Wallingford, Connecticut (Thursday, January 25th, 2024) - Capital for Change is pleased to announce the appointment of Benna Lehrer to Chairperson of the Board of Directors.
"Capital for Change is proud to have Benna as the new Chairperson of the Board of Directors," says Diane Smith, CEO of Capital for Change. "Her experience and expertise will be invaluable to the organization's continued success in building stronger communities across Connecticut."
Benna is currently employed at Synchrony, a credit card issuer based in Stamford, Connecticut, where she has held various positions focused on risk management. Her responsibilities include compliance within credit operations, regulatory relationships, risk reporting of operational risk matters, and supplier risk management. She holds a BA in Russian and Mathematics and, after a year working as a paralegal, pursued her JD and MBA degrees at the University of Connecticut. She began working for the Connecticut Legislature before moving to Chicago, where she worked as a lobbyist for a nonprofit organization focused on financial aid for low-income students. She then moved to HSBC, her first entrée into financial services and risk management, focusing on fair lending.
Benna is passionate about getting credit into the hands of those who most need it and who make the greatest impact on their communities, making her role as a Capital for Change board member so important to her. But her most important work is parenting two fun, smart, and curious daughters, with the hope that they will grow into empowered people who contribute to the communities they choose one day.
The 2024 Capital for Change Board of Directors is as follows: Chair, Benna Lehrer of Synchrony; Treasurer, Jeffrey Robinson, Retired (TD Bank); Secretary, Robin Golden a Strategic Consultant; Anna Blanding of ConnCorp; Andrew Beamon an Organizational Development Consultant; Ginne-Rae Clay of Connecticut Social Equity Council; Carolyn Gonzalez of M&T Bank; Brian Robinson of National Affordable Housing Trust (NAHT); Edward Seibert, Retired (JP Morgan & Co.); John Stevens of Webster Bank; and Michael Van Leesten of Social Venture Partners Connecticut.