Rebecca L. Stevens has worked in the Human Services field for the past 12 years. After completing her degree in Social Work and Women's Studies, Rebecca began her career providing Intensive Case Management services to people with an HIV+ diagnosis. For the past 9 years, Rebecca has had several different roles in her employment with the Crisis Services Advocate Program; beginning as a Domestic Violence Case Manager within the Town of Tonawanda Police Department Family Offense Unit, transitioning into the Training Specialist; providing volunteer training and coordination as well as community awareness and education, and in her current position as Supervising Counselor she provides supervision and oversight of domestic violence and sexual assault survivor services.

Amanda Wozniak graduated in 2007, with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from Ashland University, Ashland OH. She became interested in victim advocacy through internships at the Family Justice Center in Buffalo, NY and also the Rape Crisis Domestic Violence (RCDV) Safe Haven in Ashland, OH. She began her professional career at the RCDV Safe Haven, where she was the Education Specialist/ Shelter Assistant. In June of 2007, Amanda was offered a position at Crisis Services, where she has been a Domestic Violence Case Manager in the Advocate Program, stationed with the Sex Offense Unit at the Buffalo Police Department, providing crisis intervention, safety planning, advocacy and supportive services to victims of domestic and family violence residing in the City of Buffalo.

I own Fleet Feet Sports (a running, walking and fitness specialty retailer) with my husband Dan. I am the Marketing coordinator for our medical provider programs, our training programs (from beginner to marathon) and our community and corporate outreach programs. I am a runner for life taking up the sport in 1977 - competing in road races from 5K to the marathon over the years. I truly love the sport and the Buffalo running community! I run 6 days per week and my training is now focused on running a Boston Marathon qualifying time at the Marine Corps. Marathon in October. The Buffalo parks have been a big part of my running world & I am a member of the Olmsted Parks Conservancy Advisory Board. Dan and I also race direct the Fleet Feet 15K-Run into Buffalo and the JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge.

G/S Kevin Ryan
ICE's Role in Human Trafficking and Human Rights Violators Investigations
Group Supervisor Kevin Ryan has worked over 19 years as a Federal Law Enforcement Investigator for the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) and now currently with the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the Newark, NJ, New York, NY and Buffalo, NY offices. Have worked various investigation that have targeted transnational groups involved in human smuggling, human trafficking, alien smuggling, and human rights violators/war criminals. G/S Ryan is also a two-time past recipient of the US Attorney General's Award for Investigative Excellence.

Kimberly Leavitt-Noble, Ph.D.
Breast Cancer in Young Women: A Survivor's Story
Recently diagnosed with breast cancer (Age 38) and currently undergoing chemotherapy. I am an educator and college professor in the School of Education and Human Services at Canisius College. Currently, I am writing a book about my cancer journey and hope to educate young women on the importance of early detection and screening, especially if they have a family history of breast cancer.

Tom Haney is one of Western New York's most recognized fitness authorities and health promotion advocates. Tom is the wellness administrator at Independent Health where he is responsible for leading the planning, development and implementation of wellness programs for employer groups and the community.

During his 40 year career, he has consulted with many local and national companies as an expert on health promotion and worksite wellness, he hosted a radio talk show called "Talk Food/Talk Health", was a co-director of the WNY Cardiac Rehabilitation Program, served as the physical coordinator for the Buffalo Sabres, a conditioning consultant for the Buffalo Bills and a marathon coach for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society?s Team in Training.

He is a member of the board of directors of WNY Wellness Works\, serves on the Advisory Panel for NYS Wellness Works and received a governor's appointed to the New York State Department of Health's Osteoporosis Advisory Council.

Sondra is a financial planner with AXA Advisors. She has made a personal commitment to work with women business owners, individuals, and their families to accomplish a sound and successful financial future.

Her clients' goals are achieved through risk management, education planning, tax efficiency, retirement planning, and investment strategies. Her practice is built around the goals and financial dreams of her clients and is to be achieved with honesty, integrity, and reliability.

Sondra has partnered with her colleague, Shawn Connolly, to utilize his expertise in retirement planning. In addition, Shawn is a Certified Financial Planner who assists Sondra with comprehensive financial planning for her clients.

Sondra utilizes a team approach to guide her clients in helping them to achieve their financial aspirations. This includes consultations with attorneys, accountants, and other key financial personnel. Together they have been able to assist hundreds of families here in Western New York as well as across the country with continued support and advice on financial matters.

Det. Dennis Delano
Don't Be a Victim: Safety Issues for Women
Cold Case investigator and longtime Det. Dennis Delano retired from the Buffalo Police Department in June 2009, following a tumultuous two years in which he uncovered two innocent people who had been wrongly convicted and spent years in jail. He was suspended from the force for fifteen months for allegedly "breaking the chain of command." During that time, he ran for State Senate, narrowly losing to a longtime incumbent. He is currently promoting his book Bike Path Rapist and working privately to help people find answers in unsolved cases.

Jeff Schober
Don't Be a Victim: Safety Issues for Women
Jeff Schober is a writer and teacher from Orchard Park. Formerly a journalist, he teaches at Frontier High School in Hamburg. Bike Path Rapist, a true crime book, was released in March 2009. In addition, he is the author of Undercurrent, a novel set in Western New York in which three young people decide to hike across frozen Lake Erie on a warm winter day. He is currently at work on another novel.

Sharon Jordan Holley
Connecting with Stories
Sharon Jordan Holley is a storyteller and retired librarian in Buffalo, New York who hails from High Springs, FL. She is a founding and performing member of Spin-A-Story Tellers of Western New York and co-founder of Tradition Keepers: Black Storytellers of Western New York. She is also a member of the National Storytelling Network and the National Association of Black Storytellers where she was a 2009 recipient of the Zora Neale Hurston Award for excellence in storytelling. Sharon also plays percussion with Daughters of Creative Sound, an African American women's drum and percussion group in Buffalo, NY. She is active in several community organizations and is married to Kenneth Holley. They are the parents of three daughters and three grandchildren.

Kathy Ahmed
Domestic Violence in Immigrant Communities
Member and co-founder of RAHAMA - Resources and Help Against Marital Abuse - works to educate and support victims, social service providers, immigrant communities and religious leaders on domestic violence issues in the immigrant Muslim community (www.rahama-dv.org). Works as a school principal at Universal School in Buffalo - a K-8th grade elementary Islamic school.

Heidi Reukauf
One Health: People and Mountain Gorillas
My name is Heidi Reukauf. I am a native of Buffalo, NY. Since I was young I aspired to live and work in far off places to embrace diverse people and immerse myself in distinct cultures. Following completion of my undergraduate degree I departed for Nicaragua with the U.S. Peace Corps. After Peace Corps service I remained in Nicaragua to work as a Community Development Worker. I returned to the U.S. where I completed a master's degree in Public Health with an international health focus. I departed for Rwanda to serve as the Director of Field Operations for the 'One Health' initiative of the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project. Currently I work as a Cross-Cultural Victims' Advocate with the International Institute of Buffalo. I am inspired by the diversity that exists here in Buffalo! I am accompanied by my dog, Colbito, who has been by my side in Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, and Rwanda.

Robin Wilson
The Power of Social Media!
Robin specializes in teaching and helping companies bring their marketing into the 21st Century. She connects with thousands of customers with one click! She will help expose you and your company in the physical and virtual world. Utilizing the power of transparency, abundance and connection to create a market and build successful businesses.

Robin has been using Social Media for over a decade, long before it was called Social Media. She is one of the pioneering women in the WNY area who is educating large and small businesses about the benefits of Social Media Marketing.

The Wilson Edge is her unique and personalized approach to promoting the benefits of this very powerful medium. Specializing in bringing customers to you, Robin will show you how to gain the greatest leverage to make you and your business successful with social media tools.

Kelly Adams
Human Trafficking: Is it Happening in Western NY?
I received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from SUNY Geneseo in 2008. I am currently a graduate student at the University of Buffalo School of Social Work, and a candidate for graduation in May 2010. As part of my field education, I am presently engaged in a year-long internship with the Trafficking Victims Services program at the International Institute of Buffalo. Through this internship, I have become increasingly aware of the nature and prevalence of human trafficking, both in Western New York and across the world. I have also had the opportunity to witness the amazing strength of survivors.

Upon completion of my Master's degree, I plan to pursue work in a variety of fields, particularly sexual and domestic violence, as well as suicide prevention and mental health advocacy.

1st Annual Women's Conference Keynote Speaker: "Good Morning Gorgeous"

Buffalo native, Mary DeNisco, earned a Master of Science degree in Education at Buffalo State University College and taught at Lackawanna High School for 6 years before moving to Toronto. There she has enjoyed a lengthy career teaching English and Religion in an all girl inner city high school. Mary is an avid writer whose hobbies include cooking, photography and travelling; she is currently writing a book about life's defining moments. An AIDS activist and motivational speaker, Mary credits the wisdom of her 90 year old Mother and 30 years in the classroom with teenagers for her deep faith, gusto for life and witty sense of humor.

Amanda works to raise awareness of crimes against humanity and violence against civilians in Sudan, Congo, and Somalia in her capacity as a blogger and member of the policy team at the Enough Project in Washington, D.C. She has spent time in Cameroon, where she studied development and created a video on the growing Chinese presence there. Amanda received a B.A. in International Relations from Pomona College.

Rachel A. VanKoughnet has been a V-Day volunteer since 2002 and has helped raise over $20,000 for our Buffalo community's effort to end violence against women; Rachel is a solo-practitioner specializing in Matrimonial and Family Law, a court-appointed Attorney for Children and a member of the Assigned Counsel Program.

Sherry Robbins is a certified yoga teacher at the Himalayan Institute, and a teaching poet.

Frank Rice has been a student of the martial arts for 28 years. He is one of the few to earn a black belt in American Bushido from Sensei Derek Mortiz. This is a complete combat system that focuses on practical, realistic techniques, and integrates karate, kickboxing, boxing, jujitsu, and aikido. Mr. Rice has also trained with kickboxing legends Bill "Superfoot" Wallace and Joe Lewis, as well as with other specialists in a variety of martial disciplines.

Laura Anhalt has lived in Buffalo, NY since she immigrated to the United States from her native Mexico in 1999. She is the founder and co-owner of A Taste of the World, a gourmet sauce manufacturing business, dedicated to bringing the flavors from around the world to culinary enthusiasts everywhere. She also provides consulting and mentoring services for those interested in entering the food manufacturing industry.

Ms. Anhalt is the author Mexican Flavors: A Journey Inspired by the Folklores & Traditions of Mexican Cuisines and a freelance food and travel writer and a contributor for Buffalo Rising. She recently established House of Anhalt Publishing, a traditional publishing house, interested in publishing unique, top of the line cookbooks that have a story to tell, as well as children?s literature. She is constantly featured in local newspapers and magazines, and appears in television programs in Buffalo and Syracuse.

Laura is the proud mother of four young adults who like her, are also food and travel enthusiasts. They now live scattered throughout Mexico, the United States and Canada.

Dr. Kost is an Associate Professor at the UB School of Social Work. She has taught in the areas of social welfare policy, organizational behavior and management, community practice and research methods. Current research focuses on models of organizational collaboration and their effects on resource poor communities and agencies that serve low-income people, particularly in their capacity to respond to disasters.

Ms. Biggie currently serves as the Program Manager for Civic Pathways at the UB Center for Educational Collaboration. As part of an emerging addition to academic opportunities, Civic Pathways helps students identify areas of need within communities, both local and international, and how they can mobilize their own resources to combat these areas of need. This approach not only increases awareness of social, cultural, and economic needs, but also gives students the opportunity to become engaged, responsible citizens.

Ms. Biggie holds a M.A. in Anthropology with a specialization in Archaeology from the University at Buffalo. Her research focused on ritual landscape use during the Bronze Age through and including the Viking Age in Scandinavia. Through her work at the CEC, Ms. Biggie has developed new programs for Kids Voting Western New York, to help combat voter apathy by working with students in Pre k - 12 to learn about democracy and participate in their own election with the goal of becoming responsible adult voters. Current projects also include introducing students to educational challenges for children in Mara, Tanzania. Buffalo students have written letters, fundraised, and raised awareness about the need for schools in Tanzania, primarily for girls. In addition to her work at the CEC, Ms. Biggie also serves on the Board of Directors for Kids Voting USA.

Dr. Huber currently works at the University at Buffalo where she serves as Special Assistant to the President for Educational Initiatives and founding director of the UB Center for Educational Collaboration. Through these related positions Dr. Huber oversees the University?s commitment to strengthening the PreK-16 pipeline and directs its institutional partnership with the Buffalo Public School District. Her previous professional appointments include Assistant Professor in the School of Education at SUNY Fredonia, and Director of Special Programs in the Graduate School of Education at the University at Buffalo where she co-led the accreditation of UB?s Teacher Preparation Program.

Dr. Huber holds a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from the University at Buffalo with a focus on language perception and cognitive development. Her current research interests include school-university partnerships and strategic collaborations. Recent projects have focused on STEM based extended learning opportunity programs; research and evaluation; and a developing project in the Mara region of Tanzania. In addition to her University work Dr. Huber is a frequent consultant and speaker on issues of school-university partnerships, and leveraging educational collaboration for maximal impact. She has also authored a number of education related articles and manuscripts with the most recent being "High Stakes Partnerships," which appeared in the November issue of the American School Board Journal.

Lori Raybold, Matthew Meader, and Andrew Beiter are Board Members of Buffalo for Africa as well as founders of the Summer Institute for Human Rights and Genocide Studies here in Buffalo. Matt and Lori also teach English at Hamburg High School, with Drew teaching 8th Grade Social Studies at Springville Middle.) In addition to the Summer Institute, they have coordinated numerous workshops on Rwanda, Darfur, and Human Rights, and look forward to sharing the power of education with their workshop's participants.