Pat Whalen, our Execuitve Director, holds a pre-law degree from Empire State College and has been with the New York State Museum for nearly 20 years in a variety of positions including Supervisor of Visitor Services, Group Registration, the Facility Use Office, Public Relations and the Museum's Volunteer Program. He organized a museum events for Gay Pride Month and is presently developing events to promote awareness of missing persons. He is secretary of his local union and a delegate to the Albany County Central Labor Council. He has also been active in the fight to pass local law B, and serves as co-facilitator of the Capital District Human Rights Coaltion.

Bobbi Williams, PhD, our Acting Treasurer, is a trainer, teacher, and author who is active in the Transgender community and also co-chairs the Cultural Competency Committee of the National Coalition for LGBT Health.

Denise Palumbo, our Secretary, is a technical training specialist for General Electric Power Systems and former Vice-President of the Transgender Independence Club (TGIC).

Ari Kane has consulted with non-profit agencies, assessing their needs, requirements, policies and operations, served as journal editor for a healthcare agency, facilitated workshops on aging issues in the gay community and worked with educators on understanding health problems. For the past three years he was Associate Director and Manager of Training for The Educational Diversity Center, Inc., in Augusta, ME and prior to that was Principal Consultant and Trainer on Social Health Issues for Theseus Consulting and Coaching Services in Brookline, MA; he holds a doctorate in education.

Brandon Conner is a former SUNY student who is now a licensed Real Estate broker with Coldwell Banker Prime Properties Inc., specializing in residential sales, investment properties, sales and rentals, and relocation buyers and sellers. While at SUNY, Brandon was a Board Member and Secretary of the Pride Alliance and before that was in the restaurant business. He brings a strong background in Goal-Setting, Team Building, Training, and Management to the expanding activities of RAI and looks forward to being able to give back to the community.

Melissa Middlebrook is a graduate student pursuing a Master's in Public Health at the SUNY School of Public Health and holds a BA in Anthropology (with a concentration in Medical Anthropology). She served as in intern with the Samaritans Suicide Prevention Center of the Capital Region where she created training exercises that introduced volunteers to a variety of realistic situations and sections of the population. She answered inquiries from those interested in volunteering, represented the Samaritans within the community, and participated in volunteer and organizational board meetings. She also participated in a professional conference on suicide in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered community. Prior to moving to Albany, Melissa served as a volunteer with AIDS Of Rochester and has done research on Self-cutting among homosexual and lesbian youth.

INTERESTED IN SERVING ON OUR BOARD?

If you would like to be part of RAI's service to the LGBT community in the capital region by serving on our Board, please contact us at 518.471.9080 for more information.

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