Patty Curry

Co-Founder

Patty’s experience includes a variety of areas–non-profit, corporate, and entrepreneurship–all of which have contributed to the development of her excellent communication, project management, and people skills. Working in the corporate sector at IBM for 22 years as a writer/editor/manager provided Patty with the opportunity to work on technical projects as well as in marketing communications, managing large-scale projects and people. After leaving IBM, she set her sights on working in the nonprofit world. She felt the pull to give back.

Patty parlayed her experience to forge partnerships with nonprofit organizations including Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, SUNY Ulster President’s Challenge Scholarship, Jesse Lewis Choose Love Movement, TMI Project, and the Hudson Valley Writing Project. In her work with these organizations she had the privilege of contributing in the areas of nonprofit formation, strategic planning, fundraising, and program development, allowing her to fulfill her desire to impact social change by working with teams that are positively affecting society. 

Patty graduated from SUNY New Paltz with a B.S. in Visual Art before venturing upriver to earn an M.S. in Communications from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute of Technology, followed by two advanced certificates; one from RPI in Human Computer Interface Design and one from Rochester Institute of Technology in Web Design and Development. More recently, she returned to her higher education roots to complete the Hudson Valley Writing Project Invitational Institute housed at SUNY New Paltz.

The Hudson Valley has been Patty's home for the past 40+ years providing a full, expansive base that encompasses making connections near and far. She lives with her rescue animals: Zephyr, a 5-year old Shepherd mix and therapy dog in training and Danko and Petunia, sibling cats born to feral parents, all keeping her entertained and grounded. Her happy place is in any body of water, where she does her best thinking.

Patty Curry is responsible for securing our most significant, and longstanding grants, since the inception of our non-profit.

- Scarlett Lewis, Founder and Chief Movement Officer, Jesse Lewis Choose Love Movement

Chelsea Miller

Co-Founder

Chelsea received her B.A. from Hampshire College, a progressive liberal arts school in Amherst, MA, where she studied theater for social change, philosophy, and art history. This confluence of studies would prove to be an early indicator of her passion for bringing together multiple disciplines from various sectors to create lasting growth solutions for organizations of all sizes. After graduation, Chelsea moved to New York City where she worked with some of the city’s top real estate brokers in both resale and new development, offering her a crash course in understanding and translating financials, collaborating to create effective narratives, and the importance of building and maintaining relationships.

After six years in the real estate industry, Chelsea accepted the position of COO of New Business with Barbara Corcoran (one of the star investors of ABC’s Shark Tank). Chelsea was responsible for advising, managing, and conducting all due diligence for the companies in which Barbara invested. Over the course of her tenure as COO, Chelsea worked intimately with nearly 30 established businesses and startups to strengthen narratives, create collaborative marketing and communications, structure budgets and P&Ls, scale, and ultimately prepare each company for future investments.

A native upstater, she returned upstate while pregnant with her first son (of which there are now three!) and has spent the ensuing years as a local journalist, community cheerleader, mom, and development partner. In her spare time she can be found adventuring around the preserves and rail trails of the Hudson Valley with her young sons, organizing town events (having learned from Barbara that fun is indeed good for business!), and cooking up a storm.

Chelsea’s savvy networking skills, teamanship, and sharp eye for detail along with her great energy and passion help her
empower businesses to surpass their goals.

- Barbara Corcoran, Star of ABC’s Shark Tank and Real Estate Mogul

Our Team

Our team is composed of dedicated and engaged individuals who are passionate about their areas of expertise and committed to social change.

Deborah Brown

Grants and Board Development Director

Deborah Brown provides board management and grant writing support services to Curry & Miller non-profit, for profit, and hybrid client organizations working for social good.

Deborah’s career in philanthropy, non-profit management, and communications includes previous roles as chief of staff of Riverkeeper, where she assisted with major donor and foundation cultivation, board development and organizational management, and as corporate secretary for both the Romanian-American Foundation and the Romanian-American Enterprise Fund. Deborah holds a B.A. in journalism, with a minor in international relations from New York University. She studied aesthetic education with Maxine Green at Columbia University’s Teacher’s College, and completed fundraising and grant writing studies at NYU and the Foundation Center. She serves as treasurer of Grant Professionals of Lower Hudson, Inc., a nonprofit organization committed to enhancing grantsmanship, fundraising, and philanthropy in the lower Hudson Valley. Deborah founded the Newburgh Clean Water Project, and is a singer and lover of arts, languages, nature, people, and adventure.

Jose Fitzgerald

Grant Writer

Writing and social activism are two of Jose’s greatest passions. He is a staunch supporter of the current trends in prison and parole reform, especially its efforts to stop the archaic practice of parole denial based solely on the nature of one's crime. He advocates for higher education in prison through his volunteer work with Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, and looks forward to aiding in the amendment of draconian parole practices.

Incarcerated at the age of twenty, Jose was released after 24 1/2 years. During that time he acquired an Associate's degree in Liberal Arts from SUNY Sullivan, and then a Bachelor's degree in Social Sciences at St. Thomas Aquinas College (STAC), which, upon his release, afforded him a full scholarship to pursue a Master's of Public Administration in Criminal Justice.

Patrick Leber

AI Strategy Director

Meet Patrick Leber, a seasoned professional with a diverse and accomplished career in various job functions and organizations. From technology expert and graphic designer to marketing specialist and operations mastermind, Patrick has a wealth of experience and skills to offer. He is passionate about getting hands-on and working with a team, and has thrived in both small and large organizations, dealing with complex systems. He is a holistic systems thinker and an expert in operations, marketing, automation, and solving problems. With a unique ability to understand and navigate the intricacies of any organization, Patrick has a proven track record of success in implementing and managing automation systems, streamlining operations, and driving growth while also containing it. Patrick is dedicated to helping organizations and individuals achieve their goals, and he is committed to delivering results with a personalized approach.

Sonia Narvaez

Operations Strategist Director

Sonia prides herself on her seemingly innate ability to design customized business systems that help companies achieve greater impact. Her clients are altruistic entrepreneurs and business leaders seeking the path to create a shared sense of purpose and higher quality of life for both the organization itself as well as its surrounding world.

Sonia is a first generation Latina in the U.S. who holds both Bachelors and Masters Degrees in Public Health, and has combined her background in Public Health with her skillset in Operations.

Timothy Sharpe

Philanthropy Strategist

Timothy specializes in nonprofit strategic fundraising planning as well as works with high-net-worth individuals to provide advice on their philanthropic and impact investment goals and activities. He also advises a regenerative agriculture start-up working in New England and eastern New York.

Tim served from 2008-2019 as Senior Director, Strategic Philanthropy for World Wildlife Fund based in Washington, DC, and as Global Philanthropy Advisor for WWF International based in Gland, Switzerland. He helped lead private fundraising for the $46 million Bhutan for Life program after working on a similar $125 million Amazon Region Protected Areas project in Brazil.

He began his career in public broadcasting at WGBH in Boston in 1983 and worked for PBS in Washington. He holds a BA from Swarthmore College and an MBA from Johns Hopkins University.

Luke Wade

Digital Marketing Director

Luke is a twenty-year veteran in music with experience as both touring artist and industry professional. After moving to Los Angeles from his home city of Fort Worth, TX in 2016, he began working as a talent producer for NBC Casting, working with artists on television shows such as The Voice, SONGLAND, and American Song Contest.

Through his experience and interactions with other artists working in television casting, he found that many incredibly talented individuals lack access to the resources necessary to find and maintain the kind of attention that turns a passion into a career. Just as a social justice advocate might become a lawyer to help others receive the justice they deserve, Luke’s journey into digital marketing stems from the desire to see dreams and passions receive their due attention, a vision he shares with Curry and Miller.

Sharon Wasko

Graphic Designer

Sharon started her career in graphic and web design in 2018. Before that, she was a painter, crafter,dog walker, activist, entrepreneur, mom, art-show organizer, young punk kid, and a bunch of other stuff.

She grew up in New Jersey, majored in Fine Art at The College of New Jersey, and lived in Philadelphia for most of her adult life, where she ran a pet-sitting company. After moving to the Hudson Valley with her partner, Mike, in 2013, Sharon stayed home with her babies for a few years before taking graphic design classes at SUNY Ulster.

She now has the best job ever, making the world look a little better every day while still having the time to take care of her family. Sharon specializes in print design, logos and branding, continually obsessed with the interaction of color and shape and all the things that these simple elements can express.

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