OUR MISSION
Our mission is to cultivate a more compassionate, creative and just community by nurturing artistic expression and connecting people to one another and themselves through brave storytelling, writing and performance.
OUR LEADERSHIP
KIM MAXWELL (she/her), Artistic Director & Teacher
Kim Maxwell is the Founder/Artistic Director of The Townies, Inc. She is a producer, director, writer, mother, teacher, wife, Founder/Principal at Kim Maxwell Studio and Creator/Producer of The Townies Podcast. She is Co-Founder of the Ojai Playwrights Conference, serving as Board Member and Director of its Youth Program for over 20-years. Kim is also Co-Founder and served as co-Artistic Director of Theater 150 for 11-years.
Kim’s transformative style of teaching has inspired absolute beginners and professional actors alike. With her compassionate guidance, students undertake the fulfilling and transformative process of discovering, developing and performing their own stories. From preteens to senior citizens, Kim’s students, over a thousand in number, have gathered in living rooms, theaters, and even detention centers throughout Los Angeles and Ventura Counties to share their stories and have their voices heard.
In 30 years of serving her community, Kim Maxwell has produced three successful theater companies, 32 stage productions, 28 fundraisers, 82 readings, 12 educational outreach programs, and more than 3,500 individual pieces of original material produced in over 150 workshop productions. Kim received a Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award from the City of Ojai in 2013 and, most recently, was named the 2018 Visionary of the Year by the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO).
MOLLY ALLISON (she/her), Executive Director
Molly Allison is a UC Santa Barbara Environmental Studies honors graduate who gleefully brings her passion for sustainability and her eagerness to make a difference to The Townies, Inc. office, which continues to run smoothly thanks to her expert communication skills.
OUR EMERITUS BOARD
LILY BROWN (she/her)
Lily Brown is a Director, Writer and Actor with a degree in Spanish, Drama, and Political Science from Bennington College. In addition to being a Co-Founder of The Townies, Inc., Lily served as its Producing Director for many years. She is a Producer of The Townies Podcast and the Associate Director of the Ojai Playwrights Conference Youth Workshop. Lily is a Company Member at Pacific Resident Theater, most recently appearing on the PRT stage in All My Sons. She has appeared in a number of festival-bound short films, world-premiere readings at the Ojai Playwrights Conference and in 2017 was selected to attend THREAD at Yale, a highly selective multimedia storytelling program. As a writer, Lily’s work varies in theme and subject matter but leans comedic, political, and personal. Recent accolades include Semifinalist in Screencraft’s Virtual Pitch Contest and Quarterfinalist in Filmmatic’s Short Screenplay Awards. Her directing background is based in theater, primarily new works; she will make her film directorial debut with the upcoming dark-comedy short, Dead Serious. Lily loves language and speaks both Spanish and French in addition to her native English.
SHARON CROMARTIE (she/her)
Sharon Cromartie is the VP of Administration at Kids and Families Together, a non-profit organization with offices in Camarillo and Ventura. Sharon served on the Board of K&FT for several years before coming on staff in 2010. Sharon’s career in the non-profit sector began in 2008 when she first volunteered and quickly became a staff person of the Ojai based National Disaster Search Dog Foundation. Prior to working in the non-profit sector, Sharon worked in Direct Marketing for companies such as Affinity Group, Carparts.com (a dot com startup), Nestle, Epsilon, and R.L. Polk. Sharon is a graduate of the Ventura County Leadership Academy (VCLA) Cohort XIX and was the first Treasurer on the Board of VCLA. Sharon also volunteers for the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation. She formerly served the Oak View Civic Council as Board Secretary and then as Board Treasurer. Sharon has a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Northeastern University. She is certified in Mediation Skills Training through the Ventura Center for Dispute Settlement. She is also a SHRM-CP, a human resource professional certification. Sharon lives in Ventura and enjoys taking horseback riding lessons, building her home-based business, hiking, camping, and participating in the Townies writing workshops. When she isn’t off volunteering, she spends time with her dogs, Zoe and Rocky. She has an adult daughter.
KATIE DEUTSCHMAN (she/her)
Katie Deutschman has been serving as a development professional for more than 18 years. During that time, she has raised more than $36 million for the nonprofit community. In 2001, Katie founded Turtle Type, Inc., a fundraising consulting firm that focuses on taking time to understand clients’ needs and find effective solutions to meet advancement goals. Turtle Type, Inc. has served large and small nonprofits and government agencies including school districts, social service agencies, art and cultural agencies, and nonprofits that provide environmental, educational, and youth services. Katie works to generate contributed revenue for programs, capital campaigns, annual campaigns, grant programs, and major donor campaigns. Katie serves on the faculty at the California Lutheran University’s Center for Nonprofit Leadership, chairs the Saint Mary Magdalen School Consultative Board and Development Committee, and is a member of the Livingston Memorial Foundation Board. Katie successfully completed the course of study for an Honors English Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of San Diego in 1998. A native of Ventura County, she resides in Camarillo with her husband and children.
VANESSA FRANK (she/her)
Vanessa Frank was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Vanessa earned her Bachelor’s Degree from Stanford University in Public Policy and returned, after two years working in immigrant-serving Bay Area public schools through AmeriCorps, for her law degree there. Vanessa focused her legal studies on immigration law and international human rights and development. Following two years with a major international law firm in the Bay Area, Vanessa joined California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA), a legendary civil rights firm, in their Oxnard Migrant Office. In 2009, Vanessa opened her own law firm, dedicated to providing high quality legal services to immigrants and their families and also to engage immigrants and US citizens in the struggle for humane and sensible immigration policies at the local, state and national level. In the fall of 2014, Vanessa was honored with Holly G. Spevak Public Service Award by the Women Lawyers of Ventura County.
DOUG GREEN (he/him)
Doug Green assists organizations in aligning their vision and programs to create greater impact in the communities they serve. His nonprofit experience, business expertise, and passion for collaborative leadership make him a valuable resource to nonprofit and foundation clients. Doug’s consulting work has included community assessment, strategic planning, and organizational development with such organizations as First 5 of Ventura County, Head Start programs in Los Angeles and Ventura County, Camarillo Hospice and the California Network of Family Strengthening Networks. Doug has also prepared the next generation of leaders as a professor of nonprofit studies at Pepperdine University and California Lutheran University. Prior to joining La Piana Consulting, Doug consulted independently to numerous nonprofits on California’s central coast and served as director of the Resource Center for Nonprofit Management at the Ventura County Community Foundation. Doug has an MBA with a concentration in Finance from Southern Methodist University’s Cox School of Business and a BA in English from the University of North Florida. Doug contributes social justice inspiration and guidance. He facilitates strategic relationships that provide access to underserved voices in our community. Doug can be heard on Episodes 1, 9, 13 and 18 of The Townies Podcast.
DENA JENSON (she/her)
Dena Jenson Dena Jenson serves as the Director of the Center for Nonprofit Leadership (CNL) at California Lutheran University. Founded in 1991, the CNL provides leadership development, training, and technical assistance to nonprofit organizations serving the region. With 25 years of nonprofit experience, Dena frequently serves as a speaker and trainer on leadership development, organizational capacity, board governance and nonprofit business development. She believes deeply in the power of philanthropy and the nonprofit sector’s role in creating a just society. From small efforts taking shape around a kitchen table to our community’s largest charitable organizations, Dena is committed to the Center’s mission of “helping nonprofit leaders do better at doing good”. Dena has a Master’s in Public Policy from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science with a minor in Women’s Studies from California State University, Long Beach. Dena serves on the boards of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Santa Barbara & Ventura Counties Chapter and the Townies Podcast, Inc. In 2018, she was selected Nonprofit Leader of the Year by the Ventura County Leadership Academy and was recognized as Community Advocate of the Year by the National Association of Women Business Owners, Ventura County Chapter.
MARIAN LOPEZ ST. JAMES (she/her)
Marian Lopez St. James is happily back home in California after 10 years in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 6 years in Mexico City and Guadalajara, Mexico, and 10 years total in Austin, Texas. There has always been a constant of entrepreneurship, charitable giving and fundraising throughout her life. She’s a co-founder of The Chamber for Renewable Energy (CADER) in Buenos Aires and served as its Vice President. She simultaneously served as President and Treasurer of the Buenos Aires International Club for many years and Board member of Send a Child to School (SACs). Her passion project was establishing the charity for Escuela Hogar Maria Jauregui de Pradere, a boarding school for disadvantaged young girls. Marian is educated in Business Communications, Psychology and Spanish from several universities. She is also a Certified body therapist, with a background in Cranial Sacral, Bioenergetic therapy dealing with Trauma. On her return to California she settled in Ojai and went on to serve Lotusland in Montecito, CA as Major Gift Officer. She loves nature, the human spirit, community and helping people find their voice, as well as her own.
SHANA MCMORRAN (she/her)
Shana McMorran is a graduate from California Lutheran University with an MBA in Finance. A financial service professional with over a decade of experience, she worked in banking prior to working in public accounting. Shana grew up in Hawaii and loves to vacation there and visit her family and friends. She lives in Ventura County with her husband Chris and her son Oliver where they read Rainbow Rangers every night, because Rainbow Rangers are the best.
JESSICA MENDIOLA (she/her)
Jessica Mendiola is passionate about education, social justice, and heart-centered writing. She fills her time volunteering for numerous local non-profits, women's organizations, and Ojai public schools. As a community organizer and facilitator, Jessica helped bring "Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors" to Ojai - the first evidence-based parent leadership program developed by and for Latinx gente. She believes in the power of community and has centered her life's work on advocating for marginalized people, including people without housing, immigrant and undocumented folks, children, and refugees. Jessica has a Master's in International Education Policy from Stanford University, and a dual B.A. degree in Psychology and Spanish Literature from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is a Gates Millennium Scholar and is bilingual and bicultural. Jessica spends time between Ojai, Chicago, and her native country of Mexico.
KATIE NEWBAUM (she/her/they/them)
Katie Newbaum is a writer, cancer survivor, and arts administrator. Katie graduated from Cal Lutheran University with a BA in Theatre, attended the PCPA Acting Conservatory in Santa Maria, received an MFA in Acting at The New School for Drama in NYC, and became a certified Teaching Artist at Seattle Children’s Theater. Most recently, Katie and her very tall husband Ed moved to Washington State, where Katie took the position of Education and Outreach Coordinator for Edmonds Center of the Arts. After studying under Kim's wisdom for nearly six years, Katie is thrilled to engage more fully with the Townies, Inc. A bright silver lining of the last year has been reconnection through virtual access to the organization for this Townie-abroad.
RAIN PERRY (she/her)
Rain Perry is an Ojai singer-songwriter and film director. Her song “Beautiful Tree” was the theme for the CW Network’s Life Unexpected, on which she also had the surreal pleasure of appearing as herself. She has released five albums on her own Precipitous Records, as well as writing and touring a solo play about her childhood called Cinderblock Bookshelves: A Guide For Children of Fame-Obsessed Bohemian Nomads. In 2016 she released The Shopkeeper, a documentary about the music business in the age of streaming. She teaches songwriting and music appreciation through The Townies, Inc.
CAROL RAMSER (she/her)
Carol Ramser is an Emmy-winning producer who manages video and photography productions in Los Angeles. She has a communications degree from Boston University and was striving to be a photojournalist, but found the work too isolating. She was drawn to photo and video production for the teamwork aspect. On her first production job at 20 years old, she was the stand-in for Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. It was definitely the hair that got her the gig! In the 70’s, her Taiwanese-born mom watched the Carol Burnett Show to learn English. She was such a fan that she gave her first born the same first name. She is a sensitive introvert who seeks authentic connection and recently got certified as a Yoga teacher.
CARI SHORE (she/her)
Cari Shore is a Senior Vice President and Director of Community Banking at Montecito Bank & Trust where she is responsible for the Bank’s branch network and other customer facing lines of business. Although she never imagined a career in banking, her work allows her to do what she loves: connecting, problem-solving, innovating, and learning every day. In addition to the Townies, Cari currently serves on the Board of the Ventura Family YMCA. An Ojai lifer (Townie?), she calls the Valley home with her lovely and hilarious daughter, Lilly. When not at work, you’ll find Cari reading, camping, hiking, writing, or rocking out to live music. She dreams of being a great ukulele player one day. Cari is thrilled to support The Townies, Inc. as Kim helped her to get uncomfortable and tell her story during a workshop in 2007.
ERIC ST. JAMES-LOPEZ (he/she/they)
Eric St. James-Lopez has a history of working in communications, non-profit management, and development. They are skilled and knowledgeable in social media management, graphic design, and photography, which they learned from their time at Pratt Institute in NYC. They have also lived in Philadelphia, Mexico City, Austin, and Buenos Aires where they learned Spanish and sarcasm. Recently relocated to Portland, OR by way of Ojai, CA, Eric carries crystals, and watches Alias on Prime.