Board Members

Christopher is a graduate of Oakmont Regional High School and a lifelong resident of Ashburnham. He has served on the Board of Directors for the Ashburnham Area Basketball League, Oakmont Youth Basketball League, Oakmont Outstanding Alumni Selection Committee and the Board of Incorporators for the Worcester Housing Alliance. He has been active in fundraising for the Massachusetts Special Olympics, local sports programs, North Central MA Community Foundation, the Jimmy Fund and many other organizations.

Christopher has three children, all educated in the Ashburnham Westminster Regional School district.

Christopher is the Executive Vice President at DS Graphics Inc. in Lowell, MA. Prior to DS Graphics, he was the President & CEO of LVI in Worcester, MA (acquired by DS Graphics in 2009) and a co-founder of HubCast, Inc. in Wakefield, MA (acquired by Mimeo in 2016). In January, 2016 he was awarded United States Patent # 9,229,662 for “Method and apparatus for printing in a distributed communications network”. In 2000, he was named to the inaugural class of the Worcester Business Journal’s “40 Under 40” award, honoring the top 40 people under 40 years of age in the community. He was named one of the “Top 10 CEO’s to Watch” in 2002 by the Worcester Business Journal, and in 2004 he was named one of the top 20 visionaries in the marketing communications industry by Printing Impressions Magazine.

Christopher is a graduate of Tufts University with a dual degree in Economics and Spanish. He is proud to be a product of the Ashburnham-Westminster community and is committed to helping the youth of our community achieve their goals.

Ben Ewing grew up in Westminster and graduated from Oakmont in 1997. He went on to graduate from UMass Amherst with a bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering and UMass Lowell with a Masters in Civil Engineering.

Ben worked as a civil engineer for many years before leaving the corporate world in 2014 to pursue a small business dream with his wife Erica. Together they own and operate The Ewings Photography Studio. Ben and Erica have two sons in the AWRSD school system, and a driving force in the decision to leave his engineering career was to be home and present more with his family.

Ben is very active in the Ashburnham/Westminster youth sports community — you may find him coaching youth baseball, basketball, or soccer as well.

Joe and his wife Amy moved to Ashburnham in 2001 as part of a job relocation. They chose Ashburnham because of the school system and its proximity to Joe's new job. As their daughter neared school age, talk of replacing JR Briggs was starting and Joe volunteered to be on the Briggs Building Committee. After serving on the committee for nine years and with the new JR Briggs finally built, Joe was looking to continue his volunteer work within the school system. He had known of the Foundation for a few years and was interested in helping out. Joe has been active in the community coaching girls’ softball at Overlook Middle School since 2012 & starting in 2022 with the Oakmont varsity team. Joe received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from Clarkson University. He has worked for local companies such as Greif (formerly Newark America), New England Wood Pellet and is presently at Wachusett Brewing Company.

Jeff moved to Westminster in 1995 and has been involved in community service since moving to Town. Jeff received Bachelor’s Degrees from Fitchburg State and Anna Maria College and served five years in College Admissions offices before starting a career as a Firefighter. Jeff first served on the Westminster Fire Department as a Call Firefighter and left that after becoming a Career Firefighter for the Town of Maynard. After his Call Firefighter service, Jeff joined the Westminster Advisory Board and served as the School District Liaison. After two years, he ran for AWRSD School Committee and was elected to five terms and served 12 years. After his School Committee service, Jeff joined the board of the Foundation to continue to give back to the Community. Jeff and his wife Karla, a Monty Tech Teacher, have raised two children, Kevin, a 2017 Graduate of Oakmont, and Abby who attended AWRSD schools through High School.

Gwen Farley and her family moved to Westminster in 1998 for the community and the schools. Gwen was a member of the Westminster PTO, the Westminster Elementary School Council for two terms and served on the School Committee for 15 years. She has two children who are Oakmont graduates and her youngest graduates from Oakmont in 2023. She became a member of the foundation's Board of Directors as a result of being the Chair of the School Committee. After her term on the School Committee, Gwen chose to continue serving on the foundation board after seeing all the great work and opportunities it gives our school community. Gwen has a Biology/Chemistry degree from Lake Forest College, IL and an MBA from Fitchburg State University. Gwen has spent her career working and managing Quality & Research Laboratories.

Luci and her husband Rob moved to Westminster in 2006 because they knew there was something special about the town and its schools. She joined the Foundation primarily because she believes the community has a responsibility in assisting our educators in providing the best possible educational experience to our children. Luci has 2 children, Lucas, who attends Oakmont, and Cathryn, who attends Overlook Middle School. She enjoys being part of their school experiences, whether it is volunteering in the classroom, chaperoning a field trip, or sitting on the bleachers to watch a baseball game. She currently coaches girls’ softball. Luci received a B.A. in Biological Sciences from Rutgers College and an M.S. in Biological Sciences from St. John’s University. Luci has been a quality assurance professional in a number of industries for over 20 years and is currently works from home as Clinical Submission QC Expert for Novartis.

BethAnne McManus grew up in Westminster and raised her three children in Ashburnham, where she continues to reside. BethAnne, and subsequently her children, attended AWRSD schools. She also spent many years as a substitute teacher in the school district. She is a licensed real estate agent at a local Ashburnham agency. She is also employed by Cushing Academy in Ashburnham and at the Forbush Memorial Library in Westminster, both of which provide her with insights into the interests of today’s youth.

Peg graduated from Fitchburg State University with a degree in education and taught in Fitchburg, Westminster, and Ashburnham. She retired from the Ashburnham Westminster Regional School District after thirty six years in education. Peg and her husband, Peter, have lived in Westminster for over forty years. Their three children graduated from Oakmont and currently three of their five grandchildren are attending schools in this district. Peg enjoys working with the Education Foundation helping to enrich the educational opportunities for the students of the Ashburnham Westminster Regional School District.

Jennifer is a founding board member and is enthusiastic about AWFAE and working with community members who are committed to promoting academic excellence. Jen has six children, four of whom have graduated from Oakmont. Jen graduated from Franklin Pierce College with a B.A. in graphic design and sociology. Jen is very involved in the community in Westminster. She is a Realtor at Keller Williams Realty North Central. She previously worked for Little, Brown and Company Publishers in Waltham, and was Publisher and Editor of Community Vine, an electronic newsletter and website for and about Westminster.

Lisa Sheridan was born and raised in Norwood, MA, and relocated to southern NH in 1997, where she raised her two children. She recently moved to Westminster in October 2019 with her partner, Lincoln Stiles Jr., who was a lifelong Ashburnham resident and has been an educator at ORHS since 1996.

Lisa has been active in her community, both past and present, in many different facets. She served as a Board Member of the Milford on Track Committee and was a volunteer in the theater department at the Boys and Girls Club of Souhegan Valley, both in Milford, NH. She was an active volunteer with the Friends of ConVal Athletics and a Board Member of the ConVal High School Football Boosters, in Peterborough, NH. Lisa is co-founder of the William R. Nutting Scholarship Foundation, named after her late father, a beloved coach with Norwood Babe Ruth for 37 years. Lisa is a licensed real estate agent  in NH & MA and a Branch Manager with Coldwell Banker in Northborough, MA. She enjoys being involved in the community and raising funds for such a worthy cause!

Dan moved with his family to Westminster in 1991. One of the defining reasons to pick Westminster was the quality of the school system. His daughters both attended Ash/West schools and are graduates of Oakmont. Dan grew up in Dunmore, PA and has a degree in Business Administration from Penn State University. He has been in the financial services industry for most of his career. He was a member of the Oakmont School improvement Council and served as president of the Ashburnham/Westminster Rotary Club. He has served on the Westminster Advisory Board. He was the Rotary chairman for the project that installed lights on Oakmont’s athletic field. He has been recognized for his service to Oakmont High School and was recently elected to the Oakmont Sports Hall of Fame for his civic contributions. He joined the Foundation so he can help the district maintain its high degree of academic achievement.

Diane has been a resident of Westminster for over 20 years. She is the mother of two young women who attended school in the district and graduated from Oakmont. She graduated from the University of Connecticut with a degree in Political Science. She has worked her entire career for the federal government, Social Security Administration, and currently holds the position of technical expert. She has served on the Oakmont School Advisory Council and is active in her church. Quality education is a passion of Diane’s and she sees her work on the foundation as a way to enhance the experience of our current students.

Todd has served as the Superintendent of Schools in AWRSD since 2020. Prior to that, he spent time as a central office administrator, principal, assistant principal and teacher in Massachusetts public schools and also coached interscholastic sports at the middle school and high school level. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in History and Education, and Master’s and Doctoral degrees in Educational Leadership. Todd is also the volunteer executive director of Camp Putnam, a not-for-profit summer camp that provides nature-based summer experiences for children from across Massachusetts regardless of family financial circumstances. Todd and his wife Julie reside in Petersham, MA.

Andrew and his wife moved to Westminster in 2012. He has served on the School Committee since July 2018. Andrew is a longtime supporter of public education, and the opportunities it brings. Having an avid interest in Science and Technology, he is a strong supporter of STEM curriculum and programming. Andrew has worked in financial services for nearly 20 years and enjoys volunteering and supporting the community. Andrew graduated from Lunenburg High School, then attended Fitchburg State. Andrew and his wife Sara have two children attending AWRSD.

Jonathan and his wife Kristin moved to Westminster in 2004, and ever since their children began school here they've felt a desire to become more involved in the community and the public school system. Jonathan is a founding partner of Assabet Interactive, which provides sophisticated online tools for library websites. Jonathan enjoys coaching soccer with the Oakmont Outlaws, and also plays on various adult teams as well. He also enjoys volunteering at his children's schools. Jonathan grew up in the UK, attending the historic Christ's Hospital school before receiving a bachelor's degree in Electronic Image and Media Communications from The University of Bradford.

David Uminski retired after a 35 year career at Oakmont Oakmont Regional High School in June 2021. During that time, he taught History for 19 years, served as Assistant Principal for two years, and was Principal the last 14 years. Additionally, he coached ice hockey, field hockey, baseball, and track. He served on the MIAA Ice Hockey and Field Hockey Committees and was a member of MIAC. He earned his undergraduate and master's degrees in Teaching History at Fitchburg State College. He is an alumnus of the MSAA's Leadership Licensure Program (LLP), where he earned his administrator certification and a second master's degree from Endicott College. He is an adjunct professor in Fitchburg State's Educational Leadership and Management Program. He currently lives, with his wife Carolyn, in Ashburnham. They have three grown children.