Staff

Maren C. Stewart, JD, APR, President & CEO
As the first president and CEO of LiveWell Colorado, Ms. Stewart is responsible for building a non-profit organization committed to reducing obesity in Colorado through the promotion of healthy eating and active living efforts.  In this role, she leads the execution of LiveWell Colorado’s strategic initiatives to advance policy, environmental and lifestyles changes aimed at increasing access to healthy opportunities for all Coloradoans.  

Ms. Stewart currently serves on the board of directors for the Colorado Business Committee for the Arts and the executive committee of the Aurora Economic Development Council.  In the past, Ms. Stewart served on the National Association of Children’s Hospitals council on child advocacy, as well as the board of directors for the Denver Metro Chamber Foundation, the Aurora Chamber, the Colorado Association of Nonprofit Organizations, the Donor Awareness Council and Colorado Bright Beginnings  She has received numerous gubernatorial appointments including the Advisory Committee on Covering All Children in Colorado, the Children’s Trust Fund, the Committee to Promote Adoption and the Tobacco Settlement Task Force and was invited to participate in a national effort to revamp pediatric residency programs with the American Board of Pediatrics Residency Review & Redesign Committee.  Additionally, Ms. Stewart has served on numerous volunteer committees for various nonprofits, such as the Downtown Denver Partnership Awards Jury and several fundraising committees.

Ms. Stewart’s past experience includes a long tenure as Vice President of External Affairs for The Children’s Hospital in Denver as well as a partner in a Colorado public affairs/lobbying firm.

Ms. Stewart holds a B.S. in Journalism from the University of Kansas and a J.D. from the University of Denver.  She is licensed to practice law in Colorado and is accredited by the Public Relations Society of America.  Ms. Stewart is married to Craig Stewart and has a daughter, Emma.

Mary Ellen Williams, MBA, Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Strategy
A seasoned senior executive, Mary Ellen Williams has more than 10 years of experience in business strategy development, governance, non-profit management, community building and public relations.  Her focus at LiveWell Colorado will be to develop and implement an organizational business plan, develop and track metrics associated with LiveWell Colorado’s strategic plan and develop a diversified funding strategy that ensures financial stability.  

As director of finance and operations for Graland Country Day School in Denver, Ms. Williams directed strategic plan goals and led the school’s financial and operational efforts.  Previously, as tier III coordinator and district administrator of Denver’s Scientific and Cultural Facilities District, Ms. Williams led legislative efforts, directed grant making activities, managed organizational finances and established and implemented the District’s first communications plan.   She has also worked in public affairs,, grants administration,  marketing and programming, and non-profit management for the Colorado Council on the Arts, the Arts & Humanities Assembly of Boulder and the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.  

Ms. Williams currently serves on the Education Committee of the Tesoro Foundation and as a vestry member of the St. John’s Cathedral and is a member of the Cathedral’s Finance and Investment Committees.  She has previously served on the boards of the Tourism Industry Association of Colorado, Denver Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau and Dress for Success Denver.  

Ms. Williams holds an MBA from Simmons College Graduate School of Management, an M.A. and a Certificate in accounting from Northeastern University and both master’s and a bachelor’s degrees in studio art from Smith College.  

Lonna Lindsay, Vice President of Policy
An experienced public affairs professional, Lonna Lindsay has successfully developed and executed strategic policy objectives and guided legislation for health care organizations for more than seven years.   As director of public affairs for The Children’s Hospital in Denver, Ms. Lindsay developed and oversaw the execution of the hospital’s public policy strategies, plan and programs, as well as the hospital’s legislative agenda.  There she served as the hospital’s liaison to local, state and federal agencies, the Colorado General Assembly, the Colorado Congressional delegation and other elected officials.  During her tenure, she secured state and federal appropriations for the hospital totaling more than $56 million and grew the hospital’s Grassroots Advocacy Network to an all time high of over 4,000 members.

Previously, Ms. Lindsay served as a lobbyist for the Colorado Hospital Association where she monitored, researched and lobbied for state legislation and regulation significant to Colorado’s hospitals.  She has also worked in corporate operations for New West Health Plan and for Deaconess Billings Clinic.

Ms. Lindsay has served as an Advisory Council member for the National Association of Children’s Hospital State Policy Services, a member of the Colorado Non-Profit Association Policy Council, a co-chair of the Colorado Children’s Immunization Coalition’s Policy Council and a Colorado Hospital Association Legislative Council member.

Tracy Faigin Boyle, Vice President of Marketing and Communications
Tracy Faigin Boyle has established a strong reputation for developing results-oriented communications programs over the past 14 years, particularly in the area of social marketing and behavior change campaigns. As vice president of marketing and communications at LiveWell Colorado, Ms. Boyle is responsible for managing communications and social marketing efforts to heighten awareness of and fulfill LiveWell Colorado’s mission and motivate individuals to make behavior changes.

Most recently, Ms. Boyle served as a senior associate at GBSM, a Denver-based communications strategy and management consulting firm. At GBSM she led successful social marketing campaigns for the Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation, engaging new mothers and the dental and medical community about infant oral health, and the NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado Foundation, increasing birth control use among low-income women. She has also worked extensively with Denver Water on its communications strategy, employee engagement and water conservation campaign. Other clients included Porter Hospital, the City of Centennial, RTD, City of Denver Department of Environmental Health and Weld Library District.

Before joining GBSM, Ms. Boyle worked at MGA Communications as an account supervisor managing health care and financial clients. Ms. Boyle has also served as the director of client services at TDA Advertising & Design, where she managed marketing campaigns for outdoor sports gear clients as well as numerous corporate clients. She also served as a marketing manager at Copper Mountain Resort, overseeing regional and national advertising and promotions.

Ms. Boyle’s philanthropic endeavors include serving on the board of the Allied Jewish Apartments, participating on the marketing advisory board for Jewish Family Service, and previously chairing the Shalom Baby Advisory Committee at the Denver Jewish Community Center. She has also completed the Downtown Denver Partnership Leadership Program.

Ms. Boyle received an M.A. in Integrated Marketing Communications from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and a B.S. in Communications and Economics from Northwestern University. She pursues her love for Colorado’s great outdoors with her husband and daughter.

Gabriel Guillaume, Vice President of Grants
Gabriel Guillaume joined LiveWell Colorado in March 2010, bringing a wealth of knowledge from his extensive background in nonprofit management and community development Mr. Guillaume is responsible for directing a coordinated and strategic community investment program and leading funding efforts for LiveWell Colorado.  

In his role, Mr. Guillaume oversees the community grants initiative and serves as a liaison between LiveWell Colorado and its funded communities around the state. In addition, he proactively identifies funding opportunities for the organization while establishing and maintaining positive relationships with grant makers in Colorado and around the country.

Most recently, Mr. Guillaume was executive director of 2040 Partners for Health, a Denver-based organization aimed at developing partnerships between medical researchers and community members to form strategies that improve the health and well-being of the five Stapleton area neighborhoods.

Previously, Mr. Guillaume spent over a decade with the nonprofit Community Resource Center (CRC), a statewide organization focused on building community and nonprofit capacity through training, consulting and constituent advocacy services throughout Colorado.  At CRC, he served as executive director and director of community development.  

Mr. Guillaume currently serves as a board member for the Bright Mountain Foundation, and has previously volunteered in various capacities for the Colorado Latino Health Advocacy initiative, Let Us Rise, the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN), the University of Colorado Department of Political Science, and the Colorado Secretary of State Task Force on Charitable Giving.

Mr. Guillaume received a master’s degree in management from Regis University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Becky Grupe, Director of Community Relations
Becky Grupe joined LiveWell Colorado in January 2010 as director of community relations. Ms. Grupe’s vast network of contacts and strong grasp of health-related community activities offer a strong foundation for her work at LiveWell Colorado.

In her role, Ms. Grupe will lead the creation and implementation of strategic community partnerships and collaborative efforts that support the mission of LiveWell Colorado. She will promote the organization through increased visibility among target audiences; plan and implement LiveWell Colorado’s community outreach activities; and assist in the development of revenue-generating partnership plans. Capitalizing on her strengths and experience, Ms. Grupe will serve as a liaison between LiveWell Colorado and the broader community.

For the last 10 years, Ms. Grupe served as community relations manager at The Children’s Hospital in Denver. In this position, she developed and fostered community partnerships and created and coordinated community health programs and events to effectively impart safety and injury prevention messages. Prior to that, Ms. Grupe served as assistant manager, affiliate relations at Radio Disney/Walt Disney Company in Dallas and senior events coordinator with the Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche.

Ms. Grupe received a B.S. in Journalism from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Heather Roark, Office Manager and Executive Assistant
A Denver native, Heather Roark has spent the last 19 years as senior executive assistant to the president of St. Mary’s Academy.  Prior to this extensive tenure in the independent school environment, Ms. Roark worked in the oil and gas industry providing administrative and technical support to companies as well as individual geologists, engineers and land men.  She has worked as a pantry chef for a restaurant in Lower Downtown Denver, as well as a wine rep and salesperson. 

Ms. Roark holds a degree in Liberal Arts from Mt. Vernon College in Washington D.C., and a Diploma from Cordon Bleu.  Her passion for health is evident in her enthusiasm for pilates and cooking, as well as her membership to Slow Food, a global, grassroots movement that links the pleasure of food with a commitment to community and the environment.

Leslie Levine, Technical Assistance Coordinator
Leslie Levine is a Technical Assistance Coordinator for LiveWell Colorado. In this role, Ms. Levine assists LiveWell Colorado grantees in their efforts to create communities that provide multiple opportunities for healthy eating and active living. Prior to working with LiveWell Colorado, Ms. Levine served as a Policy Specialist for more than six years with the National Conference of State Legislatures. Her primary role was to educate state legislators and their staff about policies and research-based best practices to prevent chronic disease and promote access to healthy food and active community environment policies.

Ms. Levine received a master’s degree in Public Health from Emory University in 1998 and began her public health career at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Injury Prevention Program and the Georgia Department of Health’s Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Program before heading to Denver in 2000.

Venita Robinson Currie, Program Director
Venita Robinson Currie is a dynamic, results-driven communications professional with more than 20 years experience in project management, media and public relations, community relations, and corporate communications. As program director for LiveWell Colorado, she will extend LiveWell Colorado’s reach in the community by directing large-scale projects aimed at increasing Coloradoans’ access to healthy foods and opportunities for physical activity. Her initial priority will be management of a school nutrition program funded by the Colorado Health Foundation and an American Recovery Act (ARRA) grant. The program helps schools improve nutrition by facilitating cafeteria assessments and hosting “culinary boot camps” to teach school food service staff how to make healthy meals for students from scratch.

Most recently, Ms. Currie served as director, media and community relations for Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland in Oakland, California. Leading community outreach, marketing, media relations and internal relations activities for the hospital, she directed high-profile projects and led strategic planning initiatives. Highlights of her work include leadership of the community board of directors’ restructuring efforts, management of the hospital’s specialty care center grand opening events, coordination of quarterly community meetings uniting political, law enforcement, and disaster preparedness experts to address community concerns, securing of more than 500 individual news reports about the hospital and research center in 2007, and coordination of print, radio, online and television media relations outreach.

Before joining Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland, Ms. Currie was a senior account executive at Davis & Associates in San Francisco, California, where she focused on event planning, collateral development, media relations and community relations, and managed multiple city-wide public information campaigns. Previously, she has served as an account executive for Weber Shandwick Worldwide in both its San Francisco and Minneapolis offices, and as public relations specialist for the University of Minnesota, as well as communications coordinator in the Minnesota Governor’s office. In addition, Ms Currie is an award-winning journalist with experience as a host, producer and associate producer for Northwest Community TV in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, All News Channel in St. Paul, Minnesota and WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Ms. Currie received a bachelor of arts in journalism with a minor in marketing from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.