manager, at Jacobs Engineering. She brings 25+ years progressive experience in project management and global services leadership in the engineering and construction industry. She was a former Peace Corps volunteer in West Africa Urban Environmental Management. As the Engineer’s Week volunteer coordinator for a previous company, she liaised with local school districts and STEM teachers to develop opportunities to provide hands on STEM related activities throughout the Denver metro area.

Elisa George (Secretary) was born and raised in Torino, Italy. She is CMO at Colson Health, and co-founder of Olistica, a marketing and e-commerce business. She began her career 13 years ago in Sydney, Australia, then moved to Los Angeles and more recently relocated to Boulder. Her experience ranges from brand management, product development, marketing, and strategy. Elisa is excited to bring her skills to the YWCA. She also volunteers her time as a Partner with Social Venture Partners and has lent her marketing + strategy expertise to multiple nonprofits. She is an avid dark chocolate eater, a coffee drinker, a salsa dancer, and a mom. In her spare time Elisa likes to run, hike, and explore new places to eat and drink.

Christiane B. Meyer, MD worked as a primary care physician and research scientist, with a focus on community based participatory research, at the New York State Psychiatric Institute at Columbia University. Christiane’s holistic approach to life has guided her journey through body, mind and spirit. After working in primary care and mental health research, Dr. Meyer has pursued a M.A. in Theology and studied the application of spirituality to our everyday lives. She is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of The Tent (www.thetent.space), a nonprofit committed to fostering relationships, through guided dinner conversations, that transcend barriers imposed by social constructs of race and biases. Dr. Meyer is originally from Rio, Brazil, and values greatly our ability to come together in taking action that brings positive change.

Fern O’Brien is founding partner of O’Brien Law, P.C. She advises clients on domestic and international transactions, including debt and equity financing, securities issues, mergers and acquisitions, contract negotiations, licensing agreements, franchise and product distribution issues. Among her most recent community leadership roles, she served as board president of Attention Homes (now TGTHR), vice president of the Boulder County Estate Planning Council, and board vice president of the Downtown Boulder Foundation.

Jodeen Olguín-Tayler is a nationally recognized leader in racial justice and gender equity movements, and has served in executive roles across the private, nonprofit and philanthropic sectors. A sought-after social change strategist, she is known for centering equity and inclusion while driving large-scale advocacy and civic engagement programs, as well as designing winning public policy campaigns.

Ms. Olguín-Tayler is currently the Vice President at the Climate + Clean Energy Equity Fund; and previously served as Head of Strategic Partnerships and Growth for B Lab Global, Campaigns Director for the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Vice President at Demos and an advisor to the Movement for Black Lives policy coalition. She was a recipient of Esteé Lauder’s global Vital Voice fellowship award, and a Senior Fellow for Racial Justice and Inclusive Democracy at the Amalgamated Foundation. In addition to her board service with the YWCA, she serves as president of the board of trustees for the Chicana Climate Justice Fund and the Movement Voter Fund, as a board member for GALvanize USA and as an elected state committee member for the Colorado Working Families Party. As a community leader and Chicana mother from the ancestral homelands of the Pueblo (Tewa) and Ute people, Jodeen’s decades of work building movements that advance racial and gender equity are both an expression of love and of responsibility to steward resources for generations to come.

Deb Parks, Ph.D. practiced as an Advanced Pediatric Nurse Practitioner at the University of Texas Medical School for thirty years. She initially worked with children at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and subsequently focused on maternal-child wellness at a large county hospital; managed the U.T. Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Program; medically evaluated sexually abused children and testified in court on their behalf; and did research on various aspects of pediatrics. After retiring from U.T. Medical School, Deb consulted for ten years on pediatric malpractice cases. Deb volunteers at the TRU Hospice Thrift Shop in Boulder and is a facilitator in restorative justice at the Longmont Community Justice Partnership (LCJP). She is also a Partner at Social Venture Partners Boulder County. She and her husband, Mark, share a love of their family, music, travel, fitness and current affairs. Deb is excited to manifest her passion for empowering women and children as a YWCA Board Member.

Francesca Salazar-Salas (Treasurer) is a graduate of Colorado State University of Pueblo. Francesca graduated from CSU of Pueblo with degree in Business Management and emphasis in Accounting. Francesca started in banking when she was 16 and going to high school. That is where her passion came in for helping customers! Francesca has over 19 years experience in banking. She has been in various roles with over 16 years in management she been in commercial banking, mortgage, lending and found that she most enjoyed her leadership roles on the consumer banking the most! Francesca joined the Boulder community in 2016 from Pueblo Colorado. She is strongly committed to serving the community. Her heart is her son Joseph! During her free time she can be found enjoying music, art, walks, cooking and time with family and friends!

Andrea Steffes-Tuttle is the founder of Think Better Marketing, where she advises and consults with software companies on their marketing and go-to-market strategies. She also hosts a podcast, Community Returns, that educates listeners on how to invest in and contribute to their communities. She is passionate about issues of equality, education, localism, and climate and is involved in several organizations focused on these causes.

Dana Stillman has worked 22 years in the design industry and is currently Chief of Inspiration at her own firm, Inspire Graphic Design, LLC. Her work specializes in brand identity creation coupled with powerful visual storytelling and is passionate about how design can tell a story, impact an emotion, and/or motivate an action.