Christine Fortune Guthery is an attorney and a mother of 3 children. She has had a life-long interest in promoting social justice and inclusion. After earning her law degree, she worked briefly as a civil litigator and then for the Circuit Executive’s Office of the U.S. Court of Appeals on a study of Gender and Racial bias in the courts. In 2010, though none of her three children had been bullied, Christine saw a need for parents and schools to work together to support a positive school culture. By 2011, this movement had expanded beyond parents and schools to the whole community. Now that the organization has grown to over 8,000 members and is working in a number of communities, her passion remains in empowering people at the grassroots level to connect with each other over core values to create more kindness, inclusion, respect and justice for all.

Michele Marotta has found a professional home in the nonprofit sector for more than 20 years. During that time, she has had an opportunity to work with small and medium sized nonprofits, and newly emerging organizations with strong vision, lots of passion, and a need for structure and systems. Michele has worked in all areas of organizational development, with a particular focus on capacity building through individual giving and events driven fundraising, membership, sponsorship and grant cultivation, and strategic planning. Michele works closely with SPARK volunteers, donors and community partners, and has a talent for organizing inclusive (and fun) events.

Renata Bertelli works as a Bilingual Technology Parent Liaison for the Framingham Public Schools and as a Personal Development Coach. She has been trained and got certified as a Core Energy Coach and Energy Leadership Master Practitioner from the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC). She has a passion for assisting individuals in developing self awareness in order to get connected to their authentic self so they can bring their real gifts to the world and live a more fulfilled life. Renata has also worked extensively as a Software Developer and has been working in IT for 15 years. Renata was born in Brazil and came to the U.S. in 1997. She resides in Natick and has attended numerous SPARK large and small group programs since our formation 10 years ago.

Lynn Canty is a mother of 3, wife, advocate, and lifelong educator. She has over 15 years experience in the field of education ranging from teacher to Behavior Analyst and more. Lynn is passionate about all things relating to social justice, self care, and travel. A southern girl by birth, Lynn has lived in 5 states in America (primarily along the east coast) as well as the United Kingdom for a brief time. Lynn has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, Master’s Degree in Special Education and is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst.

Elizabeth Nolan Greer has been a SPARK superfan for over a decade. For nearly twenty years, she has committed her professional life as a teacher, school administrator, and educational consultant to helping schools become places where students and educators are supported, respected, and valued. In her role at SPARK, Elizabeth helps support creating communities of belonging–both within the SPARK team and with new volunteers/community partners–by strategizing, deepening, and broadening engagement. In her spare time, Elizabeth loves spending time with her two children and husband, being outdoors, and pretending to like to run.

Laura McCarthy has worked with SPARK since 2014 after a career as an early childhood educator. She has led SPARK’s monthly discussion group for parents/caregivers of elementary aged children, “Tools for Resilience and Well-Being” for the past 6 years, exploring topics addressed in SPARK programming (empathy, resilience, stress reduction…) and offering practical strategies to apply those principles within families. Laura has a master’s degree in Child Development and is a Natick parent and experienced parent educator. Laura is passionate about promoting social-emotional wellness and resilience in children and families.

Kristy Showstead acts as the key point person for the SPARK Network, which are “connected organizations throughout the Commonwealth that work together at the grassroots level to support kindness, resilience and inclusion.” She meets regularly with SPARK Network partners to provide support and leadership development in the SPARK model and to receive feedback that leads to growth and development for SPARK and all of its members. Kristy also oversees the planning of Kindness Week as well as SPARK’s “Kindness Crew.” She also currently works as the Marketing and Community Outreach Manager for The Gifford School.