IAM Announces New Board Members
and Officers

January 31, 2022

Interfaith Assistance Ministry is proud to announce six new members who are volunteering their time and expertise to serve on the Board of Directors of Henderson County’s largest nonprofit provider of crisis services.  

The new board members are:

Terry Andersen, who has previously served two, six-year-terms on the board, is returning to serve a three-year-term and has accepted the position of board treasurer. Andersen is an accountant and part-owner of Carland & Andersen, Inc., certified public accountants. He is chairing the Finance Committee.

Areli Perez-Nava is filling a two-year-term ending December 2023. Perez-Nava is the Coordinator of Henderson County Schools’ Migrant Education Program. She is serving on the Events and Community Outreach Committee and is bilingual.

Paige Posey is serving a three-year-term ending in December 2024. Posey is the co-owner, business manager and co-host of The Breakfast Club morning show for WTZQ radio. She is also well-known for her acting and leadership roles at Flat Rock Playhouse and is an experienced nonprofit board member and leader. She is serving on the Fundraising and Marketing Committee.

Rhona Reagan is filling a two-year term ending December 2023. Reagan is a private music instructor and orchestra conductor with nonprofit experience. She is serving as chair of the Human Resources Committee.

John Sheiry, Jr. is serving a three-year-term ending December 2024. Sheiry is a certified general real estate appraiser and owner of Trusted Appraisers Group in Hendersonville. He is serving on the Facilities and Finance Committees and is an experienced nonprofit board member and leader.

Linda Showalter is serving a three-year-term. A retired social worker and IAM landscaping volunteer, Showalter has accepted the office of board secretary. She has extensive experience on nonprofit boards as a member and leader.

“I am thrilled to welcome these six new members to IAM’s Board of Directors,” said Rick Merrill, who is beginning a two-year term as board president. “They are joining the board at an exciting time as we launch our new IAM thrift store next month. We are thankful for their donations of their time, resources and energy.”

Merill also announced the new board officers for 2022:

  • Rick Merrill, president. Merrill is a Realtor with Beverly Hanks and IAM’s Thrift Store Volunteer Project Manager

  • Sharon Tirrell, vice president. Tirrell is a retired clinical social worker, nonprofit executive and nonprofit consultant in program development, evaluation and strategic planning. She chairs IAM’s Board Development and Governance Committee.

  • Linda Showalter, Secretary.

  • Terry Andersen, Treasurer

  • Rabbi Rachael Jackson, Immediate Past President. Jackson just completed two years of serving as IAM’s Board President and six years as a board member. She is the rabbi at Agudas Israel Synagogue in Hendersonville.

Additional members of IAM’s Board of Directors include Kaye Brownlee, who serves on the Congregational Relations Committee; Marcia Caserio who served on the Thrift Store and Congregational Relations Committees; Alice Hunter, community volunteer and retired flight attendant who chairs IAM’s Events and Outreach Committee; Rev. Alfredo Oviedo, pastor at Grace Lutheran, who serves on the Congregational Relations Committee; Ella Stenstrom, CFO at Advent Health Hendersonville, who serves on the Finance Committee and volunteers at IAM’s Drive-Thru Tuesday food distribution; Dick Weaver, a retired pharmacist, who chairs IAM’s Congregational Relations Committee and Christa Willey, who owns a real estate management company and serves on IAM’s Events and Community Outreach Committee. 

“We are grateful that these outstanding community members are sharing their precious time to guide IAM through a tremendous era of growth,” said Elizabeth Willson Moss, IAM’s Executive Director. “I look forward to working hand-in-hand with each one of them over the next few years as we serve the most vulnerable residents in our community.”

IAM honored outgoing board members Adriana Chavela, Melinda Lowrance, Sarah Massagee and David Scott at the December 2021 board meeting for their service.

IAM is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that is the largest nonprofit provider of crisis services to residents of Henderson County who are experiencing a temporary or ongoing financial crisis. Founded in 1984 by local churches and faith community leaders, IAM provided more than 43,000 service touches in 2021 including a week’s worth of food for every member of the family; gently used clothing and new underwear for all sizes; personal hygiene items, gasoline vouchers, bus tickets, cleaning supplies, linens and pet food. 

To find out how to become an IAM volunteer, please call 828-697-7029. To make a much-needed financial gift, please mail checks to Interfaith Assistance Ministry, PO Box 2562, Hendersonville, NC 28793 or visit IAM’s website: www.iam-hc.org.