Officers and Staff

Please contact our receptionist at 480-948-5853 to reach any Piper Trust staff. We welcome your call or email.

Officers

Stephen J. Zabilski
President and CEO

As President and CEO, Steve Zabilski leads Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust’s mission to enrich health, well-being, and opportunity for the people of Maricopa County. Steve joins Piper Trust as its fourth CEO after providing more than 17 years of dedicated service as a Trustee and member of the Trust’s Investment and Audit Committees.

For the past 25 years, Steve served as CEO of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul—Phoenix Diocesan Council. His talent for bringing people together united myriad Vincentians, volunteers, employees, and donors who collectively advanced the mission and services of St. Vincent de Paul. During his tenure, Steve and his team doubled St. Vincent de Paul’s health clinic space enabling treatment for more people, established dining rooms that serve meals 365 days a year, installed three urban farms that provide food-insecure people with fresh produce daily, and opened a transitional shelter and resource center. Further he helped create an environment where community members can find purpose and joy through meaningful volunteer opportunities. St. Vincent de Paul received a President George H.W. Bush Points of Light Award in 2001 for having one of the most family-friendly volunteer programs in the country.

Prior positions include senior vice president with Transamerica Insurance Group and audit manager for the accounting firm KPMG (formerly Peat Marwick). Steve is a member of the board of trustees of St. Vincent de Paul and Great Hearts Arizona. He is a past member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the FBI Citizen’s Academy and has served as president of the board of trustees of Ville de Marie Academy among several school and parish advisory councils. Steve was honored by Grand Canyon University’s Colangelo College of Business with a Colangelo Servant Leadership Award in January 2023.

Carey Chambers
Chief Financial Officer

Carey oversees accounting and tax compliance for the Trust. She is a certified public accountant with more than 20 years of experience in financial statement audit, audit of internal control, performance improvement advisory, due diligence, and staff mentoring/development.

Prior to joining Piper Trust, she was a Managing Director at KPMG, one of the Big Four auditing firms. During her 20 years at KPMG she served nonprofit and for-profit organizations in audit and advisory capacities. Carey also led KPMG’s graduate recruiting at Northern Arizona University and has served in community engagement in roles such as Treasurer, Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence Board among other nonprofit Board roles.

Carey currently serves on the accounting advisory council for Northern Arizona University’s W.A. Franke College of Business and is a member of the Arizona Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. She is a graduate of Northern Arizona University and a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Arizona.

Karen Leland
Chief Communications Officer

Karen leads Piper Trust's communications and public relations efforts, which include developing and executing strategies to highlight the benefits of the Trust’s initiatives as well as the positive impacts made by its grantees. Before joining the Trust, she led communications and marketing operations for several units at Arizona State University, including the Global Institute of Sustainability, the Office of Research and Economic Affairs, and the Morrison Institute for Public Policy. A graduate of Arizona State University’s W.P. Carey School of Business, Karen has also worked with the Greater Phoenix Economic Council and other economic development organizations. She brings wide-ranging business and communications expertise to the Trust.

Staff

Christopher Bernal
Grants Management Associate

Christopher provides administrative, technical, and data management support to the Trust’s grants management staff. Prior to joining the Trust, Christopher worked in the property management industry for three years where he strengthened his skill sets that aligned with the responsibilities of grants management. These include being attentive to detail, having effective communication skills, and ensuring data integrity. Being born and raised in Phoenix, Christopher has a strong understanding of the community.

Alma Cuellar
Facilities and Technology Coordinator

Alma is responsible for building maintenance, event management, and meeting coordination. Prior to joining the Trust, Alma worked as a facility services supervisor and in the healthcare industry.

Angélica González
Program Associate

Angélica provides support for Piper Trust’s Program and Strategic Learning teams. Prior to joining the Trust, she worked at the Diocese of Phoenix supporting the Chancellor and Assistant Chancellor. Angelica has served in various capacities in the nonprofit community for over 15 years. Angelica holds a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Arizona State University.

Erin Goodman
Senior Program Officer

Erin Goodman manages Piper Trust’s arts and culture grantmaking portfolio; she also co-manages the Trust’s responsive education, health, and human services grantmaking portfolios and oversees a number of collaborative efforts and special programs. Ms. Goodman has worked in fund development and nonprofit administration for more than 20 years, serving organizations with missions that span the sector; she currently serves on the Read On Arizona Advisory Committee and recently served on the Board of Directors of the Arizona Grantmakers Forum. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in the humanities from Arizona State University.

Susi Ibarra
Senior Accountant

Susi supports Piper Trust’s accounting and finance team as a Senior Accountant. Susi brings a depth and breadth of accounting talent to the Trust through her diverse experiences working in accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, and financial reporting. As an Arizona native, she understands the unique communities that make the Valley special.

Amy Jorgensen
Accounting Manager

Amy supports Piper Trust’s accounting and financial reporting. Previously, as an accounting manager with Make-A-Wish America, she served on the Centralized Financial Services team managing the relationships and accounting for select Make-A-Wish chapters. Amy holds bachelor of science degrees in accountancy and finance from Arizona State University.

Renée Khoury
Project Manager, Communications

Renée provides project management support to the chief communications officer and the communications team. Renée coordinates communication efforts and special events. Prior to joining the Trust, Renée worked as an assistant project director at a community college district in California where she administered non-credit programs for the community. Renée is a Phoenix native and graduate of Phoenix Community College.

Samantha Klick
Executive Assistant and Facilities Manager

Samantha supports Piper Trust’s CFO and the finance and grants management teams. Prior to joining the Trust, Samantha worked for the commercial aerospace company, Curtiss-Wright serving as executive assistant to the senior vice president of the Sensors and Controls division. Samantha has more than 15 years of experience supporting executives in Phoenix, including eight years as executive assistant to the director, and board liaison for the Phoenix Art Museum. Samantha holds a bachelor's degree in Psychology.

Roberta Lind
Senior Manager of Information Technology

Roberta works with the chief communications officer and coordinates a variety of communications efforts and oversees the Trust's technology. Previous to joining the Trust, she worked with the marketing department at Northern Trust, NA in Phoenix. Roberta holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point.

Kelly Matti
Director of Grants Management

Kelly leads the development and implementation of effective grants management processes and strengthens the Trust’s internal operations throughout the organization; Kelly has significant experience working in the philanthropic and nonprofit sectors including serving as program manager for the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, grants manager for The Pokagon Fund, and president of Junior Achievement of Michiana. Kelly holds a bachelor’s degree in public relations from Grand Valley State University.

Emily Mead
Program Officer

Emily co-manages Piper Trust’s responsive education, health, and human services grantmaking portfolios. She has more than 10 years of experience leading nonprofit programming and development, most recently serving as senior program manager for the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC), where she co-led a large-scale community resilience initiative in Maricopa County. Prior to ISC, Emily served as director of community partnerships at the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC) arming her with a deep understanding of the economic strengths and challenges in our community. Emily holds a master’s degree in public administration from Arizona State University.

Linda Smith
Board and Executive Assistant

Linda supports Piper Trust’s Board of Trustees, and president and CEO. Prior to joining the Trust, Linda worked for PGH Wong Engineering, Inc. as a consultant to Valley Metro Rail on the $358 million Northwest Extension to the Phoenix Light Rail system. She was also a former 911 Operator for the Phoenix Police Department—a role that strengthened her talents in assisting multiple people and priorities. Linda began her career at the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Boston; over the past 20+ years she has supported executives in Phoenix and Washington, D.C.

Joy Talaroc
Receptionist/Administrative Assistant

Joy is the receptionist/administrative assistant providing support to the Piper Trust team. She brings 15 years of experience to the Trust working in the fields of architecture, wealth management, and law (business/technology, criminal defense, and family law). A native of the Big Island of Hawaii, she has made Arizona her home for the last 24 years. In her spare time, Joy enjoys cultural festivals, road trips, spin, and yoga.

Cynthia Vana
Accounting Manager

Cindy works as the accounting manager to support Piper Trust's accounting and financial reporting. Previously, as an accounting manager with Make-A-Wish America, Cindy served on the Centralized Financial Services team managing relationships and accounting for select Make-A-Wish chapters. Cindy is a Phoenix native and graduate of Arizona State University.

Virginia Piper