DSDN Board

We are thankful for the ongoing efforts of our Board of Directors in governing and providing strategic direction to DSDN.

Tony Nowicki

DSDN Board President.
Tony is a New Product Introduction Project Manager at 3M. He brings over 12 years experience in project management, research and development, and manufacturing to the DSDN Board. He has received a 3M Circle of Technical Excellence and Innovation award, is a Certified Scrum Product Owner and Certified Scrum Advanced Scrum Master, and has been awarded 2 patents from the USPTO. Tony resides in Woodbury, MN with his wife and two children. His youngest son, Philip, also rocks an extra chromosome.

Taryn Lagonigro

DSDN Board Vice President. Taryn is a business consultant and the author of Ups, Downs and Silver Linings and Dear Mama: Stories of an Extra Lucky Life. Taryn is the co-owner of Iris Yoga, a yoga studio in New Jersey, and Extra Lucky Moms, an advocacy brand in the disability community. Taryn’s writings have been featured in several national publications and she has frequently been a guest on podcasts and television shows for topics relating to yoga, Down syndrome and parenting a child with a disability. In addition to holding the role of Secretary, Taryn also leads the DSDN Technology Committee. Taryn is a wife and mom to four daughters, the youngest of whom was born with Down syndrome in March 2020.

Anna Yen

DSDN Board Treasurer. Anna, CFA, has spent over 20 years as an investment professional, financial writer, and business owner. She’s held senior roles at UBS, JPMorgan, and asset management firms, along with founding personal finance blog Family Money Map and bilingual storytelling podcast Chinese Star Tales. Currently Anna also serves as Senior Advisor for Prudent Investors, a registered investment advisor focused on trusts, estates, and families, where she has a passion for special needs planning. She advocates tirelessly for her middle child whose super power is Down syndrome. Anna’s worked in 5 countries and visited 57!

Lori Fontaine

DSDN Board Secretary. Lori has over three decades of extensive and varied healthcare experience, encompassing roles in clinical research, medical education, information technology, consulting, administrative management, and direct patient care. In 2019, her achievements were acknowledged when she was honored as an "Outstanding Women in Business" by the Worcester Business Journal. She has recently retired from her position as Global Vice President of Clinical Strategy at Smith+Nephew and is now dedicating her expertise to part-time consulting for innovative medical device start-ups. Lori's connection with DSDN stems from her niece welcoming a beautiful baby girl into the world, who rocks an extra chromosome, solidifying Lori's commitment to supporting families like hers.

Jennifer Dingman

As an entrepreneurial digital communications leader, Jennifer brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the DSDN Board. She is currently the Head of Digital Communications at Approach Marketing, where she is responsible for leading a team of digital experts across social media, paid media, and influencer marketing. Jennifer lives in the western suburbs of Chicago with her husband and two young daughters. Her youngest daughter, Millie, rocks an extra chromosome.

Megan Dixon

Megan is an Area Director at Sevita where she oversees residential and community-based services that support adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and serves as Secretary of PA Mentor's State Governing Body, guiding governance initiatives and organizational oversight. Megan is also a professor at the College of Adaptive Arts where she is passionate about expanding educational opportunities for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Special Education, a master’s degree in Educational Leadership, and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Healthcare Administration. Megan resides in Pennsylvania with her husband and four children, including her daughter with Down syndrome who joined the family through adoption.

Amanda Durk Frye

Amanda is an aerospace engineer and manufacturing and operations executive with nearly two decades of experience across Parker Hannifin, startup Astra Space, and Fisica Applied Technologies. She currently serves as Director of Operations for Fisica’s Randtron division and is a 2021 Manufacturing Institute STEP Ahead Award honoree. During her engineering career at Parker Hannifin, Amanda also led the creation of a mentoring program that connected more than 300 women across the organization and championed initiatives supporting women in manufacturing and STEM.
Amanda’s second child was born extra amazing, thanks to an extra chromosome! She’s helped put satellites in orbit, but nothing compares to the joy this little man brings to her family and everyone around him. After experiencing firsthand the incredible support and community DSDN provides to families, Amanda is passionate about bringing her experience building strong teams and communities to help DSDN expand its impact and advocate for individuals with Down syndrome and their families.

Ben Hughes

Ben has 13+ years of customer experience leadership across a variety of industries and currently works as a Customer Experience Team Leader for General Motors. As a proud father to Elliott (7), who has Down syndrome, Ben is closely connected and passionate about the mission and goals of DSDN, using his own experiences and professional background to help further that mission. He also serves as a Rockin' Dad Retreat Director and sits on the DSDN technology committee. Ben currently lives in Michigan with his wife and two children.

Heidi Lopez

Heidi Maria Lopez (she/her/they/Ella/elle) is a first-generation in the US, Black Dominican who had her only child, Ambiori, in 2022. Receiving an at-birth diagnosis of T21 she was plunged into first time momhood and all things Down Syndrome. She is grateful for the amazing support and resources she received from groups like DSDN, especially the birth year group. Since then she has been doing the best she can and, along the way, enjoying the ride with her vivacious, kind and resilient son. She’s proud to be on the DSDN board to support other parents navigating this journey.

Dr. Marisol Martinez-Garcia

Dr. Marisol Martinez-Garcia has served in public education for more than 20 years, working as a paraeducator, teacher, school psychologist, and, for the past 14 years, a school administrator. She currently leads an early childhood education program that serves pregnant mothers and children from birth to five. She holds a Doctorate in Educational Leadership, with research centered on the attributes of parents who advocate for inclusive education. She serves as a parent facilitator for her local Down Syndrome organization’s Stepping Up program, equipping families to support their child’s unique learning profile. Marisol brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work with DSDN. She and her husband, Christian, are the proud parents of two children — a caring and gifted daughter and a joyful son who proudly rocks an extra chromosome.

Sarah Mesa-Haas

Sarah has 8 years experience as a speech clinician. She has worked with individuals ages 3 to 23 years old with speech impairments and delays in clinical and educational settings. The good Lord knew this experience would open her heart to her rockin' 5-year old with Down Syndrome. Aside from being a speechie, she spends her time advocating for her children (ages 12, 11 and 5). You can find her at a PTO board meeting at her oldest child's middle school, at a Rainbow Parents meeting for families of LGBTQIA+ children, or dancing at her Polynesian Dance studio. She lives with her husband and 3 children in Southern California.

Brecken Price

Brecken is a business executive with more than 15 years of experience leading strategy, operations, and financial performance in agriculture and specialty products. She is Vice President & General Manager of Professional Turf Products at The Andersons, Inc., where she has driven significant earnings growth, expanded market share through acquisition, and led multi-site teams across sales, operations, and finance. Her career spans senior leadership roles in eCommerce, innovation, and food ingredients, as well as financial and audit positions with Ernst & Young. Brecken holds an MBA from Bowling Green State University and a B.S. in Accounting from Hillsdale College, and she has served on the board of Junior Achievement of Northwest Ohio.

Tereze Sinno

Tereze is a disability and absence consultant at American Benefits Consulting with over 14 years of experience working with employer benefits. As a proud mom to Maya (3), who has Down syndrome, Tereze has become fully immersed in the greater Philadelphia Down syndrome community, particularly Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP)’s Trisomy 21 program and the CHOP-Penn Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (IDDRC) Community Advisory Board. Her family is binational, bicultural, and trilingual speaking both Arabic, Armenian, and English. She lives with her husband and 2 children in the greater Philadelphia area.

Allen Thomas

Allen was born in India and immigrated to the United States at age 8. He currently serves as Lead Pastor in San Antonio, TX, and is a passionate advocate for individuals with special needs, inspired in part by his son, Ezra, who has Down syndrome. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors for the Down Syndrome Diagnosis Network, Allen is part of the Telos Mosaic Program, a learning community for leaders committed to peacemaking and justice. He is deeply committed to helping marginalized and overlooked communities find a place of belonging.

Dr. Sandra B Vanegas

Dr. Vanegas has worked in disability research and services for over 21 years. She currently serves as a Research Associate Professor at the School of Social Work and Director of Research at the Texas Center for Disability Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, where her research addresses disparities in developmental screening, diagnosis, healthcare transition, and interventions for children and families with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She holds a Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Loyola University Chicago and an M.S. in Human Development and Early Childhood Disorders from the University of Texas at Dallas. Sandra draws on both her professional expertise and her own family's experience with disability to advocate for equitable access to information and support for all families.