2026 Board of Directors Slate

OFFICERS (1 YEAR TERM)

Chair - Edward Bethea serves as the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Gateway Community Action Partnership. He oversees all financial, managerial and revenue-generating departments and activities within the agency. He is the chief negotiator of all contracts and leases and serves as chief developer on all construction projects. He is responsible for the Operations, Finance and Human Resources Departments as well as, Head Start, Health Services, Economic Development, Social Services, Information Technology, Weatherization, Property Management and Facility Maintenance. He brings years of experience in tax consulting, financial planning, cash flow projection and asset management to Gateway, and maintains approval authority on all agency spending. He is also directly responsible for the interactions between Gateway and financial institutions and governmental entities. Mr. Bethea currently serves as President of the Bridgeton City Municipal Council and joined the Network Board of Directors in 2020. 

Vice Chair - Pilar Hogan Closkey, PE, PP, AICP joined Saint Joseph Carpenter Society in 1998 as the Operations Manager and, in 2004, was named the Executive Director. Ms. Closkey graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a B.S. in Civil Engineering and worked for seven years in the field of consulting engineering. She then pursued her Master’s degree in Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and worked for a non-profit tax credit developer.  She is licensed as a Professional Engineer and a Professional Planner in New Jersey and is nationally certified with the American Institute of Certified Planners.  As the Executive Director, Ms. Closkey reports to the Board of Trustees and is responsible for the day-to-day activities of SJCS. She returned to the Network Board of Directors in 2023 after a previously serving.

Treasurer - Daniel Antonellis has served as President of Region Nine Housing Corporation (RNHC) since 2012, developing high-quality affordable housing and providing services to families, seniors and disabled individuals. Prior to becoming RNHC President, he served as a Staff Representative for the Communications Workers of America, Local 1038 and spent nearly 25 years at the New Jersey Department of Labor prior to that. He is a former Vice President and Board President of the ARC Mercer and a founding member of the Board of Orphan Sponsorship International (OSI). Mr. Antonellis joined the Network Board of Directors in 2018.

NEW BOARD MEMBER – ASSOCIATE (3 Year Term)

Mariya Burnell is Vice President, Regional Community Development Manager at TD Bank, supporting the Pennsylvania and New Jersey markets. She joined the Community Development team in 2017 and is responsible for the development, monitoring and execution of community reinvestment strategies and goals. She has over 15 years of experience in the financial services industry and thrives on building collaborative partnerships to address critical community needs. Her community engagement is further enhanced by her role of an advisory committee member for several community-based partners, focused on home ownership, affordable housing, financial education, real estate development and small business support. Prior to her position at TD Bank, Ms. Burnell worked in the CRA/Compliance/Community Development field at OceanFirst Bank (formerly, Sun National Bank) in South Jersey and held the position of CRA Officer at WSFS Bank (formerly, Beneficial Bank) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

RENEWING TERM - CORE (3 Year Term)

Vice Chair - Pilar Hogan Closkey, PE, PP, AICP joined Saint Joseph Carpenter Society in 1998 as the Operations Manager and, in 2004, was named the Executive Director. Ms. Closkey graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a B.S. in Civil Engineering and worked for seven years in the field of consulting engineering. She then pursued her Master’s degree in Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and worked for a non-profit tax credit developer.  She is licensed as a Professional Engineer and a Professional Planner in New Jersey and is nationally certified with the American Institute of Certified Planners.  As the Executive Director, Ms. Closkey reports to the Board of Trustees and is responsible for the day-to-day activities of SJCS.She returns to the Network Board of Directors in 2023.

Susanne Byrne, Chief Executive Officer, York Street Project
Susanne Byrne joined the York Street Project in her current role in 2009, but she is no stranger to its programs. With a one year hiatus, serving as the Homeless Planning Coordinator for Hudson County, she spent 10 years prior with The Project. She served as the Caseworker/Advocate for St. Joseph’s Home from 2000 to 2008 and as the Assistant to the Director of The Nurturing Place from 1998-2000. Ms. Byrne holds a Masters in Administrative Science degree from Fairleigh Dickinson in Teaneck, New Jersey and a BA degree with a major in English and a concentration in Political Science from St. Michael’s College in Vermont. She is a member of the Hudson County Human Services Advisory Council, Hudson County Alliance to End Homelessness, the Hudson County Affordable Housing Coalition, the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey, and the Antipoverty Network of New Jersey. Within these groups, she serves on a variety of Executive Boards and sub-committees advocating for the poor.

Taiisa Kelly, CEO, Monarch Housing Associates

Taiisa joined Monarch Housing Associates in March of 2006. She has experience in housing development working with federal, state and local funding sources to secure financing for special needs housing projects. In October of 2007, Ms. Kelly joined the Ending Homelessness Team where she works with local governments, nonprofits and community stakeholders to develop coordinated strategies to end homelessness. On January 1, 2019, she was appointed as CEO. She has extensive experience in working with community stakeholders on homeless planning activities. As a member of the Ending Homelessness Team Ms. Kelly guides communities through the process of developing 10 year plans to end homelessness and has completed 3 community plans in the past 2 years. Ms. Kelly received her B.A. in psychology and anthropology from Rutgers University.

RENEWING TERM - ASSOCIATE (3 Year Term)

John Keller, Director of Education and Outreach, coLAB Arts
John was born and raised in the City of New Brunswick and works in NYC and internationally as a freelance actor. Through his work at coLAB Arts, he is committed to creating projects that use the arts as a lens to examine complex issues that affect community. While serving as Director of Education for coLAB Arts, he has produced main-stage productions and initiated educational residencies in several central New Jersey schools. Mr. Keller curates and directs coLAB Arts’ Trueselves oral history and theater project in partnership with the Pride Center of New Jersey and Rutgers Oral History Archive. He is also the Board Chair for New Brunswick’s Town Clock Community Development Corporation. John earned his undergraduate degree at Holy Cross and holds a Masters in Fine Arts in Acting from Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts. He has taught theater at all grade levels in a variety of residency programs as well as at Rider University, Westminster Choir College and is currently teaching Theater for Social Development at Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts, and Acting at Fairleigh Dickinson University.

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