Cathy Hession started her career in Youth Development with the YMCA, followed by a career in operations and marketing for Sizzler restaurants. Her love for non-profit work led her to become President of The Carol and James Collins Foundation, a position she has held since 1998. The foundation is working to improve the status of children, youth, and families in Los Angeles County, with a particular focus on K-12 education and college access.

Ms. Hession served on the Board of Southern California Grantmakers from 2008-14, as well as on the Board of Advisors for The USC Center on Philanthropy & Public Policy for the past 15 years. In addition to her foundation work, she served on the Board of Advisors of the UCLA Lab School, and she is a 36-year board member of the Westside Family YMCA and a 24-year board member of the Boys & Girls Club of Venice/Metro Los Angeles. She has a BA from USC and an MBA from UCLA.

Ronnie Roy is counsel at Richardson & Patel, LLP. His practice encompasses advising early stage companies from formation to startup financing, mergers and acquisitions, public offerings and private placements, securities law and corporate governance. Mr. Roy’s clients span a myriad of industries including digital/new media, e-commerce, mobile gaming/mobile applications, entertainment, hospitality, pharmaceutical, high-tech and telecommunications companies. Additionally, Mr. Roy represents public and private companies and their boards in connection with a broad range of increasingly complex securities law, corporate governance and related matters.

Mr. Roy is an active member of the South Asian Bar Association.

Mr. Roy graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania and received a Juris Doctor from Columbia University School of Law.

Sandra Aispuro comes to Para Los Niños with over 25 years of experience in the financial community banking industry and a passion for volunteering for organizations that support underserved communities. She currently serves as Vice President Retail Area Leader at City First Broadway in Los Angeles. Prior to this role, Ms. Aispuro has held various roles at Broadway Federal Bank, OneWest Bank, and First Federal Bank.

Ms. Aispuro serves Para Los Niños as a member of our Student and Community Services Workgroup, Diverity, Equity, Inclusion and Board Governance committees. She has also served as an Credit Building and Homeownership committee member for the FDICs Alliance for Economic Inclusion (AEI), has supported low-income families with tax preparation for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA), and provided guidance for residents to become U.S. Citizens through the NALEO Educational Fund.

Ms. Aispuro’s drive to be involved in the community comes from being born and raised in a low-income minority neighborhood by a single mother. Her family benefited from similar social and community programs and knows first-hand how impactful and necessary these programs are for the community. In spite of all the challenges, Ms. Aispuro has been able to build a successful banking career over the last 25 years.

Ernesto Arias is a Director of Sales Planning and Operations in the TV Distribution group of Sony Pictures Entertainment. Prior to joining Sony Pictures Entertainment, Ernesto began his career at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, starting as an intern at the age of sixteen and culminating as a member of the International TV Distribution sales group.

Ernesto grew up in South Central Los Angeles and has previously served as a Neighborhood Council board member and represented South Los Angeles as a Neighborhood Council Budget Advocate. Most recently, Ernesto has engaged in philanthropic efforts as a member of the Liberty Hill Foundation’s NextGen Giving Circle.

Ernesto received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Philosophy from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Camilo Esteban Becdach is currently a Partner at McKinsey & Company.  Camilo is passionate about helping fast growth disruptors quickly scale.  He works with leading entrepreneurs, private-equity investors, and global consumer brands across their portfolios. //Prior to McKinsey, Camilo served in the White House Domestic Policy Council (Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation).  He was also a Field Organizer for the 2008 Obama for America campaign. // Camilo is a native Angelino. He received his A.B. from Harvard College and his J.D. from the New York University School of Law.

Lorraine Prieto is a Transformational Life and Business Coach who helps achievement-oriented women, experiencing life transitions, find their authentic selves and their ideal lives, both personally and professionally. 

In her early career, Ms. Prieto held consulting, strategic planning, and brand marketing positions for Peterson & Company Consulting, PepsiCo and The Walt Disney Company prior to making the decision to retire to raise her two children. For the last 20 years, Ms. Prieto has served on the boards of Westside Neighborhood School, Harvard-Westlake Parent Association, the National Charity League Los Angeles Westside Chapter, and the Common Sense Media Los Angeles Advisory Council.

Ms. Prieto received a BBA in Finance from the University of Notre Dame in 1987, an MBA in Marketing from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University in 1993. Ms. Prieto also received a Life Coach certification from Atmana Academy in 2021, a Master Life Coach certification from the Certified Life Coach Institute in 2021, and an Associate Certified Coach Credential from the International Coaching Federation in 2022.

Bill Burton is a renowned political and communications strategist who has served as a senior adviser to political leaders, corporations and nonprofits in California, Washington, D.C., and around the country. In California, Bill and his colleagues have experience consulting on political, litigation and public affairs projects of all different scales, working with everyone from individuals to some of the most recognizable brands in the world.

Bill was one of the earliest hires on President Obama’s first presidential campaign where he was the national press secretary beginning in January 2007. He served in the Obama administration as deputy White House press secretary and special assistant to the president. In that capacity, he traveled extensively, both domestically and internationally, advising the president, briefing reporters both on Air Force One and at the podium in the White House briefing room. After leaving the White House, Bill co-founded and served as senior strategist for the super PAC Priorities USA Action during President Obama’s reelection campaign in 2012.

During the 2006 electoral cycle, in which Democrats won control of the House of Representatives, Bill worked as Rahm Emanuel’s communications director at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Before that, Bill served as a communications adviser to Democratic Leader Rep. Dick Gephardt, Senators John Kerry and Tom Harkin and others. Most recently, Bill has served as an advisor to Senator Amy Klobuchar’s presidential campaign and has worked with leading trial attorneys to build successful messaging campaigns around important cases and issue areas.

Since 2015, Bill has made Santa Barbara his home with his wife Kelly Ward Burton and two kids Oscar and Emma. Bill loves playing guitar and teaching his son to play basketball.

Rick J. Caruso is founder and chief executive officer of Caruso, one of the largest, privately-held real estate companies in the US. A native of Los Angeles, Mr. Caruso has been an active civic leader for three decades, serving as a Commissioner for the L.A. Department of Water and Power and President of the L.A. Board of Police Commissioners.

Through the Caruso Family Foundation, he is heavily involved with not only Para Los Niños, but other organizations that better the lives of at-risk children and their families, including Operation Progress, St. Lawrence of Brindisi School (K-8), and Verbum Dei High School.

Caruso was elected as Chair of the Board of Trustees and Executive Committee of the University of Southern California. He also serves as the Chair of the Board of Loyola High School, and is on the Board of Advisors of Pepperdine School of Law, and on the Boards for The Irvine Company, St. John’s Hospital, The California Medical Center, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Foundation. Most recently, he endowed the Caruso Catholic Center and Our Savior Parish Church at USC.

Rick Caruso earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Southern California and a Juris Doctor as a Margaret Martin Block Scholar from Pepperdine University.

*Emeritus Member

Susan Scheiber Edelman had a professional career as a litigation attorney at the Los Angeles law firm of Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher prior to making the decision to leave the practice to raise her three daughters, who are students at Stanford University, Washington University in St. Louis, and Marlborough School.

Mrs. Scheiber Edelman was a member of the Board of AYSO Region 76 Soccer for ten years, and has been an active volunteer at both Marlborough School, where she served as Parent Association Co-President, and the Center for Early Education, where she chaired numerous committees over many years. She and her husband, Scott, who is a partner at Gibson Dunn, are involved in the American Jewish Committee (AJC), Bet Tzedek Legal Services, Wilshire Boulevard Temple, and the Alliance for Children’s Rights.

Mrs. Scheiber Edelman received a J.D. from Stanford Law School and clerked for Federal District Court Judge A. Wallace Tashima.

Born and raised in East Los Angeles, Andrew Herreria is the Senior Vice President of Human Resources at ViacommCBS. Herreria is a Global Human Resources executive with a 30-year career spanning across diverse industry (entertainment, advertising/media, retail, gaming and venture capital). Herreria is a graduate of the University of La Verne, La Verne CA and earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Organizational Management. Herreria has close to 30 years working with large domestic and international brands such as Twentieth Century Fox, Virgin, Interpublic Group of Companies across 20+ countries. Herreria is the former Co-chair of Twentieth Century Fox’s Latino Diversity & Inclusion group and partnered with Para Los Niños on programs and fundraising events over the years. Herreria lives in Whittier with his wife and their three boys.

Josh Ludmir is partner in the Entertainment and Media group at the law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP.  His practice focuses on representing media/technology companies and talent in a wide array of transactions in the digital, TV, music, advertising, motion picture, and emerging media industries.  He advises clients in deals involving all aspects of content development, production and distribution; branding, marketing and promotions; investment and financing; data/privacy; and other related matters across various platforms. 

Josh’s experience includes seven years in-house at Participant Media, where he oversaw business and legal affairs for the company’s digital, marketing, and social impact divisions, and for its short-form digital content arm, SoulPancake.  He started his legal career at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley, and McCloy, LLP in the Project Finance/Renewable Energy group.  Prior to practicing law, Josh once worked as a field reporter for “Let’s Go” Travel Guides in Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, and traveled through South America in an old VW bus.  He is a founding member of Inklings Creative and Parallax Pictures studios and has produced award-winning animated and live action films and commercials.

Josh received his B.A., cum laude, from Harvard University, and his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School. He is an adjunct professor at USC Gould School of Law, where he teaches courses on digital media and entertainment transactions. Josh is a native Spanish speaker. Josh lives in Los Angeles, CA with his wife, two sons, and rescue mutt.

Murray McQueen is President of Tribune Real Estate Holdings, LLC, (“TREH”), the real estate subsidiary of Tribune Media (NYSE: TRCO). TREH is the ownership entity for Tribune Media’s multi-million square feet of owned real estate. Mr. McQueen is charged with maximizing the long-term value of these assets, which include large urban-infill redevelopment sites in locations such as Los Angeles, Chicago, Costa Mesa, and Florida. He also oversees Tribune Media’s diverse corporate real estate obligations as well as the real estate aspects of the company’s mergers and acquisition activity.

Prior to joining Tribune, Mr. McQueen was Managing Principal and Co-Founder of Channel West Group, a real estate investment and advisory firm based in Los Angeles. He also held positions at Cerberus Capital Management, where for 6 years he was the senior Cerberus real estate professional on the West Coast and shared responsibility for oversight of many aspects of the national real estate portfolio, DLJ Real Estate Capital Partners, the real estate private equity fund of Credit-Suisse First Boston, and Citicorp Real Estate, where he was responsible for underwriting, workouts, and asset management in the United States and Mexico.

Mr. McQueen received a BSC in Economics from Santa Clara University and an MBA in Real Estate Finance from the John E. Anderson School at UCLA.

Parker Morse is the CEO and Founder of My Code, the largest multicultural digital media and marketing platform in the US. In 2022, the company acquired Impremedia, the owner of the most widely read and respected Spanish-language daily newspapers (La Opinion & El Diario NY) and digital media outlets in the U.S.  With its suite of Cultural and Affinity Codes inclusive of H Code, B Code, A Code, W Code and Pride Code, My Code reaches over 60 million Hispanic, Black, AAPI, multicultural female and LGBTQ+ audiences. // Morse also has more than a decade of experience leading product development and revenue growth. Before My Code, he served as the SVP of Revenue at Demand Media (NKA Leaf Group), where he led a team responsible for over $100MM in revenue. Previously, he worked at Rubicon Project, Warner Bros., GCA Savvian and Blue Bite. He is a member of the Advisory Board of The Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission and earned his bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management.

Andrei Muresianu is an Analyst at Capital World Investors, a division of Capital Group, a Los Angeles-based investment management company. His expertise is focused on investing in Cable, Telecom, and Media.

Prior to business school, Mr. Muresianu worked as an analyst covering restaurants and business services at SAC Capital in Stamford, Connecticut. Mr. Muresianu has taught and tutored children in Boston and Los Angeles and worked as a teaching assistant in economics at Brown University.

Mr. Muresianu received a Bachelor of Arts in Business Economics from Brown University and a Masters of Business Administration from the Harvard Business School.

Mark Pan is the President and General Manager, North America, for the Cotton On Group, an Australia-based global retailer. Previously, Mark held senior leadership positions at Gap, Inc., Target, and Macy’s. He is also the founder of ACTIIVST, a support platform and community for athletes who advocate for positive social change.

Through volunteerism, corporate foundations, and social entrepreneurship, Mark has worked to advance initiatives that impact education, youth development, mental health, human rights, and social justice. He has worked to build partnerships that expand the capability of individuals and organizations by bringing enterprise leadership to the non-profit sector.

Mr. Pan received a Bachelor of Science from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Walter Parkes is a producer, screenwriter, and former studio executive. He and his wife, Laurie MacDonald, ran the motion pictures division of Dreamworks Studios from its inception in 1997 until 2006. In 2009, Mr. Parkes and Ms. MacDonald formed Parkes-MacDonald ImageNation, a partnership with the Abu Dhabi Media Company for the development and production of films for the international market. The partnership produced a feature-length documentary about Malal a Yousafzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl, and activist who survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban. Additionally, Mr. Parkes and Ms. MacDonald entered into a production deal with NBC/Universal where their first limited series, “Crossbones,” premiered on NBC in 2014.

Mr. Parkes’ films include the “Men In Black” series, “Gladiator,” “Flight,” “Minority Report,” “Catch Me If You Can,” “The Ring,” “Awakenings,” “The Mask of Zorro,” “Twister,” and “Amistad,” as well as the screen adaptations of “The Kite Runner” and of “Steven Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd,” and many others. In total, films produced or executive produced by Mr. Parkes have grossed over $6B globally. He is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Writer’s Guild of America, and also serves on the Board of the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Parkes received a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, from Yale University and Master of Arts in Communication from Stanford University.

Gabriel Robles comes to Para Los Niños with over 25 years of expertise in the banking industry and over 22 years of community engagement. He currently serves as SVP and Group Director of Commercial and Private Banking at Flagstar Bank, N.A. . Prior to this role, Mr. Robles held leadership positions at First Republic, Cathay Bank, East West Bank, United Commercial Bank, Bank of America, John Hancock Financial Services.

Mr. Robles is very active in the education and non-profit realm previously serving on the Executive Board at the Montebello Rotary Club (Youth Program Chair) and Chamber of Commerce. He was also a member of the Latino Business Association, Arcadia and Montebello Associations of Realtors. He also served on advisory committees of Montebello High School, Wilson High School Occupational and Innercity Struggle (still active),

Mr. Robles received his degree in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles and is bilingual (English/Spanish).

Jose studied Business Administration at California State University Northridge and has been in the financial industry for 20 years. Having held many positions in the field of banking for the last 11 years Jose worked in the mass affluent segment in the Private Banking division of a global bank. Although enthusiastic about financial planning and wealth strategy, his main passion has always been in lending and debt structure. Jose is a teacher by nature and annually delivers various lectures to high school age youth about financial literacy. He sits on the Board of Managers at the Mid-Valley YMCA, Para Los Niños, and serves as the Government Affairs Director for Los Angeles chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals. Jose is a published author and host of the Hispanic Wealth Matters Podcast.

John Wasley is the Managing Partner at Wasley Associates. John founded the firm in 2023 after a 25-year career at several of the leading global executive search firms. Prior, John was a Senior Managing Director and Head of U.S. Search at Ferguson Partners. During his years of executive search work, John has served an extensive number of clients in the real estate and financial services sectors. John focuses on C-level positions, Board recruitment, and succession planning, and has represented a wide range of private, public, and private equity-backed companies.

Prior to joining Ferguson Partners, John worked for global executive search firms Spencer Stuart and Heidrick & Struggles within their real estate and financial services practices. John began his career in real estate at Wedgewood Investment Corporation, a Los Angeles-based real estate opportunity fund, and served as its chief financial officer. He entered the banking industry as part of restructuring team to recapitalize and re-charter a $8B California-based thrift, where he led the special assets, loan origination and real estate groups.

John has his BA in English from UCLA. He and his wife divide their time between Los Angeles and Boston, and have three children. In addition to serving on the PLN Board, John is an active Full Member of the Urban Land Institute.

Cindy Winebaum had a professional career in the Licensing and Merchandising business for children’s toy properties in New York City prior to making the decision to retire to raise her children. Presently, Ms. Winebaum volunteers her time serving as the co-chair of the grant screening committee of Women Helping Youth, a grant making organization that works with non-profits that help children throughout the Los Angeles area. She has served on the Boards of Seven Arrows Elementary School, the Santa Monica Synagogue, as well as on the Advisory Board for the Nazarian Center for Israel Studies at UCLA. She founded and is Co-Chair of the Friends of Israel Studies.

Ms. Winebaum received a Bachelor of Science, cum laude, from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Malin Wong is a Director at Guggenheim Partners Investment Management, LLC, a global investment and advisory firm with expertise in fixed income, equity, alternatives, and advisory solutions. Ms. Wong brings to Para Los Ninos over 28 years of experience in the financial services industry. Prior to moving to Los Angeles and joining Guggenheim Partners, Ms. Wong spent the majority of her professional career at various investment banks in New York, including Merrill Lynch & Co., Deutsche Bank, Lehman Brothers, Barclays Capital and Bank of America.

Ms. Wong graduated from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree with a Specialization in Finance from the Sauder School of Business and is a Leslie Wong Fellow – an alumnus of the Portfolio Management Foundation. Ms. Wong is also a Chartered Financial Analyst charterholder and a member of the CFA Society Los Angeles.