Executives and Board
CAC Executive Team
Michael Poffenberger, Executive Director
Michael Poffenberger holds the tension of the and. As the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC)’s executive director since 2014, Michael sees CAC as uniquely positioned to support inner work for those seeking to build a more just and humane world. He guides our mission with vulnerability and humility—another tension to hold in a world often preoccupied with hoarding power.
A graduate of Notre Dame, Michael served previously as the executive director of Resolve, where he worked alongside religious and civil society leaders to build peace and aid war-affected communities in Central and East Africa, and co-founded the Crisis Tracker. He believes that transforming consciousness can solve many of today’s challenges, and seeking that truth in his own life led him to the work of CAC. Michael lives this mission beyond CAC as the board chair for Invisible Children, in supporting movements for peace and collective liberation, and as a dad to his daughter Madeleine. In his contemplative practice, he asks himself “What can the world look like when love is awakened?” That’s the vision he holds for all touched by CAC— that love is both who we are and where we are going.
Tisha Ford, Deputy Executive Director for Production, Outreach, and Planning
Tisha Ford is a dancer. She is intimately acquainted with the life-saving dance of contemplation and action. Service lights her up, and it is through that light, as well as her gentle sense of humor and nurturing presence, that Tisha choreographs the rhythmic art of collaboration throughout the organization. As the Deputy Executive Director for Production, Outreach, and Planning at the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC), she supports the creative, engagement, and programs teams as they create pathways for personal transformation and help reintroduce the world to the Christian contemplative movement.
Before joining the CAC in 2019, Tisha worked with the New York Open Center, overseeing the Art of Dying Institute. A journey through her eclectic career… she danced the lead in ballets such as the Nutcracker, Cinderella and Balanchine’s Tarantella, led a diversity procurement initiative for the Super Bowl, earned her MBA, and is a certified yoga instructor and a life coach. When not leading the production and outreach team, you can find Tisha lost in her worn copy of Richard Rohr’s Just This, practicing her asanas, writing and, of course, dancing.
Chris Zezza, Managing Director of Operations and Technology
Chris Zezza is a musician. And he strives to encourage and enable harmony in all his pursuits. Co-founder of The Build Tank, a firm that helps organizations use innovative thinking to build teams around people and technology, Chris has been consulting with the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC) since 2016. In 2023 Chris transitioned from his consulting role and joined the CAC full time as the Managing Director of Digital Products.
Chris was “lit up” when he discovered Richard Rohr and the CAC, and over the years has deepened his recognition of the importance of this work. A contemplative seeker, Chris feels that CAC’s mission is a crucial path for hope and healing in today’s world of muddy theology and harmful religious dogma. With an emphasis on relationships and shared understanding, Chris helps teams find alignment and harmony in working together with technology. When he’s looking for his own alignment, he takes long contemplative hikes with his dog Yoshimi in the hills of Beacon, New York, where he lives with his wife, Katrina, their two children, Francis and Josefine, and a rabbit named Squid.
CAC Board of Directors
Jeri Eckhart Queenan, Chair
Jeri Eckhart Queenan knows the contemplative path can change the world. From the first time she read Richard Rohr’s Falling Upward to her time spent in the Living School, Jeri has experienced the benefits of personal transformation spiritually, professionally, and personally. In a time when more people are leaving religious institutions, Jeri believes the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC)’s work can help people find paths that restore their faith and fulfill their spiritual needs.
As a partner with The Bridgespan Group, Jeri provides strategic guidance to nonprofits dedicated to justice and equity. Her role in taking the group global deepened her awareness of the interconnectedness and belovedness weaving throughout all creation. It gives her great joy to walk a mission-driven path; yet this isn’t the only path Jeri walks. Whether hiking the Sangre de Cristo mountains with her husband or practicing Thich Nhat Hanh’s walking meditation, Jeri embraces movement—moving boards, missions, and her very being—as a path toward a more just and loving world for all.
Eileen Coogan
Eileen Coogan is a transformative companion-leader dedicated to fostering equitable and caring communities. She serves as the President and CEO of Allegany Franciscan Ministries, which partners and invests in community-based organizations to create healthier, safer, more connected communities where everyone feels welcome and can thrive. Eileen has spent most of her career in leadership positions across nonprofit and faith-based sectors. She lives in New Port Richey, Florida.
Rob Gittings, Treasurer & FOC Chair
Rob Gittings is an active volunteer and retired Vice Chairman of PwC who explores nonduality and supports transformative educational and spiritual initiatives. While at PwC, Rob served global multi-national corporations as well as emerging technology companies in Silicon Valley. He serves on the boards of the Inner City Scholarship Fund of New York City and America Media and has been supported the creation of St. Philip Neri Catholic Education and Family Center in the Bedford Park neighborhood of Bronx, NY. Rob and his wife Wendy have three sons and live in Larchmont, New York.
Lisa Laird
Lisa Laird is an institutional investment professional dedicated to aligning investment resources with values to create impact. Lisa is currently the Chief Investment Officer of Mercy Investment Services, Inc., which works for systemic change in the areas of non-violence, racism, environment, concern for women, and immigration through socially responsible investing. She has been the lead investment officer for several non-profit organizations, strategically investing assets to meet investment objectives and support organizational values. Lisa has served for over a decade as a board member for the Seva Foundation, which works to eradicate curable blindness. She lives in St. Louis, Missouri.
Kelly Burton
Dr. Kelly Burton is a dynamic industry leader advancing equal opportunity in entrepreneurship, who is committed to human flourishing and spiritual growth. Kelly is the CEO of Black Innovation Alliance, a global solutions hub which pilots bold ideas that center innovation and entrepreneurship to drive wealth creation in the Black community. She holds a PhD in Political Science and is the author of the forthcoming book, Our Next Democracy. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia.
Josephine Garnem
Josephine Garnem is a humanitarian leader with over 25 years of international and national experience in global relief, community advocacy, strategic partnerships, and collective impact. She currently serves as the Executive Director of the Healey International Relief Foundation and a facilitator of Centering Prayer with Contemplative Outreach. A graduate of the Living School at the Center for Action and Contemplation, Josephine embodies a commitment to integrating action and contemplation in her work and personal life. She lives in Maryland.
Lonnie Pederson
Dr. Lonnie Pederson is a scholar and leader with more than 30 years of experience in higher education, healthcare, and human services. She is continually inspired by the Presentation Sisters of Fargo where she serves as Associate Board of Directors and formerly served on their Peace and Justice Collaborative Council and Prayer Center Board of Directors. Lonnie holds a PhD in Leadership from the University of St. Thomas, and lives in Fargo, North Dakota.
Sherri Taylor
Dr. Sherri Taylor has over 15 years of experience in leadership and program development for various corporate, educational, and nonprofit organizations. Sherri also designs and delivers interactive workshops, coaching, and consultations on trauma-informed leadership. Deeply interested in the “being” of being human, Sherri holds space for those moving through life transitions of all kinds. She earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology from the Wright Institute and is a Sendee of the Living School from the Center for Action and Contemplation.
