Our Team

Cindy grew up and lived around the world, leading a nomadic life until moving to the Seattle area in 2000. She practiced law in California and Washington before “retiring” from the law and moving to Mercer Island in 2007 with her husband, Gordon, and 3 children.  Since then, Cindy has served on various boards, including that of the Mercer Island Schools Foundation, West Mercer PTA, Northwood PTA, and Eastside Prep PA. She has also volunteered at various organization across Puget Sound, including the Boys and Girls Club, Northwest Harvest, and PEPs. She is excited to be part of the MIYFS Foundation and to devote her time to its mission of supporting all Islanders.

Born and raised in the Bay Area, Kate is a recent arrival to Mercer Island. 

Arriving in 2022 with her husband and two boys in tow, she immediately became enamored of Mercer Island and all it has to offer. After volunteering on the Breakfast Committee for the 2023 MIYFS breakfast, she immediately knew that Youth and Family Services was a cause she whole heartedly wanted to support. 

Kate graduated from the University of California, Davis with a BS in Fermentation Science. Set on becoming a winemaker, a volunteer stint in a 5th grade elementary classroom made her realize her passion was kids and teaching. She received her Masters and Reading Specialist degrees from the University of San Francisco in 2006 and went on to teach in the city for over 10 years. 

Currently the PTA president for Northwood Elementary, Kate is grateful every day that she ended up in a community that cares so much for each and every resident. She is proud to join the MIYFS board!

Frank, and his wife Anne, both grew up on Mercer Island attending MI schools from Sunnybeam up to MIHS. Together they have five adult children living in Los Angeles, London, Seattle and New Zealand.

Frank graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in Accounting. For a time, Frank was a Certified Public Accountant before entering the tech sector in various Finance, Operations and product group leadership positions. From 2004 to 2020, Frank led field program work in Africa, Latin America and Asia for NetHope, a nonprofit consortium of the world’s largest humanitarian organizations.

Frank has been a youth soccer and basketball coach and is the former President of Bellevue Youth Soccer Club.

Kimberly Miyazawa Frank leads an organizational development and strategy consultancy. Her 30+ years of experience globally and across sectors have focused primarily on addressing policy and systems change to ensure access for those furthest from opportunity. She is a long-time community volunteer, currently serving on local and national nonprofit boards including Gift of Adoption, SeaVuria Seattle, Institute for Sustainable Diversity & Inclusion, and the Mercer Island High School PTSA. She joined the MIYFS Foundation board in 2021, deeply believing in its mission to financially support the critical services MIYFS provides to Islanders across their lifespan. Born and raised in Hawaii, Kimberly earned a BS from Miami University and a JD from Rutgers University. She and her family moved to Mercer Island in 2018.

Jocelyn has been a resident of Mercer Island for ten years. She moved here from London, and prior to that lived in Philadelphia. Jocelyn grew up in South Africa in the beautiful seaside town of Port Elizabeth (now known as Gqeberha). She is married to James and they have 2 girls, Josie and Caitlyn, both of whom went through the Mercer Island schools.

Jocelyn has a LLB from the University of Cape Town and a Masters in Law from the University of Washington. Her earlier years were spent working in the legal profession in South Africa and in the hedge fund industry in Philadelphia. She then took on a teaching position in London where she taught law to A-level students. She currently works at Starbucks in Law and Corporate Affairs. Jocelyn has been an enthusiastic volunteer, both here on Mercer Island and in London. She was the co-chair of the Friends of Rowan (PTA) in Surrey, as well as the Chair and Editor-in-Chief at the National Childbirth Trust (Esher branch) in the U.K. She was also the VP of Enrichment at Islander Middle School, and the President of the National Charity League (Evergreen Chapter) where she was awarded the Presidential Volunteer Service Award. She also co-chaired the National PTA Reflections Art competition on Mercer Island for a couple of years and was awarded Outstanding Program Award by Mercer Island PTA Council.

Jocelyn’s greatest joy in her philanthropy efforts is collaborating with others to bring about a sense of purpose, community and fulfilment, and to help others reach their potential.

Katie, her husband, David, and their two sons, moved to Mercer Island in 2015. Originally from the UK, Katie spent time living and working in the UK, France, Belgium, and China before moving to the US about 18 years ago. Katie has English and French law degrees from the University of Liverpool and University of Paris: Pantheon-Sorbonne. After practicing law for several years, for the last 15+ years Katie has held People & Culture roles focused on building great places to work, and enabling organizations, teams, and individuals to be the best they can be.

Impressed by the mission of MIYFS and its visibly positive impact on the island, Katie is honored to serve the community in support of this important work. She is also a member of MI Mountain Bike Advocates, empowering youth through cycling and supporting access to biking facilities on the island. 

After finishing their medical training at Baylor College of Medicine, Elizabeth moved from Texas to Mercer Island with her husband Jeff in 2006.  After working as a pediatrician at Seattle Childrens Hospital Emergency Room/Urgent Care and at the Swedish West Seattle Clinic, she joined Mercer Island Pediatrics in 2016.  She has been an active volunteer in the community serving as a Girl Scout leader for 12 years, PTA president at Lakeridge, Mercer Island High School and the PTA Council, as well as President of the Evergreen Chapter of National Charity League. She can often be found volunteering at high school sporting events and around town with her 3 daughters.  After seeing first hand the impact of MIYFS in the schools, with her patients, and as a member of the Healthy Youth Initiative, she was excited to join the Foundation Board.  

David Figatner and his family moved to Mercer Island a couple of years ago after living in Taipei. He has over 25 years of combined experience in law, technology, and entrepreneurship. A former managing lawyer with global leaders Microsoft and Schlumberger, he spent 15 years advising on complex legal, regulatory, and budgetary matters. For the past decade, he has immersed himself in the software and startup world—as a founder, developer, and mentor—where he continues to navigate the rapid pace of innovation and technological change. He holds dual undergraduate degrees in philosophy and computer science and earned both a law degree and a master’s in computer engineering in graduate school.

Aaron McLear has served Governors in two states, advised Presidential, Senate, and gubernatorial campaigns, worked with several multinational corporations, and been a communications executive at two category-defining tech companies.

McLear is currently Senior Counsel at Bully Pulpit International (BPI), a global public affairs firm, where he advises clients on corporate reputational issues. He also is a Senior Advisor to philanthropist Ron Conway and his venture capital firm, SV Angel.

McLear was VP of Communications at Cruise, a self-driving vehicle company, where he managed all internal and external communications. He previously served as U.S. Chair for Public Affairs at Edelman, where he worked closely with some of the firm’s biggest clients to advise them on crisis, political, and corporate reputation issues.

At Uber from 2017-19, Aaron managed the company’s corporate, consumer, internal, product, and safety communications teams through a high-profile change in the company’s leadership as Director of Central Communications.

Before Uber, Aaron founded a consulting firm focusing on California statewide ballot initiatives and public affairs campaigns. During that time he ran Neel Kashkari’s 2014 California gubernatorial campaign, worked for Senator Mitt Romney’s 2012 Presidential campaign, and the 2011 tech industry-backed independent expenditure campaign in support of San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee.

Aaron previously served as Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Press Secretary from 2007 – 2011 and was a press secretary at the Republican National Committee during the 2006 Midterms, advising targeted House and Senate campaigns. He worked on the 2005 Presidential Inaugural Committee and was Communications Director for the 2004 Ohio Bush-Cheney Campaign.

After living in West Berlin, Germany for ten years, Terry, her late husband Buddy, and two young sons moved to Mercer Island in 1978.

With a degree in History and Political Science from UC Berkley, her first job was as a stewardess with Pan American World Airways. After about ten years of serial volunteering, she returned to work as the development director for a domestic violence organization. She was the Executive Director of the Mercer Island Chamber of Commerce for 27 years, working closely with MIYFS and other community organizations. She was instrumental in inaugurating and producing Summer Celebration, the Farmers Market, Town Center trick-or-treating and Art UnCorked. She was part of the MIYFS Breakfast organizing committee for many years and has perfect attendance at the event. She retired from the Chamber in 2017.

Terry’s volunteer work began with the Pre-School Assn., the PTA and Boy Scouts. She has served on the boards of the Boys and Girls Club, the Schools Foundation, the Community Fund, the Mercer Island Rotary Club, and the Mercer Island Sister City Association. She also volunteered as a Guardian ad Litem in the Seattle court system. She currently serves as co-president of the Mercer Island Historical Society.

Debbie Nelson moved to Mercer Island with her family in 2017. Originally from England, Debbie spent over two decades in corporate finance, including 13 years at Microsoft, which brought her to the Pacific Northwest. She holds a degree in Business Studies from De Montfort University and is a Chartered Management Accountant (ACMA, CGMA).

Debbie met her husband, Chris, in Munich while they were both working for Microsoft. They now live on Mercer Island with their two children, who attend local public schools. As a family, they enjoy travel, soccer, and spending time outdoors—often cheering on the Seattle Sounders or Manchester United.

In England, Debbie served as a director of a nonprofit female soccer club, helping to secure funding, establish a home ground, achieve charter status, and grow the number of teams. She has continued her commitment to youth sports as a coach at Eastside FC, where she currently coaches two teams. Debbie also volunteers in the Mercer Island school community, serving on the PTA as president and previously as treasurer.

Debbie is passionate about fostering connection, confidence, and opportunity for young people and families. She is honored to join the MIYFS Foundation Board and contribute to its mission of supporting the well-being of the Mercer Island community.

Born and raised in the suburbs of New York City, Michelle left her home state to attend Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. She began her career in Southern California as a consultant with CGE&Y in strategy and business process definition. In 2001, Michelle moved up to Seattle where she and worked for Accenture doing both business and IT Program and Project Management. Michelle and her husband Scott moved to Mercer Island in 2007 and have been Island residents for 13 years now. Shortly after moving to the Island, Michelle left the business world to start a family and now has two girls ages ten and twelve.

Among various other philanthropic efforts, Michelle has been a longtime volunteer in many capacities for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and is currently serving in her 5th year as a Trustee on the Make-A-Wish Board of Directors. A passionate supporter of the Arts, Michelle has also been a board member of the Mercer Island Center for the Arts for the past 2.5 years. Michelle enjoys spending time volunteering at her girls’ schools and has chaired school events focused on both fundraising and community engagement.

Having seen the many positive impacts MIYFS has on the Island community through the various programs, Michelle joins the MIYFS board with excitement and enthusiasm for getting involved with the organization in a hands-on way. She truly values the community where she and Scott have chosen to live, and believes it is important to support things close to home that have a real, tangible, positive impact on the place where they are raising their family. Michelle looks forward to engaging with our community and getting them involved in new and exciting ways!!

Celene brings 20+ years of professional experience to this role with experience working at companies including Twentieth Century Fox, Microsoft, Amazon, and most recently Moderna. Along with being a servant-driven leader, her passion is building security championship and engagement programs that resonate with the company mission and culture. When she’s not playing defense co-managing her four kids with her husband Matt, she’s experimenting with new recipes or art projects, or taking her two rescue dogs (a pit/lab and terrier mix) out in the neighborhood. She’s a former Mercer Island High School graduate and excited to bring her love of this community and professional experience to support the MIYFS mission.

Originally from Long Island, NY, Amanda received a Bachelor of Arts from Johns Hopkins University and a Masters of Sciences from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Prior to starting a family, she worked in trade journalism (real estate) and public relations (Edelman PR).

She moved to Mercer Island with her family in 2013. Since that time, she has dedicated her time to serving in numerous community volunteer roles:
Northwood Elementary PTA (President, 2019-21; Vice President, 2018-19; VP of Communications, 2017-18; Room Parent Coordinator, 2016-17, Scholastic Book Fair Chair, 2022-23)
Islander Middle School PTSA (President, 2023-24; President Elect, 2022-23; VP of Communications, 2021-22)
MI PTA Council (President, 2022-23; President Elect, 2021-22)
MI Football Booster Club (Social Media Coordinator, 2024-present)
National League of Young Men – MI Chapter (Member, 2024-present)
MI Fine Arts Advisory Council (Board Member, 2021-25)
SJCC Early Childhood School (Parent Committee Board Member, 2015-2017)

Outside of volunteering, Amanda enjoys reading, live music and collecting vinyl records, and is currently training for her seventh marathon. She is the proud mom of three sons (grades 9, 7 and 3), and has been married for 17 years to her amazing husband.

Ivy moved to Mercer Island in 2004 from Seattle with her husband Eric and their two kids, who went through the MISD system and graduated from MIHS in 2017 and 2021. She was previously part of the MIYFS Healthy Youth Initiative Committee and inspired by their dedication and positivity, she decided to join the MIYFS Foundation.

Among the many volunteer positions she held on the island, she is most proud of being the founder of Lakeridge Science Fair (originally All Island Science Fair) in 2008, serving on the original Diversity Advisory Committee for MISD, serving on the MI Schools Band Boosters for 4 years, and for serving two years as the PTSA President of MIHS.

Ivy is a retired academic Immunologist with a B.S. and M.S. in Microbiology and a Ph.D. in Immunology. After her son was born, she switched her focus to helping others and formed Tampopo Preschool Co-op in Phinney Ridge (Seattle) to create a Japanese-immersion preschool that also provided a cultural experience for young children. She also ran a holistic life-coaching practice on the island for 10 years mainly working with Japanese-speaking clients in their native language.

Mercer Island is a wonderful place to raise a family and MIYFS is a big factor in that. She is looking forward to serve the community going forward as a member of the MIYFS Foundation Board.