Meet our board of directors
Lauren Makofsky
(Co-founder, President)
Lauren is Maya, Dragon, and Mordecai's human. She's neurodivergent. When she's not running AllWorthy, she's a freelance copywriter with a focus on cause-driven and inclusive creative, and a Special Olympics gymnastics coach for the team she started coaching when she was 12, and now runs. She's incredibly driven to help people understand disability, and a big believer that representation in the media can make a massive impact.
Harrison Makofsky
(Co-founder, Secretary)
Having grown up with Type 1 (Jeuvenile) Diabetes, Harrison understands the challenges that come when your body doesn't work the way it should. When he adopted Maya, he was thrown deeper into the world of disability advocacy — and he couldn't be happier. Today, Harrison is the illustrator for all our books, and also runs the business and operational side of AllWorthy. He currently works in product operations for a big online company, with a background in customer success that helps our organization run. He wants to help other kids with disabilities and chronic illnesses be proud of their diagnoses and confident in their bodies, just as they are.
David Romero
(Treasurer)
Dave has cerebral palsy, which has given him an appreciation for accessibility and an understanding that today's world isn't accessible or inclusive enough. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Economics from Ramapo College of New Jersey, and works in high yield credit investments at an asset management company. He enjoys playing video games with his friends in his free time. And even though he has an accessible Xbox controller, he never actually uses it.
Felicia Hayden
Felicia has served as a motivator and sounding board for everything we do since before the nonprofit even began. She has a background in psychology, childcare, and healthcare and brings an important mental health perspective to the team through her own personal experiences and diagnoses. Since 2015, Felicia has co-facilitated mindfulness based stress reduction workshops for children, teenagers, and adults. She loves spending time with her dog Mozzarella, doing crafts, and eating tacos. She eats a lot of tacos.
Bianca Garcia
Bianca is a food blogger who also leads global digital media for an advertising and PR agency. She is from the Philippines and has two younger sisters, one of whom is deafblind and is Bianca’s inspiration for wanting to be more involved with disability advocacy. Bianca has a BS in Business Administration from the University of the Philippines, an MBA from the University of Massachusetts Boston, and a Masters in Journalism from Harvard University. She is always thinking about dessert.
​
​
Kayla Snover
Born with Down Syndrome, Kayla experiences this world with a unique perspective and lets nothing get in her way. She is a competitive Special Olympics gymnast, a mentor to younger athletes on her team, an artist at Gateway Arts, and a spectacular dancer. She even once received an award at the State House for fulfilling her dream to attend college and pursue a future in the arts. She also has a thriving art business, Kayla Snover Studio. Kayla does everything she sets her mind to, and is so excited to be able to be a part of this organization.
​
Gabrielle D'Avolio
Gabby is a first grade teacher in Stoneham, MA. She has a Bachelor’s in Communication Disorders from UMass Amherst and a Masters in Elementary and Special Education from Wheelock College. Outside of teaching, she loves traveling, running, hiking, and photography.
Brooke Mele
Brooke has a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education, a Master’s in Education, Reading Specialist, and is a licensed mild/moderate special education and reading specialist. For the last 4 years, Brooke taught first grade in an inclusive classroom in Springfield, MA. She currently currently works as a K-4 reading interventionist and school librarian. She also has a very playful cat named Penelope at home, a horse named Ellie in her nearby barn, and an adorable flower farm in Wilbraham, MA.
​
​
Adrienne Cytto
Adrienne is a K-6 Special Education Teacher in Cambridge, MA. She has a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and is dual licensed with Special Education, Students with Moderate Disabilities, PreK-8. She is currently pursuing a Masters Degree in English as a Second Language.
​
​
Becky Curran Kekula
Becky has a passion for influencing authentic portrayals of people with disabilities in the media and society. She was born with achondroplasia, the most common type of short-limbed dwarfism. She stands 4 feet tall, and grew up participating in sports amongst her "average" height peers. Upon graduation and after 1,000 job applications, 100 interviews, and three temporary job assignments, Becky started working in entertainment marketing and casting. She's since worked in the Equity & Inclusion department at SAG-AFTRA, as Employment Chair of Little People of America (LPA), as a member of the Board of Advisors for the National Center on Disability and Journalism (NCDJ) at Arizona State, Positive Exposure, and Verizon’s Disability Advisory Board. She now works at Disability:IN as the Disability Equality Index (DEI) Director and as a motivational speaker. When people ask her if she likes being a little person, she always says, "I never want to change, but I want the way the outside world reacts to my difference to change."
Donate today
Support our mission with a one-time or monthly donation. It's tax-deductible, you can be certain that 100% of all funds raised goes straight to the cause.
No shady stuff. We promise. (Don't believe us? Ask us anything.)
