Staff

With over 30 years of entrepreneurial executive experience in starting and running venture capital, private equity, and owner-financed product companies, Tom used his diverse set of business skills to grow The Giving Spirit into a renowned organization. He received his MBA from George Mason University’s School of Business and his BA in Communication Studies/Journalism from Virginia Tech University. Both of Tom’s alma maters have recognized him for his humanitarian work with the unhoused community. He has received commendations from the Office of the Mayor and the City Council of Los Angeles in 2015 and 2019.

Dawn has over 20 years in education, entertainment and philanthropy and has served The Giving Spirit as a volunteer, volunteer leader and member of our Board of Directors.

She initially volunteered with Hand2Hand, a program providing meals to the unhoused n Santa Monica, which introduced her to the needs of the homeless. Dawn is passionately involved in animal rights and rescue.

Dawn’s role encompasses coordinating and planning the execution and logistics around all of our volunteer events. She has led and had oversight in many of our event over the last two decades.

Kristan oversees operations for The Giving Spirit.  Most recently, Kristan ran Fusion Consulting, partnering with organizations including Assured Allies, the Arthritis Foundation, Pillar, and Partners in Care, building and scaling programs to expand impact, with a focus on underserved communities.

Kristan spent over 20 years in leadership roles at NBCUniversal and ViacomCBS. There, she was Vice President of Original Programming + Production, leading teams for Red Carpet Award Shows and Unscripted Programming.

A graduate of Rockhurst University with a BSBA in Marketing Communications & Media, Kristan has continued to expand her expertise, focusing on health equity, and recently earned her National Board of Health Wellness Certification in 2022.

Stacy is the Chair of the Education and Community Awareness Committee at Pragmatic Solutions and Sims School. She has over 17 years of experience in designing learning, recognition, and assessment systems for various educational and organizational contexts. Stacy focuses on finding the intersection of engagement, optimized learning outcomes, program sustainability, and equity in teaching and learning. She is an expert in embedded assessment, teaching effectiveness frameworks, and the implementation of machine learning and artificial intelligence in games, simulations, and large-scale assessments.

Stacy will use her expertise to align all three segments of our groundbreaking coursework to deliver the highest value of learning and engagement across our varied platforms. Stacy is a graduate of UC Santa Barbara. 

Mike is a broadcast television, video & digital media and IT professional, and winner of over 40 awards for journalism, communications and public service.  Nominated for an Emmy.  He created and produced the first all computer generated Public Service Announcement aired in the US.  At age 20, while attending the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, Mike “fell into” his first television job – and never looked back.

Today, Mike strives to make a difference through his social service projects and philanthropic activities.  He and his wife, Mickie, live in San Diego and are always looking forward to their next road trip with their two rescue dogs, Sunny and Maui.