Funded By:
Harbor District Board President
Rosamaria is a dedicated and seasoned leader in health administration, with over 17 years of service in community health programming. Fluent in Spanish and deeply connected to her hometown of Milwaukee, she is committed to improving the health and well-being of its residents. In her current role as the Family and Community Health Director at the City of Milwaukee Health Department (MHD), Rosamaria provides leadership, strategic direction, and planning for the Family and Community Health (FCH) branch. Here, she oversees a comprehensive array of vital programs, ranging from home visitation and outreach to newborn screening and clinic-based services, addressing diverse community health needs.
Prior to her position at MHD, Rosamaria served as the Vice President of Community Health Initiatives and the WIC Director at the Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers. Her dedication to community health extends beyond her professional roles; she serves on the Community Advisory Board for the Zilber School of Public Health and the Board of Visitors for University of Wisconsin Extension and has served as preceptor for diverse students and fellows.
Rosamaria earned her Doctorate of Public Health (DrPH) from the Medical College of Wisconsin. Her dissertation earned her the “Outstanding Contribution to Advancing Health Equity Award”, highlighting her commitment to addressing pressing health disparities. Rosamaria also holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and graduated with a B.S. in Dietetics from Mount Mary University, which prepared her to become a Registered Dietitian (RD).
Harbor District Board Vice President
John Koetz is COO & EVP Strategic Business Operations for Komatsu Mining Corp. (KMC), a worldwide leader in high-productivity solutions for underground and above-ground mining industries. He is a global officer of parent Komatsu Ltd. and serves on the management & leadership committees of numerous Komatsu global distributors. He led Komatsu’s acquisition, remediation, and development of their Harbor District campus.
John earned his MBA from Loyola University Chicago, masters of engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, and bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in the state of Wisconsin with over 30 years of marketing, engineering and product leadership experience in mining, construction, agriculture, and defense equipment industries.
John began his career as an U.S. Army Officer and served in field & company grade leadership roles, acquisition and R&D, and is a veteran of Operation Desert Storm.
He currently serves on the boards of Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC), Milwaukee’s Harbor District Inc., Racine & Kenosha Vocational Ministries, his local church, and volunteers with Habitat for Humanity and other community service organizations. John has also led several coastal restoration projects, and he & his wife Linda are avid Lake Michigan kayakers & paddle boarders.
Harbor District Board Treasurer
With nearly 25 years of experience in the engineering industry in southeast Wisconsin, Nahid Afsari brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her current role as President and Owner of Afsari CM Services, LLC. Her consulting firm provides project management, construction management, and owner’s representative services to all project types in the early phases of planning through construction close out. Nahid focuses on understanding client needs, building trust, and seamlessly integrating to fit the needs of the team. She uses proven processes, high level of organization, and excellent communication to realize efficiencies and value-add measures. Nahid always works in the best interest of her clients and their values/missions.
Prior to starting her own company, Nahid had the opportunity to be a part of several reputable organizations throughout Milwaukee. Her experience includes structural design engineer, field engineer, project manager, project controls leader, director of operations, and facility management group leader. She is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Wisconsin and a LEED Accredited Professional.
Nahid is a Milwaukee native; born and raised in Whitefish Bay. She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in Civil and Environmental Engineering and a master’s degree from Purdue University in Structural Engineering. While at UW-Madison, Nahid was a member of the Badger soccer team and the American Society of Civil Engineers (concrete canoe team). While at Purdue, she was a volunteer assistant coach for the women’s soccer team and a math tutor for athletes on campus.
Nahid has served on numerous boards (both professional and community-based) including the YWCA, America Scores, CMAA, STEM Forward, WWSAC (Wisconsin Women’s Soccer Advisory Council) and others. In her free time, she enjoys knitting, watching and playing soccer, working on residential construction projects, teaching, and spending time with her family.
Harbor District Board Secretary
Paulina Esperanza Gutiérrez is the Executive Director of the city of Milwaukee Election Commission. Prior to her appointment, Paulina was the Deputy Director of the Election Commission and Legislative Advisor for the Wisconsin State Department of Corrections. With over a decade in public service focused on public safety, she also served the City of Milwaukee in various roles supporting the efforts of first responders. Encompassing a diverse array of experience, Paulina has worked as a community organizer, mediator, and restorative justice and gun policy specialist.
Paulina holds a bachelor’s degree in business and management from Alverno College and a master’s degree in public service from Marquette University. She is a lifelong resident of Milwaukee.
David is the Chief Legal Officer and Vice President of Business Administration for Michels Corporation and also serves as the President of the Harbor District Business Improvement District (BID #51).
Michels has a Harbor District presence at 218 E. Becher Street. Michels is a diversified utility and specialty construction company that conducts business throughout the United States and internationally. David is responsible for all aspects of the company’s legal representation. In his capacity as Vice President of Business Administration, David’s additional responsibilities include: strategic acquisitions and partnerships; risk management; labor relations; real estate; DOT compliance; and safety and environmental stewardship.
David is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Marquette University Law School. He has a Master’s Degree in International Trade in Business Law from the American University-Washington College of Law. As a child, David learned to sail on Milwaukee’s inner harbor. As a result, he appreciates the importance of this unique resource to the quality of life in our community. David and his wife, Diane, reside in Mequon and have three children.
Heather Nelson is the President and CEO of Spring Bank. With more than 30 years of experience in the banking industry, Heather has worked at both large regional banks and smaller community banks as a teller, personal banker, manager and commercial lender. Throughout her career she has been able to work with many small businesses, providing insight and expertise to help her customers succeed.
Heather is involved in many non-profit organizations in the community that focus on protecting and educating children. She received her bachelor’s degree from University of Wisconsin-Madison and subsequently her MBA, while working, from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
A lifelong resident of Milwaukee, Jackie Q. Carter has worked in the local non-profit and public sector for more than 20 years. She currently serves as Director of Port Milwaukee, as appointed by Mayor Cavalier Johnson in early 2023. As Director, Jackie leads a multidisciplinary team providing business, operational and infrastructure support to businesses located on Port’s 467 acres of land. Jackie also works with partners and stakeholders, including business owners and representatives at every level of government, to increase local and regional trade through maritime commerce.
Jackie earned a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in Public Administration from Concordia University. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Alverno College, with a double major in Business & Management and Professional Communication. Jackie began her higher education journey at Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC), earning an Associate of Applied Science degree in Accounting.
Jackie is a wife, mother, and minister who plays an integral role in reshaping the spiritual and socio-economic legacy of her family and community.
Jolena Presti is a managing director with Baker Tilly’s public sector advisory practice. She has been with Baker Tilly since 2019 and has more than 20 years of experience in the development and advancement of innovative strategies in economic development, program and funding solutions for development initiatives, and redevelopment project consulting solutions for clients nationwide.
Lafayette L. Crump, JD, is the City of Milwaukee Commissioner of City Development. Born and raised in Milwaukee, Lafayette most recently served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Chief Diversity, Vendor and Engagement Officer for the Milwaukee 2020 Host Committee of the Democratic National Convention, where he ensured community involvement, the inclusion of local and diverse businesses, and corporate adherence to ethical, environmental, and employment and accessibility practices.
Lafayette was also Chief Operating Officer of Prism Technical Management & Marketing Services, LLC, a multidisciplinary management consulting firm based in Milwaukee, WI, with an office in St. Louis, MO, and experience across the United States. In addition to his work for Prism, Lafayette practiced law for a number of years, working to ensure equity for small businesses and nonprofits, and is an adjunct professor at Marquette University Law School, where his focus is ensuring that law students understand the needs, expectations and reality of business owners.
Lafayette’s commitment to the community has been recognized via the Milwaukee Business Journal Forty Under 40 award, the Milwaukee Times Black Excellence Award, the University School of Milwaukee Alumni Service Award and The Foley & Lardner Lyndford Lardner Attorney Service Award.
Lafayette is a graduate of Duke University and Duke University School of Law, where, collectively, he served on the Journal of Gender Law & Policy, the Harassment Grievance Board, the Moot Court Board, and was president of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
With over 10 years of economic development experience, Natanael Martinez is passionate about improving communities through business assistance, commercial corridor revitalization and community partnerships. He currently serves as a Regional Economic Development Director with the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation where he assists in the deployment of the organization’s Business and Community Development Programs.
His experience ranges from helping small neighborhood businesses at a community non-profit to working for the City of Milwaukee where he assisted small businesses, business improvement districts and other community partners to enhance commercial corridors throughout the City. One of his major accomplishments was leading the City’s small business response during the COVID-19 pandemic by working with organizational and community partners to disburse $18.5 million in Federal C.A.R.E.S. Act dollars through Milwaukee’s Restart program. The initiative helped over 1,000 small businesses adapt to the pandemic and retain and create over 3,000 jobs.
Natanael graduated from UW-Madison with a double major in Business Management and Human Resources and Marketing, as well as a certificate in Chicano/a Studies. He has also graduated from the Associates in Commercial Real Estate (ACRE) program and the National Development Council’s Economic Development Finance Professional Certification program.
Patricia Hoben was the founding President/Executive Director of City Forward Collective, a Milwaukee-based K-12 education support and advocacy organization, from July 2019 until her retirement in December 2022. Dr. Hoben was the founding leader of Carmen Schools of Science and Technology, which opened its first public charter high school in 2007. Under Dr. Hoben’s leadership though 2019, Carmen grew from one high-performing college and career preparatory high school to a network of public charter schools serving 2,300 students in three high schools, two middle schools, and an elementary school (Stellar Elementary).
Over the course of her career, Dr. Hoben served in a variety of science and technology policy, nonprofit management, and education reform roles at the national, state, and local levels. She was a policy analyst on studies of the U.S. biotechnology industry and the international human genome-mapping project for the U.S. Congress Office of Technology Assessment. Dr. Hoben then went on to work in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, as an advisor on public health and science policy issues. Later she launched and managed the pre-college and public science education grants program at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, a philanthropy funding scientific research and education. Dr. Hoben also served in a special legislative appointment at the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission where she led a major study on the perceived health effects of electromagnetic fields.
Dr. Hoben was the Associate Director of a Minneapolis-based science museum, the Bakken Museum of Electricity in Life, where she led a $10 million expansion of programs and exhibits. Her policy and program management experience positioned her for success in establishing and leading a community collaborative to strengthen K-12 science education in the Minneapolis Public Schools in the late 1990s.
Dr. Hoben earned a doctoral degree in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from Yale University in 1984. She has a Master’s Degree in Chemistry from the University of Oregon and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Colorado with a B.S. in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental, Biology. Dr. Hoben currently serves on the boards of the Milwaukee Harbor District, the Milwaukee Public Museum, and Teach for America – Milwaukee. She received the Milwaukee Business Journal’s Woman of Influence award and is the recipient of awards from a variety of community-based organizations in recognition of her leadership of Carmen Schools of Science and Technology.
Tom O’Reilly is the former vice president of Sustainability at Rockwell Automation. He retired from Rockwell Automation in March 2024. Tom led the company’s holistic sustainability strategy and oversaw cross-functional work streams for all aspects of sustainability. Tom was also the former vice president, Global Business Development, leading the strategy development processes across the company and the software partnering function, and previously our Strategic Alliances and other partnering programs.
Tom joined Rockwell Automation in 1985. He had 39 years of service with Rockwell Automation with country leadership roles in Japan, Korea and China. He also spent four years in the Customer Support & Maintenance organization in Milwaukee, leading Plant Services and six years as a regional director in Greater China. Tom served as president, Asia Pacific, where he was responsible for the execution of our strategy in the Asia Pacific region, including the growth of market share and leadership of business operations.
Tom holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. He lives in Milwaukee with his wife, and he has a daughter who is currently attending Lake Forest College.