Meet Our Team
Founders and Board of Directors
Anne Allen
Founder/DirectorAnne is a driven and energetic woman who is passionate about helping others and getting involved in her community, which led her to help found Arm in Arm Outreach. She has extensive experience working and volunteering to help those in her community.
Her entrepreneurial spirit led her to open The Serendipity Center for Leadership and Learning, a learning center that offered classes and unique opportunities for local students. Anne owned and directed The Serendipity Center for six years before resigning to start Arm in Arm Outreach.
Anne has also served as president of a local women’s organization where she helped oversee service projects and events, manage monetary funds, and support over 200 women with their needs and challenges, among other things.
When Anne is not tirelessly working on a big project, she can be found teaching, traveling, attending Broadway musicals, and spending time with her family. Anne and her husband Daniel have six children and four grandchildren who are the love of her life. She is dedicated to making a difference in the lives of refugees and helping them find hope in their difficult circumstances.
You can contact Anne by emailing Anne@ArmInArmOutreach.org
Donna Nielsen
Founder/DirectorDonna is a dedicated and compassionate Humanitarian Specialist focused on refugee support in the Sacramento area. Recently retired after a forty-year business career in the sales and software sectors in Silicon Valley, Donna served on several corporate teams chartered with implementation of company-wide business process software and best practices. She looks forward to applying these principles to Arm in Arm Outreach as it expands its programs and scope.
Donna finds great joy in serving and for the past five years has served as as a community Humanitarian Specialist, with emphasis on refugee support in the Sacramento area. As an experienced counselor and teacher, Donna has also worked directly with community members providing grief counseling, teaching classes to youth, and coordinating community projects with other organizations.
Donna explores her creative side making donation quilts and taking photographs. The best times of her week are spent with her young grandchildren. Donna’s goal is to create joy in the lives of refugee families.
You can contact Donna by emailing Donna@ArmInArmOutreach.org
Carie Smith
Founder/DirectorCarie is a natural-born leader who connects on a personal level with everyone she meets. Her analytical mind has helped her solve problems and create strategic solutions both as a former Information Technology Officer for Kaiser Permanente and as an entrepreneur that has helped start and run several different businesses.
With a deep love of learning, Carie earned a BA in Spanish/Geography Teaching and a Masters in Information Management and Systems/Technology Management.
Carie also has an adventurous soul with a lifelong interest in international affairs, global cultures, travel, and languages. She enjoys playing the piano/organ, being outdoors, and using technology. Most of all, she loves spending time with her family as they grow, learn, and adventure together.
You can contact Carie by emailing Carie@ArmInArmOutreach.org
Tracy Twomey
Finance DirectorTracy is a performance driven executive with over 30 years of experience serving the food industry. She is a leader who believes that great organizations integrate teamwork into their culture thus creating the building blocks for future success. She always strives to listen, learn, educate and motivate.
Tracy is now enjoying retirement after serving five years as Chief Executive Officer and 25 years as Chief Financial Officer and other financial roles. Retirement is providing the opportunity for her to serve as a Board member and advisor to Arm in Arm Outreach. She fell in love with the mission of Arm in Arm Outreach and the stories of the underserved refugees. Providing a helping hand to bring others to self-reliance brings great joy to Tracy.
You can contact Tracy by emailing Tracy@ArmInArmOutreach.org
Volunteers
Nazia
Marketing/ Fundraising InternAs a daughter of refugees from Afghanistan, Nazia’s parents sacrificed everything they had in order to live the “American Dream” and open a world of endless opportunities that they knew she wouldn’t have had she grown up in their native country.
As Nazia continues to witness an ongoing disintegration of women’s rights, especially in education, she is especially inspired to continue her own education.
Nazia received her undergraduate degree at San Jose State University and is now pursuing her Master’s degree in Business Administration at UC Davis.
As she continues her own education, Nazia’s desire is to ensure that all refugees, especially women, receive an education and the resources they need to have a better life. Nazia is passionate about volunteering her time and talents to help Arm in Arm Outreach reach its goals of helping as many refugees find support, hope and healing.
Marcie Gallacher
Global Education CounselorMarcie is an individual with a deep desire to lift and serve others, to find ways to offer
connection and hope.
As a former high school teacher, she cared deeply for the success of those around her and
worked tirelessly to ensure that students, parents, and colleagues received the support they
needed. With these interpersonal skills, she became an integral part of the Arm in Arm
Outreach team.
In addition, Marcie is the author of nine commercially published novels. Within the community,
she has led women’s organizations, organized humanitarian projects, and she currently serves
as an oral historian documenting the histories of refugees in California.
When teaching high school, Marcie reminded her students daily that
Tenacity+Struggle=Success. This is the mantra which Marcie lives by in her work with refugees.
She is tenacious in helping these families find solutions, hope, and joy.
Suzanne Ross
Family Support Coordinator
Rudy Garcia
Information Technology
Patrick Twomey
Audio/Visual Technology
Bill Suman
Graphic Design
