Leadership

President, James McGowan, joined Second Harvest of the Big Bend as Development Officer in fall 2019. Prior to that, he served as Director of Development and Philanthropy at the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank, where he led fundraising efforts, implemented a full Salesforce data migration, and helped navigate the organization through a devastating 2016 flood.

He later served as Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives at National VOAD, acting as COO and leading key technology and partnership initiatives, including Operation Dragon Fire. Throughout his career, James has supported numerous major disaster responses and was appointed in 2005 by Governor Bob Riley to serve as Development Officer for the Governor’s Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. In his free time, you can find him with his wife, Leigh, and their daughter, Mary Britt.

Secretary, Kristie Teal, is currently the Donor Engagement Manager at Second Harvest of the Big Bend. Previously, Kristie has worked for the Southern Scholarship Foundation, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Big Bend and the American Cancer Society. The majority of her professional career has been spent working in non-profit organizations.  Kristie is originally from California and graduated from the University of California Santa Barbara. After college, Kristie served in the Peace Corps in Namibia. Kristie is married to a Tallahassee native and her most cherished role is that of Mom to her two beautiful children.

Treasurer, Nicole Ballas, is the Chief Development Officer at Elder Care Services. Nicole graduated from the University of Georgia in 2007 with degrees in Public Relations and History. She has been involved in the not-for-profit sector for over 10 years and focused specifically on philanthropy in elder services for the last 5 years. Nicole moved to Tallahassee in 2017. She is married with two young children and spends much of her free time watching dinosaur videos and singing “The Wheels on the Bus.”

Membership Chair, Colette Podgorski, is currently the Senior Director of Development for University Wide Initiatives and College of Social Work at Florida State University (FSU). Colette received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, N.C. Colette has worked in development for nonprofits and higher education for over 15 years. Colette has also worked as a fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters (Tallahassee, FL), Florida Medial Association (Tallahassee, FL) and Abuse Prevention Council (Shelby, NC). Colette was honored with Tallahassee Network of Young Professionals' "20 under 40" Golden A.C.E. Award for 2016 in the category of Nonprofit Leadership and the 2018 Fundraiser of the Year from Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Big Bend Chapter.  She served on the AFP’s Big Bend board from 2011- 2016 and was the 2015 AFP Big Bend President. One of the primary initiatives during Colette’s term as AFP president was to work closely with other organizations to create a community-wide giving campaign, #BigBendGivesBack centered on #GivingTuesday which is still active and successful. Colette believes philanthropy changes lives and being a development professional is invaluable and humbling because we are given the opportunity to create the “magic” for donors and as a result, they feel good about the philanthropic work they do to make a difference. Colette’s other passions include working out, spending time with her son and cheering on the Seminoles.

Communications Chair, Ashleigh Kittrell, serves as the Marketing and Communications Specialist at Second Harvest of the Big Bend. A Tallahassee native, she graduated from Florida State University with a bachelor’s degree in Media and Communication Studies. In her role, Ashleigh leads marketing and communications efforts, using storytelling to advance the organization’s mission of fighting hunger across the Big Bend region. She is married to her high school sweetheart and, in her free time, serves as a youth leader at Morningside Church.

Member-At-Large, Stephanie Schwartz, has served as the Northwest Florida Development Leader for Equality Florida since 2022– creating financial support and raising awareness of LGBTQ issues in the Florida Panhandle.

Previously, Stephanie worked in development for a local HIV/AIDS advocacy nonprofit. Chosen as the agency’s first front-line fundraiser, Stephanie worked to identify and cultivate relationships with existing and prospective donors, community stakeholders, volunteers, and corporate partners. Stephanie also worked for many years in local media sales and was a top producer in account sales and retention.

A UF Gator by degree (Bachelor of Science in Public Relations), today Stephanie loudly cheers for the FSU Seminoles in all sports, “Go ‘Noles!” Stephanie and her partner like to travel as much as possible and they live with three four-legged children, canines, Eli and Charlie, and feline, Simone.