Loaves & Fishes Community Services Welcomes Four New Board Members

(Naperville, IL –May 24, 2021) Loaves & Fishes Community Services is very pleased to announce the appointment of four new board members:  Kristen Refness, Shafer Suggs, Ashfaq Syed, and Joel Weinberger.

Kristen Refness is an accomplished professional with comprehensive experience in financial management and treasury services. She currently serves as the System Director, Hospital Financial Planning at Edward-Elmhurst Health. Kristen is a former Board President of Kids Matter.

Shafer Suggs has an extensive background in sales, leadership, new business development, and coaching. He is the president and founder of Shafer Suggs Life & Sales Coach and Inner Winner 23, Life & Accountability Coach. Additionally, Shafer was a player in the National Football League with the New York Jets and Cincinnati Bengals. He currently serves as Vice President, Executive Board of Directors for the NFLPA/RPFPC former players.

Ashfaq Syed is a senior banker in Naperville and was associated with Times Bank and ICICI Bank in India, and RAK Bank in Dubai.  He currently serves on the Naperville Public Library Board of Trustees and is a member of the Islamic Center of Naperville. Ashfaq has been instrumental in several recent innovative community-oriented campaigns, including the 2020 Census Naperville efforts.

Joel Weinberger is the Dealer Principal at Continental AutoSports Ferrari and is the former owner and operator of Continental Motors of Naperville.  Joel and his family have been very supportive of the CARES car program at Loaves & Fishes, providing 72 cars to clients since 2011.  He is a former Board Advisor at DuPage PADS.

“We are honored to welcome these extraordinary individuals to our Board of Directors,” said Mike Havala, President and CEO of Loaves & Fishes.  “They bring a wide variety of professional experiences and perspectives that will strengthen our organization.”