Our Team

is a social entrepreneur and movement builder who has founded several non-profits and invented ways to empower people to make a difference. Alan is the Co-Founder and former CEO of City Year, which unites young adults, ages 17 to 24, from all backgrounds for an intensive year of full-time community service. City Year served as the model for President Clinton’s AmeriCorps program.

Alan Co-Founded and is Senior Advisor for Welcome.us a new effort to welcome Afghan, Ukrainian, and other refugees to America. Alan also serves as Co-Chair and Senior Advisor of More Perfect, which focuses on renewing democracy through advancing civics, service, bridge building, trusted elections, and trusted information.

Alan is the author of Big Citizenship: How Pragmatic Idealism Can Bring Out The Best In America. Alan served as a Commissioner on the Commission on Military, National, and Public Service from 2017 to 2020 and has also served on more than twenty non-profit boards. 

is a leader in life sciences investing, currently a partner at Soleus Capital, a healthcare investment firm focused on the innovative areas of life sciences, including biotech, medtech, diagnostics, and genomics. Previously, Ben was a Principal on Bain Capital's Life Sciences team, where he invested in growth stage companies in the biotech, pharma, life science tools and diagnostics sectors. Ben has also been a Vice President at Paulson & Co., focused on public and private equity investments in Healthcare. Ben graduated with Phi Beta Kappa distinction from Princeton University with an AB in Molecular Biology and Neuroscience. 

is the founding Executive Director of the Institute for Social Innovation at Babson College, which amplifies the college’s mission to educate entrepreneurial leaders to create social and economic value simultaneously.  Thanks to Cheryl’s vision and leadership for the past thirteen years, the Institute has become an influential entity at Babson and beyond. One of Cheryl’s most crucial roles is helping stakeholders to understand the changing role of business in society. The Institute inspires people to create positive social impact in any role, any sector, and any community. It educates purpose driven students to see the UN Global Goals as an opportunity (and a $12 trillion market opportunity, at that) for addressing the biggest challenges of our time, such as poverty, climate action, and inequality.

is a Public Health professional with over 10 years of experience in youth work, health education, and community engagement. Throughout his career he has organized numerous events and activities geared towards improving the lives of those most vulnerable. Dishon currently works to create systems level change across the City of Boston as the Youth Prevention Program Director with the Boston Public Health Commission’s (BPHC) Office of Recovery Services where he coordinates technical assistance and trainings for the youth-serving workforce around topics related to engaging youth around substance use and developing new tools for city partners in their work with youth populations. Dishon also co-chairs the Boston Youth Resiliency & Recovery Collaborative (BYRRC), a coalition to address the harms and support those impacted by the opioid epidemic in Boston, and spearheads the CopeCode Club, a substance use prevention campaign focused on improving healthy responses to life stressors. Before this role, Dishon spent seven years teaching comprehensive health education (substance use education, sexual health, and mental health/depression awareness), providing both group and one-on-one sessions addressing the needs of school-based youth, and STI testing through the Health Resource Center program, part of the Boston Public Health Commission’s Child, Adolescent, and Family Health Bureau. Dishon looks to continue supporting his community through his professional career and in his personal time.

is the Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of the Center for Compassionate Leadership, an organization committed to advancing compassionate methods of leadership by integrating best practices of modern leadership, evidence-based science, and contemplative wisdom. Evan leads the Center’s thought leadership efforts, the integration of scientific and business research into the Center’s content, and the development and delivery of the Center’s leadership training programs. Evan has taught about compassion to both nonprofit organizations and for-profit corporate boards.

For the last twenty years, he has worked in the nonprofit field, seeking to build a more just world for all humans. Before beginning work in the nonprofit sector, Evan was an investment manager for over twenty years. He was awarded a Master of Business Administration degree, with distinction, from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from Princeton University.

is a distinguished leader in the non-profit and philanthropic sectors, committed to empowering and uplifting children, families, and communities across Boston and Massachusetts. As the Chief Program Officer for the Yawkey Foundation, she oversees grant-making initiatives that honor Tom and Jean Yawkey's legacy, driving profound positive change.

Prior to joining the Yawkey Foundation, Maicharia was the Program Director for Economic Opportunity at Fidelity Foundations, where she led transformative grant-making strategies for Early Childhood, Youth Engagement, and Generational Prosperity. Her leadership journey also includes pivotal roles at United South End Settlements, LIFT, and Whittier Street Health Center, where she consistently advanced their missions with vision and dedication.

Maicharia's deep commitment to community service is evident through her board positions with SparkShare and the Alumni Council for Northfield Mount Hermon School. She works to create opportunities and foster growth in every community she serves.

In her free time, Maicharia finds joy in pottery, walking, and spending quality moments with family and friends. She holds an MBA from Simmons University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Connecticut.

Driven by a relentless passion for social justice and community upliftment, Maicharia Weir Lytle continues to inspire and lead, making a lasting impact on countless lives.

is a Co-Founder of SparkShare and its inaugural Board Chair. Marsha is a clinical social worker with a focus on social justice and youth. Previously, she was a Vice President at Boston Financial Data Services where she worked as a client liaison and designed computer interface systems. Marsha is a graduate of Tufts University and Simmons School of Social Work.

served as a Youth Board Member this year (2023-2024). He is involved with SparkShare through his work with Wipe Out Stigma, a youth mental health advocacy organization he helped to found and lead.  He has enjoyed the opportunity from this experience [as a Youth Board Member] to learn firsthand about non-profit governance and growth as well as, to provide his own unique insights from a youth perspective.  Noah is a senior in high school this year and will be graduating and attending the University of Saint Andrew’s in Scotland, where he will be studying Physics.

has over 26 years of experience in the higher education profession and is currently the Associate Vice President and Dean of Students at Salem State University. In his current role, Mr. Newton is responsible for providing leadership for the division of Student Affairs with a focus towards enhancing the student experience through programs and services, student retention and graduation and identifying and responding to students in crisis just to name a few. Prior to that, Mr. Newton was  appointed Chairperson by Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll (former Mayor) for the City of Salem Race Equity Task Force in Salem, MA. a board member for Spark Share-based out of Boston, MA, St. Jean's Credit Union, and the Chamber of Commerce.  Additionally, he is the President and CEO of Newton Consultancy Group where his firm offers a comprehensive portfolio of professional consulting services. A fun fact about Shawn is that he is a second degree black belt in Okinawan Goju-Ryu Karate, loves gardening, boating and is married with two beautiful kids.