Board of Directors

Matthew Dubois, Esq., Board President, is a named partner at the law firm of Vogel & Dubois in Portland. Matt focuses his practice on elder law, planning for aging and retirement and planning for gay, lesbian and transgender individuals, couples and families. Matt is also the chair of the Maine State Bar Association Elder Law Section and is on the board of AIDS Lodging House, Portland. His publications about LGBT elders include "Aging Concerns of Gay and Lesbian Couples" (ABA GPSOLO magazine, July/August 2008); "Legal Concerns of LGBT Elders" (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Aging, Research and Clinical Perspectives); "Elder Law: Answers for Gay and Lesbian Elders" (Maine Lawyers' Review, January 8, 2003); and "Legal Planning for Gay, Lesbian, and Nontraditional Elders" (Albany Law Review, 1999). Matt lives in Scarborough with his partner David, and has served on EqualityMaine’s board since September 2004.

Barb Wood, Vice President/EqualityMaine Foundation, came out as a political activist in 1984 by hosting EqualityMaine's first mailing party. As a founding member, she helped launch our annual awards banquet and the EQME booth at the Common Ground Fair. EqualityMaine created the “Great Pioneer Award” for Barb when she was recognized for being the first openly gay or lesbian elected official in Maine. Barb served on the Portland City Council from 1988 through 1991, and was a key spokesperson for Portland’s anti-discrimination referendum.

In recent years her time has been focused on her career at L.L. Bean, renovating her condemned, but historic, Victorian home in Portland’s West End, and celebrating life after surviving ovarian cancer.

Cecelia Burnett, Vice President/EqualityMaine, walked into the EqualityMaine office a few years ago and offered to help in some small way. She walked out as chair of our annual awards dinner planning committee. Cecelia has helped plan our awards dinner for many years, volunteers for other EQME efforts whenever she can and was elected to the board in 2006. Formerly a resident of Iowa, Cecelia served three terms in the Iowa House of Representatives, concentrating her efforts on women's rights, human services issues, and the environment. After moving to Vermont in 1999, she worked as the lobbyist for Governor Howard Dean's Commission on Women, participating in that state's historic civil unions debates. In 2001 Cecelia and her partner Ann moved to Maine, where they live on 3.5 acres of wooded land in rural Gorham with their two cats. Cecelia now runs her own massage therapy practice in Scarborough and is a member of the Rainbow Business and Professional Association. In their spare time, Cecelia and Ann like to read, explore their new home state, entertain friends and family from across the country, and travel someplace interesting every year.

Fay Brodell, CPA, Treasurer, moved to Maine in 2003 with her partner, Sue Davis. Fay is the chief financial officer of SB&A in Richmond, Virginia, telecommuting from her home in Maine. Before joining SB&A, Fay worked with Cherry, Bekaert & Holland as a senior accountant and auditor for eight years; for three years thereafter she was an independent financial and tax consultant. While at Cherry, Bekaert & Holland the focus of her work was with non-profit agencies. Fay holds a BS degree in education from Lynchburg College and taught in the Lynchburg public school system before earning her second degree in accounting.

Lucie Bauer was elected to the EqualityMaine Foundation board in 2010.  Lucie has a long history of working for LGBT equality as a leader in community-based efforts and as a volunteer with EqualityMaine and the Maine Speakout Project.  In her professional life, Lucie has taught art history to undergraduate and graduate students in settings ranging from Dartmouth College to the Maine State Prison.  She was educated at Vassar College and at the Institute of Fine Arts of New York University and has held fellowships to Villa I Tatti, Harvard University's Center for Renaissance Studies in Settignano, Italy and to the Warburg Institute of the University of London.  Lucie and her spouse Annie were married in California in 2008.  They have lived in Rockport since 1995.  Lucie is the proud step-parent of two adult children.

Mary Breen has owned and operated Bread and Roses Bakery in Ogunquit, Maine since its inception in 1989. Bread and Roses is a busy seasonal - from scratch - bakery and coffee shop with thirty-five seasonal employees. She is a founding Board Member of the Youth Enrichment Center at Hilton Winn Farm in Cape Neddick, Maine--an experiential and educational facility serving children from all walks of life. As a volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Maine, she is a proud big sister to an amazing girl from Wells. She developed a spay/neuter fundraising program through Bread and Roses that collects money to assist people in caring for their own pets and stray animals. She has been involved in the Greyhound Placement Services of New Hampshire, fostering retired racing greyhounds and works tirelessly to bring attention to the need for adopting rather than breeding animals as pets. She trains and raises funds for the Harbor to the Bay Ride, a one-day bike ride from Boston to Provincetown with 100% of monies rose going directly to four AIDS charities. Mary is a 2009 graduate of EMERGE Maine – a training program to elect democratic women to public office, and has chaired several successful campaigns from local referenda to State Representative. She studied Social Work at the University of Southern Maine and has a degree in Culinary Arts from Southern Maine Community College. Mary lives in South Berwick with her partner, Eileen and their three dogs and four cats.

Jane Clayton is a partner at Vafiades, Brountas & Kominsky, LLP in Bangor and focuses her practice on all aspects of family law, including collaborative law. Jane was previously the Chair of the Penobscot County Law Library Committee, a Board Member of Bangor Area Visiting Nurses/Hospice of Eastern Maine, a Board Member of Pine Tree Legal Assistance and a Board Member of Maine Association of Mediators.  Jane was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia.  Jane earned a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Maine, and her J.D. from the Villanova University School of Law. She moved to Maine in 1986 and currently lives in Veazie with her wife Nancy, one dog and two cats.  In her time away from the office she enjoys creating stained glass panels, photography, movies, reading, and spending time with family and friends.

David Cohan is the principal of PeaksCo LLC, a commercial real estate investment, development and consulting firm. He was previously a senior investment officer for CEI Capital Management LLC, an investment management subsidiary of the Maine-based non-profit Coastal Enterprises, Inc. David also served as City of Portland’s Waterfront Asset and Development Manager for three years. A past chair of the board of the Maine Speakout Project, David is currently vice-chair of the board of the North American Friends of the Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research Institute. He is involved in a number of local community-based efforts, and has a deep history of working with LGBT-focused organizations.

Ed Connolly is a writer who lives with his partner, Harvey Hosack, in Ogunquit.  He moved to Maine a year and a half ago from Manhattan.  For the previous two decades, he was a television producer and executive in New York and Los Angeles.  His company, Norton Connolly Productions, created programming geared towards uplifting and entertaining viewers.  Upon moving to Maine, Ed began getting involved in the community by volunteering at the Beach & Bay 5K Walk/Run for Aids and devoting much of his time to the NO on 1 Campaign.  He is currently starting a small business with his partner and looks forward to creating an environment that is inclusive and inviting to all.  He is proud to be a member of the EqualityMaine board and will always give his heart, soul and energy to the LGBT community and all our many related causes.

Timothy Diehl was elected to the EqualityMaine board in September 2007. In his professional life he serves as the director of career planning at Bowdoin College. Before relocating to Maine in 2006, Tim was politically active in Connecticut with Love Makes a Family, the state’s public education and lobbying organization dedicated to achieving marriage equality for same-sex couples. During his volunteer tenure with Love Makes a Family, Tim served as president of the organization's PAC and as founding president of the Love Makes a Family Foundation. Tim holds a BS from Washington University in St. Louis and an MBA from Duke University.

Jenna Ginsberg was elected to the EqualityMaine board in 2009 after years of volunteering. She grew up in the suburbs of Pennsylvania until leaving home to attend boarding school in Vermont. Jenna is a graduate of Bates College with degrees in psychology and philosophy. She worked for more than a decade at Sunday River, where she met her wife, Darlene. While working at Sunday River, Darlene and Jenna purchased a 42 acre farm and Bed & Breakfast in the mountains of Western Maine. Since leaving Sunday River she has pursued her own entrepreneurial endeavors. In addition to the Bed & Breakfast, Darlene and Jenna breed an internationally renowned line of Labrador Retrievers which celebrated its 50th year in 2009! She also owns and manages an event services company providing a wide array of services to sporting events, allowing her to travel across North America. When she isn't traveling, Jenna enjoys volunteering for other worthy causes such as the Maine Speak-out Project, as well as serving on a variety of boards and committees involved in the oversight of competitive skiing in North America.

Marsha Greenberg is a partner with The Greenshoe Group, a firm focusing on conflict management, communication, team-building, and dialogue to make organizations better and more productive. She brings more than 30 years experience in consulting, training and expert facilitation to her clients. She has consulted to business leaders in cultures as diverse as China, Singapore, Ireland, Israel, Palestine, Egypt, India, Pakistan, Jordan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. She is an adjunct faculty at The University of New England working in Haifa and Tel Aviv, teaching Israeli health care professionals Interpersonal Communications and Cross Cultural Diversity. During the summer she works for Seeds of Peace facilitating dialogue groups for adults from Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Jordan, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. She also works for Seeds of Peace in Israel facilitating dialogue between Jewish and Arab Israelis. Marsha has devoted her life to issues of equality and human rights. She lives on Peaks Island with her husband Steve Schuit. They have two adult sons and one wonderful grandson. They enjoy traveling around the world. Marsha has completed two marathons.

Meredith Hunt joined the Board of EqualityMaine in April of 2010. Meredith has worked as a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner for the past 16 years. She is employed by the Family Planning Association of Maine and works predominantly in the Rockland and Augusta area. Previously, she worked for Western Maine Community Action’s Health Service and covered clinics in the Norway, Rumford, Farmington, and Auburn area. Before moving to Maine in 1998, Meredith served on the executive board of Chiltern Mountain Club, a New England wide LGBT outdoor recreation club. Meredith became involved with EqualityMaine in 2004 as a volunteer and has worked on several LGBT issues with her partner Melissa Hamkins, including the Protect Maine Equality. When not working or volunteering, Meredith and Melissa enjoy living on their organic homestead farm in Bowdoin.
 

Shawn LaGrega was elected to the EqualityMaine board in 2007. He is the associate director of Maine Pretrial Services, Inc, a statewide nonprofit agency that specializes in community based alternatives to incarceration. From 1996 to 1999, Shawn worked as a youth/community educator for Family Crisis Services in the Young Adult Abuse Prevention Program. His work included trainings on teen dating violence and domestic violence as well as bullying prevention programs to middle school students, faculty and staff. Shawn sits on several boards, including the Cumberland County Child Abuse and Neglect Council and The AIDS Lodging House. Shawn lives in Portland with his partner.

Margaret O'Connell was elected to the board in 2007. Before relocating to Maine in 2006, Margaret was actively involved in Connecticut with Triangle Community Center. Margaret served on several committees for TCC prior to becoming the President for TCC. Margaret’s career of over 20 years in property management brought her to Maine for her position as Vice President of Preservation Management, Inc. Margaret has a BA from Regis College in Weston, MA and a Graduate Certificate of Women’s Politics and Government from UMass Boston.

Brian Randall is vice president of eMedia at Diversified Business Communications where he leads the digital initiative to expand their global brands.  He also serves on the American Business Media’s Digital Media Council.  He has been involved in GLBT civil rights since 1992.  He served as a staff member of the Human Rights Campaign in Washington, DC and has been active with EqualityMaine since relocating in 2005.  Brian joined the board of EqualityMaine in 2010.  He and his partner, Alex Beal, support many GLBT organizations both faith-based and political; however they are particularly passionate about gay sports.  He and Alex have helped organize a men’s volleyball group in Portland for the past 4 years along with tournament play at the World Outgames Montreal in 2006 and World Outgames Copenhagen in 2009, where the team from Portland medaled in 3 sports.  Brian is a graduate of Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA.  In 1999, Brian participated in the founding of SoulForce by accompanying Rev. Mel White to an historic meeting at his alma mater following the death of Matthew Sheppard.

Ethan Strimling represented Portland for three terms in the state senate. During his time in the Senate, Ethan served as chair of the Labor Committee, chair of the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee and co-chair of Maine's Homeland Security Task Force. He is the executive director of Learning Works, a non-profit social-service agency that provides learning opportunities for at-risk youth, the immigrant community, and low-income families in Cumberland, York and Androscoggin counties. He joined the EqualityMaine board in 2008.

K. Barrett Wilkinson was elected to the EqualityMaine board in March 2010.  Barrett has spent her professional career committed to issues of conflict resolution and violence prevention currently working as the Research Specialist and Facilitator for the Center for Preventing Hate. Prior to this position Barrett has worked as a dialogue facilitator for Seeds of Peace focusing specifically on conflict resolution with youth from South and Central Asia. Her work has led her all over Maine, throughout the U.S. and to Northern Ireland, connecting her with the stories and struggles of people all over the world. Barrett has volunteered for Equality Maine on several campaigns, and continues to work to get progressive candidates and issues into Maine’s political discourse.

She has BA in Psychology from the University of Maine at Farmington, and a Masters degree in Public Policy and Management from the Muskie School of Public Service. Barrett lives in Portland with her wife Katie.