— ABOUT

Meet Our Board

The Board of Directors that support and believe in the PGNO mission

Kelly Garza, LSW, LCDC III-GAMB, OCPC, TTS

Board President

  • Meet Kelly

    Kelly is the Manager of Peer and Specialty Services at Harbor. She has developed nationally-recognized prevention programs including problem gambling prevention services, holistic wellness programs, and youth-led prevention with high school and college-age students. She provides training in Adult and Youth Mental Health First Aid to community members, and recently joined the Problem Gambling Network of Ohio Board.

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Jess Stewart

Board Interim Vice President

  • Meet Jess

    Jess has been an advocate for those with gambling issues since 2017, having personally dealt with the issue himself most of his life.


    He joined PGNO as a member in 2018 and joined the Board of Directors the following year. Jess has presented or spoken at 4 Ohio Problem Gambling Conferences.

     

    He has given multiple interviews to media of all types on the issue of gambling disorder, and about his recovery that began in 2016.


    He continues to work toward bringing consumer protections and support to those whose lives are impacted by this issue.

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Jen Bierer

Board Secretary

  • Meet Jen

    Jennifer is the Manager of Communications at PreventionFIRST! She is responsible for all agency marketing strategies and coordinates problem gambling prevention.


    She has over 20 years of public health experience — in health promotion and prevention, focusing on chronic diseases, obesity, traffic-related deaths/injuries, mental health, and substance use/misuse.

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Ashley Hartman, MPH, CHES, OCPS

Board Treasurer

  • Meet Ashley

    Ashley is a public health and nonprofit practitioner in Cleveland, Ohio. She has been with Recovery Resources since 2014, coordinating the problem gambling prevention and treatment programs and the employee assistance program (AssistNOW) and Training and Consultation Institute.

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Abdullah Mahmood, LSW, LCDCIII-GAMB, ICGC-I, OCPS, ICPS

Board Member

  • Meet Abdullah

    Abdullah Mahmood, LSW, LCDCIII-GAMB, ICGC-I, OCPS, ICPS, started working with clients at Maryhaven several years ago, before becoming the Administrative Coordinator of the Gambling Intervention Program. He has worked extensively in prevention, treatment, administration, as well as having direct services with clients on MAT, clients with substance use disorder, and clients with disordered gambling. Abdullah attended Columbus State Community College for his associate’s degree and attended The Ohio State University, where he recently completed a bachelor’s degree in Social Work. He is currently working towards his master’s degree in Clinical Social Work from Cleveland State University.

     

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Stephanie Geer, LPCC, ICGC-II, OCPS

Board Member

  • Meet Stephanie

    Stephanie is the Gambling Program Coordinator at Meridian HealthCare. Meridian HealthCare has maintained a Problem Gambling Program since 2001 and has served the community in providing gambling specific screenings, assessments, individual and group counseling, family consultations, and prevention.

Steve May

Board Member

  • Meet Steve

    In May 2022, Steve joined the team at Gaming Laboratories International ("GLI") as a Client Services Executive, a specialized team formed by General Counsel Kevin Mullally. At GLI, Steve works with regulators, casinos, and gaming manufacturers, consulting on all forms of gaming and the unique regulatory responsibilities for each sector.

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Samuel Porter

Board Member

  • Meet Samuel

    Samuel H. Porter III serves as a partner in Ice Miller’s Public Affairs Group and Ohio Government Law Group.


    Before joining Ice Miller, Sam was the regional director of compliance for Penn National Gaming, Inc. (“PNGI”) in Columbus. He oversaw all compliance operations for the Ohio Hollywood Casinos, Racinos and Racing to ensure adherence to all federal and state regulatory requirements, PNGI policies and compliance with responsible gaming.


    LinkedIn

Cynthia Mercer

Board Member

  • Meet Cynthia

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