VCF Welcomes New Board Member in 2016
March 3, 2016 - DERBY - The Valley Community Foundation (VCF) welcomes Jennifer Magri, a vice-president at Access Information Management, to the VCF Board of Directors and bids farewell to attorney Tim Dillon and Leon Sylvester as they conclude their terms.
"On behalf of the VCF Board of Directors, we would like to thank Tim Dillon and Leon Sylvester for their terms of dedicated service to the Valley community. Our organization has grown dramatically under their tenure. We are also thrilled to welcome Jen Magri to our board. She brings a wealth of professional, personal and community knowledge to our organization and will play a key role in helping the Foundation build philanthropy in the Valley."
New to the VCF Board
Jennifer L. Magri is a life long Valley resident, a proud graduate of Ansonia High School and has called Seymour her home since 1990.
Her corporate career has included operational management roles with several technology companies focusing on the areas of accounts receivable, account management, software support and business operations. She currently serves as the VP of Sales Operations for Access Information Management.
In her second term on the Seymour Board of Education, Jennifer has served on the Finance, Policy, Facilities and Liaison/Negotiation sub-committees.
She also serves as the Vice Chair of the Town of Seymour's 10-year Strategic Plan Committee and previously served as the Secretary of the Seymour Town Building Review Committee.
Serving as Treasurer of the Chatfield LoPresti Parent Advisory Committee. She was instrumental in the passage of the referendum for that $32.5 million school building project.
She is currently the President of the Pine Grove Cemetery Association in Ansonia having served as a trustee since 2010. She is a 2012 graduate of the Leadership Greater Valley program.
A firm believer in giving back to the Valley, Jennifer and her brother, James Lane, honored their parent's 50th wedding anniversary in 2011 by establishing the Laura and Edward Lane Family Fund, a donor advised fund at VCF.
Jennifer and her husband Bob have a blended family of five children.
Departing VCF Board Members
Tim Dillon grew up in Derby, currently lives in Seymour and is a partner in the Ansonia-based law firm Sheehy & Dillon.
Because of his strong belief in teaching youth to become leaders, for the past 20 years he's volunteered with Junior Achievement to teach a six-week economics course to middle school students at both Derby Middle School and St. Mary-St. Michael School.
Tim was a history major in college and is still fascinated with the subject, especially local history. Tim is president of the Derby Historical Society and president of the Ancient Order of Hibernians.
Leon Sylvester brought to the VCF Board his leadership skills and expertise in local public education issues. He spent 42 years in the Shelton Public School system, working as a coach, teacher, guidance counselor, administrator and superintendent for 15 years.
He also served on Shelton's Planning and Zoning Commission for 20 years. Leon is a former director of the Boys & Girls Club of Lower Naugatuck Valley and former chair of the St. Joseph's Catholic School in Shelton.
Leon was born and raised in Shelton; his three children and four grandchildren all live in Shelton. His wife Barbara owned a dance, gymnastics and aerobics studio in Shelton, and is now a real estate agent. Leon has business and family ties all across the Valley. In his spare time, he likes to golf and salt-water fish.
About the Valley Community Foundation
Established in 2004, the Valley Community Foundation distributes hundreds of thousands of grant dollars each year to support the local nonprofit sector and the people it serves.
In addition to grantmaking, VCF works in strong partnership with The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, to promote philanthropy in Ansonia, Derby, Oxford, Seymour and Shelton.
To learn how your gifts of cash, life insurance, appreciated stocks, bonds, real estate, and other assets can help to support the quality of life in the Valley, please visit the website at www.valleyfoundation.org or contact VCF President, Sharon Closius, at sclosius@valleyfoundation.org or 203-751-9162.
