Staff & Board | Helping Athlete Causes & Sports Philanthropy

Join us for our annual Play for Good Gala on December 7!

Advisory Board

Clerc Bertrand

Executive Director, McNeese Athletic Foundation

Clerc is a Louisiana native. In her current role, she manages a portfolio of fundraising partners and corporate sponsors. She focuses on crafting and implementing strategies to advance community cultivation and university engagement through the lens of athletics. While at Lamar University, Clerc won 13 conference titles and earned 2 NCAA championship births.  As a former collegiate runner, she is passionate about helping athletes realize the platform each person has to give back and to act on that opportunity to make a positive impact.

Christin Blyumin

Owner & Operator, Max Fitness and Wellness

Christin is a native of the Washington, DC area. A collegiate athlete turned Personal Trainer and Integrative Health Coach, Christin shares a deep passion for health and fitness. She has spent the last 15 years training and educating people of all ages, as well as partnering with schools to provide nutrition and fitness education to students.

In addition to her passion for health, Christin has also spent the last few years volunteering in Fundraising in the nonprofit sector.

Christin played Division I lacrosse at James Madison University and currently resides in Mclean, VA with her husband and two children.

Brook Choulet, M.D.

Founder & CEO, The Performance Psychiatrist™

Dr. Brook Choulet, M.D., The Performance Psychiatrist™, is the founder and CEO of the Choulet Performance Psychiatry®, and President of the American Board of Sports and Performance Psychiatry, of which she is one of the seven founding members. With a focus on concierge Performance Psychiatry®, Dr. Choulet guides professionals, athletes, and their families towards mental excellence through her bespoke approach. She is a preferred provider on the NBPA, NFLPA and MLBPA’s Mental Health Directories, and she previously worked as a Consulting Team Psychiatrist for the NBA Phoenix Suns and WNBA Phoenix Mercury. Dr. Choulet is a regular contributor to Forbes SportsMoney and is a Forbes Health Advisory Board member who reviews and consults on Forbes Health articles.

Robb Dehney

Law Clerk, Chief Justice Collins J. Seitz

Robb currently resides in Wilmington, DE, where he serves as a law clerk to Chief Justice Collins J. Seitz, Jr. of the Delaware State Supreme Court. In May of 2023, Robb graduated from Harvard Law School (HLS), where he matriculated after spending three years at the University of Virginia (UVA). At UVA, he earned a major in Media Studies and a minor in Religious Studies while working as the student voice of the Virginia Cavaliers football team for WUVA News.

When he wasn’t in class, he was fortunate to intern for organizations like the Wilmington Blue Rocks, MLB Network, the Miami Dolphins, and (most importantly) Athletes for Hope. At HLS, Robb founded HL Football, a 501(c)3 committed to creating community through recreational sports in Cambridge, and served as the first commissioner of Harvard University’s graduate intramural sports leagues. 

John Dragelin

Vice President, Jones Lang Lasalle IP, Inc.

John B. Dragelin is a native of the Washington, DC metro area. As a lifelong athlete, he is a major believer in the power of sports, teamwork and physical activity. John swam competitively at Columbia University and currently resides in Washington, DC, working at real estate services firm, JLL.

Nicholas Freeman

Carl M. Freeman Companies

Nicholas Freeman is Director of Commercial Operations at Carl M. Freeman Companies, a family owned real estate firm based in Rockville, MD. Nick is responsible for the company’s management and acquisition of retail opportunities in the Delmarva region. He currently serves as a board member for the Carl M. Freeman Foundation and the Landon School, his alma mater.

Annie Gleason

Vice President of Corporate Partnerships, PNC

Annie has over 25 years of experience working in sports specializing in marketing and sponsorships. She has worked for teams, properties and brands managing multi-million dollar sponsorship portfolios. She is passionate about using the platform of sports to make the world a better place and creating purposeful partnerships. 

Annie grew up in Milwaukee, lived in the Twin Cities, and now resides in Denver. She has a BS from the University of Minnesota and certificates in ESG Strategy from the University of Colorado and Sports Philanthropy from George Washington University. She is a lifelong Packer fan and loves being in Colorado near the mountains.

Thomas “Tommy” Goodman

Strategy and New Business Senior Manager, CONCACAF

Tommy currently serves as Strategy and New Business Senior Manager with the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF, a continental governing body of FIFA), where he leads & supports a range of strategic business- and sports-focused growth initiatives across the organization. 

Tommy is dedicated to various charitable causes and philanthropic endeavors and serves as a board member of Give2Cuba and the Schwechheimer Family Foundation, a nonprofit affiliated with the Wichita Wind Surge (Minor League Baseball team).

Tommy received a J.D. and B.A. from the University of Virginia and a Sports Philanthropy Executive Certificate from The George Washington University. He has traveled and worked in over 50 countries and is fluent in Spanish and conversant in Portuguese.     

Alayah Hightower

Consultant, Deloitte Consulting

Alayah’s passions are giving back to her community and staying active. Throughout her time at school, she was constantly volunteering with other student-athletes by teaching children health equity topics in DC middle schools. Alayah previously worked with Athletes for Hope as the Howard University Campus Liaison from 2021- 2023 where she connected student-athletes to various community service events across the DC community. She looks forward to working with more athletes to empower them to use their platform in their community.

Alayah Hightower is a Prince George’s County, Maryland native. She went to Howard University where she played both soccer and lacrosse as well as obtained multiple degrees. In May of 2023, she graduated with her Masters of Science in Finance. Before that, she obtained her Chemical Engineering degree in 2020 and then received her MBA with a concentration in Supply Chain Management in 2022. She is currently a Consultant within Deloitte Consulting Commercial practice focusing on supply chain and network optimization out of the Mclean, VA office.

Max Levitt

Founder, Leveling the Playing Field

Max Levitt founded Leveling the Playing Field in 2013 in his native Greater Washington, DC. Since that time, LPF has grown from a grassroots project to a multi-chapter organization that has donated $15M+ worth of sporting equipment to over 2,000 programs in need. Through his role as Executive Director, Max oversees the strategic plan, organizational initiatives, and the growth/development of the organization. With current LPF locations in Greater Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Ohio, Buffalo, Detroit and Atlanta, Max is working to bring LPF to communities across the country to ensure that every kid has the opportunity to play. 

Rachel McNair

Athlete & Mental Health Advocate

Rachel is a native of the suburbs in New York. She is a former Division I Women’s Basketball player from George Mason University. She is passionate about sports, athletes, and mental health. She has worked at sports networks such as ESPN and CBS Sports. She is a 2-Time Emmy award winner for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament (Outstanding Playoff Coverage) and NFL on CBS (Outstanding Live Sports Series). For the NCAA Men’s tournament, she produced One Shining Moment and for NFL on CBS she was one of the graphics producers on a top NFL crew. Currently she resides in West Palm Beach, FL and enjoys helping people around her. Sports changed her life and she wants to give back in any capacity that can impact the future.

Max Meltzer, CFP®

Senior Vice President, Wealthspire Advisors

In his role as an advisor, Max delivers customized financial solutions to high-net-worth clients and select institutions. Max also plays an instrumental role in the business development efforts of the firm. He finds it particularly rewarding to work with charitably inclined families as well as individuals that represent the second generation of family-owned and operated businesses.

David T. Roach

David T. Roach is a longtime Athletic Director and Administrator, holding over 30 years of experience as an athletic director at Fordham University, Colgate University, and Brown University. Over his career, Dave has been very active in shaping the landscape of intercollegiate athletics, holding many leadership roles, including serving as President of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) as well as an esteemed board member. Additionally, Roach served as the head swimming coach at the University of Tennessee and Brown University. Roach was also appointed as the assistant coach of the United States National Swimming Team, which competed at the World University Games in Kobe, Japan.

His commitment to student-athlete wellness and leadership extends beyond the playing fields, most recently having created the Fordham Athletics Leadership Academy for its student-athletes. The Academy aims to cultivate, test, and aid the school’s student-athletes and coaches as they work towards becoming world-class leaders in athletics, academics, and life.

A native of Waterbury, Connecticut, Roach received his bachelor’s degree from Springfield College, where he also earned a master of science degree in physical education. He was a member of the Springfield College men’s varsity swimming team.
 
After receiving his master’s degree, Roach served in the United States Marine Corps, attaining the rank of Captain.
 
Roach and his wife, Anne, have three daughters, Elizabeth, Michelle, and Alexandra.

Tyler Rudy

US College Athletics, Strategic Transformation, Deloitte Consulting

Tyler is passionate about helping athletes realize their potential to use their respective sport as a vehicle to drive positive change in communities. Tyler is also a proud father, husband, brother, and son and is excited to continue his role as an AFH ambassador.

He is an Olney, Maryland native and currently leads Operations for Deloitte’s US College Athletics practice focused on development of sophisticated delivery frameworks, methodologies, and tools that will provide critical, data-driven insights – informed by where Deloitte has seen success across industries – to athletics departments’ decision-making in the new era of college sports. He has 6+ years of experience navigating large-scale operational and strategic transformations for public sector clients, serving as the nexus between business process re-engineering, data analysis, and technical solution implementation.

Tyler is a former collegiate and professional soccer player, graduating from Georgetown University and spending time with Major League Soccer’s New England Revolution and North American Soccer League’s Puerto Rico Football Club.

Brandon Sanchez

Senior Manager of Social Impact, Mountain Philanthropies

Brandon Sanchez is the Senior Manager of Social Impact at Mountain Philanthropies, a philanthropic initiative that elevates issues of equity, social justice, sustainability, and other matters affecting society and the planet. Brandon is responsible for carrying out a range of functions related to the social impact of Mountain Philanthropies’ philanthropic efforts. Prior to this role, Brandon was the Program Manager at Athletes for Hope. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) and a Master’s of Sports Management from Georgetown University.

Brandon was a four-year letter winner, co-captain of the basketball team at UCSC. He currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife, Brigitte and daughter Ryan.

Jess Smith

Vice President of Brand & Digital at Stewart-Haas Racing

Jess Smith is currently the Vice President of Brand & Digital at Stewart-Haas Racing. She has 15 years of experience in social media, digital marketing, advertising, and content development at various organizations, including the New York Yankees, New York Rangers, Under Armour, the NCAA, and AFH as an intern. A constant student of the industry, she has been named to Business Insider’s “The 30 Best People in Advertising to Follow on Twitter” and writes on industry trends at socialnsport.com. The former track-and-field student-athlete graduated from Auburn University with a degree in mass communication.

Awvee Storey

 Executive Director Sky Cares Foundation and Community Initiatives, Chicago Sky

Awvee Storey is a former professional basketball player who played for four seasons in the NBA and for eight seasons in Europe and Asia. After his pro career ended, Awvee learned about on-court development and video editing skills with the Washington Wizards, which led to jobs with the WNBA’s Washington Mystics and Chicago Sky. After a leadership position with the NBA’s G-League Capital City Go-Go, Awvee served as the Director of Player Development with the Connecticut Sun. He currently works in the front office of the Chicago Sky.

Awvee collaborated with AFH in 2014 to start the Power Up! Program with a DC area charter school which has evolved into our current AFH Fit program. He is also a father, friend, and passionate AFH ambassador of our work in the community.