David Seltzer is a Principal at Mercator Advisors, LLC, an SEC-registered municipal advisory firm he co-founded in 2001. He previously served as Senior Advisor to the Federal Highway Administrator in Washington, DC for several years, and previously worked in public finance over two decades, assembling transportation and other infrastructure financings for EF Hutton, Lazard Frères and Lehman Brothers. Mr. Seltzer has been actively involved in Philadelphia’s civic and philanthropic sector for many years. He served as chair of the board of Philadelphia Gas Works, the nation’s largest municipally-owned gas utility, from 2008 until 2016. In addition to chairing the Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative, Mr. Seltzer currently serves on the boards of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, CraftNOW Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Union soccer club, and Starfinder Foundation, a soccer-based youth development organization. He holds a BA in Urban Studies from Trinity College, Hartford and an MBA from The Wharton School.
Betsy Longstreth has been involved in the nonprofit sector at the international and local level in the areas of education, health, and community outreach. She began this work first as a member of the Peace Corps working in rural Colombia. Subsequently she held the position of Assistant to the President of Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania working closely with the Board of Directors and Administration in developing new clinical programs and outreach. Moving to Panama with her husband for two years, she worked in community development with local organizations providing education and family planning services to Panama City’s urban underserved.
Upon returning to the United States, she founded Education International, an organization founded to provide educational, tutoring, and home stay opportunities for Latin American middle and high school students who were preparing for college in the US. Betsy then went on to Chestnut Hill Academy to teach Latin and Spanish at the middle and high school levels and then served as its Director of Institutional Advancement until 2012. After 25 years at CHA, Betsy served as the founding Executive Director of Vincera Foundation, the non-profit, philanthropic arm of the Institute, dedicated to improving the health of the community through research, education and youth development.
She currently serves on the Boards of the Children’s Scholarship Fund Philadelphia and as vice chair of Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative. Formerly, she served as Chair of Edcamp Foundation and on the Boards of Chestnut Hill Academy, the Independent Seaport Museum, and the Chestnut Hill Hospital. Ms. Longstreth received her B.A. from Bryn Mawr College.
Having retired amidst the March 2020 pandemic, Will Whetzel had been for 20 years a portfolio manager with the investment advisory firm of Mitchell Sinkler & Starr in Philadelphia. Will moved here in 2000 from Pittsburgh, his home town, where he had been an investment banker at Parker Hunter. Prior to that, Will had been in New York City from 1975 to 1990, beginning in the publishing industry with Foreign Policy, Outside and Rolling Stone magazines, and then subtly moving to an investment banking career specializing in the publishing and media industries, working for Bankers Trust, Henry Ansbacher, Kidder Peabody and Morgan Grenfell.
In addition to serving on the board and Executive Committee of The Collaborative, Will is a board member of The Nature Conservancy/PA&DE chapter, and recently rejoined the board of the Friends of the Wissahickon, on which he served from 2005 to 2017 (as board chair, 2014-2017).
Will holds a BA in English from Trinity College, Hartford.
Before retiring in 2015, John Kepner was Senior Vice President of Holy Redeemer Health System, a diversified health care system. Before then, John was President of The Leland Group (strategic services for emerging health businesses) and Fenway Health Management Advisors (health care consulting). John also had a 30-year career in business and law. As an executive at the University of Pennsylvania Health System from 1993 to 1999, he was the principal developer of Penn Medicine’s network of community physicians and hospitals. As a lawyer, John was a Partner, Executive Committee member and Chair of the Business and Health Law Departments at Saul Ewing, LLP. John has served in many board capacities for non-profit organizations and is now on the governing boards of the Collaborative, Gwynedd Mercy University and Health Spark Foundation. He is a graduate of Wesleyan University (1968, B.A., cum laude) and University of Pennsylvania Law School (1971, J.D.).
Terry Horner’s professional career is divided into two chapters. The first chapter started in 1970 with Mr. Horner developing and patenting a unique mixing device. After its development, he started a company to manufacture and sell the device. Over the next 40 years, the company grew from Mr. Horner basement and a staff of 2, to an international company with 250 employees. In 2008, the company was sold and Mr Horner launched his second career, which involved philanthropic efforts. The cornerstone of that process, is a family foundation his wife and he founded named The Horner Foundation. The Foundation is active on two continents . Mr Horner also served as the first COB of the Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative. He holds a BSChE for the University of Virginia and a Masters from New York University.
Phillip Butler is the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives for MRA Group, a leading commercial real estate solutions firm in the mid-Atlantic region. With more than 20 years experience in the real estate industry serving in various facets, Phil is responsible for sourcing and executing on real estate development opportunities. Prior to joining MRA, Mr. Butler co-founded and served as managing principal of a real estate consultancy and development firm working with corporate real estate and private developer clients, where he focused on portfolio strategy, program management and urban infill development projects.
Mr. Butler currently serves on several boards, including Habitat for Humanity Philadelphia, Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative and NAIOP Greater Philadelphia. Mr. Butler earned his B.S. in Business and Economics from Lehigh University, and obtained a Certified Public Accounting (CPA) license in Pennsylvania post-graduation. He also holds a Six Sigma Green Belt certification. Mr. Butler lives in Ambler, PA with his wife and three children.
Tom Caramanico has been the president of McCormick Taylor, Inc., an engineering company, since 1988. With 480 employees in 19 offices located in nine states, the firm specializes in transportation planning, environmental studies, traffic studies and highway and bridge design. Caramanico joined the firm in 1972 as a structural engineer and became president and CEO in 1988.
He is active in the community as he serves on numerous non-profit boards. He chairs the board of the Independence Visitor Center Corporation and serves as board member and volunteer Executive Director of the Independence Historical Trust. He also serves on the Boards of Drexel University and the Franklin Institute, Nuevo Esperanza in north Philadelphia, Freire Schools Collaborative and the 501c4 Excellent Schools PA. Caramanico and his family established the Caramanico Foundation and built the Caramanico School in rural Cambodia which educates 750 students from k through 9 th grade.
Caramanico earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Villanova University in civil engineering. He lives in Haverford PA.
Ian Downes is a partner in the Philadelphia office of international law firm Dechert LLP. Ian’s practice focuses on labor and employment law, representing employers and individuals with respect to all issues affecting the workplace, including litigation and counseling concerning compliance with anti-discrimination and other laws, implementation of diversity and inclusion initiatives, and a wide variety of other employment-related matters. Ian also maintains a robust pro bono practice, working with numerous local and national non-profit clients and legal services organizations. He is a graduate of Amherst College (B.A., 1997) and Harvard Law School (J.D., 2001).
Kenny Holdsman has devoted the past two decades of his career to the empowerment of young people, especially lower-income kids of color, through education, leadership and character development, coaching and mentorship, family involvement, and high-quality opportunities both in schools and in communities. He has held senior positions in the School District of Philadelphia; the Academy for Educational Development, a global non-profit; and two local sports-based youth development organizations.
Currently, Kenny is the President, CEO, and a founding board member of Philadelphia Youth Basketball, Inc. PYB is a relentless and innovative youth development and community empowerment enterprise designed to create opportunities for young people, especially those from under-resourced families and communities, to reach their full potential as students, athletes, and positive leaders..
Before initiating the establishment of Philadelphia Youth Basketball with a like-minded and diverse group of co-founders, Kenny served as the President of Legacy Youth Tennis and Education (formerly Arthur Ashe) from February, 2009 to June, 2015. Prior to joining Legacy, Kenny was a Senior Program Officer and Director of the Youth Engagement Team for the Academy for Educational Development in Washington, DC and New York City. Earlier, he was Director of Service-Learning and Freedom Schools for the School District of Philadelphia (1998-2003), an Adjunct Faculty Member at Temple University’s College of Education (2001-2002), an Associate Attorney at Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll in Philadelphia (1996-1998), and Legislative Director for U.S. Congressman Robert E. Andrews in Washington, DC (1990-1993). Kenny received his B.S. in Economics from Lehigh University in 1989, and a J.D. from Temple University Law School in 1996.
In addition to his formal responsibilities with PYB, Kenny is a co-founder and board member of the Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative and for eight years served as a volunteer coach and program founder/coordinator of Rise Up Basketball in Mt. Airy. Kenny also has spent many seasons coaching young people in the Mt. Airy Baseball program and the Phillies Reviving Baseball in the Inner City program.
Tim Massaquoi is a retired NFL player with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Miami Dolphins, and Buffalo Bills. He is a licensed professional counselor in Pennsylvania and owns a private therapy practice Peace In Mind LLC. Tim Massaquoi uses a diverse set of therapeutic approaches such as Person-Centered Therapy, Cognitive-behavior therapy, and Dialectical Behavior-Therapy, all with the goal of supporting clients to actualize their whole selves. For the past 5 years, Mr. Massaquoi has been the director at Youth Emergency Service a homeless youth shelter in Philadelphia, Pa. Mr. Massaquoi has worked in the child- welfare and social service industry for over 10 years. Providing supportive services to youth who experience homelessness and case management. Mr. Massaquoi received his MA in Counseling Psychology from Eastern University and his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan. Mr. Massaquoi serves as a board member of the Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative as well as a board member of the Collaborative. Mr. Massaquoi is also the Pennsylvania regional director of Legacy Football.
Amy Minniti joined the Philadelphia Union as its Senior Vice President & General Counsel in 2021. Amy works closely with both the business and technical sides of the organization, advising on risk management, compliance, transactional matters, and governance. Amy also oversees the Human Resources department. prior to joining the Philadelphia Union, Amy served as the Vice President & Deputy General Counsel of Spectra (now OVG 360).
 Amy started her career with the Pittsburgh Pirates – spending two years working for its General Counsel as a law student. After working as an associate in the Philadelphia office of the Reed Smith law firm after she graduated, Amy spent 10 years with the Washington Nationals Baseball Club, most recently as Vice President and Deputy General Counsel. She played a major role in establishing the legal department for the team and provided a broad range of corporate legal support during her tenure.
Amy received her B.A. from Colgate University and her law degree and Masters of Public & International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh. Amy teaches at Georgetown’s Sports Industry Management program, where she has taught ethics, law, and leadership courses since 2011. She also taught at the George Washington University School of Law for many years.
Jamila Harris-Morrison is executive director of ACHIEVEability, a nonprofit dedicated to breaking the cycle of poverty for single-parent families. Her work at ACHIEVEability focuses on increasing the independence of families who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness and preparing them for self-sufficiency. Harris-Morrison joined the agency in 2006 and previously held roles as deputy director and director of self-sufficiency. Her 15 years of nonprofit experience includes community and economic development, counseling, and educational and evaluative services for children and adults. Harris-Morrison volunteers as a mentor for Philadelphia Futures and is a member of the Women’s Way – Young Women Initiative and the National Association of Black Social Workers. She earned an MSW from the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy and Practice and a BA in psychology from Clark University.
Christina has spent the last 22 years in product specialist, investor relations, and marketing roles at highly regarded alternative asset management firms, including Goldman Sachs, Citadel, and Magnetar. She has held senior management roles, led global institutional client-facing teams, and served on management, operating, and investment committees. On the non-profit front, Christina sits on the Board of Advisors of Good Sports, which drives equitable access to youth sports and physical activity, by supporting children in high-need communities to achieve their greatest potential, on the field and in life. Â
Dr. Alexander E. Poor is a board-certified general surgeon.
Dr. Poor earned his medical degree from Jefferson Medical College and completed his residency in General Surgery at Drexel University College of Medicine under core injury expert Dr. William C. Meyers.
Meg Wise joined the Philadelphia Outward Bound School (POBS) as Executive Director in fall 2018. She moved to Philadelphia from Arizona to attend graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania. After completing a PhD in Comparative Literature, her love for the city and passion for civic investment drew her to the nonprofit sector. She has held leadership positions at the Fleisher Art Memorial, the Philadelphia Education Fund, and The Philadelphia Foundation, and served for 8 years as the Executive Director of Smith Memorial Playground and Playhouse, a beloved 120-year old resource for families in East Fairmount Park. In her current role, she draws on her background as an educator and fundraiser to fulfill POBS’s experiential education mission and activate its new home, The Discovery Center, as a relevant and connected public green space. In her first year, POBS increased its earned and contributed revenue by over 25% and staff and board completed a strategic plan that focuses on program evaluation, staff infrastructure, community partnerships, strategic growth, and DEI efforts to improve organizational culture. Meg is a West Philadelphia resident and serves as Treasurer of her neighborhood civic association.
Heather Lewis-Weber currently serves as the Senior Coordinator of Community Engagement for Temple University’s College of Liberal Arts. A proponent of asset-based, community-centric, and trauma-informed frameworks, Heather has a decade of experience supporting community and youth development in historically disinvested communities. Through various roles in the nonprofit sector, she has facilitated school-community partnerships, led the design and implementation of in- and out-of-school time youth programs, and provided coaching for nonprofit staff and volunteers on a variety of topics related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Heather is a graduate of Haverford College with a B.A. in Political Science, and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Education Leadership and Policy at Temple University.
The Collaborative team is so grateful that we got to serve alongside Mike Buckley. Mike was an incredibly steady and humble presence during his various board engagements. In addition to being a member of the Finance Committee, Mike championed a number of important ad hoc committees, including the Enterprise Risk Management ad hoc (chair), the Racial and Social Equity ad hoc, and the most recent Collaborative Implementation Plan ad hoc, which was instrumental in setting the programmatic course for the Collaborative’s next 3 years.
We are so thankful that we have had the opportunity to get to know, learn from, and work with Mike. He will truly be missed by all of us.
Additional information about Mike can be found in his Obituary