People
Rosalba Messina
October 23, 2012
Interim Executive Director
Rosalba M. Messina is the Interim Executive Director of Third Wave Foundation. Principal and Founder of MCG, Messina has more than 25 years experience as an effective transformational leader, manager and coach. Messina has successfully led organizations to effect positive change by creating accountability in a collaborative, inclusive, trusting and creative work environment. She is experienced in developing working partnerships among board, staff, community members, NGOs, government agencies and donors worldwide. With each assignment, her goal is to increase the effectiveness of individuals and organizations – leading to greater institutional power and impact in the world.
Prior to launching her own consulting practice, Messina held executive level positions for various organizations in both non-profit and corporate environments. She is an affiliate consultant for the Support Center for Non Profit Management and Adelphi University's Center for Non Profit Leadership. She is a current member of Citigroup’s Women and Company and the Society for Human Resource Management and a past member of the National Advisory Council for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Messina is a guest lecturer and conducts workshop trainings on various topics in management.
Posted in: People, Staff and interns
Rye Young
October 23, 2012
Interim Program Officer
Rye Young is Third Wave Foundation’s Interim Program Officer. He joined Third Wave as an intern running their Emergency Abortion Fund right after he graduated from Bard College. At Bard, Rye became interested in social justice work, but knew little about philanthropy and thought he would be an organizer for life.
Third Wave Foundation opened his eyes to the world of social justice philanthropy and its efforts to transform the conditions of inequity. In his role as Program Officer, Rye is interested in building the capacity, visibility, and strength of organizations that serve their communities by creating opportunities to lead social change efforts.
In addition to working at Third Wave, Rye is a trainer and mentor with Flip the Table: Youth Food Council – an organization dedicated to building the leadership of young food justice activists in New York City. He is also an organizer with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice working on their Shalom Bayit domestic worker justice campaign.
Posted in: People, Staff and interns
Sara Joseph
May 4, 2012
Sara Joseph joined the Board of Third Wave in the spring of 2012. She is originally from the Boston area and is currently pursuing her MBA at the University of Michigan.
Sara brings to the Board years of marketing and development experience with grassroots organizations reforming media policy, documenting the effects of U.S. foreign policy in Latin America, and campaigning for investment in public water infrastructure. She recently returned to the United States after two years in Central America.
Sara holds a B.A. in International Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. As a Robertson Scholar, Sara completed coursework at Duke University and interned with the Feminist Women’s Health Center in Atlanta. She also led cancer screening workshops in northern Argentina and organized safer sex information sessions for students in western Kenya. As an instructor with the Women’s Health Education Consultants, she taught medical students best practices in gynecological healthcare.
Sara has volunteered with a sea turtle conservation project in Costa Rica, organized a day camp for Jewish youth in Ukraine, and bicycled across the United States as a fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity. In her spare time she enjoys hiking with her dog, Dino.
Posted in: Current Board, People
Sonya Shields
February 29, 2012
Posted in: Current Board, People
Terry Ferreira
October 23, 2012
Office Manager
Terry is the Third Wave Foundation's Office Manager. She is excited to join the Third Wave because of her firm belief in the importance of the voices of marginalized communities and the power of grassroots activism to create change. Previously, she was a retail manager at Babeland, a sex-positive, feminist-owned adult store, where she honed her feminist values and leadership skills. Terry has worked extensively in the animal rights movement, and has rehabilitated animals all over the country, including those displaced by Hurricane Katrina. She is also an organizer of the New York City Dyke March and a former member of the advisory group for Have Art Will Travel, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting gender justice
Posted in: People, Staff and interns
