Our Team: Who We Are
These dedicated Mission: Restore volunteers make up our governing, advisory, and young professional boards and fuel our organization.
The Mission: Restore Team
Governing Board
Kaveh Alizadeh, MD, FACS
Founder and Chairperson
Dr. Kaveh Alizadeh is a board-certified plastic surgeon, the current Professor of Clinical Surgery of New York Medical College, and the former Chief of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Westchester Medical Center, New York Medical College. He was a partner at Long Island Plastic Surgical Group since 2000, where he also served as President of the practice from 2007-2012. Dedicated to advancing the field of plastic surgery, Dr. Alizadeh directs the Clinical Research Division of the practice’s Residency Program. Since 2005, he has been recognized as a Top Doctor by Consumer Research Council and has held the title of Castle Connolly Top Doctor since 2010. In 2011 and 2012, Dr. Alizadeh also received national recognition as a Top Doctor by U.S. News and World Report, and was voted by patients as one of the Best Cosmetic Surgeons in the Annual Long Island Press Awards. Dr. Alizadeh’s passion is to perform volunteer plastic surgery.
His volunteer work began in the Afghan refugee camps in 1993 and since then he has participated in volunteer missions each year traveling all over the world including Central and South America, the Middle East, and Asia. In 2009, Dr. Alizadeh’s humanitarian volunteer work earned him the prestigious Ellis Island Medal of Honor, an award recorded in the United States Congressional Record.
[email protected]Diana Guerin
Executive Director of Mission: Restore
Diana has professional experiences that include a number of positions in the non-profit and for-profit industries. She has worked for Adults and Children with Learning & Developmental Disabilities, Community Mainstreaming Associates, National Brain Tumor Society, Holland America Line/Seabourn Cruise Lines and, most recent, AHRC, NYC. In these roles, she has 15+ years of Director level experience. Diana was responsible for spearheading marketing and business development projects throughout a multifaceted career focusing on brand development in the digital marketing space, strategic and tactical sales planning, client and relationship development, cross-functional leadership, and training.
Hormoz Shayegan
Vice-Chairperson
Hormoz Shayegan joined as the Executive Director of Mission:Restore in 2019. Mr. Shayegan has over 40 years of managerial experience in executing complex, high- profile, multi-faceted business ventures worldwide involving commercial as well as major institutional clients including the United Nations. Mr. Shayegan has extensive experience in identifying, evaluating, negotiating and overseeing implementation of business ventures including budget development, operational & financial performance analysis. His professional creed is building rapport with colleagues, service providers, stakeholders and other involved parties in a spirit of team-work. Mr. Shayegan has handled numerous logistic and operational projects in East, South and West Africa - the regions where his company maintained operational bases, giving him insights into the area’s infrastructure, social mores & values and multitude of challenges facing them, particularly in the areas of medical and health-care. Mr. Shayegan holds an M.B.A. degree from Iran Center for Management Studies, Tehran, Iran (1971) – affiliated with Harvard Business School.
Zainab Jaffer
Board Member
Zainab Jaffer is a Director of MJ Group, a leading African port service provider based out of Kenya. MJ Group specializes in bulk cargo handling in liquid and dry state.
Ms. Jaffer manages the family offices for the Group, with the primary responsibility for managing strategic cooperation with various divisions of government and multinational corporations. Ms. Jaffer has been mandated with the task of implementing the Social Economic Development Initiative for Kenya (SEDIK), which has been launched under the guidance of the Kenyan government to support Kenya Vision 2030. Ms. Jaffer successfully executed SEDIK’s flagship $50 million project with an exclusive partnership with GEMS Education, the world’s leading private kindergarten to grade 12 educational provider, to structure, finance and build a 200,000 square foot mega campus in Kenya, that is set as one of Kenya’s best education and largest foreign direct investment project.
Ms. Jaffer also serves as Director, Principal and/or Advisor to the following: IFG Port Holdings, a New York based global investment firm specializing in developing, funding and operating infrastructure projects with a focus on agribusiness and port-related investments; Semelex Biometrics, a Brussels based biometrics company that develops, operates and manages the supply of high technology systems in multi-biometric identification and authentication technologies to governments. She is also an active Board Member of the Equity Group Foundation, which champions the social and economic transformation of the people of Africa through education and is highly active and passionate about philanthropic work through her leadership at The Jaffer Foundation, an approved non-profit whose mission is to improve the human condition with a focus on health, water projects and education. Ms. Jaffer is also a Board Member of the Coast General Hospital; a public hospital serving over 3 million people. Ms. Jaffer graduated with honors from the London School of Economics and Political Science with a Bachelor of Science Degree, Management with Law.
[email protected]Sarah Holloway
Board Member
Sarah Holloway has worked in the public and nonprofit sector for 20+ years. She is currently a full-time faculty member at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), where she teaches courses on nonprofit financial management and social enterprise. In addition to teaching, she runs the school’s Management Specialization – a set of courses and activities that support knowledge and skill building in non-profit, for-profit and social enterprise management. Her areas of interest are social enterprise start ups, K-12 education and education technology with a particular focus on urban and NYC efforts. She is founder or co-founder of 7 start up organizations including MOUSE.org and CSNYC.org. Sarah is a member the Boards of Directors of the NYC Foundation for Computer Science Education, The Institute of Play and LIFT Investments; and a former member of the Board of the Ft. Tryon Park Trust (NYC Parks Department), Friends of Public School 187 and the New York City Workforce Investment Board.
Advisory Board
James Benedict
Principal with Kidd & Company Founding Advisory Board Member – Maverick Collective
James has a passion for discovering and integrating human capital to drive financial and social outcomes. James is a partner with Kidd & Company, a leading principal investment firm focused on the lower middle-market, and a founding advisory board member of Maverick Collective, a groundbreaking philanthropic and advocacy initiative aimed at catalyzing the next wave of social investors setting out to improve the health and rights of girls and women worldwide.
Maverick Collective is co-chaired by Her Royal Highness Crown Princess of Norway Mette-Marit and Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. James is a founding board member of the Young Audiences Charter School in New Orleans, the first arts in education charter school in the United States. James serves on the MOGUL advisory board. He is also an advisor to Dr. Bob Bollinger of the Johns Hopkins Center for Continuing Global Health Education.
Jill Jobbins
Executive Director
Executive Director, Global Strategic Product Lead for Late-Stage Portfolio at Bristol-Myers Squibb. Jill leads a global governance body for driving strategic and tactical direction to derive optimal value from a large and therapeutically diverse portfolio. Former Executive Director, Distributor Markets & Geographic Optimization. Former Director, Contract Manufacturing Operations.
Stephanie Martinez
Global Health Consultant
Stephanie Martinez is a public health researcher focusing on the intersections of global health, gender, and climate change. Stephanie brings experience in non-profit strategic communications via graphic design, video editing, and writing to the advisory board. Prior to collaborating with Mission: Restore, Stephanie served as a Community Health Educator with the Peace Corps in Cameroon. She has a Master of Public Health and Master of International Affairs from Columbia University, and is a proud UCLA Bruin.
Kate McAuliff
International Development Consultant
Kate McAuliff has been a core member of the Mission: Restore team, taking the role of Research Fellow and the Program & Operations Manager based in East Africa between Summer 2015 - 2017. Kate is a freelance international development and interpreting professional who specializes in inclusion, program development and implementation. Her experience includes work in Uganda, Haiti, South Africa, Tanzania, and Kenya where she has conducted research and implemented projects regarding the unique challenges facing women, people with disabilities, the Deaf Community, and other vulnerable populations. Kate has a Bachelor of Arts in Interpretation and Cultural Studies from Columbia College Chicago, and a Masters of Arts in International Development from Gallaudet University in Washington, DC. Kate splits her time between working as a sign language interpreter in Washington DC and working on development programs abroad.
Lawrence Flick
Lawrence Flick is a partner at Blank Rome LLP and has built a national reputation as a leading attorney in the area of general business and corporate law. He represents some of the nation’s largest financial institutions and private equity funds and serves clients in areas such as: commercial lending and asset-based financing, mergers and acquisitions, securitizations and structured finance, leveraged lease transactions and reorganizations. Mr. Flick is a frequent author and lecturer on topics of interest to the banking and finance community. Mr. Flick serves on the Board of Governors of the Commercial Finance Association’s Education Foundation and as an instructor of their professional development programs, and was honored by the organization with its 2010 Harry H. Chen Memorial Instructor Award of Excellence for his outstanding contributions to CFA’s education programs.
Mackinnon Engen
Global Health Professional
Mackinnon Engen is a global health professional with 15 years of experience across the UN, international and local NGOs, and academic sectors. While serving as Vice President at Smile Train, she helped build and oversee high-quality cleft surgical and comprehensive care programs across more than 70 countries. At the United Nations in New York, she worked with the Central Emergency Response Fund to ensure more timely humanitarian assistance reached those most in need as well as helped to coordinate the Secretary-General’s High-Level Task Force on the Global Food Crisis.
Mackinnon’s research efforts have included topics of organizational leadership and effectiveness, economic impact of health interventions, emergency food security, and humanitarian impact of climate change. Her expertise includes program and policy development/implementation, training and capacity building, project management, resource mobilisation and grantmaking oversight, strategic planning, and scaling of innovation. She has worked in HQ roles as well as in the field in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. She completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Anthropology and International Affairs at Washington University in St. Louis and her Master’s Degree from The Fletcher School at Tufts University in the fields of Humanitarian Affairs and Policy & Strategic Planning. Mackinnon has a passion for helping people and organizations come together to tackle complex challenges and create measurable, sustainable impact.
Amy G. Lehman, MD, MBA
Founder and CEO of Lake Tanganyika Floating Health Clinic
Dr. Amy G. Lehman is the founder of the Lake Tanganyika Floating Health Clinic (LTFHC)/WAVE. The LTFHC/WAVE is an international organization whose mission is to address the problem of health care access for millions of people who live in the isolated, but strategically critical Lake Tanganyika Basin/Great Lakes region of Central Africa. Dr. Lehman graduated from Choate Rosemary Hall and was chosen as their 2014 Alumni Award recipient. She received both an MD and MBA from the University of Chicago, and additionally trained in General Surgery at the University of Chicago Medical Center and was a Senior Fellow with the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics. Dr. Lehman received the 2014 Distinguished Young Alumni Award from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. She has been honored by Newsweek as one of the “150 Women Who Shake the World,” and by a number of other publications for her work in the Lake Tanganyika Basin.
Kevin Hong
Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor for Mercy Corps
Kevin is an experienced monitoring and evaluation expert and a social entrepreneur. Founded in 1979, Mercy Corps is an international humanitarian relief and development NGO working in over 40 countries around the world. Prior to Mercy Corps, Kevin has worked with a broad range of NGOs, social enterprises, and bilateral organizations such as Africare, Aravind Eye Hospitals, Carter Center Ethiopia, Innovations for Poverty Action, Proctor Foundation, Trickle Up and USAID. Most recently, Kevin was a Senior Associate at ideas42, a behavioral economics consultancy. Kevin was also the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Root Alliance, a catalytic social enterprise that facilitated context-driven innovation. He holds a Master in International Affairs from the School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University and graduated from Cornell University with summa cum laude in computational and systems biology.
Natasha Goldstein
CFO of Micro Credit Enterprises
Natasha Goldstein is the Chief Financial Officer of MCE Social Capital, a global social investment fund focused on improving the lives of low-income women in rural areas. Since 2006 MCE has invested in 30+ developing countries and made more than $80 million of loans. Prior to joining MCE in 2013, Natasha served as Finance Director at Hot Bread Kitchen, a social enterprise and commercial bakery providing on-the-job training to immigrant women in New York City. In 2010, Natasha founded LIFT Investments, a social enterprise focused on business development and skills training in Nairobi, Kenya.
From 2010 to 2012, Natasha also worked for boutique management consulting firm ESV Strategies, where she advised nonprofits and social enterprises on their financial growth. Earlier in her career, Natasha worked at UBS Investment Bank as a financial analyst, where she focused on multi-million and billion dollar cross-border mergers, acquisitions, and equity transactions. Natasha is a regular public speaker on launching social ventures, impact investing and social enterprise. Venues have included Columbia University, New York University, Women Advancing Microfinance and various corporate and industry conferences.
Dee Raviv
Director of People Strategy Planning and Analytics in HR Solutions, Northwell Health System
Dee has more than 15 years of experience in analytics, process improvement, and strategic planning. Currently at Northwell Health Dee leads a team of analysts and project managers and oversees big scale strategic initiatives that span across the health system.
Prior to Northwell Dee worked at American Express and Ameriprise Financial as a financial planner and an analyst for over 13 years.
Dee moved to NY from Israel more than 20 years ago after serving as a Lieutenant in the Israeli Navy. She graduated with a BS in Management from Long Island University and received her Executives MBA from Hofstra University.
Medical Advisors (US based)
Dr. Andrea Pusic, Chief of Plastic Surgery B&Y Hospital and Professor, Harvard Medical School
Dr. David Song, Director of Plastic Surgery Georgetown, University School of Medicine
Dr. Lawrence Gottlieb, Director of Burn and Complex Wound Center, University of Chicago
Dr. Christine Rhode, Chief of Microvascular Services, Columbia School of Medicine
Dr. Alexander Dagum, Chief of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Renaissance School of Medicine
Dr. Joyce Aycock, Owner and Operator, Joyce Aycock MD Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Dr. Morad Askari, Associate Professor of Plastic Surgery, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Dr. Silvio Podda, Chief of Pediatric Plastic Surgery, St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital
Dr. Stephen Harris, Chief of Plastic Surgery, Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center
Dr. Gerhard Mundinger, Director of Pediatric Plastic Surgery, Children’s Hospital of New Orleans
Medical Advisors (Africa based)
Dr. Peter Biribwa, Coast General Hospital, Kenya
Dr. Metasebia Abebe, St. Paul Millennium Medical College, Ethiopia
Dr. Phillip Makoye, Bugando Medical Center, Tanzania
Dr. Dorothy Bbaale, CoRSU Rehabilitation Hospital, Uganda
Dr. Francis Tegete, Bugando Medical Center, Tanzania
Dr. Tingadini Nyoni, Parirenyatwa Hospital, Zimbabwe
Dr. Sameer Pandya, Kapkatet County Hospital, Kenya
Dr. Wone Banda, Kamuzu Central Hospital, Malawi
Partners
- Segal Family Foundation
- Global Medical Relief Fund
- Winthrop University Hospital
- CURE International
- The University of Medicine 1, Yangon
- Columbia Entrepreneurship
- The Center for Social Impact Strategy