Team

John Simon, Board Chair and Co-Founder

jsimon@greenlightfund.org
In 2003, John conceived of the GreenLight Fund after successful early careers as an entrepreneur and investor in both the business and nonprofit worlds.

As Co-Founder and Board Chair, John is an active leader in the strategic direction of the GreenLight Fund as well as fund development. John brings his ties to the business, particularly entrepreneurial, world to draw the involvement of entrepreneurs and private sector investors in the GreenLight Fund and its portfolio organizations.

John is a Managing Director of venture capital firm General Catalyst where he invests in both new and existing technology businesses. He was Founder, Chairman and CEO of UroMed Corporation, a start-up, which merged to form Alliant Medical Technologies. John is currently a Board member of BzzAgent Inc., go2Media, GTESS Corporation, Hands-On Mobile, Inc., JumpTap, Maven Networks, Inc., MocoSpace, OutStart, Inc., QuickPlay Media, Inc., SignalDemand, Inc., and Vette Corp., which are all active General Catalyst investments.

In the nonprofit sector John is co-founder of The Steppingstone Foundation in Boston and founder of KEEN, based at Oxford University in England.

John earned a B.A .from Harvard University and an M.A. from Oxford University where he was a Rhodes Scholar.

Margaret Hall, Executive Director and Co-Founder

mhall@greenlightfund.org, 617-252-2570
As Co-Founder and Executive Director, Margaret is responsible for strategic planning and overall operation of the GreenLight Fund. She leads the process to identify promising social innovations, conduct due diligence on final candidates, and select GreenLight portfolio organizations. She serves on the Boston Boards of portfolio organizations and oversees efforts to provide them with strategic assistance.

Margaret has 20 years of experience in senior management roles and Board roles in the nonprofit sector. Before co-founding the GreenLight Fund with John Simon, Margaret was a Fellow at the Center for Effective Philanthropy. Prior to that, she served as Associate Director of the Georgia Center for Nonprofits, a statewide organization that supports the nonprofit sector through capacity building, research and advocacy.

Margaret’s volunteer involvement has focused on helping people find meaningful ways to make a difference in their communities. She chaired the Boards of CityCares (now Hands On Network) and Hands On Atlanta and served on the Board of Boston Cares.

Margaret earned an M.P.A. at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a B.A. from the University of Georgia. She is a member of the Lead Boston class of 2005.

Melanie Damsker, Director of Special Events and Outreach
mdamsker@greenlightfund.org, 617-252-2815
As Director of Outreach and Special Events, Melanie is responsible for donor relations with GreenLight’s community of more than 200 venture capital, entrepreneur, and private equity supporters. She oversees GreenLight’s major fund-raising events, and manages efforts to connect portfolio organizations with a variety of potential supporters.

At GreenLight, Melanie has found a way to combine her passion for philanthropy and connecting with her love of Boston. She is a founder of Women in Nonprofits and a steering committee member of Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy, the Boston Breakfast Group and a Boston World Partnership Connector.

Before joining the GreenLight team, Melanie managed special events and the Young Professionals group at the Boston Public Library Foundation. Melanie earned her B.A. from University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Kate Fitzgerald, Communications and Operations Coordinator
kfitzgerald@greenlightfund.org, 617-252-3235
As the GreenLight Fund’s communications and operations coordinator, Kate is responsible for coordinating day-to-day internal operations including financial management, benefits administration and office management. She edits GreenLight’s e-newsletter and manages the Web site along with special communications projects. Kate also supports GreenLight events and donor relations.

She is an active volunteer with Boston Cares and in 2009 she ran the Boston Marathon for Families First Parenting Programs.

Prior to joining the GreenLight Fund, Kate worked in sales and customer service with Harrow Sports and in spring of 2008 served as coach of the Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School girls lacrosse team. She graduated from Colorado College in 2007 with a BA in History and was a two year All-American on the women’s lacrosse team.