Our Board

The members of our board of directors are leaders who have made a significant contribution to our society. Each and every one of them brings a unique set of skills and expertise to our organization.

Rich Harris, Co-Founder and President of the Board

Rich has devoted a great deal of his adult life, both personally and professionally, to endeavors related to children. He is the Managing Partner of The Harris Law Firm, the leading family law firm in Colorado, and a firm that is widely recognized for its expertise in handling family law, estate planning, and tax matters for over 30 years. In addition to chairing The Road to Hope's board, Rich is very active in a number of other civic and charitable ventures dedicated to improving our communities. These organizations include Denver Rotary, the Colorado Lawyers Committee, the Downtown Denver Partnership, and CCAI Adoption Services Rich is a well-known public speaker and author, and he has received numerous awards and recognition for his public advocacy. Personally, Rich and Lisa are the proud parents of 9 children, 6 of whom were adopted internationally. Rich views leading The Road to Hope as perhaps his most important and exciting challenge and is honored to serve alongside the other distinguished members of this board to accomplish great things for the people of Haiti, and beyond.

Lisa Harris, Co-Founder and Vice President of the Board

Co-Founder and Vice President of The Road to Hope, Lisa's passionate dedication to the children of Haiti is unmistakable. Since leaving a successful career in financial planning and sales, Lisa has turned her focus to community organizations that help children.

She has volunteered for numerous causes that have fostered real change in the lives of children, including the Adoption Exchange, Ronald McDonald House, and the parent organization of her community school, among many others. Simply put, Lisa's energy, organizational skills, and relentless drive to get people to open their hearts to the most vulnerable in our society is the driving force of our organization.

Cecilia Needham

Cecilia Needham is a graduate of Colorado Academy and started at Middlebury College in February 2019. Between attending Colorado Academy and Middlebury College, she spent three months in Haiti working with The Road to Hope and other NGO’s. Ever since her first trip to Nordette when she was 15, Cecilia has been quite involved in The Road to Hope, helping out wherever she was able, as well as spearheading the Denver Haiti Run and Haiti Club at Colorado Academy.

For two years, Cecilia has been writing grants and working on online presence as an intern for Road to Hope and joined the Board in the Fall of 2018. Aside from working with The Road to Hope, Cecilia enjoys working at other non-profits such as God's Littlest Angels, Horizons, or HOPE.

Zach Harris, Founder and Program Director, Haiti Youth Orchestra

Zach Harris first traveled to Haiti in 2010 to and has since returned over 20 times, including many trips to organize and maintain the Haiti Youth Orchestra, based in Mirebalais. Zach holds a degree in Community Entrepreneurship, and Community and International Development from the University of Vermont. Zach launched the Haiti Youth Orchestra in 2012 after exposure to the world of nonprofits and international work through his parents, founders of The Road to Hope. Zach served on the Student Advisory Board of The Road To Hope from 2014-2017.

Farah-Jane Jean Pierre

​​​ ​​​​Farah-Jane grew up in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Her passion for cooking led her to culinary school then obtained her bachelors in Hospitality Management. Farah-Jane moved to Denver about 4 years ago for a career opportunity. After the move she realized there was not much of haitian culture here in Denver so she decided to share her culinary skills and her love of cooking to the community. She owns the only haitian food truck and catering company and goes around Denver to bring a Taste of Haiti.

She is also passionate about bringing more Haitian cultural experiences to Denver and she is excited to be part of The Road To Hope family.

Liz Vautour

​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​Originally from State College, Pennsylvania, Liz brings more than a decade of firsthand experience in the social impact sector to her role on the Road to Hope board.

Liz received her BFA in graphic design and advertising from The School of Visual Arts in New York City before relocating to Guatemala, where she worked for the team behind Central America's first female, Indigenous-led secondary school. After two years in Guatemala, Liz returned to the States, welcoming the chance to invest locally through consulting work with many Colorado-based nonprofits. In 2023, Liz joined the team at a private foundation focused on funding community solutions designed and led by residents of rural towns across the Mountain West.

Liz is inspired by the Road to Hope's commitment to collaboration and responsive evolution, and she is excited to support the RTH team as it works to level up its impact and evaluation strategies.

Renee Krause

Originally from Washington D.C./Northern Virginia, Renee came to Colorado to attend the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law and graduated in 1994. Renee worked for several prominent Denver law firms before making a career change into the insurance industry. Renee is the founder and owner of Lawyers Choice, LLC. Lawyers Choice is a Denver based, national insurance brokerage dedicated to providing insurance solutions to lawyers and law firms across the United States. Over the past 20 years Renee has built a national company that has become a leader in the lawyer’s professional liability market space.

Renee enjoys serving her community by donating her time and talents to her church and children’s school. She has chaired several annual fundraising events at both, and regularly volunteers her time to a variety of charities in the Denver Metro area. Her energy, enthusiasm, and commitment to supporting The Road to Hope has made her an invaluable member of our board.

Renee is an avid tennis player, golfer, skier and snowboarder and loves doing these activities with her family.

Nicole Caizzo

An Associate Advisor at Johnson Financial Group and a long time supporter of the work of The Road to Hope, Nicole said, “I am especially impressed with the way that the Road to Hope’s dollars are so closely monitored and are directly impacting individuals.”

Originally from Minnesota, Nicole received her undergraduate degree from Arizona State University in Communications. She moved out to Denver in 2016 in pursuit of furthering her career in financial services that she has over a decade of experience in. She currently works for Johnson Financial Group as an Associate Advisor, working alongside a team of Advisors to assist in portfolio management, estate planning and the development of human capital planning such as mapping out philanthropic endeavors and next-generation financial education.

Nicole spends her free time with her husband attending concerts, traveling, snowboarding in the winter, and hiking with their dogs in the summer. She has a passion to make the world a better place for future generations and is excited to be working with The Road to Hope helping others.

Marissa “Reese” Gifford

​Marissa “Reese” Gifford is a Principal Product Manager for Azure Confidential Computing at Microsoft. With a strong background in software engineering and project management, she has held leadership roles at JPMorgan as Executive Director and Head of Product for the Digital Investment Bank and at Mozilla as Vice President of Product. Reese is known for driving innovation, enhancing data security through advanced encryption, and maintaining a culture of cybersecurity awareness. Her expertise includes product management, cybersecurity, strategic planning, and team collaboration.

Beyond her professional achievements, Reese is committed to serving the marginalized and overlooked through mentorship and community involvement. She has served on the boards of charitable organizations including the Denver Rescue Mission, IDEAS, Coaches Aid, and many others. She regularly engages and volunteers at industry events, conferences, webinars, and actively mentors emerging tech leaders. Outside of work, Reese enjoys spending time with her family, running, snowboarding, kayaking and is an avid traveler. She has been to 34+ countries and keeps adding to her tally. She is excited to be working with The Road to Hope and their efforts to educate, source clean water, and bring music / the arts to Haiti.

Alexandra Davis

Originally from Sweden, Alexandra Davis moved to the U.S. in 1997, earned both an MS in Accountancy & an MBA from Northeastern University. She is the founder and owner of DXA Group, a fractional accounting and finance company serving small businesses. Alexandra worked for several prestigious accounting firms, including Arthur Andersen. Over the past eight years, she has built DXA Group into a nationally recognized company.

Alexandra is deeply committed to community service. She founded the Swedish School of Colorado and has actively supported organizations like the National Sports Center for the Disabled (NSCD), and her children’s school. Her energy, enthusiasm, and dedication to The Road to Hope have made her an invaluable member of our board.

In her free time, Alexandra is an avid skier, sailor, and scuba diver who loves to travel and share these adventures with her family.