National Nonprofit Philanthro Appoints Four New Board Members

LOS ANGELES, CA, May 11, 2012 (Press-News.org) Philanthro today announced the appointment of four new board members. From varying backgrounds and professions, the new board brings different perspectives to govern the national organization that engages young professionals in philanthropy through social, volunteer and leadership activities.

The new board of directors includes Lorene Chandler, development and donor relations associate, California Community Foundation; Virginia Nguyen, medical school student, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA); Jon Schimmer, CPA, Esq., partner, Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch LLP; and Brent Wu, CPA, Masters of Business Administration (MBA) candidate, MIT Sloan School of Management.

Matt Lew will continue to serve as Chairman of the Board and interim Chief Financial Officer. Lew is also a vice president at Deloitte CRG.

"I'm incredibly impressed by the talent of our new board members," said Lew. "Philanthro has prided itself as an organization at the intersection of talented young professionals spread across many industries and our board is no different. Through their professional, philanthropic and other leadership endeavors, our new board members will provide valuable guidance and perspective to guide Philanthro to new heights."

Lorene Chandler, MSW, works in development and donor relations at the California Community Foundation, a nonprofit organization that manages charitable funds and foundations, provides philanthropic consulting to donors and advisors, awards grants to nonprofit organizations and convenes thought leaders around important issues and opportunities for Los Angeles County. Chandler graduated from Loyola Marymount University and received a Masters in Social Work from University of Southern California.

Virginia Nguyen is a medical student at David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the sole recipient of the 2007 Strassburg Foundation Endowment Scholarship. Nguyen is also a research fellow in a stem cell research lab at UCLA, in which her team project was given the Research of the Year Award in the category of orthopedics by the American College of Surgeons in 2011. Crowned Miss San Francisco in 2003 and Miss Vietnam USA in 2005, she used her titles as a platform to fundraise over $250,000 for grade schools in Vietnam, assisted in surgical operations that repaired cleft palates for infants and delivered healthcare on a medical mission with Project Vietnam. Nguyen graduated magna cum laude from University of California, Berkeley.

Jon Schimmer, CPA, Esq. is a partner at Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch LLP. Schimmer is a former chairman and current member of the March of Dimes Charity Golf Tournament Committee. He also serves as pro bono legal counsel for Philanthro and SpecialVillage.com. Schimmer volunteers for the Tax Court Pro Se Taxpayer Assistance Program and the IRS Low-Income Taxpayer Assistance Program and serves as a Food Service Volunteer for the Senior Community Center. He obtained his accounting degree from Pepperdine University, and he obtained his J.D. (cum laude) and L.L.M. (magna cum laude) legal degrees from the University of San Diego School of Law, where he also serves as an adjunct professor in the Graduate Tax Program.

Brent Wu, CFA, is currently pursuing his MBA at MIT Sloan School of Management. Previously, he was a member of the Los Angeles chapter of Philanthro. In this capacity, he initiated and executed Philanthro's first-ever scholarship, which awarded over $1,100 to five high school students for academic and community achievement. Wu graduated from University of California, Berkeley's Haas School of Business.

About Philanthro

Philanthro is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to engage young professionals in philanthropy, by serving as the leading platform for young professionals to connect with charitable causes through social, volunteer and leadership activities. Philanthro is a 100 percent volunteer-based organization that prides itself on its core values of transparency, efficiency and creativity. Beyond financially supporting charities, Philanthro's greatest contributions are building awareness, inciting action and empowering change among current and future generations.