WTB | Leadership

Jennifer Crittenden

WTB is governed by a Council comprised of women of diverse faith traditions. It meets monthly to plan the activities of the organization. Council members hold staggered terms of one to three years, beginning each September. The Advisory Board, comprised of past Council members, gives guidance to the Council.

WTB’s President is Jennifer Roberts Crittenden, our former long-serving secretary, sewing program organizer, and Book Club coordinator. A retired English teacher, Jennifer lives with her husband in Bridgeport, a suburb of Syracuse. She enjoys activities with grandchildren, enjoys Oneida Lake, travels whenever possible, volunteers at a nursing home, and is active in her Roman Catholic Church.

WTB Co-Founders are Danya Wellmon and Betsy Wiggins.

Danya Wellmon, a co-founder of WTB, is a medical technologist with the American Red Cross. She is the mother of three and lives in Dewitt. Danya is uniquely able to bridge the Christian and Muslim traditions, as she grew up in a Methodist family but reverted to Islam in 1992. Danya currently serves as a coordinator for United Religions Initiative (URI) and was instrumental in WTB becoming a cooperative circle of URI which is under the auspices of the United Nations.

Betsy Wiggins, a co-founder of WTB, works as a speech pathologist in Syracuse, primarily with patients who have had strokes. She spent much of her life in Georgia and worked for former President Jimmy Carter at the Carter Center. She is on the board of the North American Interfaith Network (NAIN) and is its Program Chair. Betsy lives in DeWitt with her husband, Jim.

WTB Council

Muna Alany was born into a family of ten children in Iraq and was raised in the Islamic tradition. After Desert Storm, she and her two children traveled to Jordan as refugees. Living there was difficult, but Muna managed to work both as a hairdresser and as a TV videographer. In 2007 she and her family made their way to the U.S., again as refugees. Within two weeks of her arrival here, she attended a WTB meeting, and she has been active with WTB ever since. Muna has continued her education since arriving in the U.S., becoming proficient in English and continuing to do freelance videography. She enjoys cooking for many friends and is well-known for her wonderful and warm hospitality.

Tanya Atwood-Adams is WTB’s Corresponding Secretary. She is a Chaplain with Hospice of Central New York and a board member of the Death and Loss Education Coalition. She holds a M. Div. from Yale, is a Reiki Master Teacher and has an extensive background in the complementary therapies. Tanya grew up in the Protestant faith tradition, joined a Quaker meeting in college and continues to practice a blend of the two traditions. Her interests include spirituality and health in the diverse world traditions, art, history, travel, hiking and anything to do with water.

Dil Dahal, a Bhutanese is of the Hindu faith tradition and has been in the United States for about two years. She and her family spent many years in refugee camps in Nepal where her children were born. Dil is a good seamstress with a goal of marketing her work. Currently, Dil teaches a yoga class in Syracuse. Dil continues her studies in English and hopes to attain U.S. citizenship in the near future. She is active in the Bhutanese community here in Syracuse and has been involved in the WTB sewing and pottery classes at the Center for New Americans.

Daryl Files, was born in Chicago, but has lived in Syracuse for 37 years. She formerly owned and operated a sports bar with her husband, Noel, and has been a personal development trainer. She has been very involved with many local non-profits, including the Northside Butternut Community Police Center. Daryl is Jewish. She is the mother of four daughters and the grandmother of three. She led us for two years as our vice-president.

Luann M. Healy was born on Long Island and relocated to Syracuse in 1992. She is currently the Chief Operating Officer for Central New York Services, Inc., in Syracuse. Her interests include history with an emphasis on genealogy, as well as reading and photography. Luann is an avid hiker and an animal activist. Music and dance are also pastimes she enjoys. She is of the Christian faith tradition. Luann has been WTB’s Treasurer.

Elizabeth (Betty) Lamb has a background in both Christianity and Judaism. She taught religious education in the Roman Catholic Church and is now active at both Temple Adath Yeshurun and Temple Society of Concord. She is retired from a career in retail and education. Betty spends summer months on Murray Isle in the Thousand Islands, where she is the Contract Postmaster and Treasurer of the Murray Isle Association.

Patti McGuire is the Co-Recording Secretary of WTB and takes minutes of our monthly meetings. She is involved at St. Lucy’s Roman Catholic Church. She works for Bennett Business Services and is the administrator for the Institute of Certified Records Management. She enjoys camping, canoeing and biking and volunteers on a “lean-to” rescue team in the Adirondacks.

Andrea O’Shea teaches piano and is the music director at a Lutheran church. She has studied Christian traditions as well as yoga and natural healing and is involved with Mark_Age, a spiritual/educational organization. She loves animals, history and music. Andrea is married and the mother of one child.

Joy Pople is WTB’s Vice President. She formerly directed the Baldwinsville Volunteer Center. Joy has traveled extensively and as a result of her international travel experiences she has become committed to fostering understanding and cooperation among people of various cultures. She is a prolific writer and oversees WTB’s facebook, and project mapping for WTB’s major Fall event, A-OK! Her faith background is in the Mennonite, Episcopal and Unification churches.

Sue Savion grew up on a southern Illinois farm and has traveled widely over the past ten years. Sue was raised Catholic but is currently a Unitarian-Universalist and explores many other areas of spirituality. She has taught at all levels and retired from the Syracuse District, where she was a Reading Specialist. She teaches occasionally at OASIS. She is co-chair of the Green Sanctuary Committee at May Memorial Unitarian-Universalist Society. Sue is editor of the newsletter for the Transpersonal Psychology Association of Syracuse and on the Education Committee for N.O.O.N. Sue belongs to a writers’ group and has published four teacher resource books and poetry. Recently, she completed a book on local heroine, Matilda Joslyn Gage. Sue’s two daughters and three grandchildren live nearby.

Cara Steiner is retired after working in public health nursing and health administration positions in Syracuse. She is the Co-Recording Secretary for WTB and takes minutes for the Council meetings. Born in an Ohio Mennonite family, Cara is a tutor with Literacy Volunteers and serves on the Auxiliary Board of the Onondaga County Health Dept. She enjoys traveling with her husband to see their children and families in North Carolina and Colorado. They live in Syracuse and attend Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ.

Lisa Warnecke began her professional career in Colorado and later served the States of Wyoming and Colorado as a Budget Analyst and Geographic Information Technology (GIT) Coordinator. She has been President of GeoManagement Associates since 1989, conducting research and advocacy about GIT in the nation’s 50 states and local governments, as well as federal public lands and related environmental/natural resources issues. Lisa has authored numerous related articles, book chapters and reports. Lisa considers herself to be a spiritual seeker and currently mentors refugees who wish to market their handicrafts.

Shirley Wells is a retired special education teacher and a recently retired professor. She is now an ADHD life coach who works with college students with ADHD and groups of parents of children with the condition. Her background includes Jewish and Catholic cultural traditions, but she sees herself as more spiritual than as the follower of any specific religion. She enjoys spending time with friends and family, reading and traveling.

Rosalie Young is retired after working as a family counselor, and professor in the Public Justice Department at SUNY Oswego. She has been involved in numerous community organizations dealing with Judaism, social action, mediation, and conflict resolution. She and her husband are members of Temple Adath Yeshurun. She keeps busy enjoying her four children and ten grandchildren and is learning to play the drums.

Advisory Board

This group of women, all former Council members, provide special expertise to the Council:

Judy Antoine was born in Iowa but raised in Chile by Methodist missionaries. She is a retired Spanish teacher in Syracuse City Schools. Judy attends May Memorial Unitarian Universalist Society. Her daughter is a Muslim. Judy lives with her husband in Syracuse.

A historian of education, Joan Burstyn, is a professor emerita, Syracuse University. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of Congregation Beth Shalom-Chevra Shas and is currently co-authoring a book titled: Searching for God with a Study Partner. She and her husband live in Syracuse. They have three children; one lives in Wisconsin, and two live in Israel. Joan and her husband travel to Israel annually to see them and their children.

Janet Donoghue is a retired school community counselor who formerly did crisis intervention with teens. She also trained professionals about drug-addicted and disruptive teens and has facilitated support groups for recovering teens, parents and gay students. Janet now volunteers with women transitioning out of homelessness. She and her husband live in Syracuse and worship with a multi-faith group.

Tori DeAngelis is a freelance journalist and editor who writes about psychology, science, medicine, culture and spirituality. A Syracuse native, she has lived in Washington, DC, and San Francisco. She enjoys doing artwork, traveling, hiking, yoga and meditation, and is on a Buddhist path. She lives with her companion, Jeff, and their cats, Toonces and Buddy.

An active United Methodist, Barbara Croll Fought teaches broadcast and digital journalism and communications law at Syracuse University. She lives with her husband in Dewitt. Barbara was WTB’s first secretary and now manages this web site.

A retired elementary teacher, Jan Garman served as WTB’s secretary from 2003-2005 and became its first president from 2005-2007. In 2010, Jan and her husband Hal moved to Gaithersburg, Md., to be closer to their three daughters and six grandchildren. There she volunteers in an elementary school and a community food pantry, writes articles for her retirement community’s newspaper and serves on several of its committees. She also keeps engaged in the activities of WTB via the Internet.

Patricia “Terra” Harmatuk is a minister of Covenant of the Goddess (COG) and HPS of Circle of the Rising Phoenix. Her spiritual path is eclectic-Wiccan and includes Shamanic and Buddhist practices. She is a Reiki Master. Terra retired from Onondaga County DSS after 32 years, and is currently employed by Transitional Living Services. She teaches “The Philosophy, Magick & Ritual of Wicca.” She and her husband live on Onondaga Hill; they have two adult children and two Huskies.

The co-founder of Mothers Against Gun Violence (MAGV), Helen Hudson conducts vigils after each Syracuse homicide and works with families of teens killed. Helen is a single working mother with one son and has become “Mom” to countless young people in Syracuse. In her current role as the AFL-CIO Community Services Liaison for the United Way of Central New York, Helen’s reach extends throughout the community. In 2011 Helen was elected Syracuse Common Counselor at-large.

Saro Kumar grew up in Malaysia and while there studied for 13 years at the Holy Infant Jesus Convent . Her grandmother took her to Chinese, Buddhist, and Hindu temples, as well as Christian churches. She studied medicine in India, continued her studies in the US, and is a child and adolescent psychiatrist. She loves gardening and is active with WTB’s Tapestry Garden.

Gay Montague led us as President from 2009-2011. She is retired from teaching and working with teens in crisis and currently writes children’s books focusing on issues of peace and non-violence. She volunteers with local refugees and considers spiritual peacemaking as part of her ministry. She and her husband Len have six children and six grandchildren.

Beatrice Muhammad lives in Syracuse and is semi-retired. The mother of three, she loves working with children and is involved in community activities, including the Islamic Society of Central New York.

A former WTB president, Ann Eppinger Port, has worked for many years as a freelance medical writer and editor. Her ongoing interests include complementary and energy-based healing modalities; Jewish history, spirituality, and mystical traditions. She is a Reiki Master, a Psych-K practitioner, and a Literacy Volunteer. She and her husband Howard are the parents of two sons.

Smita Rane is back in her homeland India after working at Syracuse University. A Hindu, she still stays in touch with the work of WTB and is committed to its mission.

Sabra Reinhardt, a Baha’i, is part of an interfaith marriage, as her husband is a Christian. They have five children and two granddaughters. Sabra’s first career was in education. She’s currently the CFO of a small business and a family foundation.

Mam-Yassin Sarr is from The Gambia, West Africa. She was born into a Muslim family, was educated in Baptist, Methodist, and Catholic schools, and now follows the Bahá΄í faith. She is pursuing a Ph.D. in Teaching and Curriculum at Syracuse University and is the director of Starfish International, a nonprofit organization whose mission focuses on meeting the educational needs of Gambian girls.

A pioneer in developing vocational training for Special Education students in CNY, Liz Spence was born in Jamaica, British West Indies, of Scottish Baptist missionaries. She grew up in the Northeastern U.S. and from an early age has been involved in issues of peace and justice. She is a founder of what is now Peace Action of CNY. Liz has two grown sons and resides in Liverpool.

Margaret Susan Thompson teaches history, political science, and religion at Syracuse University, where her research focuses on Catholic nuns and the intersections of religion and politics. She is an associate member of the IHM [Immaculate Heart of Mary] Sisters of Monroe, Michigan. Peggy grew up in the Jewish tradition and is now a Catholic.

A native of Baltimore, Chris Welch, is a teacher, currently working as a substitute at the Bernice M. Wright Laboratory School at Syracuse University. She describes herself as as a liberal, progressive Christian and has been affiliated with many branches (Lutheran, Episcopal, Presbyterian, United Methodist, and Unitarian Universalist). She serves on the board of Interfaith Works. Chris enjoys traveling to out-of-town meetings with her husband, Tom; going to a monthly French Club; and summers at a camp on White Lake.