Meet Our Board

Monica Stein, creator of Omthentic You Wellness Center, LLC, is a Chopra Certified Wellness Coach and Confidante helping women engineer a more joyful, authentic, and empowered life. After many years as an engineer at The Boeing Company, she was guided to focus on her own health and well-being and now brings her clientele a well-rounded perspective to mind, body and spirit using her intuition and a blend of healing modalities. When she is not coaching clients, she spends time with her husband and pups and volunteers with several organizations including a senior dog rescue. 

Amy Golan is the owner of Planet Renu, a zero-waste refill store that has a physical retail space in Walnut Creek, as well as an online store. She also works with farmers' markets, schools, colleges, and corporations, conducting pop-ups, Sustainability Workshops, and Green Consulting. Education is an important part of Planet Renu’s mission, providing the WHY in why everyone needs to live more sustainably. Her mission is to provide solutions to the overwhelming problem of single-use plastics. Amy has an MBA in International Management from Thunderbird, a certificate in "Circular Economy" from the University of Chicago, and is also a TRUE Advisor. She enjoys being part of MDBW and is also a board member with the nonprofit organization Race to Zero. She lives in Walnut Creek with her husband, daughter, and Siberian husky. Her older boys are in college and grad school. Amy enjoys hiking, dancing, volunteering, traveling, as well as spending time with her family and friends.

Miriam Schaffer is a college admission advisor and the founder of Colleges for You. Her expertise lies in guiding students and their families through the college application process, including choosing colleges that are the best fit for a student, helping with completing college applications, and assisting with developing and finalizing college application essays, personal statements, and University of California personal insight answers. Miriam’s clients have been accepted at public and private colleges and universities nationwide, including all University of California campuses. Miriam has served on MDBW's Board as Marketing chair and as President from 2021-2023. She was named MDBW's 2023 Woman of the Year.

Pamela is a seasoned accounting professional and certified tax preparer. She has worked in the bookkeeping and write-up accounting industry for over 35 years. Her current work is exclusive to small businesses, including sole proprietors, corporations, partnerships, nonprofits as well as income tax preparation specializing in individuals and small business. Pamela received her Bachelor’s degree in Business from JFK University. Pamela is an EA and is a member of the East Bay Association of Enrolled Agents. She is also an Ambassador to the Concord Chamber of Commerce. She enjoys being involved in local community organizations, such as her community choral groups that help expose inner city kids to life influencing musical experiences. She lives in Concord with her 2 fur babies, Marco Polo and Gabe.

Carolyn Seefer recently retired from Diablo Valley College, where she was a professor of business administration for over 26 years. While at DVC, she served as faculty advisor for Phi Beta Lambda, an international student business organization; was a member of the DVC Scholarship Committee; was chair of the Business Administration Department; and served on the DVC Academic Senate, representing the Business Division, and also served as the Academic Senate secretary. In addition, Carolyn taught in Florence, Italy, for two semesters for the college’s Study Abroad program; and she was also one of the first to teach online at the college, beginning in 1999, when she also cofounded the DVC Distance Learning Advisory Task Force. She was selected as Teacher of the Year for the Contra Costa Community College District and as Best Club Advisor for DVC. In addition, she is a textbook author; her book Business  English is published by Cengage and is the premier textbook in the field. Carolyn lives in Walnut
Creek with her husband. They enjoy their daily walks together, reading, attending concerts,
photography, and exploring the world through travel.

Senya Borrelli, the owner of Health is Wealth, feels better in her fifties than she did in her forties and is dedicated to helping others do the same. She is passionate about assisting people in achieving good health and financial success through products and education. She was the proud owner of The Piano and Voice Studio until her health raised resounding alarm bells, forcing her to reevaluate her career and lifestyle. She has successfully turned her health around and now spreads the word about activation and its unique approach. Senya and her husband Steve have three children and two dogs. She has recently taken up golf and enjoys going for walks, reading, and traveling.

Belma works as a Financial Adviser at Edward Jones. Her goal is to help bring order to her client’s financial life, putting their best interest at heart. Belma provides guidance on retirement planning, personalized strategies including estate consideration, college planning and insurance. She also works on making adjustments when life happens. She wants to be there for her clients to help them establish financial strategies to simplify their financial life. Belma loves helping successful women, business owners and families with children. As a woman and a mother, her vision is to be the person who is going to teach successful women about their retirement, estate planning, college savings and wealth strategies. She wants to empower women financially and be a symbol of female financial independence. Belma loves spending time with her family, taking her son for nice walks to the park, swimming classes and  travelling. She enjoys being involved in local community organizations such as Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce, Mt. Diablo Business Women, Mt. Diablo Mothers Club and Rotary Club.

Veronica holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Whitman College and brings over 20 years of experience in the senior living industry. With a proven track record in business development, customer success, and marketing, she has played an integral role in the growth and success of a boutique home care agency in Oakland, CA. Prior to joining Senior Alternatives, Veronica held several positions as a Regional Sales Manager for major providers in Senior Living, most recently leading a sales team at Senior Resource Group. Veronica's exceptional sales skills and resourceful leadership have earned her a vast network of contacts in the senior health care industry, which she leverages to create strategic partnerships and drive positive outcomes.She is proficient in Spanish. She loves to help her friends with interior design, go on hikes around Marin county, and travel around the world. 

Diane Kaplowitz is an employee benefits broker and head of the benefits department at R.C. Fischer & Co. in Walnut Creek CA. As an employee benefits broker, Diane helps small to mid-size businesses customize a benefit package for management and employees which can be medical only or any combinations of medical, dental, vision, group disability and group life insurance. Working with the business owners’ budget and objectives, she can put together a comprehensive plan to meet the companies needs and comply with state laws. Diane has been a California resident since 2010 having roots in the Tacoma/Seattle area. She is a mother to four grown children, lives in Concord and enjoys gardening, hiking and golf in her free time.

TBD

Serena Chow is a marketing executive with Melaleuca, The Wellness Company. Over her 13 years of business, she has specialized in helping individuals sustain better work/life balance and hedge against inflation and the unpredictable economy by developing a solid Plan B. Serena has decades of sales experience - her foundation was laid at IBM, and then she ran a children’s book business for over 16 years. In her free time, Serena enjoys reading, cooking, baking, singing with the Blackhawk Chorus, and cherishing moments with her four grandchildren. Additionally, she loves traveling with her husband, Jon.

Gordana Zura is a Communications Director at CASA of Contra Costa County, a nonprofit organization in Concord that recruits, trains and supervises volunteers who advocate on behalf of children and youth living in foster care. She sets and guides the strategy for digital communications, marketing, website, social media and collateral media to consistently promote, enhance and advance the mission, vision and goals of CASA. Gordana is an avid photographer, jewelry maker and website designer.

Maria Kopf works as a loan originator at Envoy Mortgage and has gained nine years of experience in the mortgage industry. Her primary goal is to help clients achieve their dream of owning a home. Whether they are first-time buyers or repeat customers, Maria is dedicated to providing a superior level of service. Before obtaining her mortgage license, she worked at PeopleSoft and Oracle while raising her son and daughter. In her free time, Maria enjoys entertaining and traveling. Currently, she resides in Walnut Creek as an empty nester with her fur babies, Bentley and Gucci.

Diane recently transitioned from product development and marketing in the fintech world, to helping individuals and organizations with their business writing needs. These can include everything from newsletters and email/online content to strategic plan documents, business proposals and grant applications. Diane is on the Advisory Board of Yours Humanly, a Walnut Creek nonprofit supporting education in underserved communities globally. She lives in Lafayette, where she and her family enjoy the many hiking and trail running paths.

Mary Schulze has been a realtor since 2002. She holds GRI and SRES designations, and finishing her CRS designation. She is a “green realtor” specializing in finding homes that meet the green standards for safe living. Mary is a graduate of California State at Hayward, with a BS in Health Science and Marketing. She has worked as a nurse, owned her own business, Bay Area’s Best, an advertising firm in Contra Costa.  During that time, Mary founded Mt. Diablo Business Women. She also served on the Lafayette Chamber Board of Directors for two terms, and the Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce for three terms. Currently, she is participating in the Assistance League of Sierra Foothills, and acting Welcome Chair to the community where she lives. She is married, grandmother to three grandsons, loves music, plays the piano, enjoys cooking, and playing with her giant Schnoodle, Maxx.