Meet the Staff

Lee Eastbourne

Executive Director

Lee was born and raised in Bradford, England, approximately four hours north of London. He completed his undergraduate education in the United Kingdom and currently holds a Bachelor of Arts (with Honors) in Sport and Education Studies from Liverpool Hope University.

Lee moved to the United States in late 2004 for what he thought was a short commitment to work and gain valuable experience before returning to England to pursue a career in Education. That plan never came to fruition as Lee met, and is now married to Jennifer, with whom he lives in Gales Ferry, CT. They have a daughter, Emmeline and son, Noah.

During his time in the United States, Lee has held roles in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors, serving as Client Services Manager, Account Executive, and Operations and Marketing Manager, and most recently the Jonnycake Center’s Director of Development before being announced as the Center’s Executive Director starting in July 2017.

401.377.8069 ext. 106

leastbourne@jonnycake.org

Bambi Poppick

Development Director

Bambi joined the Jonnycake Center staff in June 2017. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from State University of New York at Cortland and attended Bowman Gray School of Medicine. Bambi is a Board Member of the Eastern Connecticut Community Gardens Association and is a volunteer for the Connecticut Humane Society.

Bambi has held positions in the non-profit sector for her entire career, serving as Community Outreach Director, Membership and Marketing Manager, and Director of Membership before taking on the position of Director of Development with the Jonnycake Center of Westerly.

Bambi and her boyfriend Jon have lived in Mystic for 12 years. They have five daughters between them, three dogs, and three cats. She enjoys organic gardening, kayaking, horseback riding, and Block Island.

401.377.8069 ext. 105

bpoppick@jonnycake.org

Sarah Teixeira

Pantry Manager

Sarah joined the Jonnycake Center in November 2015. Sarah has recently received her Bachelor of Science degree in Health Studies from the University of Rhode Island where she focused her studies on health promotion across the lifespan.

Prior to joining the Jonnycake team, Sarah was the Assistant Manager of greenhouses at Schartner Farms in Exeter. So, not only can Sarah tell you how to sneak more vegetables into your diet, she can also give you pointers on how to grow them!

401.377.8069

steixeira@jonnycake.org

Denise Acker

Marketing Director

Denise has returned to the Jonnycake after a brief hiatus to assist a patient advocacy start-up in Baltimore, MD. She has 10+ years experience in project development & marketing strategy serving social service, environmental, education, and healthcare fields. She has been volunteering administration services to the Jonnycake over the past year and is excited to be back at the Jonnycake supporting marketing and community events!

When not at work you can find Denise volunteering at 96.7 The Buzz radio to promote local musicians through social media marketing. Denise also loves writing stories & poems, singing, dancing, and jumping in the Misquamicut waves with her little guy.

401.377.8069 x116

dacker@jonnycake.org

Asucena Colon

Education Coordinator, Real Jobs Rhode Island

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401.377.8069 x115

acolon@jonnycake.org

Susan Rosen

Program Director

Susan joined the Jonnycake Center staff in October of 2015.  Susan received her Bachelor of Science degree in Sociology from Northeastern University and Master of Science  degree in Child Development and Family Relations from the University of Rhode Island. Susan is also a Board Member of The Greater North End Community Development, Inc.

Prior to coming to Jonnycake, Susan held the position of Domestic Abuse Victim Advocate at the Naval Submarine Base New London and still remains involved in activities  in conjunction with SafeFutures of New London  spreading community awareness about domestic violence.

Susan is excited to be a part of the Jonnycake community.

401.377.8069 ext. 110

srosen@jonnycake.org

Heather Vultee
Store Manager

Heather started in 2014 as the Receiving Manager in the Backroom of the Thrift Store. She loved it so much she decided to take on the front of the store as well! Heather’s thrilled when people are happy to find treasures in the store, but she’s even more excited that every penny of profit goes to Jonnycake’s overhead. While at Colby College in ME she was named one of George Bush Senior’s 1000 Points of Light for her work with Colby Friends, an organization that worked with Student Volunteers and Big Brothers/Big Sisters. She finds working with our volunteers very fulfilling and is always happy to welcome new volunteers, young and not as young, to the store. After college, Heather moved around New England as a Store Manager for various retail establishments, and eventually was promoted to a home office to work on special projects. Heather and her husband of almost 20 years live in Ashaway with their four children (two sets of twins), two dogs, two cats, a rabbit and a fish. She is not going to give in to her kids’ requests for a pet pig or a pet cow, but she might be talked into pet chickens.

401.377.8069 ext. 104
hvultee@jonnycake.org

Adrienne Hall
Volunteer Coordinator

Adrienne joined The Jonnycake Center in May 2016.  Currently one of the volunteer coordinators, Adrienne received her Bachelor’s degree from Boston University College of Communication with a concentration in Advertising/Marketing.

Adrienne has held positions in the financial world as well as several non-profit organizations in Boston and Hartford.  While staying home to raise her two daughters, Adrienne remained an active member of the Westerly Community.  She is a former board member of the Ocean Community YMCA, a literacy volunteer, and was an active volunteer at Dunns’ Corners Elementary School.

Adrienne is enthusiastic about the work of The Jonnycake Center and is eager to speak with individuals and groups about volunteering.  She finds most people are surprised to learn all that The Jonnycake Center has to offer the community.

401.377.8069 ext. 114
volunteer@jonnycake.org

Ed Generali
Volunteer Coordinator

Ed came to the Jonnycake as a Pantry volunteer in 2016, where we quickly realized we want Ed permanently on the team! Most recently in 2018, Ed has become a Volunteer Coordinator helping us bring do-gooder’s like himself into the Jonnycake way of giving neighbors in need a hand-up.

Professionally, Ed dedicated his life to Catholic education serving as a Guidance Counselor for 44 years. Ed served the students and families at Holy Cross from 1984 -2016 where he was the Director of Guidance and senior counselor. Ed also worked as a Social Studies teacher and guidance counselor at Sacred Heart High School. Ed earned his Bachelor degree at the University of Connecticut, his Masters in Counseling  and 6th year professional degree in Supervision and Administration at Southern Connecticut State University. Ed has always been heavily involved in the community, volunteering  for The Special Olympics and ST. Vincent DePaul shelter.

Many know Ed as Coach “G” as he was one of the most successful basketball coaches in Connecticut. In 35 totals season, with the Sacred Heart boys, and Holy Cross girls and boys, Generali totaled 638 victories, 13 NVL titles and three state titles. Coach G guided the Crusaders to State Championships in 1995 and in 2000. The 2000 Crusaders finished ranked #1 in the State of Connecticut.

Ed currently resides in Westerly, RI with his wife Robyn. Ed has two lovely children, Matt and Alyssa, and he is a proud grandparent of four, Audrey, Jocelyn, Olivia, and baby Zephyr.

401.377.8069 ext. 114
volunteer@jonnycake.org

Betsy Thoman

Administrative Assistant/Human Resources

Betsy joined the Jonnycake staff in January of 2017 bringing her passion and drive to
the agency. She completed her education at the University of Rhode Island with a
Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Science in Humanities degree.  She enjoyed returning to
school after her time away and found it to be rewarding academically.
Betsy truly enjoys working at the Jonnycake Center finding it to be very gratifying, and
she looks forward to coming to work every day. Her organizational ability has been a
tremendous asset in the newly created Administrative Assistant/Human Resource
position.

Betsy has two children who are the light in her life and has enjoyed the privilege of
watching them grow up into fine adults.  Along with her children, family and friends are a
huge part of her life and loves spending her free time with them.
Never been confused with being shy, Betsy enjoys meeting new people and finds joy in
sharing great conversation.

Outside interests include gardening, travel, spending time with family and friends,
vineyard hopping, photography, and is an avid scrapbook creator.
Her favorite saying is “Don’t look back you’re not going that way.”

401.377.8069 ext. 103

bthoman@jonnycake.org

Tammi Dunlap

Fresh Start Case Manager

Tammi joins the Jonnycake social services team as the Fresh Start Case Manager after spending 2 years as a volunteer in the Pantry. She most recently was the “Head Elf” for the gift bag portion of the Holiday Giving Program 2017.

Tammi received her Bachelor of Sociology with an emphasis in Medical Social Work from Northern Arizona University. She married her husband Dave 30 years ago and raised 4 children beginning in California and Connecticut before moving to Rhode Island in 2016. She kept busy with numerous volunteer activities associated with the kids, was a Toddler Tunes music teacher for 10 years, substitute teacher for 5, and held various office management positions. Since moving to Rhode Island, Tammi has become involved not only at Jonnycake but also at the Westerly Warm Center and community activities through her Christ Church family. She just recently became a Grammi to grandson Corey!!

Tammi is excited to help clients identify, prioritize and achieve goals and to develop healthy relationships through the Fresh Start Program in conjunction with the Jonnycake food pantry. She always loves to meet new people so don’t hesitate to stop on by.

401.377.8069 ext. 117

freshstart@jonnycake.org