Tearfund USA appoints four new Board Directors

Tearfund USA is pleased to announce the appointment of four new Board Directors: Darin Lamar Jones, Diego Forero, LaTashia Satterfield Ogunlana, and Mae Elise Cannon. These Directors will provide governance and strategic oversight for continued growth of Tearfund USA toward its vision to see all people freed from poverty and injustice, living transformed lives, and reaching their God-given potential.

“These appointments follow months of strategic effort, originally launched through a research project with Koya Partners to produce a robust portfolio of candidates. More importantly, these individuals come to us as the result of much prayer and discernment,” explained Emily Sarmiento, President and CEO of Tearfund USA. 

“We are thrilled to welcome each one to the team. They add tremendous collective experience, expertise, networks and life perspectives. We are excited to partner with them to build the organization and advance our mission to enable communities to overcome poverty and injustice.”

Darin Lamar Jones is an Assistant Vice-President of Consumer Strategy at Bank of America. He is responsible for researching, developing and communicating strategies that enhance the bank’s engagement with consumer clients and small businesses. Darin has a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a focus in strategy and corporate finance from the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. He also secured a Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary and a Master of Theology from Princeton Theological Seminary. He serves as co-president of Cornell's 2010 alumni class council and is an ordained minister within the National Baptist Convention, U.S.A.

Diego Forero is the Vice-President, Global Marketing Lead of Hospital Business at Pfizer, Inc. Originally from Colombia, South America, Diego studied to become a medical doctor in Bogotá at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana and earned a marketing management specialty at Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano. He then obtained an MBA from INALDE Business School - Universidad de la Sabana. He has more than 23 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry with roles at country, regional and global levels. Diego’s experience ranges from new product planning, portfolio management, strategy and business intelligence, marketing and commercial regional and global leadership roles, country manager, and working across multiple geographies, covering developed and emerging markets. Diego will offer his experience and expertise as a private volunteer, not as a representative of Pfizer. 

LaTashia Satterfield Ogunlana’s international development experience includes financial and enterprise system implementation and training, compliance training, and audit management. With a professional background in finance, LaTashia has held several leadership roles such as Chief Financial Officer, Vice President Budget and Grants, Interim Director of Finance, Interim Deputy Chief of Party. She has participated in writing various proposals for USAID, Department of State, World Bank/Global Funds, Department of Education and private foundations. Currently, she is an ordained Itinerant Elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church where she serves faithfully on the ministerial staff in Lanham, Maryland. LaTashia holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and a Master of Divinity from Virginia Union University Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology.

Mae Elise Cannon is Executive Director of Churches for Middle East Peace and an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Covenant Church. She earned a Ph.D. in History and Doctor of Ministry degree in Spiritual Formation  from the University of California. She holds a Master of Divinity From North Park Theological Seminary, an MBA and a Master of Arts degree in bioethics. Her ministry and professional background includes serving as the Senior Director of Advocacy and Outreach for World Vision-US, the executive pastor of Hillside Covenant Church, and the Director of Development and Transformation for Extension Ministries at Willow Creek Community Church.

Darin, Diego, LaTashia, and Mae join Directors added since the 2018 start-up of Tearfund USA. Click here to see full bios and photos for all Directors.

About Tearfund USA

Based in the UK, Tearfund is a Christian international relief and development agency. Since 1968, Tearfund has tackled poverty through sustainable development, responding to disasters, and challenging injustice. Tearfund USA is one of the newest members in the Tearfund global family of 11 agencies working with nearly 300 partners and 15,000 churches in more than 40 countries. For more information, visit www.tearfundusa.org.