Team Members

Dahlia is a Teach for America alumna with a Bachelor’s in Human Development from Binghamton University, and a Masters in Teaching from Pace University.

After graduating from High School, she decided to volunteer as an English teacher in Cusco, Peru.  She participated in a semester-long program called International Cultural Adventures. The experience was life changing, and inspiring.

In 2002, she completed a project at the school where she had taught, which included painting the entire exterior of the building with a bright mural displayed in large-view from the courtyard, and replacing broken lights and windows.  In 2003, she founded a library at the same school. An adobe storeroom was transformed into a bright and peaceful room of educational resources, full of early readers, novels, magazines, encyclopedias, and other reference materials. She learned that if she set her sights high, she could realize dreams that previously seemed out of reach.

In 2006, Dahlia learned of a boys’ home that was run by the Peruvian Police Force.  Upon visiting and seeing the poor conditions, she raised funds to provide the boys with counseling services, environmental education, health education, social skills training, music, and dance.  She purchased gas for their stove, repainted and repaired the kitchen, and purchased a refrigerator, a juicer, and cooking utensils, among other necessary items.  

Dahlia has partnered with Laura Miranda Acuña of Cusco, Peru who is the Director of the Corazón de Dahlia Center for the Promotion of Child & Family Development, which is now opened! 

E. Autumn DiGaetano-Fedoruk, Vice Chair, Board of Directors (NYC, NY) 

Autumn studied Economics and Spanish Syntax at the University of Arizona with a minor in Business.  Teach for America brought her to New York, where she taught bilingual education in the Bronx for two years.  With an opportunity to move to Peru, she jumped at a job to help develop an economic non-profit organization and design their recruitment and strategy efforts in Cusco.  Autumn moved back to New York City three years ago and has been working in operational management focusing her efforts on building sustainable systems for organizations to realize long term success.

Erin Cramm,  Financial Officer  (New York, NY) 

Erin studied Accounting at Northeastern University and has spent the last 5 years as a NYC public school math teacher.  She is currently running her own business, which teaches foreign languages to children, and is committed to giving back to her local community through volunteering.  

As a Financial Officer for Corazon de Dahlia, Erin is able to combine her knowledge of running a business with her passion for educating children and families.  She is proud and excited to be a part of the support team that allows such a great community center to exist in a much needed area of Peru! 

Meredith graduated from Lehigh University with a dual degree in Biology and Political Science. In 2006 she joined the New York City corps of Teach For America. For three years, she taught sixth, seventh, and eighth grade science at MS 113, The Ronald Edmonds Learning Center, in Brooklyn.  Prior to joining the board,  Meredith was a volunteer and team leader for AYUDA (American Youth Understanding Diabetes Abroad) where she helped facilitate grass roots diabetes education programs in Ecuador and Bolivia.  Most recently taught at the Adaklu-Waya Secondary School in  the Volta Region of Ghana where she also worked with the Waya Writers, a community based organization committed to creating economic opportunities in the local community. Meredith currently works for Uncommon Schools and teaches at Brooklyn East Collegiate, a public charter school.

Geneva Sands-Sadowitz, Board of Directors (Brooklyn, NY)

Geneva studied International Relations at American University in Washington D.C., and recently completed her graduate studies at the CUNY School of Journalism in New York City.  Geneva has much international travel experience, including study abroad, in South Africa and Chile.  She is proficient in the Spanish language, and has traveled to Peru. She currently works at Bloomberg News.

Julia Santos Solomon, Board of Directors (Woodstock, NY)

Julia Santos Solomon is an international artist and educator.  As an artist, Julia’s work centers around the concepts of culture, identity, and empowering our voices and stories.     She received her education at the Rhode Island School of Design and Brown University.  Julia studied fine art throughout Europe, Northern Africa, South America and the Caribbean.  As an advocate for cross-cultural communication, Julia is proud to be fluent in four languages.  For the last thirty years, Julia has taught art and design.  On the university level, Julia was a faculty member at Parsons School of Design and as one of the founding faculty members of Altos de Chavon School of Design in the Dominican Republic, an affiliate of Parsons.  She has also enjoyed many years of teaching and mentoring young children and teenagers.

Julia has always taken an interest in people in need, particularly children because they are the most vulnerable, and she can make a  difference in their lives in a profound way.  She has advocated for these children throughout their lives into adult hood.  This work brings Julia tremendous joy.

Ever since getting involved with several on-campus

activist organizations while at college, I have been interested

in working with non-profit organizations dealing with issues

of social justice and human rights. Corazon de Dahlia is a

very new organization and I am excited about the unique

challenges and learning opportunities that will come from

watching and helping this organization develop and grow

with the community is it serving. The work of Corazon de

Dahlia is crucial and I would feel privileged to take part in

the process of building the community center and creating

a safe, nurturing space for the children of Cusco. My other

motivation for volunteering with the organization is to

continue practicing my Spanish and to be able to spend

some time traveling in Peru.

Christie Zwahlen, Advisory Board Member (Binghamton, NY)

Christie Zwahlen is currently serving as an AmeriCorps VISTA and Coordinator of the Bridging the Digital Divide Project at Binghamton University. She also served as a VISTA at Thiel College in Northwest Pennsylvania, as the school's Service-Learning Coordinator. After receiving her Bachelor's from Stony Brook University, Christie taught English in South Korea. She has her Master's Degree in English from Binghamton University and a Graduate Certificate in Asian and Asian American Studies. 

Kerry Cook, Advisory Board Member (Binghamton, NY)

Kerry earned a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish Language and Literature and a Master’s of Public Administration at Binghamton University in New York. She is currently the Community Engagement Coordinator in the Center for Civic Engagement at Binghamton University; in this role she facilitates campus-community partnerships and works to develop meaningful local, national and international service opportunities for students. 

In her previous position as the Coordinator for the USAID Scholarships for Education and Economic Development (SEED) program at Broome Community College (BCC), she was responsible for selecting international scholarship recipients from disadvantaged, rural communities throughout Central America and the Caribbean, and for managing the scholarship program at BCC. Preceding her career in higher education, Kerry worked with various human service agencies in the Broome County region and as a program evaluator at New York City Children’s Services. Her areas of expertise include program development, management and evaluation; event planning and implementation; grant writing, and cost-effectiveness analysis. 

Alexis Tuchman, Advisory Board Member (New York, NY)

Alexis studied Industrial Management Engineering at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY.  Alexis is now a consultant for Accenture in New York City.  Alexis has traveled widely across the globe, including Peru. 

Karina Cabanillas, Advisory Board Member (Hopewell, NY)

Karina studied Child Development at Tufts University in Boston, MA. During her time at Tufts she worked for Jumpstart, an Americorps organization, for three years. She had the opportunity to mentor underprivileged preschoolers while also working with families to provide them with the support that they needed to help their children succeed. After working as a research assistant on a public health study at Children's Hospital Boston, she became interested in health and social disparities in international communities. Karina joined Corazon de Dahlia as an international volunteer and is looking to continue her impact by working with Corazon de Dahlia in the U.S. now that she is home.

David Kone, Adisory Board Member (New York, NY)

As a self-proclaimed international citizen, David has focused on international development from an economic perspective. He has traveled throughout South America, including living in Peru for four years working as Director of a textile apparel company. In 2005, he co-founded a non-profit organization in Lima, Peru and contributed as both a board member and volunteer to community-based projects within Peru. He received his BS in International Marketing and World Business at the University of Alabama, and also studied abroad at the University of Costa Rica. Recently, he relocated to New York City working for an international logistics company with future plans to attend graduate school to specialize in International Development.

Laura is one of the most generous and loving people that you will ever meet.  She is a retired teacher who has given her life to educating those in need.  She has also worked as a Spanish language teacher in Cusco for Excel Language Institute.  Laura named the organization, and has been actively at work on the various initiatives since its inception. 

Marco Antonio Gastañaga Gudiel, Accountant (Cusco, Peru)

 Michal Richtman, Fundraising Consultant (Zurich, Switzerland)

Michal is a graduate of the School of International Business in Barcelona, Spain.  She holds a Bachelor's degree in Managemnt, Public Relations, and Communication.  Michal is an accomplished young woman who has lived in Israel, Italy, Ireland, Spain, and Switzerland in addition to many international travels, including a visit to Indonesia.  Michal speaks five languages, and has a positive attitude that is an asset to our organization.  Michal is very interested in helping Corazon de Dahlia.  She is currently working on finding funds and support for Corazon de Dahlia's Development Center.