Board of Directors
Christopher Bell
Chris is the Assistant Secretary and Deputy General Counsel at the The Conservation Fund. Prior to his time at the Conservation Fund, he worked in the Finance Group practice area of the law firm of Ballard Spahr LLP where he focused on multifamily housing finance. Prior to that role, he practiced for more than a decade at Fannie Mae. He was the lead attorney for affordable housing transactions, holding the role of Associate General Counsel in the Multifamily Division of Housing and Community Development. He also served as lead counsel for Fannie Mae’s corporate charitable arm, the Office of Community Investment and Engagement, where he provided legal counsel regarding grant documentation, intellectual property rights, procurement, audit and compliance matters.
Erin Bryan
Erin Bryan is a two decade Washingtonian by way of Atlanta, Georgia and Rolla, Missouri. Graduating from the George Washington University with a Master’s in Art History, Erin went on to work for small community based arts non profits before joining the Smithsonian in 2010. Combining a love of the arts with a keen interest in project management, Erin currently works as the Exhibitions Coordinator at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. There she helps coordinate efforts to mount an exciting program of American Art exhibitions across two museums locations; the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture in Chinatown, and the Renwick Gallery across from the White House.
Erin and her husband moved to the Van Ness area in 2002, and begin to put down roots amongst its tree lined streets. Welcoming a son in 2017, Erin became more deeply invested in the neighborhood by becoming President for the Friends of Forest Hills Playground board. In 2022 she helped manage a merger between FHOP and Van Ness Main Streets, and looks forward to hosting community events at the playground, and connecting young families to activities and business along the Connecticut Avenue corridor.
Erin lives with husband Mark and son Logan in the Van Ness North Cooperative, where they enjoy cooking family meals, going on urban hikes, and crafting of all shapes, sizes and media.
Courtney Carlson
Courtney serves as ANC3F06 Commissioner and Chair of ANC3F. Her advocacy in the neighborhood started when her now teen- and college-aged kids were barely past toddlerhood at Murch Elementary. Her service on the ANC engages Murch parents and connects them with the advocacy of ANC3F. She is focused on the foundation of our community, those nearly 500 families that move to this neighborhood and stay in this neighborhood because of its wonderful schools. The ANC’s advocacy helped Murch gain needed funding for new classroom teachers in 2023. Her working life in the neighborhood started as a 16-year-old at the counter at Marvelous Market (founded by Bread Furst’s Mark Furstenberg in the current Call Your Mother space) so she also understands that our commercial strips, filled with independent small businesses, are fundamentally important to the feel of our neighborhood. She has worked closely with Van Ness Main Street to support our small businesses and her service now on our board proves invaluable at the crossroads of both VNMS’s and the ANC’s work.
Carolyn Godavitarne
Carolyn has been with Politics and Prose for four and a half years and currently serves as its Chief Operating Officer. She knows the retail end of the store well, having started in the Children and Teen’s Department before transitioning to the operations side. Carolyn has lived on Nebraska Avenue since 2015 in the house where her husband grew up. They have two kids, one at Alice Deal Middle School and one a Jackson-Reed Highschool graduate. Before her DC life, Carolyn grew up all over the country mostly in the South and West as part of an Air Force family. She enjoys reading (of course!), movie watching, and especially the neighborhood restaurants. Her interest in the community she lives and works in led her to serve on the VNMS board.
Jonquilyn “JQ” Hill, Treasurer
JQ is a producer for 1A and was a member of the team that helped launch the show. Before joining WAMU, she worked on NPR’s 2016 Elections Desk. She’s also part of PRX’s Project Catapult Round Three cohort. Jonquilyn grew up in Kansas City, Missouri, and attended high school in New Mexico, where she volunteered at NPR member station KUNM. She graduated from Howard University where she majored in journalism and minored in political science. Prior to producing public radio, she worked at NBC’s Washington Bureau and for NY1. JQ moved to DC in 2009 to attend Howard and never left! She resides at Park Van Ness after a short stint in Tenleytown.
Doug Loescher, President
Beverly Ross, Secretary
Beverly and her husband, Maurice Ross have two children. You will often see them walking through the neighborhood, dining at local restaurants, or Beverly on the tennis court.
Andrew Saul
Andrew Saul is a development officer for Saul Centers, a commercial real estate firm that owns shopping centers and apartment buildings in the Washington D.C. area, including the apartments at Park Van Ness on Connecticut Avenue. Andrew has more than 10 years of experience entitling, developing, and leasing commercial real estate projects.
Andrew is a graduate of Loyola University in New Orleans and American University, where he received a Master of Business Administration. Andrew is a Washington D.C. native who has lived all around the city and has lived in Van Ness for eight years on Brandywine Street. He and his family frequently use the Forest Hills Playground and shop at many of the businesses along Connecticut Avenue.
Stan Wall
Stann Wall is Managing Partner of the Washington, DC office of HR&A Advisors, a real estate and economic development advisory firm. At HR&A, he focuses on transit-oriented development, urban revitalization, and place-based economic development strategies here in the DC region and nationwide. Prior to HR&A, Stan was Director of Real Estate and Station Planning at WMATA, and before that was a vice president in the public institutions practice at JLL. He is a resident of Forest Hills and enjoys taking advantage of the many offerings of our commercial corridor. He is eager to help bring even more vibrancy to the neighborhood through leveraging the presence of UDC as a catalyst and by supporting and attracting unique, local, neighborhood-supporting businesses. Stan is a former Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner for ANC3F and he is excited to have the opportunity to continue to serve the community as a member of the VNMS Board.
Tracy Zorpette, Vice President
Tracy Zorpette and her husband settled in Forest Hills in 1993 and raised three children in the neighborhood. Nearly three decades later, Tracy is still enjoying the area with its abundance of trees, walkability, enticing restaurants, and friendly neighbors. While her children were at Murch Elementary, she served on the Home School Association. More recently, she co-founded Good Clean Fun in Forest Hills Park, a VNMS and DPR partner organization with a mission to create community in a well-kept and welcoming gathering place. She is a graduate of Boston College and the University of Virginia School of Law, and continues to practice law as a court-appointed guardian ad litem for DC children. She is excited to support VNMS’ efforts to reinvigorate Van Ness, Forest Hills, and Wakefield.