Board of Directors

As chief policy advisor of First Things First, Liz is responsible for strategic planning and oversight of FTF’s Public Affairs Unit, including Government Affairs and Tribal Affairs. The unit works to build awareness of the importance of early childhood development and health and to engage policymakers and the public in this critical work.

In addition, Liz advises the FTF Board and Executive Team on early childhood public policy and communication/public affairs matters. She also serves as the primary spokesperson for First Things First.

Liz brings to First Things First more than 20 years’ experience in the government, education and
nonprofit sectors. She has held the primary leadership role in communications at the Arizona
Department of Economic Security, a state agency overseeing more than 50 human service
programs, Children’s Action Alliance, a statewide child advocacy organization, and the Isaac
School District, an urban K-8 district in Phoenix. Liz earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in
journalism from the University of Arizona and is a Certified Public Manager.

Wendy Erica Werden is a seasoned community engagement manager with more than 25 years of outreach, marketing, media and strategic development experience. She began her career in with the Fox TV affiliate in Cleveland, Ohio, and then moved to Tucson, Arizona, where she has worked with associations and businesses, an environmental nonprofit and media entities including PBS and NPR affiliates through the University of Arizona.

She joined Arizona Congressman Ron Barber’s office as outreach and deputy district director in 2012, and re-joined the Tucson Electric Power/UniSource Energy team in early 2015 as the manager of community investment where she manages donations totaling nearly $2 million annually.

In her personal time, she enjoys volunteering with an animal rescue and the outdoors as a trail builder and section steward of the National Scenic Arizona Trail. She is proud of her work and commitment to improving Arizona, but also loves being on her horse on a mountain far away from the reach of her mobile phone.

Matt leads the Flinn Foundation’s communications activities including strategic messaging, digital platforms, print publications, social media, email, web engagement, marketing, CRM database management, media relations, and internal, board and grantee communications.

Matt joined the foundation’s communications staff in 2007 after several years in the education and social services sectors. From 2012 to 2015, he served as assistant vice president, Flinn Scholars Program, concentrating on broadening the scholarship’s applicant pool, enhancing professional-development opportunities for Scholars and improving alumni support.

Matt holds a master of fine arts degree in fiction writing from George Mason University. As a Flinn Scholar, he graduated summa cum laude in English from Arizona State University.

Mesha is the CEO of the Arizona Women’s Foundation. Prior, Mesha was the chief development officer for Southwest Center for HIV/AIDS and led their $10.1 million capital and capacity campaign. The organization celebrated its 25th anniversary during its 20-year largest fundraising gala.

Mesha also served as the vice president of development for The Family Partnership in Minneapolis helping transition a board of advisors to fundraisers building a large donor pool.

Mesha’s nonprofit journey began at the YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee. Mesha opened the
Northside YMCA, a $16 million, 114,000-sq.- ft. YMCA, kindergarten-8th grade charter school
and childcare center, which experienced increased memberships and program revenues.
Mesha received a Master of Science in Management from Cardinal Stritch University and a
Bachelor in Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

John Amoroso has been the executive director of The David and Lura Lovell Foundation in Tucson, Arizona since December 2015. Over the past 18 years, John has collaborated on community building, organizational management, fund development, capacity building and grantmaking with nonprofit, government and private sector peers across eight western states. Over the past six years, he has successfully managed hundreds of grants, worth over $40 million, for private foundations and state granting organizations from the design to the evaluation phase.

Previously, John served as a program officer for The Ford Family Foundation, Oregon’s largest private foundation, and managed one of seven regions for the State of Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board’s bi-annual, $34 million responsive grant cycle for natural resource restoration. John earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Carroll College in 1990 and a master’s degree in nonprofit management from Regis University in 2013. In addition to his education, John has been trained in corporate sales, customer service, group facilitation, financial analysis, lean (value stream mapping) management, strategic planning, nonprofit fund development and more. He has held licenses in real estate, insurance, mortgage lending and financial advising.

Maria Echeveste is senior vice president, community relations manager II with Bank of America’s Phoenix Local Markets Office. She develops and implements community strategy by building and maintaining the bank’s external partnerships to create economic mobility for individuals, families and community. She manages the Bank of America Charitable Foundation programs including local grants and the Neighborhood Builders program. From 2012 to 2018, Maria served as market manager supporting Tucson, Reno, Amarillo, central California, Spokane, Washington, Idaho and New Mexico and led three suburban markets to Top 10% Performance – Business Integration Award. 

Margaret has been CEO of the Legacy Foundation of Southeast Arizona since October 2013. Prior to her current position, Margaret served for more than eight years as president and CEO of Sierra Vista Regional Health Center in Sierra Vista, Arizona. During that time, she worked closely with the hospital board in developing a partnership that resulted in the building of a replacement hospital for the community and the formation of the Legacy Foundation of Southeast Arizona.

Margaret’s previous positions include president and CEO at CHW, St. Dominic’s Hospital in California, senior vice president, operations and patient care services, chief operating officer at Christus, St. Frances Cabrini Hospital in Louisiana, and associate administrator patient services and CNE at Madison County Hospital in Texas. Margaret also served in various administrative positions at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California.

Margaret has a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Tayside University in Scotland, and a master’s degree from Loma Linda University in California. She is a fellow of the Board of Quality Assurance and Utilization Review and a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Margaret is licensed in California and Arizona as a Registered Nurse and she teaches nursing students at Cochise College. She serves on the Southwestern Regional Board of the American Red Cross and the Arizona Healthcare Executives. She is also a member of several local and state organizations.

Terry Hines began working at the Child Crisis Center in 1985. While earning her undergraduate degree, she was assigned to the center to gain practical experience—this initial placement would become her employer for years to come. Beginning as the receptionist, she ended her 30-year career serving as the organization’s chief operating officer. Hines earned a bachelor’s degree in social work from Arizona State University and a master’s degree in organizational management from the University of Phoenix.

Terry has been active in her community for over three decades as a professional, volunteer and board member. She has volunteered in many areas including educational, faith-based and City committees. Additionally, she has served on a number of boards including the Hopi Foundation, Hopi Educational Endowment Fund, Streetlights USA and Southwest Leadership Academy. In 2012, Terry was named a Piper Fellow by Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust.

Terry is now a consultant with DTH Consulting. Having more than 30 years of highly comprehensive management experience, as well as proficiency in grant writing and leadership development, Terry works with both individuals and organizations with a dual focus of improving outcomes and creating leaders. She is also a skilled facilitator, presenter, communicator and mentor.

Marcus oversees Vitalyst’s public policy agenda and is responsible for initiatives related to access to coverage, health care workforce development and health care transformation. In this role, Marcus leads efforts to convene partners to advance public policy, inform stakeholders about state and federal health policy issues, develop policy-related research and publications, and manage a portfolio of grants and contracts to support Vitalyst’s policy objectives. Marcus also oversees efforts to strengthen Arizona’s infrastructure for population health data. 

Marcus has significant experience addressing systemic factors that ultimately affect health. He comes to the world of philanthropy by way of public health and health care, having worked for the Maricopa County Department of Public Health as a health policy analyst and the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association as Director of Community Health. His contributions have led to numerous policy and systems changes in health care, behavioral health and public health, and he is committed to bridging preventive health strategies with an evolving health care system to ensure that all communities have what they need to be healthy.

Marcus earned his master’s degree in Public Health and a bachelor’s in physiology from the University of Arizona. In his free time, Marcus enjoys outdoor activities, weekend getaways with his family, and remaining a stubbornly optimistic fan of the Dallas Cowboys. 

Andrea Moreno has worked in community outreach for Salt River Project since 2000 and most recently was promoted to manager of SRP’s community outreach. Andrea is a Valley Leadership alumna of class 31 and served on a number of boards including the Hispanic Women’s Corporation, Phoenix Women’s Commission and Dress for Success, among others. In 2012, Valle Del Sol and Univision Radio-Phoenix named Andrea among the 40 Hispanic Leaders Under 40.

In his role at Arizona Community Foundation, Glenn Wike  focuses on optimizing the effectiveness of the organization and its strategic direction. He leads the foundation’s public policy priorities, working closely with the Public Policy Committee of the board. He previously served as ACF's senior philanthropic advisor for education where he implemented ACF’s education program and worked with major donors and strategic partners who share a focus on the education of Arizona's youth.

Glenn joined ACF as philanthropic services coordinator in 2012 and was later named philanthropic advisor in 2014. Prior to joining the ACF staff, Glenn was employed with the Phoenix Zoo for two years. He serves as a board member for Arizona Forward, the Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits and Support My Club. Glenn earned his bachelor’s degree in Public Service and Public Policy from the College of Public Service & Community Solutions at Arizona State University.