FOUNDATION TEAM

J. Christopher Flowers, Co-Founder, J.C. Flowers Foundation

 

J. Christopher Flowers is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of J.C. Flowers & Co. LLC, an investment company founded in 1998 and specializing in financial services.

The J.C. Flowers & Co. Fund has assets under management of US $4 Billion. Chris Flowers previously served as a partner in charge of the Financial Institutions Group at Goldman Sachs between 1979 and 1998. He was among the founders of Goldman’s Financial Institutions Group in 1986 and became a general partner of Goldman in 1988. His philanthropic engagements include serving as a trustee of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, launching and supporting NetsforLife, co-founding the Isdell:Flowers Cross Border Malaria Initiative in Africa, and supporting the Center for Court Innovation in Harlem. He graduated magna cum laude in Applied Mathematics from Harvard University in 1979.

 

Anne Flowers, Trustee, J.C. Flowers Foundation

 

Anne Flowers is a pilot, currently flying Gulfstream V’s with J.C. Flowers & Co., LLC. 

Previously, Anne was a charter pilot, flying Gulfstream and Falcon Jets. Prior to her aviation career, she worked in international correspondent banking at Banker’s Trust and money market trading at Merrill Lynch. She was a Protocol Manager for the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee prior to working on Wall Street. Anne is a trustee of the Anne and Chris Flowers Foundation and the J.C. Flowers Foundation. She has volunteered for and was a member of the board of Airlifeline (now Angel Flight); she has also volunteered for the Volunteer Pilot's Association. J.C. Flowers & Co. provides seats on its aircraft to Corporate Angel Network, a nonprofit organization which offers air transportation to patients traveling to receive lifesaving medical treatment. Anne graduated magna cum laude from UCLA in 1981. She received an MBA from Columbia Business School in 1986.

​

Rebecca Vander Meulen, ​Executive Director, J.C. Flowers Foundation

 

Rebecca J. Vander Meulen serves as Executive Director for the J.C. Flowers Foundation.

Rebecca has extensive experience in community health, and served as the Community Development Director in the Anglican Diocese of Niassa (northern Mozambique) for 15 years. She has a Master of Public Health degree in International Public Health from the Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Calvin University.

 

Susan Lassen, Trustee, J.C. Flowers Foundation

​

Susan Lassen is the founding Executive Director and a trustee of the Foundation. 

Prior to coming to the United States in 1980 from her native UK, Susan trained as a nurse anesthetist and worked for Save the Children UK in Nigeria. She also served on the Board of Trustees of Save the Children UK and Save the Children US and is the co-Founder of the Long Island, NY chapter of Save The Children. She has had a long career in the private sector in New York, where from 1988-2004 she was the co-Founder of a global electronics consulting firm. In 2004 she worked with Mr. Flowers to launch NetsforLife before joining the foundation in 2008.

​

Mona Laungani, Treasurer and Secretary of the Board of Directors

 

Mona Laungani is the Chief Financial Officer at J.C. Flowers & Co.

Prior to joining the firm in 2017, she was a Senior Manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP where she specialized in assurance services to clients in the asset management sector. She began her career at Anchin, Block & Anchin LLP where she served clients in a variety of industries including real estate, food and beverage and financial services. She is a New York State Certified Public Accountant and received a B.B.A. in Accounting from Bernard M. Baruch College.

​

Neville Isdell, Co-Founder, Isdell:Flowers Cross Border Malaria Initiative

 

Neville Isdell is the former chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company where he worked for 43 years.

A native of Ireland, Mr. Isdell joined The Coca-Cola Company in 1966 in Zambia. In 1972, he became general manager of Coca-Cola Bottling of Johannesburg and after decades of promotions eventually was named Chairman and CEO of the world’s largest beverage company. During his tenure he took the company to new heights and expanded on the company’s proud legacy of corporate responsibility by embedding sustainability throughout every facet of the organization. He serves on the boards of a number of nongovernmental organizations, including the World Wildlife Fund and Peace Parks Foundation. Mr. Isdell was also former co-chair of the Investment Climate Facility and a former member of the Board of Directors of General Motors. He is a recipient of the Clinton Global Citizen Award and received the 2008 Ellis Island Medal of Honor - International. Mr. Isdell received a Bachelor’s degree in social sciences from the University of Cape Town and is a graduate of the Harvard Business School’s Program for Management Development. He is the recipient of five honorary degrees.

​

Alexandra Gordon, Program Director, Isdell:Flowers Cross Border Malaria Initiative

 

Alexandra Gordon is the Program Director for the Isdell:Flowers Cross Border Malaria Initiative.

She provides overall strategic direction and support to malaria programs in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Angola, and Namibia. Alexandra received her Master's in Public Health degree from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. As part of her graduate studies, she served as a Next Generation Intern with ICAP in Lesotho where she helped develop and implement a mobile phone application linking migrant mineworkers to tuberculosis and HIV care and treatment. Alexandra has a Bachelor's Degree in journalism and previously worked as a digital media and communications specialist in Washington, D.C.

​

Constance Njovu, Regional Coordinator

 

Constance Njovu is the Regional Coordinator for the Isdell:Flowers Cross Border Malaria Initiative.

She is responsible for coordinating the Cross Border Malaria Initiative program in Southern Africa. She lives in Lusaka, Zambia and is a Registered Nurse/Midwife by profession trained from Kitwe School of Nursing and Ndola School of Midwifery respectively. She had worked in various hospitals before pursuing her studies in Business Administration. In 2004 she qualified in Business Administration from Zambia Insurance Trust College. She also qualified as a Counselor in 2005 from Chainama College. Prior to joining the Isdell:Flowers Cross Border Malaria initiative in 2012 she worked for Zambia Anglican Council as a Diocesan Program Manager for Lusaka Diocese in 2005 and was promoted to Deputy National Program Director for Health Programs in 2008. 

 

Alysse Maglior, Program Officer, Isdell:Flowers Cross Border Malaria Initiative

 

Aly Maglior is a Program Officer for the Isdell:Flowers Cross Border Malaria Initiative.

Aly provides support for research and reporting, advocacy efforts promoting community engagement in malaria elimination, and general support for Isdell:Flowers programs in Angola, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Prior to this role, Aly led qualitative analysis for several studies at UCSF’s Malaria Elimination Initiative on community acceptability of mass drug administration, informal private sector engagement in government malaria strategic plans, and malaria surveillance strategies for mobile and migrant populations. She has coordinated data collection of several State-funded public health research studies at UCSF’s Institute for Health Policy Studies and at Rescue Agency, which partners with government agencies to create campaigns that drive health behavior change. Aly received a Master of Science degree from the UCSF’s Institute for Global Health Sciences.

​

Thomas Edwards, Special Projects Manager, Circles of Support

​

Thomas Edwards is the Special Projects Manager for Circles of Support (CoS). 

Thomas establishes lines of communication between clients, houses of worship, non-profit organizations, and businesses to complete projects for CoS. He also coordinates Circles of Support’s Advisory Board, which provides critical input in the development of Circles of Support projects. Thomas has co-created and managed Common Unity, a youth empowerment program at Exodus Transitional Community Inc. and has coordinated and managed annual projects at the Harlem Community Justice Center. Thomas combines his formal education – BA in Behavior Science from Mercy College, and MA in Professional Studies (MPS) from New Theological Seminary – with experience managing difficult and stressful circumstances, to bring projects and people together in Circles of Support programing and special projects.

​

Lila Garcia, Family Support Coordinator, Circles of Support

​

Lila Garcia is the Family Support Coordinator for Circles of Support.

Lila oversees various programs working with families or those with incarcerated loved ones. She is the Family Support Coordinator and facilitates Talk2Me, a support group for women with incarcerated loved ones, as well as Raising My Voice-Kin, the public speaking and leadership training program for individuals whose loved ones are or have been incarcerated. She is a case management professional and has worked for twenty years in various capacities within social services specializing in providing support, advocacy and resources to people coming home from prison and those with mental health challenges. 

​

Linda Steele, Program Coordinator, Circles of Support

​

Linda Steele is the Program Coordinator for the Circles of Support program at the J.C. Flowers Foundation.

Prior to her role with Circles of Support, Linda spent 11 years at the Center for Court Innovation facilitating job readiness and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for adults and young adults who have experienced mass incarceration. Linda has developed over five training programs specifically designed for those who have returned home, post incarceration. In her current role, Linda has continued to develop and implement the Raising My Voice (RMV) program, which encourages leadership through story telling training for people who come home from incarceration. RMV encourages participants to tell their stories in an empowering way. Linda builds strong relationships with houses of worship and other reentry program partners in NYC, and has amassed a band of volunteer coaches to support storytellers and the RMV training. Linda, too, is formerly incarcerated and understands the intricacies that are needed to make a life change from prison to life. She is dedicated to giving back what was freely given to her. 

 

John Schmidt, Director, Circles of Support

​

John Schmidt is the Circles of Support Director.  John's role is to support the program team and focus the vision, mission, and values of Circles of Support. He has experience in working with teams and communities across difference, especially with individuals experiencing food or housing insecurity. John is also an ordained priest in the Episcopal Church and has served churches in New York City (All Angels’) and in North Dallas, TX. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Studio Art from Furman University focusing in Woodworking, and Masters of Divinity from Duke Divinity School. Most recently he was Artist-in-Residence at General Theological Seminary where he focused on painting oil portraits that display the dignity of marginalized individuals with warmth and light.