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Who We Are :: Staff Bios
Executive Director
Betsie is an adoptee who searched for and was reunited with her birthparents in 1986, when she was in her mid-twenties. Much to her surprise she found that her birthmother had married her birthfather not long after her birth and they subsequently raised three sons. She was welcomed with open arms by her birthparents, siblings and the entire extended family.
Having made the journey to a successful reunion on her own, in 1988 Betsie founded Adoption Network Cleveland (ANC) to provide support and assistance to others who are touched by adoption. The organization was at first a fully volunteer effort, and as it grew, she became ANC's first executive director in 1995. Since then Betsie has become a frequent spokesperson in the media and has assisted in over 1,400 adoptee-birthparent reunions. With a wide array of programs and services, Adoption Network Cleveland serves as a successful national model for effective service and advocacy for members of the adoption community including adoptees, adoptive parent, birthparents, youth in foster care and related professionals.
Click here for more on how Adoption Network Cleveland started
Betsie has worked tirelessly on legislation to reform Ohio's adoption laws since founding Adoption Network Cleveland and has been part of several work groups on the state level on the subject. As a result, adoptees, birthparents, adoptive parents and siblings have greater access to information about one another in Ohio than they otherwise would.
Betsie is co-author with Jayne Schooler of Journeys After Adoption: Understanding the Lifelong Process (Bergin & Garvey, 2002). She served as a board member of the national American Adoption Congress from 1997-1999. Trained as an RN with a specialty in child psychiatry, Betsie earned a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Case Western Reserve University in 1996. Her recent awards include:
- Emma Mae Vilardi Humanitarian Award from the American Adoption Congress 2004
- Hearts of Hope Award from Beech Brook in 2005
- Angels in Adoption Award from the United States Congress in 2005
- Woman of Note from Crains Cleveland Business in 2005
- Foster Care Hero Award from the Rona R.
Carter Scholarship Fund
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Post Adoption Coordinator
Ayanna Abi-Kyles was born in Detroit, Michigan. She is married to her lifelong friend Lutalo, and together they have one daughter, Kai.
For the first six years of Ayanna’s life, she was loved and cared for by her foster family and was later adopted by her birth father. Since 1988, Ayanna has been re-united with her birthmother’s family.
Ayanna’s husband and daughter moved north when her husband accepted a position as a hospital chaplain at Metro Health Center four years ago, with Ayanna arriving to be with her in August of 2008.
Ayanna received her B.A. in English and Political Science from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, a Master of Divinity and Theology from Emory University in Atlanta, and a master’s in counseling from Argosy University in Atlanta. She is continuing her education at Cleveland State University in the Ed.S in counseling program. Ayanna worked with Emory University, Candler School of Theology, for the past seven years, serving as program and research associate.
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Executive Assistant
Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, and one of nine children. She graduated from John Hay High School and the University of Cincinnati with a B.S in Marketing.
Maridah formerly worked as an Executive Assistant for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District and was responsible for assisting the Executive Director with strategic planning and overall department management. She served as the department liaison for internal/external communications. She served as the district coordinator for the CEO Student Advisory Council.
Prior to working for the school district, Maridah was the Marketing Programs Manager for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. She was responsible for public relations and media relations planning. Maridah enjoys reading, sports and working with the youth in the greater Cleveland community.
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Program Coordinator/Adult Adoptees and Birthparents
Linda joined the staff in January 2001. She is responsible for managing the Programs and Services for adult adoptees and birthparents and oversees the search program Linda is an LISW, holds a Masters Degree in Social Administration from Case Western Reserve University Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences and a BA in Social Services from Cleveland State University.
Linda came to the Adoption Network Cleveland with over 25 years of experience in social work with families of children and adolescents with ranges of medical and emotional needs. She also assisted in the development, implementation and coordination of the Specialized Family Care Program, a collaborative effort with Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services to recruit, train and support foster parents in the care of medically fragile children in custody, awaiting a permanent family.
Linda is part of the adoption constellation as the aunt of two nephews and a niece who are adopted.
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Adoption Navigator
Darleen has been an Adoption Navigator since July, 2004. She brings 25 years of experience and knowledge from Cuyahoga County Dept. of Children and Family Services' Adoption Dept. to this job. Darleen worked with children in permanent custody awaiting adoptive homes, with prospective adoptive families during the home study process and on a post adoptive basis with families who had finalized their adoptions.
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Adoption Navigator
Before arriving at Adoption Network Cleveland in February 2007, Teres previously spent five years working at Vocational Guidance Services as an Administrative Assistant. She has enjoyed the transition from Administrative Assistant to Adoption Navigator, and is excited about this new endeavor. Teres is a licensed foster parent and is the proud parent of three children, two of whom are adopted. Teres enjoy spending time at home with her kids, baking, home improvement projects and being outdoors.
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Sr. Director of Administration
The youngest of three, Stefanie grew up in the small town of Elyria, Ohio. More Taurus than Gemini, Stefanie celebrates her birthday on May 21. Stefanie received a basketball scholarship to our own Myers University in Cleveland (she wishes that the WNBA was formed just a few years earlier) and received her Bachelor of Science in accounting in 1993.
Stefanie began her career in the retail industry, beginning at Wal-Mart stores as an assistant manager and ending up at Target stores. This experience sharpened her interpersonal relationship and customer service skills. After discovering that there were such things as holidays and nights and weekends off, she decided to change career paths into the world of accounting.
Stefanie started her new career at the Berea Children's Home & Family Services as a temp worker and quickly moved her way up the chain of command to the accounting manager. She served 9 years at BCHFS were she was responsible for all daily accounting functions of the organization. On that journey she learned many aspects of the nonprofit accounting world and is looking forward to sharing her insight and experience with Adoption Network Cleveland.
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Sr. Director of Fund Development and External Relations
George joined the staff of Adoption Network Cleveland in May 2007 after serving on the Board for two years and being involved with the Network for five years. In his role as Director of Development and External Relations, George is responsible for fundraising, corporate and community relations, grants, events, and related activities.
Prior to working for the Network, George was Associate for Leadership Gifts with the national offices of the United Church of Christ in Cleveland. Other work experiences include serving as Editorial Director for Professional and Academic Books for the Pilgrim Press and as Editor of Alive Now magazine.
George received a B.A. (Summa Cum Laude) in Religion and German from Hiram College and earned an M.Div. from Vanderbilt University. A Cleveland native, George lived in Nashville, Tennessee, for 15 years before returning to the Cleveland area in 2000. George and his partner are the adoptive parents of two young children, and they credit Adoption Network Cleveland for playing a critical role in helping them make the decision to adopt and providing a great source of support for their family.
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Director of Programs
Valerie holds a bachelor’s degree from Ohio University and a master’s degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Social Work.
Valerie’s career at Beech Brook spanned 27 years. She started in the area of special needs adoption with the Spaulding for Children program. While there, Valerie was instrumental in developing best practice work related to the recruitment and pre- and post-adoptive services offered to support adoptive families. Valerie also served as the interim director of foster care and worked with other community- based agencies to implement neighborhood based foster parent training. Valerie subsequently went on to implement Beech Brooks Family Preservation program and then became the director of Beech Brook’s Family Health program. Valerie then became the Vice President of Community Relations at Beech Brook which entailed program development, advocacy, connecting our consumers with existing neighborhood services and acting as a liaison between Beech Brook’s Executive Office and the community.
In 2006 Valerie became the Executive Director of Kidz Health 2020, a neighborhood-based agency funded by the Saint Luke’s Foundation to ensure that the children of Mt. Pleasant reached their full potential. In 2008, prior to closing Kidz Health 2020, she successfully served 640, children, youth and caregivers living in Mt. Pleasant.
Valerie was a recipient of the Beech Brook Hearts of Hope award in 2007. She and her husband are the parents of two adult sons.
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Adoption Navigator and Training Coordinator
Julius joined Adoption Network Cleveland in June of 2005 as an Adoption Navigator. He is a single parent of 3 teenagers. In his free time he enjoys listening to music, dancing and fishing. His favorite sport is football, he is a diehard Browns fan. Julius became a navigator strictly for the purpose of having a part in the future lives of children.
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Administrative Assistant
Sharonda is a single parent of 3 children 7 and under. She currently attends Remington College for Business Information Systems and is striving to receive her Associates Degree is Business. She enjoys spending time with her family, outdoor activities, cooking and learning new things
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Director of System Navigation
Dottie Klemm supervises the Adoption Navigators and the adoptee & birthparent programs. She has a long history in the adoption field having been the former Administrator of Adoptions for Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services and a long time volunteer for the Adoption Network. Dottie still volunteers for the Adoption Network Cleveland, co facilitating the Heights General Meeting. She also is a trainer and one of the current chairs of the Ohio Adoption Planning Group.
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Diligent Recruitment Team Leader
Kate is excited about the opportunity at Adoption Network Cleveland to work towards a purpose she feels passionately about.
Kate joined Adoption Network Cleveland after 23 years in the social work field. Born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, she came north to attend Oberlin College where she received a BA in English. She moved to Northampton, Massachusetts to begin life after college. After several years of public elder services including adult protection, she enrolled at Smith College School for Social Work in Northampton. She had her first internship at Cleveland’s at Metro Health Medical Center. Kate fell in love with Cleveland and returned after graduate school. They call Cleveland the fly paper city for a reason!
For the past 13 years, Kate has worked on behalf of making child welfare systems better for those who have been touched by it. In the private non-profit sector, she was director of Westhaven Youth Shelter under the auspices Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries. In the public sector, Kate was a senior supervisor in the Foster Home Resource Management Department for the Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services. For the last six years, Kate has worked as a consultant for the Annie E. Casey Foundation on their national Family to Family team from her base in Shaker Heights. Kate enjoys travel, cooking, and reading but not always in that order.
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Development Coordinator
Kathryn received her undergraduate degree in political science from Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC. After a few years working in Texas politics, Kathryn returned to graduate school at Kent State University where she earned a master’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in journalism.
After graduating, Kathryn returned to politics for a few more years before deciding a more stable life was calling. Wanting to continue to use her skills to help those in need, she entered the development field. Since then she has worked for organizations including the Hanna Perkins Center for Child Development and Cuyahoga Valley National Park Association.
Kathryn is a Navy brat and grew up traveling the world. She now lives in Kent with her husband Tom, their two beautiful children Wil and Caroline, and the cat, Jackson. In her free time Kathryn enjoys watching movies, reading and spending time outdoors.
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Communications Manager
Linda’s extensive career has spanned the fields of graphic design, marketing, publishing, public relations and as a business owner. Her background includes many long-term relationships and employments with prominent organizations such as Cleveland Magazine, Whelan Communications, and Penton Publishing. She has worked on several Cleveland-focused projects, including newsletters and logo designs for the Euclid Corridor Transportation Project, and the Cleveland Innerbelt Plan. She also worked with Fortune 500 companies nationwide on custom-publishing projects
Linda is not a newcomer to Adoption Network Cleveland. As an adoptive mom, she has been an active volunteer since the early 1990s, helping to develop its first series of Annual Reports, and volunteering on many committees. At the 10th Anniversary event, she was the recipient of an award honoring the Top Ten People in the organization’s first 10 years.
Linda has been married for 26 years to Marty, a retired teacher with the Olmsted Falls school system. Their son, Eric is a student at North Royalton High School and has always had an open adoption with his entire birth family. Eric has also been a volunteer – speaking about his experiences, and was a teen leader for the Parallel Group series at Adoption Network Cleveland.
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Program Coordinator: Youth and Families
Valli Spahn came to Adoption Network Cleveland with 20 years of experience in social services. She spent the majority of those years in public service at Cuyahoga County Children and Family Services (CFS) as a social worker, supervisor, and answering the 696-Kids Hotline.
In 2002, Valli earned a Master of Public Administration degree from Cleveland State. Besides working at Children and Family Services, Valli worked in a public school system with preschoolers to young teens with special needs. She also worked in private agencies with prospective adoptive parents and with birthparents making adoption plans. Other work experience includes serving as the Assistant to the Minister of Religious Education at the West Shore Unitarian Universalist Church.
Valli also brings much to her position as a result of parenting with her husband for more than 20 years. Their three children came to the family through biology and adoption.
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Adoption Navigator
Holly comes to her position as an Adoption Navigator as an adoptive parent of three amazing children. One of them was a private open adoption and the other two were a sibling adoption from a public system. This is the experience and training that has made the biggest difference in her job helping other people create families through adoption.
In addition to life experience, Holly has a BA in Communications and a Masters of Divinity. Some of her previous employment that helps inform her job at Adoption Network Cleveland had been her work for the Cuyahoga County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities in their Public Information Department, as well as at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation as a Chaplain, mostly in their Children's Hospital.
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Finance and Human Resources Assistant
Cindy is a native of St. Louis, Missouri. She and her family moved to Cleveland in the early 80s when Cindy was in high school. A lifelong history buff, Cindy studied history for two years at Smith College before getting her B.A. in History at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix. She comes to the Adoption Network Cleveland from the New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston, where she worked first in the membership department and then in accounting and human resources. After over eight years at NEHGS, Cindy moved back to Cleveland to be closer to her family. She came to the Adoption Network Cleveland in June of 2008 because of her interest in non-profits and the mission of Adoption Network Cleveland.
Cindy has one sister living in the Cleveland area; her other sister, brother-in-law, and adorable, energetic nephew (an adoptee) live in Akron. Her interests include reading, listening to music of (almost) every genre, and playing with her cat, Frank.
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