Micaela is a graduate of Ateneo de Naga University, Philippines, where she earned a bachelor’s in accounting with honors. She is a certified public accountant, receiving certification in the Philippines and has successfully passed the government’s teacher licensure exam. Micaela boasts a diverse background in the banking sector, having served in various roles at United Coconut Planters Bank. Her positions included financial analyst in the trust division focusing on equity investments, information analyst in the IT department, and branch bookkeeper. Additionally, she brings nine years of experience as an accountant with SCAN-Harbor, a non-profit organization. Micaela is passionate about leveraging her extensive accounting expertise to contribute to the success of Stephen Wise.
Daniel Pensante is graduate of Bernard M. Baruch College, with a bachelor’s in accounting and over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector. Daniel has always preferred working in service organizations, and most recently worked for Alcoholics Anonymous Grapevine, which publishes a magazine for the AA community; and Camelot of Staten Island, a drug rehabilitation and social services organization. Daniel was born and raised in Brooklyn and lives in Marine Park with his wife Sheila, daughter Sofia and niece Elizabeth.
Nicole grew up in Manhattan where she attended The Marymount School and The Legacy High School before earning her bachelor’s from Metropolitan College of New York. She married her high school sweetheart and together they have two children. She joined Stephen Wise in 2016 and in her free time she enjoys designing fashion for Something Old Something New Vintage, a company she co-created.
Sandy has served as executive director of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue since 2009.
She began her career at the Jewish Theological Seminary and the Citizens Committee for New York City, working in programs that addressed the needs of elderly New Yorkers. At the time, she lived with Babette Deutsch, a well-known poet who became frail and homebound after retiring from teaching. These experiences opened her eyes to the challenges of isolation among the elderly, propelling her to spearhead the development of Project DOROT as its founding executive director. Under her leadership, DOROT became a model inter-generational community service organization, earning awards and broad recognition from UJA Federation of New York.
After earning her master’s from Columbia Business School, Sandy formed a consulting firm to help organizations develop and implement growth strategies. In this capacity, she consulted with the leadership of the North American Jewish community, traveled frequently to Israel and the Caribbean, and helped establish lasting programs of the National Foundation for Jewish Culture and American Jewish World Service, among others. Sandy played a pivotal role in assisting historic preservation activists and long-standing synagogue members in rescuing and transforming the Eldridge Street Synagogue into a landmark site that educates diverse cultural communities about Jewish immigrant life on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.
Sandy currently serves as treasurer of the board of the Sara Chait Memorial Foundation, sits on the board of the Legacy Foundation at Mount Hebron Cemetery and Cedar Grove Cemetery, and serves on the advisory board of Larger Than Life, USA. She previously held leadership roles in UJA of Northern New Jersey as co-president of the Business and Professional Women’s Division and on the Board of Trustees Oversees Allocations Committee. As an active environmentalist, she chaired the Environmental Commission and served on the Tenafly Zoning Board of Adjustment, working to preserve open space in Tenafly, New Jersey. She and her family were members of three synagogues simultaneously, spanning a wide range of Jewish practice.
Sandy is married to Daniel Moss, a clinical psychologist in private practice. They have two adult children: Rosie, a working actor and Jewish educator in New York City, and Tobias, the rabbi at Or Chadasch, a Reform synagogue in Vienna, Austria.
Ryan Greiss is a marketing and communications specialist with experience in media relations, advertising, digital marketing, event and video production, social media management, podcasting, and more.
Before joining Stephen Wise Free Synagogue as director of marketing and communications, he was vice president of a PR firm representing Jewish nonprofits and Israeli companies.
A veteran of the Israel Defense Forces’ Golani Brigade, Ryan served as a sharpshooter before being honorably discharged with the rank of sergeant. He earned his bachelor’s in economics and psychology from Georgetown University, where he volunteers as an interviewer for the admissions program. He is a Program and Engagement Professionals of Reform Judaism board member and communications and technology chair and was previously a board member and PR advisor for Volunteers for Israel.
An avid skier, an amateur martial artist, a watch enthusiast, a voracious reader (mostly of fiction) and a National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM)-certified physical trainer, Ryan lives in New Jersey with his wife, their two young children and two dogs.
