Speakers

Lisa Riggs serves as President of EDC and EDC Finance, having joined the organization in July 2014.   Prior to joining EDC, she served as President of the Lancaster Barnstormers, a professional minor league baseball team, based in Lancaster, PA, and as President of the James Street Improvement District (JSID), a community and economic development organization focused on the growth and success of neighborhoods, real estate and the business base in northwest and Downtown Lancaster City. 

 

The first phase of Ms. Riggs career occurred in Baltimore, MD.  She served as Vice President, Economic Development for the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore (DPOB).  During her time at DPOB, she also served on-loan to the Office of the Mayor to oversee a major downtown parking initiative that included assisting in the construction of new parking facilities and passing stage legislation to form a new municipal parking authority.  Prior to that she helped shape the early years of the Greater Baltimore Alliance, a regional economic development marketing effort. 

 

Ms. Riggs resides in East Hempfield Township, Lancaster County, with her husband and two school-aged children.  She is a graduate of the Johns Hopkins University.  She currently serves her community through Board and community service, including the Boards of the Pennsylvania College of Art & Design, Discover Lancaster and the Lancaster STEM Alliance along with serving on the Lancaster County Agricultural Council, the Lancaster Clean Water Partners and the Lancaster County Transportation Technical Advisory Committee.

 

 

Jennifer Koppel, is the Director of the Office for Lanc Co MyHome.  Following her graduation from Manheim Central High School, Jen received the honor of National Merit Scholar. She continued her education at Millersville University, graduating magna cum laude in 1993 with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology.  In 2018 she graduated magna cum laude from the Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences, with a Master’s degree in Healthcare Administration. Jen has 25 years’ experience in social services with a concentration in government and human services. During her long social service career, Jen has worked as a case manager in mental health, managed contracts for mental health services, and was the Deputy Director at the County’s Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (BHDS) Division. Through her work with BHDS, Jen became involved in leading the county’s Homelessness Coalition and in 2015 lead the transition of the Coalition from County Government to Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health. In 2018, she was appointed by Governor Tom Wolf to the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) Board.

Through Jen’s leadership the Homelessness Coalition has been nationally recognized for its work in transforming systems for veterans experiencing homelessness and individuals experiencing chronic homelessness, culminating in recognition by First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House in 2015. Jen has been invited as a presenter at various conferences and has served as a consultant on homeless services to communities across the country. She also guest lectures on Poverty and Homelessness in Population Health classes at her alma mater, Millersville University.

 

Vicki Haake has worked at the American Cancer Society as Director of Estate & Gift Planning since 1997.  She is a graduate of York College and the Paralegal Certification program at Penn State.  Vicki is on the Board for the Central PA Estate Planning Council, the York Estate Planning Council and the Financial Planning Association.  She is a Rotarian at the Hershey Club.  Vicki lives in the Hershey area and has 2 grown daughters and one grandson.

Resourceful and creative performing artist-turned-communication specialist with broad experience in strategic brand marketing, communication plan development, project management, strategic marketing, and production of live stage and recorded productions/events. Wildly successful in bringing joy to others and utilizing unique s..

 

- Oversees, edits and proofs all outgoing promotions including 40-page season brochure and other print media, press releases and social media feeds.
- Manages and mentors four student interns/employees to maximize their time, talents and interests.
- Identifies weaknesses in current processes and works with students and staff to create efficient solutions.
- Partners closely with contracted graphic designer on varied assignments.
- Cultivates relationships with media outlets and potentially new and/or underserved audiences.
- Identifies and implements unique and interesting ways to generate interest in the fantastic programs offered at The Ware Center.