Laurence Beilenson

Board Member

• Assistant Treasurer
• Executive Committee
• Finance Committee
• Personnel Committee

Larry is the president of Peter Pauper Press, inc., a publisher of books, stationery, and gifts, with offices in White Plains, NY. After graduating from Brown University, he worked in finance for Miller, Tabak and Hirsch and became a Chartered Financial Analyst. At WRO, Larry is a member of the Executive, Finance and Personnel Committees. He is a resident of Greenwich, CT, and Manhattan, and a WRO board member since 2014.

Debra Budetti

Board Member

• Secretary
• Executive Committee
• Development & Strategic Planning Committee

Debra is co-founder, along with her husband Lou, of ERA Insite Realty Services, which now has offices in White Plains, Bronxville and Thornwood, NY. Their company has been in business since 1985 and has been expanding ever since. Debra serves as full-time Director of Relocation. Her department consistently wins awards for commitments to excellence; it effectively serves the counties of Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess in NY and Fairfield in CT. Debra has since 2010 also served the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors as Co-chair of Communications. She is a member of WRO’s Development Committee, resides in Somers, and a WRO board member since 2015.

Leah Caro

Board Member

• Co-Chair
• Co-Chair, Executive Committee
• Finance Committee
• Development & Strategic Planning Committee.
• Fair Housing & Diversity Advisory Committee

Leah serves as WRO’s Co-Chair. Since 2001, she has been the Principal Broker of Park Sterling Realty (formerly Bronxville-Ley Real Estate) where she is a hands-on supervisor of over 50 real estate agents. Leah was the 2009/10 President of the Westchester Putnam Association of Realtors (now the expanded Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors). She is a member of the National Association of Realtors and the NYS Association of Realtors, where she has served as President of its Housing Opportunities Foundation, and Chair of its Professional Standards Committee. Leah is certified by NY State to teach real estate license law, agency disclosure, and ethics. She joined the board in 2011.

Margaret M. (Gretchen) Flint, Esq.

Board Member

• Co-Chair
• Co-Chair, Executive Committee
• Finance Committee
• Fair Housing & Diversity Advisory Committee
• Independent Living/Mental Health Advisory Committee

Gretchen, a White Plains resident, serves as WRO Co-Chair. She is a Pace Law professor, Executive Director of John Jay Legal Services, and faculty supervisor of the Equal Justice America Disability Rights/Health Law Clinic. In these capacities, Gretchen supervises and mentors Pace Law students in clinical work. Previously, Gretchen was Director of the Elderly Project at Volunteers of Legal Service and Managing attorney of the Legal Department of the NYC Commission on Human Rights. Gretchen is a graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University School of Law, and has been a WRO board member since 1998.

Jodee MacDonald

Board Member

• Chair, Senior/General Housing Advisory Committee
• Development & Strategic Planning Committee
• Homeownership Advisory Committee

Jodee can best be described as a dedicated volunteer who helps people in need. a whirlwind, and an overachiever. During her lifetime, Jodee has served a 3-year stint in the US Army, become disabled, has undergone several surgeries, and lived in Section 8 housing. Among her numerous volunteer efforts: obtaining for underserved girls free prom dresses together with fitting and hair stylings; running an annual Christmas toy and book fair at the Theodore Young Community Center in Greenburgh.

Jodee serves on a number of WRO Advisory Committes and “tells it like it is.”

Jodee is a 2006 graduate of Westchester Community College and a 2012 graduate of Concordia College, the first person in her family to attend college. She lives in Stamford CT and for many years lived in Greenburgh. She became a WRO board member in 2010.

Dennis Parker, Esq.

Board Member

• Fair Housing & Diversity Advisory Committee

Dennis Parker serves as the Executive Director of the National Center for Law and Economic Justice (NCLEJ), an organization which was founded in 1965 to fight for economic justice for our nation’s most vulnerable — low-income families, communities of color, people with disabilities, immigrants and children. NCLEJ uses a combination of litigation, ground-breaking advocacy and policy analysis in collaboration with a wide range of partners across the country to advance racial, immigrant, and gender justice concerns. Prior to joining NCLEJ in January of 2019, Dennis served as the director of the Racial Justice Program of the ACLU, leading its efforts in combating discrimination and addressing a range of issues which have a disproportionate negative impact upon communities of color, including the “School-to-Prison” Pipeline, racial bias in the criminal justice system, housing discrimination and related economic justice issues and digital discrimination. Prior to joining the ACLU, he served as the Chief of the Civil Rights Bureau in the office of the New York Attorney General and, for fourteen years, worked on and directed the educational work of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. Dennis began his legal career as a staff attorney in the Criminal Defense Division of the New York Legal Aid Society. He has co-authored or contributed chapters to books and articles dealing with civil rights and has lectured extensively on the subject across the country. He serves as an adjunct professor at New York Law School where he teaches a course on law and social change. Dennis is a graduate of the Harvard Law School and Middlebury College.

Debra Thompson

Board Member

• Co-Chair, Development & Strategic Planning Committee

The weddings and events industry has been Debra’s passion for over 25 years. She began her career as an Event Planner at a well-known Westchester, NY Country Club then, 14 years ago, started her own business. Debra’s award-winning firm, Weddings by Debra, has brought hundreds of dream weddings and events to life throughout the New York Metropolitan area. Debra actively attends and plans educational and networking events, and is a Professional Wedding PlannerTM in the Association of Bridal Consultants.

Debra is just as passionate about using her skills to help non-profits, and has proudly served on the Board of Directors for Hamilton-Madison House for the last 27 years. Her professional experience is invaluable in assisting both organizations with their event, fundraising, development, and membership efforts.

Wendy M. Weathers, Esq.

Board Member

• Development & Strategic Planning Committee
• Homeownership Advisory Committee

Wendy is a Partner at Clair Gjertsen & Weathers PLLC. Wendy is active in the NY State, Westchester County, Westchester Women’s, Queens County, and Fairfield Bar Associations, and serves as President of the Westchester County Bar Association during 2018. Wendy is the recipient of a NYS Bar Association 2016 President’s Pro Bono Service Award for the 9th Judicial District. Wendy, a member of WRO’s Mortgage Counseling Advisory Committee, has a great deal of experience in and understanding of the problems and opportunities faced by homeowners in mortgage default. Wendy is a Peekskill resident, and a WRO board member since 2015.

Alan R. Wolfert, Esq.

Board Member

• Executive Committee
• Personnel Committee
• Chair, Independent Living/Mental Health Advisory Committee
• Homeownership Advisory Committee

Alan, a board member since 1991 and now retired, served as IBM’s Counsel for Global Real Estate Operations. There, he was responsible for all IBM real estate transactions in the U.S., and provided advice to IBM’s worldwide operations on such matters. After graduation from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and Cornell Law School, Alan served in the U.S. Marine Corps.’ Judge Advocate Division. He is a former Chair of WRO. Alan lives in Chappaqua.