Ben Auger, owner of Auger Building Company, is an award-winning builder and remodeling contractor in Coastal New Hampshire and Maine. He began his career working days as a carpenter in building and construction while attending Boston Architectural College at night. And now, almost 40 years later, Ben and his team have been featured in several national trade publications, including Remodeling Magazine, where Ben was selected as one of the country’s top 50 remodeling contractors.

Ben is dedicated to supporting our community and is committed to donating 15% of his time, treasure, and talents towards local Boards and Non-Profits. Ben enjoys contributing to many local organizations including The Music Hall, PMAC, Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra, Mainspring, Gather, Nurturing Minds, and many more.

In his free time, you’ll find Ben on the soccer field, ski slopes, or yoga studio.

Jeff is Chairman Emeritus of AEW, one of the world’s leading investment advisors. AEW currently manages approximately $85 billion of real estate assets and securities in the United States, Europe, and Asia on behalf of a global client base of public and corporate pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, endowments, foundations, and high-net worth investors. He joined AEW in 1997 and served as Global Chief Executive Officer from 1999 to 2020. He then transitioned to the role of Global Chairman and he retired from AEW in 2023.

Jeff is a member of the Board of Directors for Stag Industrial, Boston Children’s Hospital Trust, and the Cape Neddick Country Club, as well as a former board director for The Howard Hughes Corporation. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College and Harvard Business School.

Jeff and his wife Mary have had a home in Cape Neddick since 2010.

David J Mallen is Principal and Co-Founder of The Wilder Companies, Ltd, overseeing all financial, administrative, and strategic initiatives for Wilder and its property portfolio. Wilder is a Boston-based real estate development, management, and leasing firm specializing in retail properties. Wilder has developed, managed, and leased over 20 million square feet of retail properties throughout the United States and Puerto Rico. The company currently manages a diverse portfolio of properties throughout the East Coast.

Before the formation of Wilder in 1990, David was the CFO of its predecessor firm, Wilder-Manley Associates. Wilder-Manley was a pioneer in mall development on a national scale. Before Wilder-Manley, he practiced as a CPA with a national public accounting firm where he provided auditing and accounting services to clients in the real estate industry.

David is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and holds a Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) designation. He is also a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and the Massachusetts Society of CPAs.

David’s past non-profit work includes service as a board member and advisor to organizations providing mental health and family support services to underserved inner-city populations. In Maine, his work includes service as Board President of the Ogunquit Museum of American Art and as Trustee and Treasurer of Saint Peters by the Sea Episcopal Church in Cape Neddick, ME.

Lynne is the Owner and President of TQM Ventures, Inc., a Real Estate Company overseeing properties in several states including rental homes, self-storage, and a Papa John’s franchise.  Lynne is active on several Board of Directors including Secretary of the Ogunquit Playhouse and the UNH Dean’s Advisory Board for Paul College.  Lynne was one of the founders of the UNH Hospitality Advisory Board, and while a Board Member for Brittain Resorts and Hotels helped the company’s Owner and Leadership team launch the Woman in Leadership (WIL) Leadership and Mentoring annual program for high-profile leaders.  Lynne’s passion is to mentor college students as they embark on their careers and young professional women as they excel in their current organizations.

Lynne retired from Starwood Hotels and Resorts after a 37-year career spanning across North America in both Hotel Operations and the Corporate Office. Most recently Lynne was Senior Vice President, Owner Services and Administration North America. She was responsible for managing and coordinating owner and management company relationships and engagement, which included communication and strategic alignment with more than 550 hotels across North America and 1,200 owner and management company executives representing all Starwood Brands.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Administration from the University of New Hampshire. In 1994, Lynne joined with three other UNH alumni to launch the International UNH Hospitality Advisory Board, which has since raised over $2M to support the hospitality school program and student financial assistance.

In 2006, Lynne’s husband, Michael, founded Puppy Pipeline Rescue of Georgia, Inc. a 501 3 (c). To honor Michael’s vision and memory, Lynne is President of Puppy Pipeline. In 18 years, Puppy Pipeline has rescued and transported more than 42,000 dogs and cats from Southern kill shelters and ferried them to no-kill shelters and forever homes across North America.

Jim is the CEO/Owner and Founder of Vision Ace Hardware, a 15-store chain located in Southwest Florida and is the President of Vision Real Estate holdings, which owns several of the Vision Ace Hardware properties.  Jim has made it a priority to ensure his organizations are involved in all the communities in which their stores are located, assisting and donating to local organizations and charities. 

Jim served on the Board of Directors of Ace Hardware Corporation ($9 billion in sales) for 11 years and retired from the Board in 2019 due to term limits.  During his tenure on the Board, Jim served as Chair of the Board and Finance Committee; as a member of the Audit, Nominating, and Retail Committees; as a member of the Ace International Board (an 80% owned wholesale business operating in over 70 countries); and as Chair of Ace Retail Holdings (a separate 100% owned retail chain of Ace stores). 

Jim graduated from Bentley University with a BS in accounting.  During his professional career, he has worked at Arthur Young and Company in Portland, Maine as a CPA, and held financial positions at Congoleum Corporation (Bath Iron Works) and Albany International.  For the majority of his career, Jim has been self-employed in various businesses, focused mostly on real estate development and retail hardware.

Jim and his wife, Lyn, are Maine natives – Jim from Sanford and Lyn from Poland Springs.  During their college years, both worked summer jobs in Ogunquit, and loved attending productions at the Ogunquit Playhouse.  They have lived in Portland, Falmouth, and Wells, and for 7 years had a cottage in Ogunquit. The Ackroyds now divide their time between Kennebunk, Maine and Naples, Florida, where Vision Ace headquarters is located.

Michael Buensuceso, MSW, is the Assistant Head of School for Community and Equity at Berwick Academy in South Berwick, ME, responsible for implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion programming for all students, faculty, and staff, overseeing environmental sustainability and the residential life program.

Before joining Berwick Academy in 2015, Michael served as Director of Diversity at the Trinity School in New York City. An experienced facilitator and trainer, he is one of the founding faculty of the Educators’ Institute, a joint effort between the American Conference on Diversity and the Peter Sammartino School of Education at Fairleigh Dickinson University. He served as Vice President of Programs for the American Conference on Diversity, responsible for the development of strategic program initiatives, the development and implementation of adult and youth programs, and research statewide.

Throughout his career, Michael has consulted with businesses, community groups, local governments, and educational institutions to offer training, professional development, and strategic planning on diversity and multicultural-related issues. He has also consulted with the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities and the University of Richmond, designing and implementing programs focusing on multicultural awareness and bias reduction for their students, faculty, and staff.

Currently, Michael serves on the board at the Glen Urquhart School as chair of the DEI Committee and Vice President and member of the Executive Committee. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Rhode Island and an MSW from Columbia University. He and his spouse Kathy live on the Seacoast with their two children.

After a 37-year career in the hospitality industry, Denise retired from Starwood Hotels & Resorts where she was the President of Starwood North America. Ms. Coll led Starwood’s largest division with over 500 hotels from 2007–13 and was Senior Vice President, Operations from 2005 – 2013. Prior, she served as Senior Vice President & Chief Operating Officer of Seaport Companies, a Boston-based hospitality company. She started her hospitality career with ITT Sheraton.

Denise has more than 40 years of experience in the hospitality industry and has a strong background in live events, hotel operations, brand creation, and management. She is passionate about the advancement of women in senior roles and in giving back to her community. Denise has devoted her time and energy to serving in leadership positions at many professional organizations and non-profits.

Denise is a member of the Board of Directors for Viad, Simmons University, the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation, and Big Sister Boston, as well as a former Board Director for LaSalle Hotel Properties, Enlivant Senior Living, and Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston. She is a graduate of UMass Amherst and the Simmons Graduate School of Business. She is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors.

Denise and her husband Nick split their time between Boston and Kennebunkport.

Susan has been an active Ogunquit Playhouse member since 2021 and a part of the Ogunquit community since 2012. She and her husband Anthony split their time between Ogunquit and Boston.

After a short career in the biomedical field and then raising her three children in a busy construction family, she has turned her attention towards philanthropic pursuits. Susan supports St. Anthony Shrine and their work with the homeless in Boston, as well as the Malley Farm for Women in New Hampshire that provides a holistic living space for recovery from addiction and trauma. She also supports women and family causes in Traverse City, MI where one of her daughters lives with her family.

Bernie’s career in service to the arts and cultural sector spans nearly 40 years. In July 2023, she retired from a 21-year career at The 5th Avenue in Seattle. Bernie first joined The 5th in 2002 as Director of Theater Advancement and Development. In 2010, she was appointed Managing Director and oversaw the administrative, marketing, fundraising, information services, and facility departments, as well as external affairs and Board-related activities. During her tenure, The 5th Avenue grew from a $10 million to a $30 million organization.

Before The 5th Avenue, she served as Director of Development for the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles, as well as for The Laguna Playhouse in Laguna Beach, CA. Before moving to California, she served at the Seattle Symphony where she was proud to have been part of the team that built Benaroya Hall. In addition to the Symphony, Griffin worked for the Tony Award-winning Seattle Repertory Theatre and Tony Randall’s National Actors Theatre in New York.

Bernie began her career at the University of Denver. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Martin’s University in Lacey, WA, and was born and raised in Walla Walla, WA.

She is a member of Theater Communications Group (TCG) and the National Alliance for Musical Theatre, an executive committee board member of the Downtown Seattle Association, and serves on the Washington State Cultural Alliance. Bernie has also served as a grants panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts. She was named one of the Puget Sound Business Journal’s 2013 Women of Influence and was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters in May of 2023 from Cornish College of the Arts. In July 2023 she was recognized with a King County Proclamation by King County Executive Dow Constantine. She is married to award-winning actor Seán G. Griffin.

In addition to serving as Managing Director Emeritus and Senior Advisor of The 5th Avenue Theatre, she also leads Bernie Griffin Consulting and acts as an Advisor to The 4th Act.

Maura is a resident of Boston and Ogunquit, dividing her time to serve both communities as a volunteer and philanthropist.

After a career in health insurance underwriting and then raising her two children, Maura has turned her attention to serving the needs of the elderly, homeless, and marginalized. Supporting the arts, particularly dance, theatre, and music, is an important focus for her.

Currently, Maura is on the Spiritual Care Team at Mass. General Hospital, the CARES and Rainbow Ministries at St. Cecilia Parish in Boston, Friends of the South End Library, Interfaith organization - A Faith that Does Justice, and the Board of Directors of the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra.

Maura lends her support to The Boston Center for the Arts, Women’s Lunch Place, MFA Boston, Marginal Way Preservation Fund, Ogunquit Museum of American Art, National Ballet of Canada, Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra, Good Shepard Food Bank, and the Ogunquit Playhouse.

Chris was born in Queens, NY, and grew up in Northport, Long Island, NY. Chris is the retired President and Chairman of WASCO Skylights, a leading national manufacturer of Commercial, Architectural, and Residential Skylights located in Wells, Maine, and now a division of VELUX America. Chris moved to Maine in 1978 following his father into his acquired “family” business venture. Learning from the ground up, reengineering, and ultimately selling WASCO became a 40-plus year career for Chris which included a 6-year stint as a startup Branch Manager in Texas. Under Chris’s ownership, WASCO became a premier customer/market-oriented, overhead daylighting solutions provider valuing its employees, sales reps, and vendors while actively giving back to its community. Chris holds an MBA in General Management from Long Island University’s Post Campus, Roth School of Management. Chris lives in Kennebunk and Georgetown, Maine with his wife Rosalind.

Chris has been a fan of musical theater most of his life. His introduction came via his parents and growing up in the same hometown as the LuPone family (Patti and her older twin brothers William & Robert) at a time when their high school musical performances were the thing. Through marrying Rosalind (Roz), who began as a flat painter at the local college theater at age 11 and went on to become their costumer/seamstress and occasional chorus member, his (and her) enthusiasm has continued to grow. Roz even worked for John Lane in the OP Box Office for the 1988 season. Chris and Roz have supported the OP Foundation since its inception in 1997.

Community and Industry Participation

Past:
Maine State Chamber Board
Sanford/Springvale Chamber of Commerce Board & Chair
UWYC Board Member & Annual Campaign Chair
Junior Achievement of Maine, Sanford-Springvale Board Founding Chair
Maine Development Foundation, Leadership Maine - MU Class
Junior Achievement of Maine State Board
American Architectural Manufacturers Association (AAMA) Skylight/Sloped
Glazing Council First Vice Chair & Ex officio Board member

Current:
Ogunquit Playhouse Foundation Board Member
York County Community College Foundation Board Special Advisor

Flip is a retired fifth-generation former President and CEO of Morgan Construction Company in Worcester, MA, designers and manufacturers of rolling mill equipment for the worldwide metals industries with subsidiaries in Brazil, India, China, and England. Morgan Construction was founded by Flip’s great-great-grandfather in 1888. Flip ran the company from 1986 until it was sold to Siemens Metals in 2008 where he stayed on to usher in the new leadership until his retirement in 2010.

Flip has extensive not-for-profit Board experience formerly serving multiple organizations, including 21 years as a Board Trustee at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in MA. He served as a member of the Governing Board of Trustees at The Fay School in Southborough, MA, and locally, has served as a Trustee for York Historical Society and York Hospital.

Currently, Flip serves on the Board of directors of the Massachusetts BioMedical Initiative in Worcester, the Ogunquit Museum of American Art, and the Naples Zoo.

Flip is a graduate of Harvard and Harvard Business School. He and his wife, Gale, spend summer on the southern coast of Maine and their winters are spent in Florida.

James Moses is President and CEO of Road Scholar, the not-for-profit educational organization inspiring adults to learn, discover and travel. Road Scholar, founded as Elderhostel in 1975, changed society’s perceptions of aging, and continues to foster the importance of intellectual engagement and social camaraderie as essential elements of a healthy older age. Mr. Moses joined the organization in 1979 and has dedicated his career to its mission, serving as the organization’s Registrar, Vice President of Programs Worldwide, Chief Operating Officer, and President and CEO. Mr. Moses currently serves on the Board of Advisors for the American Repertory Theatre (A.R.T.), Cambridge, MA, and has served as a Fellow of the World Demographic Association, St. Gallen, Switzerland, and as a former Board member for: the National Independence Museum in Exeter, NH; the National Board of GLAAD (the Gay/Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation); the AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts; the Board of Visitors, Boston Center for the Arts; the Board of Advisors, Educational Travel Conference; and was a founding member of the Board of Trustees for the Sarapiqui Conservation Learning Center in Costa Rica.

Jeff is the co-founder of the TramutoPorter Foundation. He has been in hospitality since February of 2004 with the purchase of their first restaurant, Five-O Shore Road. After successfully leading the team for 12 seasons, Jeff and Donato sold Five-O in the fall of 2015 to their management team. In 2006 Jeff co-founded Caffé Prego along with his partner Donato and lead the Caffe until they sold it, also to their management team in 2021. In 2013 he and Donato co-founded The Inn on Shore Road, a 13 -oom inn on popular Shore Road in Ogunquit, transforming the neglected property into a thriving inn, in the heart of Ogunquit. In 2023 he and Donato sold the Inn and exited the hospitality industry after a nearly 20 year career.

Prior to entering the hospitality industry, Jeff held leadership positions in Human Resources with companies in the northeast including Aprisma Management Technologies, a former Cabletron company, The Timberland Company, Caremark and Eaton Corporation. While at Timberland he received national recognition for designing and implementing progressive benefit programs. In his 18 years in human resources, Jeff has developed many programs that help the employee meet their personal goals while keeping in line with the goals of the employer.

Jeff received his B.S. in Business Administration from Ithaca College and his MBA from Adelphi University. Jeff served on the Board of the Frannie Peabody Center, Maine’s largest AIDS Service Organization from November 2010 until September 2019, including as President of the Board from 2014 until 2019. He has been active in Share Our Strength, Maine and No Kid Hungry. Jeff believes deeply in their goal of ending child hunger in America by ensuring all children get the healthy food they need, every day.

He cofounded the TramutoPorter Foundation along with his life partner Donato Tramuto in 2001 following the tragic events of 9/11. Jeff is proud of the many accomplishments of the foundation, including support to local AIDS service organizations, national and international human rights organizations and Colleges and Universities throughout the United States and Italy. Additionally, Jeff truly believes the scholarship and mentoring program provided by the Foundation is what will be its legacy and help meet its goal of helping to make the world more compassionate and kind.

Ann Ramsay-Jenkins has served on the board of the Ogunquit Playhouse for nearly a decade and has been a supporter and friend for over 40 years. She currently serves on the Ogunquit Museum of American Art Board as well as that of the Maine Media Workshops in Rockport.

Ann is also the Co-Founder and Vice President of the College Success Foundation which provides mentoring and college scholarships to low-income students in the state of Washington and Washington, DC. Since its inception in 2000, the Foundation has awarded over 11,000 individual college scholarships totaling more than $352,000,000. She is the former chair of the Foundation’s National Emeritus Council.

Ann sat on the Board of Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre for nine years and led the Board’s capital campaign in 2015, designed to renovate the Theatre’s interior, which is a replica of the Summer Palace in the Forbidden City in China.

As the long-time board chair of the Seattle Repertory Theatre, Ann co-chaired its capital campaign for the construction and operation of the Leo K. in 1993.

She was also a Founding Chair of the Seattle Repertory Theatre Foundation and helped lead a $10 million endowment campaign. She also sat on the Rep’s Strategic Planning Committee which was charged with formulating a plan for a sustainable future.

Ann was a member of the board of the National Corporate Theatre Fund from 1993-95, the Theatre Communication Group National Advisory Board from 2012-16, and the PATH Research Campaign Committee in Seattle from 2013-16. PATH provides critical health care to children and adults in over 70 countries around the world.

Among other boards and activities, Ann has been a member of President Carter’s Advisory Committee for Women and the President’s Commission on White House Fellows, as well as Director of the Office of Budgets at Harvard University, Washington State’s Higher Education Coordinating Board, The University of Washington Academic Medical Center Board, and the Board of Selectors for the American Institute of Public Service, which administers the National Jefferson Awards.

Ann and her late husband, Bill Jenkins called Seattle their home. Ann is the proud mother of Adam Cornell and stepmother to Bill’s six children. Ann continues to give her time and talents to performing and fine arts organizations and social service agencies working with at-risk youth from Seattle to NYC to Washington, DC to Maine.

She has always called Maine her ‘heart home.’

Barbara (Barb) is the author of The LastingMatters Organizer, a comprehensive guide related to end-of-life planning. It is designed to help people, at any age, organize, plan for, and share their personal intentions, essential information, and life directives.

In 2014, New Hampshire Public Radio listed The LastingMatters Organizer as a “must read” book. Barb was named an “Architect of Change” on Maria Shriver’s website and Barb’s story was featured on The Conversation Project, a public engagement initiative for end-of-life conversations.

Barb gained her comprehensive and sensitive understanding of the importance of life directives during her career in estates and trusts at Foley, Hoag & Eliot, where she helped family members identify, gather, and assemble information to facilitate and ease end of life decision making and management of personal and family interests.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Connecticut College, Barb comes from three generations of wealth managers. Barb’s husband, Tom, is Partner and Managing Director of The Sedoric Group of Steward Partners. Tom and his team have been Marquee sponsors of shows at Ogunquit Playhouse for several successive seasons, following in the footsteps of Barb’s parents, who instilled in her the love of theater as a child. Barb has served as a CASA NH volunteer and serves on the Advisory Board of CASA NH. She is a former Trustee at Miss Porter’s School in Farmington, CT.

Barb lives with her family and dogs in Rye, New Hampshire.

After 23 years, Charles recently retired from Fidelity Investments where he was a Vice President in software technology and branch development, having previously worked in various small software companies. Before pursuing a software career, Charles worked at the Santa Fe Opera (technical apprentice program), and Dartmouth College as production management for touring shows fueling a lifelong love of theater both as an audience member and working backstage.

In his free time, Charles is an avid DIY homeowner on an island on Lake Winnipesaukee, manager of rental properties, Certified Financial Planner, and volunteer at The Music Hall in Portsmouth.

Previous Board experience includes The Putney School, North Country Community Theater (NCCT), and Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth (CHaD).

Shiloh practices in numerous areas of labor and employment law, including employment discrimination and harassment, family and medical leave, disability accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and relevant state law, whistleblower and retaliation claims, wrongful discharge, and wage and hour matters. Shiloh also defends institutions of higher education and other schools in employment and student Title IX cases. Shiloh also serves as a neutral investigator in sensitive employment matters, including investigations regarding discrimination, harassment, including sexual harassment, and retaliation, handling such matters with thoughtfulness for all parties involved.

Having spent almost 15 years representing employers in New England and the Mid-Atlantic on various employment-related issues, Shiloh provides her clients with thoughtful and practical advice on how to handle complex personnel issues and litigation—all while maintaining a positive, empathetic attitude. Her ability to handle these matters in a practical, business-savvy manner allows her to find the best and most efficient solutions for her clients.

Shiloh enjoys the constantly changing nature of labor and employment law and works hard to develop long-term relationships with clients who can count on her to help keep them out of court. When litigation does occur, Shiloh aggressively represents each client’s unique interests, working tirelessly to achieve the best possible outcome.

Larry grew up in Pennsylvania and moved to Massachusetts after serving in the Coast Guard. He graduated from Northeastern University in 1971, with a degree in biochemistry. He began his career at Millipore Corporation where he served in many capacities including market manager for medical devices.

Larry and his wife Marcy retired from corporate life and moved to Maine in 1986. Larry and Marcy acquired the Ogunquit Camera Shop the year they moved to Maine. He taught photography for 18 years at York Adult Education. He has been active in the Ogunquit Community, serving on the Planning Board and the Traffic and Parking Management Committee. He also served as a Selectman for three terms. Larry founded the Capriccio Festival of Kites in 1998 and the festival continues today.

He was one of the early Directors of the Ogunquit Playhouse Foundation and served as President for five years and as an active Director from 1998 to 2010. He also served on the Board of the Heartwood College of Art and is currently a Trustee of the Ogunquit Memorial Library. Larry is an active member of the Ogunquit Baptist Church where he currently serves as a Deacon.

Larry still leads an active outdoor life. He spent a week backpacking in the backcountry of the Grand Canyon and bicycled from Washington, DC to Pittsburgh, PA. Most recently he spent a week hiking in Death Valley with his son and granddaughter. Larry and Marcy have retired from the retail business. Their daughter Tracy runs the Ogunquit Shop and their son Chris runs the Kennebunk Photographic Studio.