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Patrick Stewart, Executive Director
Patrick is the newly appointed Executive Director of Words Alive, providing vision and leadership to the staff, programs and community to whom Words Alive programs currently serve. Stewart earned his bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from San Diego State University with distinction, and graduated from the Executive Non-Profit Management Program at Georgetown University’s School of Public Policy in Washington, DC. With a strong non-profit background, Stewart has held leadership positions in arts, culture, community and development organizations in San Diego as well as Washington, DC. |
Chrissy Green Califf, Young Adult Literacy Services & Volunteer Programs Manager
At Words Alive, Chrissy Green Califf is responsible for recruiting, training and managing the 150-member strong volunteer force and managing the Adolescent Book Group and Words Alive Westreich Scholarship programs. Previously, Califf spent more than three years as the volunteer program coordinator with the American Red Cross, San Diego/Imperial Counties Chapter. In this role, she built the program from the ground floor up, increasing the volunteer force from 850 to 1500 and approval ratings from 45 to 90 percent. Califf was also tasked with building the Ready When the Time Comes program, which has trained more than 250 employees from such companies as Qualcomm, Sempra Energy, and Grainger, Inc. since its inception in 2007. Between March 2005 and May 2006, Califf was a program supervisor with Voices for Children, another San Diego nonprofit, where she trained, counseled, and managed courthouse assigned volunteers. A former National Guardsman with the California Army National Guard, Califf graduated with distinction from the University of Nevada, Reno with a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice in 2003. |
Amanda Bonds, M.A., Early & Community Literacy Programs Manager
Amanda Bonds earned her bachelor’s degree in Spanish with minors in Philosophy and Feminist Studies from Southwestern University and obtained her master’s degree in Literature from the University of California, San Diego in December 2008. While enrolled in the master’s program, Bonds also worked as a teaching assistant for the Making of the Modern World writing program, where she developed and delivered lessons aimed at building critical writing skills and mentored incoming teaching assistants. From August 2005 to August 2006, Bonds served as a case manager and family advocate at Posada Esperanza in Austin, Texas. In this role, she advocated for and provided case management to Spanish speaking, homeless immigrant families. Bonds also recruited and managed volunteers, coordinated and facilitated trainings, and served on the city-wide VISA Coalition, whose purpose was to build homeless families’ access to social services. Prior to that, Bonds spent three years as a lead staff member for the Children’s Association for Maximum Potential, a San Antonio, Texas-based nonprofit that provides adaptive recreational experiences for children with special needs in a summer and respite camp setting. As the Words Alive program coordinator, Bonds is charged with coordinating an integrated series of programs targeted at children age 0-5 and their parents that includes Early Literacy Intervention, Family Storytime, Raising A Reader and Read to Me workshops. Bonds also coordinates the Lending Libraries Project. |
Carter Anderson, Associate Program Manager
Carter Anderson is a January 2010 graduate of the University of San Diego, earning her bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies with an emphasis in Marketing. As a Words Alive student intern in fall 2009, Anderson helped plan and coordinate the Annual Authors’ luncheon, served on the PR & Marketing committee, as well as the event committee. In addition she has a strong interest in event planning and marketing and is eager to contribute to the organization. Anderson's role is being transitioned as an Administrative Assistant to an Associate Program Manager. In her previous role with Words Alive, Anderson provided administrative support to the Words Alive team and managed all office-related functions. Anderson will now be supporting both the Early Childhood and Teen Services programs.
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Kelli Wescott, Development Associate
Kelli Wescott has over a decade of experience in local non-profits. She is currently Executive Director of San Diego Writers, Ink. Previously, she served as Development Director for Volunteer San Diego, Outreach Program Manager at Girl Scouts, San Diego-Imperial Council, Inc., and Outreach Associate at American Red Cross WIC Program. Kelli received her Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Gonzaga University where she also received a Certificate in Servant Leadership and a BA in Art. She earned a Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Chapman University. Additionally, Kelli is the host of the local prose Open Mic series, DimeStories. |
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