415-655-7240
Michael Blecker has been associated with Swords to Plowshares since 1976, only two years after its founding in 1974 by a group of Vietnam veterans and VISTA volunteers at the Veterans Administration in San Francisco.
Mr. Blecker served in the U.S. Army combat infantry in Vietnam from 1967 to 1970. He holds a J.D. degree from New College of California School of Law (1980) and a B.A. degree with honors from UC Berkeley (1974).
He is a co-founder of the California Association of Veterans Service Agencies, the National Association for Homeless Veterans, and a founder of the Coalition for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans.
415-655-7241
Leon Winston is the Chief Operating Officer of Swords to Plowshares, where he has worked on the housing, treatment, and income support needs of homeless and marginally housed veterans since 1995.
Leon possesses a Master of Nonprofit Administration/Organizational Development and Bachelor of Public Administration degrees from the University of San Francisco, and Certification in Alcohol and Drug Abuse Studies from the University of California at Berkeley.
He is an honorably discharged veteran of the U.S. Naval Reserves.
John Beem, who began his role as Director of Finance and Accounting in mid-February 2005, comes to Swords to Plowshares with more than a decade of experience in fiscal and administrative non-profit management.
John graduated with honors with a B.A. in business and economics from Macalester College and earned an M.A. in social/clinical psychology from New College of California.
Amy Fairweather leads our Swords to Plowshares Institute of Veteran Policy staff to conduct legal and public policy research regarding veterans’ access to health care, housing, legal and social services.
Jennifer Stasch leads the Resource Development and Communications team to generate resources with our funding partners in our mission to serve the veterans in our community.
Jennifer joins Swords to Plowshares with several years of experience in leadership roles within nonprofit, government and civic organizations. She is the daughter, sister, granddaughter, and niece of veterans, and is passionate about serving veterans in need.
In her role as the communications manager at Swords to Plowshares, Colleen Corliss oversees public relations and helps manage communications. Since she joined the organization in November 2008, Swords to Plowshares has had a more prominent presence in the media and more opportunities to inform the public about the obstacles many veterans face.
Colleen earned a bachelor’s degree in Public Communication and Women and Gender Studies, and a Master’s degree in Public Communication from American University in Washington, D.C.
Dave Lopez is the Director of Supportive Services and oversees the Employment & Training Services Unit, and Health and Social Services. He is responsible for ensuring that the comprehensive services at Swords are integrated and meet the needs of veterans.
Prior to this position, she worked with Swords to Plowshares as one of our Clinical Coordinators.
Teresa Panepinto is the Legal Director of Swords to Plowshares, an organization that provides free legal assistance to veterans seeking VA benefits and military discharge reviews. She is an active member of the Military Law Task Force of the National Lawyers Guild, and served on its Steering Committee from 2004-2009.
Teresa received her undergraduate degree from Willamette University and her law degree from UC Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law. Prior to attending law school, Teresa spent four years coordinating the nation-wide GI Rights Hotline, a service that provides information to service members on discharges, grievance and complaint procedures, and other civil rights issues.
Jordan heralds all the great work we do here by informing the community of all the work we do by means of social media. He is currently working on building up our online presence. Everyday he is posting new things to our websites and amplifying that message with the use of social media.
He is a United States Marine veteran and a veteran advocate and community organizer in the San Francisco bay area, including his work with Swords and the Coalition for Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans (CIAV).
Star works as the Women Veteran Coordinator at Swords to Plowshares.
She served in the Army from 1995 to 2006 and is a former client of the Employment and Training Department at Swords.
Follow her work on Facebook and Twitter.
415-252-2787 x257Rob has a BA in Political Economy from UC Berkeley and over 12 years of IT experience.
Mr. Boylan has testified before Congress and the Presidential Special Oversight Board on topics relating to Gulf War Illness and Depleted Uranium use during the Gulf War. He has also served as a board member for Veterans For Peace, and the National Gulf War Resource Center.
Megan Zottarelli performs research and analysis of legislation, data, and issues related to veterans such as criminal justice, housing, employment, women’s health, etc. Megan helps to create formal summaries and recommendations to lawmakers and key stakeholders to increase access to services and support for veterans and their families. She is especially interested in criminal justice issues among veterans as well as treatment alternatives to incarceration.
