Mary Wisnewski, President
As a member of one of the hosting churches for Heart and Home’s 2014 shelter, Mary became involved in the organization as a volunteer and joined the board in 2016. With past professional interests in information architecture, librarianship and interior design, operating an overnight shelter was rather a left turn.
At Heart and Home, Mary has focused her energies on engaging an capable volunteer corps, trained in ethics and kindness to create meaningful community within our women’s shelter. Recently, as Operations Director, she has been responsible for many of the logistical details that make shelter possible. “Meeting and becoming friends with people at the shelter changed the way I read the news and engage housing justice issues. “Heart and Home plays a dual role, providing overnight shelter to women without housing while also offering a well-structured framework for community members to engage in meaningful service to neighbors in need.”
Away from shelter, Mary is a prolific knitter and a lifelong student, currently studying ecology and art at West Valley College.
Alexis Crews-Holloway, Vice President
Alexis Crews-Holloway was born and raised in Palo Alto and graduated in 2019 from Humboldt State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Justice Studies. She is passionate about advocating for low-income, at-risk, and unhoused community members and currently works full-time as a Community Project Administrator for Bitfocus. With Bitfocus, she supports local County’s with their administration of the Clarity Human Services Homeless Management Information System (HMIS).
Prior to her position at Bitfocus, she worked in direct service advocating for local unhoused and at-risk individuals as a Project Manager with Downtown Streets Team in Palo Alto. Networking and creating partnerships with community members and local agencies was one of the things she enjoyed most in her position with Downtown Streets Team, and this was how she first came across H+H.
Alexis initially became involved with H+H during the 2019-2020 season to bring case management workshops to the shelter guests, but being a community-oriented and socially-justice driven individual, she quickly fell in love with the mission and wanted to volunteer her time as a member of the board. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, camping, and going to the beach with her dog.
Elizabeth Yow, Treasurer
Elizabeth joined the board in 2019. As a lifetime member of the service fraternity Alpha Phi Omega, she is always looking for ways to be a leader, a friend, and of service. Elizabeth studied accounting at SFSU, and currently works at a vintage pen dealer. In her spare time, she enjoys yoga, knitting, and many other handcrafts.
Isaiah Jimenez, Board Member
Isaiah became involved with Heart & Home collaborative in the fall of 2023 after he completed his undergraduate studies at Saint Mary?s College of California where he majored in biochemistry and ran Division 1 cross country & track field. During his time at Saint Mary?s College, he served as a college STEM tutor and participated in a Lasallian Student Service Internship dedicating time to assisting students in the 6th grade classroom.
He intends to pursue a career in medicine where he hopes to couple his love for community engagement and his enthusiasm for scientific innovation.
Christina Andronescu, Board Member and Stanford Core Team Co-Leader
Christina became involved with Heart + Home her sophomore year at Stanford because of its commitment to supporting the housing and health needs of the Palo Alto community. Currently studying Human Biology at Stanford University and planning a co-term master’s, Christina is interested in advancing health equity by addressing the social determinants of health.
In her free time, she enjoys learning more about art history, skating, and spending time with friends.
Angela Lee,
Student Core Team Co-Leader and Board Member
As a freshman at Stanford, Angela began volunteering at Heart and Home and was drawn by the community among shelter guests and volunteers as well as the organization?s direct work in the Palo Alto community. She is interested in confronting housing injustice and building equal access to basic health and safety resources.
In her free time, she enjoys reading, hikes along the coast, and exploring museums and gardens.
Coco Lemberg, Board Member
Coco began volunteering at Heart and Home in her freshman year at Stanford. She loved getting to know the women and the goals of Heart and Home and joined the student core team in her sophomore year. As a Human Biology major, Coco is interested in reducing health inequalities by addressing social determinants of health. She has continued to serve on the board since graduating in 2022.
In her free time she enjoys baking, hiking, and spending time with friends.
Aparna Ananthasubramaniam,
Founder and Secretary
During college, Aparna built many close relationships through extensive volunteer work with the Palo Alto community, which challenged her to think about how to use her quantitative background to make meaningful impact. This led her to a long career in Palo Alto homeless services, including doing outreach, case management, and community organizing. Aparna was one of the co-founders of Heart and Home Collaborative, served as director of the women’s shelter through 2019, and currently serves as program director for Heart and Home’s overnight warming location in partnership with the City of Palo Alto, CA. Aparna has also worked as the Research and Development Director at fintech nonprofit Mission Asset Fund, and currently serves as a research consultant to help study the impact of their income support program.
Her many years of research and social services experience have led her to be a Ph.D. student at the University of Michigan’s School of Information and School of School Work, with interdisciplinary research interests in computational social science, housing loss, socioeconomic shocks, social policy, and mental health.
Nancy Noe, Board Member, 2024
Nancy Noe has been a volunteer and supporter of Heart & Home women’s shelter for 10 years, so has a deep familiarity with and commitment to our operations.
She brings many years of work experience managing relationships with local and state governments and community organizations on behalf of Alza Corporation (11 years) and Johnson & Johnson (19 years).
Nancy served in elected office as a member of the Mountain View City Council (1997-2000).
Her non-profit engagement over the years includes membership on the boards of Mountain View Chamber of Commerce, Mountain View Community Television (KMVT), and Community Service Agency of Mountain View/Los Altos. She is a long-time member of University Lutheran Church in Palo Alto, where she has served on the church council and as president of the congregation.
Nancy joined the Heart & Home Collaborative Board in November 2024 and is excited to bring her knowledge of H&H shelter operations and her many years of work and community experience to her role as a board member.
Tiffany Shi, Board Member, 2025
Tiffany first connected with Heart and Home Collaborative as a student volunteer in 2019, drawn to its commitment to community and support for unhoused women. She is honored to continue supporting the organization’s work as a board member.
Outside of Heart and Home, she enjoys spending time with her dog and playing the piano.
Summer Tang, Board Member, 2025
With a deep desire to give back to her community, Summer is grateful to serve the Heart & Home organization. Originally from Singapore, she moved to the Bay Area in 2014 and brings 13 years of work experience in financial accounting. Now a full-time mom, she splits her time between family and serving others. She enjoys exploring new places, listening to jazz and worship music, and discovering creative ways to contribute to the community.
Past Board Members, 2012 to present
Amy Moy, 2021-2023
Leslie McNeil, 2020 – 2022
Carolyn Walworth, Secretary, 2020 – 2022
Youngyoon Amy Seo, Stanford core team co-leader, 2020 – 2022
Angelina Lo, Secretary, 2019 – 2020
Medina Husakovic, Stanford core team co-leader, 2018 – 2020
Carolyn Schwartz, Treasurer, 2016 – 2019
Alan Hebert, President, 2016 – 2017
Jamie Stark, 2016 – 2017
Courtney Cooperman, Stanford core team leader
Marly Carlisle, Stanford core team leader
Hollis Kool, Stanford core team leader
Trey Deitch, 2013 – 2016,
Founding Board
We are especially grateful to our Founding Board, who had the vision and commitment to create Heart and Home Collaborative
- Otilia Ayala
- Marie Baylon
- Vickie Boone
- Jeff Gielow
- Duane Hoopes, 2012 – 2016
- Chuck Jagoda, 2012 – 2016
- Nick Newbury
- Ricardo Pinho
- Laura Sawaya
- Rev. Greg Schaefer, 2012 – 2016
- Helen Singh
- Rev. Charlotte Wilson, 2012 – 2014