Board of Directors

Neen Davis

President

Neen Davis is passionate about helping those with a serious mental illness and their families. She has dedicated her time and talents to this cause the past sixteen years when her son, Ben, first became diagnosed with Schizophrenia. Ben is Neen’s hero.

As past President of NAMI Montgomery County PA (National Alliance on Mental Illness), a current board member of NAMI Montgomery County PA (for the past 16 years), and a current board member of NAMI Keystone PA, Neen is not only familiar with the needs of the mental health community, but has a keen understanding of the importance to advocate for those with the lived experience and their families.

Neen graduated from Rutgers University with a Bachelor of Science and then received her Masters in Education from Tufts University. Neen is a member of Congregation Beth Or in Maple Glen, PA. 

Marissa Diorio

Vice President

Marissa was born in raised in Philadelphia by a family that instilled in her the importance of serving the community. She grew up attending Tikvah AJMI events with a family member which sparked her love for & involvement in the organization. She studied biology at Saint Joseph’s University where she earned her Bachelor of Science. She continued on to earn a Master of Science in education from Drexel University. Throughout her studies at Drexel, Marissa worked as the Program Director at Tikvah AJMI.

Currently, Marissa is teaching biology to the students at Benjamin Franklin High School. In addition to sitting on the Tikvah AJMI Board of Directors as vice chair, she is the BFHS cheerleading coach & teaches cycling classes at City Fitness Philadelphia to provide mental & physical health to its members.

Michael Solomon

Secretary

Michael Solomon is a graduate of Villanova University with a BA in Liberal Arts.  He has been involved with Tikvah since its beginning.

Michael currently serves as a Co-President of the members of Tikvah.  He enjoys serving on the board of directors and its committees. He has been happily married to his wife Judy Weinberger for over ten years.

He is proud to be a member of Tikvah and serve on its board.  Michael is also a member of Nami (the National Alliance on Mental Illness).

“Don’t walk behind me I may not lead. Don’t walk in front of me I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.”  – Camus

Ross Shuster

Treasurer

Rabbi Ephraim Levin

Religious Adviser

Rabbi Ephraim Levin is the Director of the Lubavitch House at Penn since 1990 and Assistant Director of Jewish Heritage Programs. Ephraim is associated with the Office of the Chaplain at Penn and advises the student active listening club, Cogwell. Ephraim has been the rabbinical advisor and a board member of Tikvah since 1992. He is also a chaplain at the VA Community Living Center in University City.

Ephraim received  a BA  in Religious Studies from the Rabbinical College of America, a rabbinical degree from Lubavitch Yeshiva in Brooklyn, in 1989 and a B.S. in Psychology from Georgetown in 1981. Ephraim and his wife, Flora, have five children and currently live in Wynnewood.

Laurie Capin

Laurie Capin was born in New York and is married to to her husband Steve for 47 years. She is the mother of two girls and two boys, grandmother of two sets of twin girls and one boy, and great grandmother of two girls.

Laurie has been involved with Tikvah/AJMI since 1998 first as a Board Member, later as Vice President and now Secretary. She is also President of JEVS/Tikvah Residence.

Laurie graduated from Albert Einstein Medical Center School of Nursing in 1958. She worked at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, later in Reading at Community General Hospital, and later as Head Nurse in the Rehabilitation Unit of the former Rolling Hill Hospital in Elkins Park. She got her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from Philadelphia College of Textile and Science. She then became a Care Coordinator at Independence Blue Cross and retired in 2009.

Laurie and her husband Steve live in Ann’s Choice in Warminster PA where she remains involved in many activities.

Eileen Joseph

Eileen got her B.A. in Psychology & Sociology from Widener University in 1975, and her M.S. in Mental Health Program Evaluation from Drexel University in 1978. She is a certified psychiatric rehabilitation practitioner and is the President and CEO or CareLink Community Support Services in Eddystone, PA.

Eileen has won several awards and honors, including the Dincin Fellow in Psychiatric Rehabilitation for Standards of Excellence in Psychiatric Rehabilitation (2010), the Schizophrenia Reintegration Award in Social Services, Lilly Foundation (2001), and the Irvin Rutman Award for Leadership and Exemplary Contributions to the Field of Psychiatric Rehabilitation (2001).

Steven Markind

Steve Markind has been involved with Tikvah since 1997. Steve has enjoyed being on the Board of Directors and is Co-President of the members of Tikvah. He is a graduate of Penn State University and majored in Business Administration.

Steve currently lives in Drexel Hill. Michael Solomon, another member, helped introduce him to Tikvah. Steve is very happy he’s a part of this organization.

Mia Marcovici, MD

Mia Marcovici MD , Board Certified Psychiatrist by The American Board Of Psychiatry and Neurology.

In 2006, together with her late husband Martin Marcovici MD, had the privilege to receive the Righteous Person Award from Tikvah/AJMI.

In 2002 she received The Public Servant Award Of The Year from The Pennsylvania National Alliance of the Mentally Ill, NAMI.

Dr. Marcovici served as  Chief Medical Officer at Norristown  State Hospital,1998 – 2012.

Robert Singer

Biography of Robert Singer—Tikvah member since 1992, and AJMI board member for about 5 years. I am a Temple University graduate with a Biology degree that took 20 years to get, (because I eventually got put on atypical anti-psychotics). I go to most events and have many friends through Tikvah. I am a NAMI member where I was trained to do In Our Own Voice and I facilitate a NAMI Connections group. I have had many jobs through the years but my longest was at PEP Boys where I worked at the Parts counter for 3 years. The events I most enjoy are the Tikvah events that involve Artreach.

“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, Or what’s a heaven for?”  – Robert Browning

Robert E. Wenger, MD

After a satisfying career as a Penn-trained psychiatrist, I often reflect on the privilege it has been working with individuals who entrusted me with their confidences and life stories. My professional life has been rooted in the public sector where I have served in a variety of roles. I spent a decade, for example, as a psychiatric hospitalist and director of inpatient services while pursuing psychoanalytic education. I also served as Associate Director at the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Student Health and Counseling Services.

In more recent years, I have split my time between private office practice and running, first, an adolescent program for youth with serious behavioral issues and, then, leading a residential rehabilitation program for adults with serious mental illness. In the mid-2000’s, I was part of a team helping to establish a residential rehab program at the Veterans Administration for psychosocially impaired, often addicted, homeless Vets. Since that time, I have worked in a variety of psychiatric programs treating addictions and community-based comprehensive health concerns.

But, perhaps, the most instructive element of my professional life arose from personal experience. My wife and I, like so many others, encountered, in our own family, the challenges of coping with the serious developmental and emotional disequilibrium of a child. Despite our combined professional training, we were still unprepared for the hurdles of identifying and securing appropriate care. Learning about medical insurance contingencies and the legal entanglements of securing care was daunting. In addition, awkward societal silences around our circumstances and the stigma of sharing openly led us, finally and thankfully, to NAMI. In this organization, we finally found, through the Family-to-Family training, a support group that, 15 years later, still meet quarterly for support and encouragement.

Through my experience I would like to raise awareness and encourage discussion within the Jewish community of what can be done to afford those with mental health challenges a greater opportunity to live a fuller, more meaningful life.

Abby Gilbert

Executive Director