President | Lisa Vilella
Lisa Vilella is the Executive Director at Mimi’s Mission. She is a life-long Downriver resident, being raised on Grosse Ile and currently residing in Wyandotte. She is happily married to her husband Jim, with three grown children and four grandchildren. The concept of Mimi’s Mission began in 2013 while operating an insurance agency, which Lisa owned. Mimi’s Mission went from concept to reality in 2015, when it became a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization. In October 2017, she closed her agency to focus on Mimi’s Mission full-time. Now that she can concentrate solely on Mimi’s Mission, Vilella hopes to assist more residents in our community.
Vice President | Dan Cubr
Dan Cubr is a graduate of Davenport University (BBA-Finance) and is a seasoned executive who has held key positions over the course of his career at well known companies such as Ernst & Young and Rocket Mortgage. He currently works with EAM Consulting where he helps lead their sales efforts.
Dan possesses extensive experience in sales, relationship management, business development, and leadership development. Dan has been a resident of Brownstown Township for the last 19 years, where he lives with his beautiful wife Katie and their children. He is also very active in the community, having coached his son and daughter’s various sports teams. A devoted family man who loves spending time with family and friends, he believes that people have a responsibility to look out for one another and should always think about how they can make things better for those around them.
Treasurer | Jay Leonard
VP Business Relationship Manager for Citizens Bank
Jay Leonard’s focus is to help clients achieve their business dreams, by providing them with advice and strategy along with lending to allow clients to grow. It’s been a passion of his to help local businesses as his family has owned companies and he has seen how local small businesses are the driving force in our communities. Jay has served on the economic group for the City of Southgate where economic strategy for the City was discussed. Making decisions that help move the City forward is so rewarding along with a great honor.
Jay resides in the city of Southgate with his wife Jennifer and their three children. Jay has had the opportunity to serve in his local neighborhoods with Non- Profit clean-ups in the City of Detroit along with many other local events through Citizens Bank.
Secretary | Annette Prevaux-Matejko
Annette Prevaux-Matejko is the owner of The Visionary in Allen Park, now in its 30th year. She is married with two adult children. She currently lives in Wyandotte and is a Melvindale Class of ’80 graduate. Annette is a Past-President of the Allen Park Chamber of Commerce and a four-time Past-President of the Rotary Club of Allen Park. She sat on the board at Community Care Services for 14 years both on the clinic side and property side. She has been a proud supporter of Lisa since she started Mimi’s Mission and has worked beside her on past events including sponsoring 911 Ready bags for the City of Allen Park. As an employer, she has first-hand experience with autism and its effect on families. She looks forward to serving on the board in whatever capacity she can help with.
Trustee | Andrew Starzec
Andrew is a downriver native, growing up in and buying his first house in Wyandotte. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. He then attended Schoolcraft College where he earned a degree in Criminal Justice after attending the Schoolcraft Police Academy. In 2003 he was hired as a police officer in Brownstown Township where he has operated as a road officer, undercover Detective, Patrol Sergeant, Detective Sergeant, Detective Lieutenant, and now serves as the Deputy Chief. As the Commander of the Support Services Division, he oversees the Detective Bureau, Traffic Division, School Resource Officer, and community relations for the department. Some of his duties include organizing community meetings, updating social media, and engaging residents, business owners, and religious organizations in open dialogue and social events.
Andrew sits on the executive board of Child’s Hope, which works to educate and prevent child abuse in Wayne County. He is also a member of the Woodhaven/Brownstown Rotary and Vice President of the Matthew Edwards Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police. When not in the middle of another renovation project on his 1928 Grosse Ile farmhouse, you’ll find Andrew enjoying time on the lake with his family or watching his daughter ride horses.
Trustee | Scott Bergeron
The Bergeron Team, Century 21 Curran and Oberski, Detroit Hour Magazine Real Estate All Star
Scott Bergeron brings a unique perspective to the board of directors of Mimi’s Mission. His experience as a top-tier realtor throughout southeast Michigan coupled with his 25+ years as a classroom teacher/coach allows him to bring a distinct set of skills to our work. Scott also holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Michigan specifically in public administration. Scott utilizes his diverse experience in sales and the classroom to build deep relationships throughout the community. Scott is a new resident on the island of Grosse Ile. He remains very active in the community, specifically in the many youth activities of Lincoln Park schools including the district’s public service program W.E.B. Scott comes from a large tight-knit family that he spends time with regularly. He loves to read, learn new things, and anguishes over his precious Wolverines every season. Scott believes in the power of individuals to connect and give deeply of themselves.
Trustee | Nick Kropog
Nick is a downriver native growing up in Wyandotte and graduated from Gabriel Richard High School. He is employed at Republic Services as an Area Safety Manager. Nick currently resides in Brownstown Township with his wife Colleen and twin daughters Molly and Ryan. Nick and his family are active members of Mimi’s Mission’s Autism Acceptance Group and bring a unique perspective of raising twins with different neurotypes – Ryan is autistic while Molly is neurotypical. During downtime, Nick enjoys hunting and going on family trips. He and his family are avid campers.