Staff Updates – November 2021
FOND FAREWELL
- Carolyn Kushner, Manager of Volunteer Services
Carolyn Kushner has resigned as of Friday, November 12th. Over her career here at SOPA as the Volunteer Manager, Carolyn has made valuable contributions to our movement here in Pennsylvania. She will be missed as was a great asset to this organization.
While we are sad to see Carolyn go, we are very appreciative of all the hard work she has done over the years. Please join us in wishing Carolyn the best in her future endeavors as Director of Volunteers for Keystone Hospice in Plymouth Meeting, PA.
WELCOME TO THE TEAM
- Erika Christiansen, Central Competition Director
We are pleased to announce that Erika Christiansen has joined the Competition team as the Central Competition Director. Erika will manage the Central competition events including the fall and spring sectionals, bowling sectionals, Indoor Winter Games and Summer Games. She has extensive knowledge in event planning and track and field; and, she is a State College native that will work out of the State College office.
- Andrew Fee, Allegheny Director/Regional Executive Director for Region 9
Andrew Fee has accepted the position of Allegheny Director/Regional Executive Director for Region 9. Andrew’s passion has always been making a difference in people’s lives through the avenue of sports. He comes to us from Geneva College where he has worn many hats: Coach, Intramural Sports Director, Director of Operations and Recruitment and most recently serving as the Assistant Athletic Director. In addition to those roles, he has played an integral role in increasing financial support to the College by planning and executing fundraising events, soliciting sponsorships and creating opportunities for alumni giving.
Andrew’s sport knowledge and experience will be a huge benefit in this position, but what really made Andrew stand out and set him apart from our other candidates is the fact that he comes to us with first-hand experience working in the field and will be able to translate those experiences to help us provide a more customer focused experience for our athletes and volunteers. Andrew got involved with Special Olympics as a volunteer several years ago through our Beaver County Program and recently transitioned to Manager of that program.
Andrew will work closely with Kathy Guy over the next several weeks as she transitions into her new regional role.
- Pam Velasquez, Region 2 Executive Director
We are beyond excited to share that Pam Velasquez has joined our SOPA team as the Region 2 Executive Director.
Pam spent the majority of her professional career with Woodward. Woodward started as a family owned gymnastics camp in Centre County and has grown into a world class organization that boasts 12 unique locations that offer training experiences that inspire youth and professional athletes to achieve more than they ever knew was possible. Pam created a scholarship program that brought the opportunity of camp to thousands of challenged families and included at risk and underprivileged children who could most benefit from the reprieve and joy of summer camp – this included many individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Through Woodward, she has been responsible for developing and executing strategic business initiatives to support the growth of the organization. She oversaw operational process development and improvement, project management, facility operations, staff onboarding and management of strategic growth initiatives.
Pam is a strategic, people focused leader with a deep commitment to building strong relationships and teams who will be a great addition to our SOPA team
Please welcome our new staff to the team!
OPEN POSITIONS
If you or someone you know is interested in joining the SOPA team, please pass the word along about our open positions under employment opportunities.