Mission Statement
"...providing aid to the needy and distressed worldwide to relieve human suffering that may be caused by natural or civil disasters and to relieve emergency hardship through the use of proven state-of-the-art technology and a network of disaster experts and volunteers;promoting preparedness, resilience and sustainability through the development of educational training materials for governments, organizations, disaster response volunteers and the general public; and conducting and disseminating scientific research on natural hazards and climate risks"
Board of Directors
Director: Morgan O'Neill, PhD
Morgan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Toronto, where she studies tropical cyclones (hurricanes) and other extreme weather phenomena. She co-founded the original recovers.org platform in 2011 after a tornado struck her family home in Monson, MA and has helped coordinate dozens of community disaster recoveries since, both in person and online. Morgan volunteered as an EMT for the MIT student ambulance for five years and has an additional five years of community organizing experience, in large and small campaigns as well as progressive policy initiatives. She has a B.S. in Physics from the University of New Hampshire and a Ph.D. in Atmospheric Science from MIT.
Treasurer and Director: Chris Kuryak
Chris is currently the Program Manager of Enterprise Competitive Analysis at Dell EMC in Austin, TX. In his tenure since January 2016, he created and transformed the competitive analysis division at Dell EMC from an idea, into a successful, reproducible process generating millions of dollars annually in cost-avoidance. Formerly the Chief Operating Officer of Recovers, Chris helped grow the unknown company into a well-known, government-recognized disaster relief tool. He has 4 years’ experience helping organize community-level disaster relief on both a large and small scale, including Superstorm Sandy, the Moore tornadoes, and the Boles Fire. Chris’s goals are to help solve big problems in the areas of disaster relief, education, and clean energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mechanical Engineering from MIT, where he performed clean energy research.
Director: Mark Bernfeld
Mark is an experienced entrepreneur and angel investor with a commitment to environmentally and socially responsible businesses. He is a member of Launchpad Venture Group and a Partner in Clean Energy Venture Group, providing funding and advice to early-stage companies. He serves on a number of start-up Boards of Directors and Advisory Boards. He is a Lecturer in Finance and Entrepreneurship at Northeastern University, and has mentored many start-ups through programs at MassChallenge, Dartmouth College, and other college/university organizations. Mark also oversees a family real estate business.
Mark is cofounder of MentorWorks Education Capital (2016), providing deserving college students with flexible education financing combined with high-value mentoring. In 1993, Mark founded Tamarack Technologies with the vision of meeting our growing need to conserve energy and improve air quality in our homes. He remains owner and Board Chairman. Mark also has 35 years of experience in the insurance industry, with diverse roles from consultant to broker to insurance company executive.
Mark is a Board member at Community Legal Services and Counseling Center (CLSACC), a Cambridge, Massachusetts based nonprofit that provides free legal assistance and affordable psychological counseling to help combat the effects of poverty and violence. He is also on the Alumni Board of Dragon Senior Honor Society at Dartmouth College. Mark received an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a BS in Mathematics from Dartmouth College.
