Board of Directors
The Board of Directors provides broad oversight of the financial and organizational health of Spark Ventures. Specifically, the Board is involved in fundraising, setting policy and ensuring continued alignment to Spark’s mission, vision and goals. The Board meets quarterly and works closely with the CEO to accomplish these objectives.
Scott Barbeau, Vice Chair
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David Goldstein
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Steve GantSteve was born in Honduras and lived in Latin America during his early years. He was also stationed in Venezuela and Columbia during his military career. He received his B.S. in Physics from Auburn University and went on to develop a distribution channel in Latin America for Internet Security Systems. He now serves as the VP of Corporate Development and International. Steve joined the board after serving on the Latin America Search committee for Spark’s second partner. |
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Richard Johnson, CEO |
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Michael Komasinski
Michael Komasinski is the President and Group Managing Director at Schawk Retail Marketing. He holds an M.B.A. from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University and a B.S. from Vanderbilt University in Engineering and Philosophy. Prior to joining Schwak, he spent seven years at The Nielsen Company in senior leadership roles that include vice president of global operations, group client director of Kraft Foods, and national director, U.S. Operations. Michael was connected to Spark through a friendship with long-time Spark supporters. |
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Daniel Marcus
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Nancy O’Leary, Treasurer |
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Patti O'Neil
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Ross Parr
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Tasha Seitz, Chair
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Koji Torihara
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Gary Vlk, Secretary
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Stacy Wells
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Brian Wu
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Scott Barbeau is co-founder of Spark Ventures and has served on the board since its inception. He attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he received a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration. He spent the first 15 years of his professional career working at Lucent Technologies, Parson Group, and Hyperion Solutions in sales and management roles. He has been actively involved with Mercy Home, Chicago for Boys & Girls, FFHM Orphanage, and Songs of Love Foundation. He is currently employed as a professional musician.
David was born and raised in New York. He attended college in Washington, D.C. and law school in Chicago, where he currently lives. He has worked in the Cook County Public Defender’s Office (Juvenile Division) and currently is a real estate attorney. He specializes in representing developers of affordable housing. David served as a board member of Open Hand Chicago (previously Vital Bridges) and as their Board President for more than three years. He has traveled to New Zealand, Brazil and throughout Asia and Western Europe. In August 2008 David traveled to Zambia with one of Spark’s Transformation Trips.
Daniel Marcus is co-founder of Spark Ventures and has served on the board since its inception. He was born in Santiago, Chile and immigrated to the United States at the age of 8 years old with his parents and two brothers. Dan attended the University of Wisconsin, Madison where he received a BA in Economics. He has worked in finance most of his career. He worked at Bear Stearns and currently is an Investment Advisor at Marcus Capital, LLC. Dan has been involved with various charities including 10 years as a Child Life Specialist at Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago and two years at The Night Ministry, working to serve homeless and runaway youth.
Patti was born and raised outside Boston, Massachusetts and made Chicago her home in 1989. She has a BA in Mathematics and Economics and a Master’s in Applied Economics from The University of Michigan. She is currently the Treasurer and an Assistant Professor at Rush University Medical Center. Previous to joining Rush, she worked as a banker at both Bank of America and First National Bank of Chicago. She is raising her three children in Chicago. Patti is involved in volunteer activities at church, Misericordia, and her children’s schools, and is on the Investment Committee of Saint Ignatius College Prep. She dreams of bringing her children on a partnership trip.
Ross Parr knew little about Spark Ventures before coming across a Chicago Sun-Times article that lead him to join the 2011 Partnership Trip to Zambia. Shortly after returning from the trip he joined the Spark board, becoming a strong advocate for the impact of Spark's work. As Vice President of Sales (for several companies) Ross has worked with start-ups and early stage companies for the last 20 years. Ross holds a Bachelor's degree in Logistics, Materials, and Supply Chain Management from Michigan State University.
Tasha Seitz joined the board of Spark Ventures in 2009 after traveling to Zambia to see the positive impact of Spark’s partnership with Hope Ministries and meet the child that she sponsors at the Hope Community School. She is a partner with JK&B Capital, a Chicago-based venture capital firm with over $1 billion under management, where she invests in early stage software companies. Tasha has a bachelors degree in psychology from Wellesley College and a masters in business administration from Stanford University.
Koji was born and raised in Salem, Oregon, before moving to the Chicago area to attend Wheaton College where he graduated with a degree in Economics. He also has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management. He currently lives in Chicago with his wife and son and works as an International Finance Specialist at the Boeing Company, focusing on financial accounting and compliance for Boeing's international activities with a particular focus on strategy development and the Latin American region. He is active in his church, led a project that raised money to build a school in Rwanda, and also serves on the board of Exodus World Services, an organization that mobilizes volunteers to connect with newly arrived refugees.
Stacy recently moved to Chicago from Indiana has 24 years of Commercial Banking Experience and is currently a Senior Vice President, Relationship Manager at Wells Fargo, specializing in providing credit and other financial services to Not for Profit Acute Care Hospitals. She received her Bachelors in Finance & Business Economics from Indiana University and her MBA from Butler University. Stacy has served on the Boards of the Wellness Community, the Villages, and participated in various Community Leadership programs and volunteer opportunities with several not for profit agencies, including United Way of Central Indiana and the American Heart Association. She also currently serves on the Board of St. Francis Health Network.
Brian Wu was born in Poughkeepsie, New York and grew up in Maryland prior to attending Wheaton College in Illinois. He spent a significant amount of time living overseas, both in China, where he was an English Teacher, and in Kenya, where he worked for a church and a non-profit organization. He has studied and written on spiritual formation and international economic development. Brian is currently the General Manager of College Park Athletic Club in Deerfield, Illinois and he enjoys all kinds of sports and music. He and his wife, Alison, live in Chicago.
