2014 Board of Trustees Biographies
Donald Ferraro, President
As current Library Board President, Don would like to help the library stay relevant and
in the forefront of new trends that will meet the needs of the community in a rapidly
changing technological environment. Having received his Masters in Social Work, Don
was Police Chief and Director of Public Safety in Scarsdale for many years. Don is a Past
President of the Scarsdale Rotary and served on the Executive Board of the International
Association of Chiefs of Police. He was recently honored at the Mercy College 60th
Anniversary celebration Don’s commitment to improving the library shows in both his
beautiful woodworking craftsmanship and his excellent leadership skills.
Pat Klaman-Rock, Vice President
As Vice President, Business Development, for Randstad Sourceright, a global
provider of human capital solutions, Pat Klaman-Rock is responsible for introducing
and promoting Recruitment Process Outsourcing as a business strategy to help
companies achieve their talent goals and manage their talent acquisition costs. A
leader in recruitment outsourcing and strong spokesperson for the industry, Pat is a
member of the Human Resource Outsourcing Association and sits on the RPO Alliance
Special Interest Group (SIG) Committee. The RPO SIG provides a forum for buyers and
advisors of RPO to address critical issues in the industry. Pat has worked in the RPO
industry for over a decade. Pat is a graduate of Fordham University and has lived in Patterson for over
15 years with her husband, John, and son Johnny. She has been on the Patterson Library Board for
more than a decade.
Patricia Atkinson, Treasurer
Patty brings a wealth of experience from the corporate environment to the library
board. Patty is a 4-time recipient of the President's Volunteer Service Award,
recognizing her extensive volunteer efforts on behalf of the library, and her company
has provided several grant opportunities for funding special library projects. Patty has
served on the Board for 9 years, 4 of which she was Board President. Patty’s
construction background helped her to successfully lead the library through a major
renovation during her board presidency. Patty lives in Patterson with her puppies,
Daisy and Noodles.
Adrienne Kavelle, Secretary
Adrienne’s interests and experiences are truly eclectic. After spending many years in
the theater, both behind and in front of the foot lights, she joined Business Research
of New York where she was responsible for research involving niter-NASA installations,
EPA, the Internet, and telecommunications. For many years Adrienne served as March
of Dimes Chairman for The City of Yonkers. As a free-lance writer and poet, she wrote a
six part series ‘Children in the Shadows” for the Gannett newspapers, which was
subsequently read into the Congressional Record. She was also a member of the ‘Clergy
and Laity of Yonkers,’ the Yonkers Exceptional Child PTA, the Nepperhan Community Center and
served as a community activist, exposing biased landlords throughout Westchester County. She now
serves at the polls during elections and has been a Trustee of the Patterson Library since 2005.
Adrienne looks forward to hopefully expanding the Library to include a community theater and an
outreach annex in Putnam Lake.
Judy Ferraro, Past President
Formerly a teacher in the White Plains school system, Judy’s experience as Director
of Sales and Marketing of the YMCA of Greater NY Holiday Hills Conference Center
in Pawling brings to the library board a greater understanding of the not-for-profit
world. Her expertise enabled her to teach a course on Principles of Management at
YMCAs, both regionally and nationally. Judy has served the library board for 17 years
and was president for 6 of those years. In 2002, she was awarded the Mid-Hudson
Libraries System Trustee Success Story Recognition Award. Judy and her husband
raised two children in Patterson, where they have lived for 38 years. They enjoy
spending time with their six grandchildren. Judy would like to expand the library so
we are able to increase programming, book collections and computers.
George Disbrow, Trustee
George, his wife Patti and four children moved to the Patterson area in 2001. Since
then the family has grown to include three sons-in-law and five grandchildren. George
is a retired high school teacher and coach from Westchester County and still serves as
a Section 1 soccer referee. George and his wife are involved with (BESP) the Brewster
Emergency Shelter Program and serve as coordinators for the homeless shelter at St.
Lawrence O’Toole Church. He is also a member of the Knights of Columbus. He works
with Hope’s Door to educate and bring awareness to the issues of teen dating abuse
and domestic violence. He is currently completing his first term as a library trustee
and serves on several library committees.
Marna Howarth, Trustee
Marna grew up in Patterson, graduated from Pawling HS and Vassar College, and
earned a Masters in Library Science at Pratt Institute. She shares with the library
board her professional experience as a librarian at The
Hastings Center, a bioethics research institute. Wife of a renowned
playwright and poet, Marna volunteers for Guiding Eyes for the Blind, as well as at
the library. She is most interested in the library providing services tailored to our
community.
Sally Lake, Trustee
Sally moved to New York to work for IBM from Davis, California, where she earned
her bachelor’s and legal degrees from the University of California. She transferred to
Paris and then Florida, where she worked on a small team that brought out IBM’s first
personal computer. Most recently she served as Vice President and Division Counsel
of IBM’s Research Division in Yorktown. There she advised IBM’s research labs in the
US and in Switzerland, Israel, India, China and Japan, giving her some of the most
memorable trips of her life.
Now she advises New York and Connecticut nonprofit organizations through the Pro
Bono Partnership of White Plains. In that role she represents such clients as organizations for land
conservation, for promoting the arts, and for providing social services for the underserved. The
Partnership has honored her for her work there. Sally volunteers for hospice as a home visitor.
Many evenings you could find her watching indie movies with her husband, Bill. In the last few years
she has greatly enjoyed learning to paint portraits in oil and to snowshoe.
She wants the library to continue to be a respected leader in our community and to promote a
lifelong love of reading to young people.
Jason Leiberman, Trustee
Jason was graduated from New York University (Heights) as an English Literature
major, Science minor, with additional post graduate courses in several varied
disciplines. He served as Regional Administrative Officer for the disaster response
office of the Small Business Administration, and was Facilities Manager for an
international Swedish engineering company and two international banks. Jason was
active in civic and community affairs in the City of Yonkers, including inter-racial
conferences and projects, and, after retiring, has continued with local projects and as a
trustee of the Patterson Library.
Ruth McGoldrick, Trustee
Ruth and her husband have lived in Patterson for twenty-five years and raised their
three children here. They operate their own, local accounting business, McGoldrick
and McGoldrick. After attending Benedictine Academy in Elizabeth, NJ and
Fairfield University in CT, Ruth earned her MBA in Taxation from Pace University. She
is a member of CPA professional associations, completed many years of dedicated
service to Girl Scouts, and serves as a trustee for St. Lawrence O’Toole Church. Ruth
intends to contribute her skills and time for the library’s future.
Edmond O’Connor, Trustee
A Bronx native, Ed spent summers in Putnam Lake before buying a house there in
1969. In 1983 he brought his bride, MaryAnn, to make it their home. He worked 30
years for the NYC Dept. of Environmental Protection, 25 years for the Town of
Patterson and he has taught C.C.D. for Sacred Heart Church for 28 years. He became
a Library Trustee after leaving the Town Board in 2010.
Karen Powers, Trustee
Karen has an ongoing interest in public libraries serving as community centers, not
only for entertainment purposes, but for self-education. She sees her participation on
the board as a way of contributing to the decision-making processes that will ensure
the expansion, diversification and timeliness of the Patterson Library’s functions and
services. Karen’s advanced degrees in Latin American Studies (New York University)
and Library Science (Pratt Institute), along with her bilingual (Spanish-English) abilities,
teaching and community outreach experience offer talents that translate well for use
on the library board.
Mondy Raibon, Trustee
A graduate of the Prairie View A & M University with a Bachelor of Science degrees
in mathematics and business and an M.B.A degree from Texas Southern University,
Mondy’s interest in higher education led to career opportunities at the University
of Texas and then in educational program and product development for The College
Board and McGraw-Hill Companies. Mondy is an eight-year resident of Putnam Lake
who brings his management, planning, accounting and budgeting skills to the library
board. He is committed to working cooperatively with the board and staff to
support the maintenance and growth of the library.
Updated: 03/17/2014