Board of Directors 2010/2011
President
Margaret Zanenga
I was born in Tokyo, I am American and now maybe almost Italian. I grew up in
Tokyo and Hawaii, in equal parts and I consider both places part of my roots.
I have lived in Milan for 10 years plus one year in Brescia, where my husband
and I were married and we have a wonderful 7 year old daughter. I have a B.S. degree
in Retail Management from Purdue University and I got half way through working towards
an MBA with the Open University here in Milan. I was the Display/merchandising Chief
of the Barneys New York stores in Tokyo a20.02 03/04/2010nd I also have few years experience working
in accounting. For the past 3 years I have been involved on the AIM Board, as the
Special Activities Coordinator and as the Membership Director. Before that, I was
the Editor for our Benvenuto Magazine for a year and as the Newcomers Directors the
prior year and finally as the NtN Chairperson before that which sums up my Benvenuto
Curriculum Vitae. Getting involved in the club this way as soon as I joined has given
me some great work experience and it’s also been quite rewarding too. I’ve had the
opportunity of meeting so many amazing women, of discovering and uncovering so many
interesting local and non-local venues and of course forming friendships which I will
value forever. Barbara is doing and has done such a great job as President, it will
be difficult to fill her shoes - I will try my best in following her footsteps and I
will give it my all in serving as your next president and I look forward to all of your
active participation to continue meeting and enhancing our Club’s objectives.
Vice President
Chiara Goya
I was born in Trieste, and emigrated to Australia when I was 6 years old,
with my parents and my one year old sister. My parents had three daughters and our childhood
in Melbourne was fun. After getting married I had two sons, who between them have given me five
gorgeous grandchildren. I studied fine Art and gained a post grad degree in teaching.
After a brief spell in teaching I became a commercial fashion photographer, which I did
for 20 years. It was a fantastic and rewarding profession, especially for a woman.
During this time I also set up the Melbourne Drawing and Painting School.
As I approached maturity I wanted to give something back to the art world and became
a gallery director doing international art fairs as well as owning and running a number
of galleries in Melbourne. Another passion of mine which I pursued throughout my working
life was property development. I particularly loved seeing the transformation of a run down
building into an attractive dwelling. I came to Milan with my partner in the summer of 2009.
We chose Milan so that I could return to my roots for a while and improve my Italian.
This is my first time as an expatriate wife, and am grateful for the Benvenuto Club who have
provided so much support and knowledge. I am very honoured that you have chosen me as your
Vice President. I know it will be a lot of fun and am keen to make a difference.
Secretary
Ann Currie
I am British, born in the small and beautiful town of Malvern in the centre of
England. I left Malvern at the age of 22 when I married my husband Martin, a Petroleum
Engineer. I spent the first four years of married life in London working for Barclays
Bank in the City of London. Our two children, Richard and then Helen, arrived and I
spent seven years as a full time mum. In 1996 we left England and moved to Scotland
(our first foreign adventure) we remained there for six years and enjoyed our time
there very much; it was an excellent place to bring up young children and I found
myself a role working within our National Health Service. It was in Scotland that
I had my first experience of a women‘s group, I served a Secretary briefly on the
committee of SNOW (Stonehaven Northern Oil Wives) a group which was set up to support
the wives of oil workers. I found the group a life line. From Scotland we moved
with our now teenage children to Cairo, Egypt in 2002 for two and a half years.
Again I served as Secretary on the Board of a women‘s group the Maadi British
Association and again the experience enriched my life. After a period of five years
back in the UK, where this time I worked full time in a school in pastoral care,
I am again on a foreign adventure, this time without my children. I am happy to
serve the Benvenuto Club of Milan as Secretary. I know the experience will only
enhance my life here and is my way of thanking the Club for the great welcome I
have received here in Milan.
Newcomers Director
Samantha Antcliff
I'm English with an English husband Paul. We have two teenage sons Rory and Olliie,
18 and 16 respectively, who are at school in the UK.
After studying textile design at Manchester University I moved to London
and started working for Marks and Spenser as a ladieswear buyer.
We left London when Rory was born and now, eleven house moves later,
we find ourselves in Milan. I qualified at the British Council in Milan as a teacher of
English as a foreign language.
We've been here for 6 years but not so long that I can't
remember what it's like to be a newcomer.
Special Activities Director
Maria Pia Dolci
I am Maria Pia Dolci, wife of one, mother of
three, grandmother of four and I hope and
wish to be a friend of all the Benvenuto
Club members.
I was born in Egypt and spent the first
eighteen years of my life in different
countries, my father being a bank manager often transferred
abroad; the longest stay was five years in Istanbul. Even if I am
?100 percent Piedmontese?, I spent long times far from that region:
Now I have been living in Milan for many years.
I graduated in sociology at the University of Turin and also studied
with a Fulbright scholarship at the Western Reserve University of
Cleveland (Ohio). My studies made me work in the adoption field,
both for Italian and international adoptions.
Since I left my job and my children were self-reliant I had more time
for myself and for my hobbies: bridge, trips, etc. I am looking
forward to working with the new board for my second year in this
position and I hope to keep providing your with interesting activities
to go on.
Membership Director
Amy La Via
I was born Chicago but I have also
lived in Dublin, Ireland, various
cities in the midwest, Mexico and
New York City. We moved to Milan
6 years ago, and 7 months ago we
moved to Como. I have been
married for 12 years to a wonderful
Italian from Rome. We met in
Chicago and moved to NYC where
both my boys were born. Liam is 10 and Luca is 8.
I graduated from Ohio State University in communications and I
worked in sales first for a health and beauty company, and then
sales/editoral for a large college publishing company.
Since moving to Italy, I am a stay at home mom. I have been
involved with Benvenuto since I arrived. I was president of
Americans in Milan for 2 years and then their events coordinator for
another 2 years. I enjoy living in Italy especially because there are
so many wonderful places to travel to and explore!
Public Relations Director Fundraising
Jenny Jacobs
I am American and have been in Milan a little over a year. I moved here to be with
my Italian husband after we got married in the U.S. in 2008. I was lucky to find
Benvenuto Club five months ago because it has given me the opportunity to meet new
people and form friendships.
I feel that with my experience, I could be a good addition to the board.
I received my Master’s in Communication in 2007 from the University of Maine
(born & raised as a “Mainer”). I have 10+ years of marketing experience: from
direct marketing to business-to-business to field marketing and finally, my biggest
love, promotions. A majority of my experience is in retail with the well-known fast
food giant: Burger King. Like the name, it is a fast-paced business and some days
I miss the craziness of working in advertising. I hope that I can bring some
marketing insight into this club with the PR/Fundraising position by: helping
streamline our website, our communication internally about upcoming events, giving
input on ads within our magazines and most importantly, helping to develop a marketing
plan to generate new membership.
Public Relations Director Events
Grazia Masala
Siena is my native home town and it is where I grew up. I received a scholarship
from the university in Perugia, and it is there where I earned my degree in Political
Science. I became an assistant Professor of Sociology for two years, then worked at
the Buitoni factory in the Marketing Sector for the following 4 years. I joined the
Benvenuto Club in 1999 and I soon found myself involved in the Club‘s various activities.
I was Treasurer for Orientals Abroad for 2 years, Vice President of the Club for two
years (2003-05), and I was the Special Activities director OA, for 2 years. I was the
Public Relations Director for two years (2006/2008). I will be repeating my last
position for the next Benvenuto year.
I love to travel, to meet new people and to take photographs (especially on travels
to different countries). I also enjoy dancing, cooking, gardening and music. I look
forward to doing my very best as PR Director again for the Benvenuto Club. Thank you
for placing your confidence in me.
Community Services Director
Cleotilde Juan Donegan
I am British/American and my husband is American.
I have professional training in travel, trade and events. I‘ve lived in France,
Spain, China and US and speak Italian, French and Spanish. My interests are in computers,
arts and crafts, film, gardening, sports, theater and writing.
Editor
Georgia Jacobs
I was born in Queens, New York but grew up in Tucson, Arizona.
While getting my bachelor‘s degree in English at the University of Arizona, I was bitten by
the travel bug and moved to Barcelona upon my graduation to teach English and learn Spanish.
I then moved to New York City, where I worked in book publishing, got a Master‘s in English
at NYU and met my now husband. When he was offered the opportunity to move to Hong Kong with
NBC Finance, I jumped at the opportunity to live abroad again. That was in 1997 and we haven‘t
looked back since. We spent two years in Singapore, where I continued to work in publishing,
albeit, for magazines. Then we spent eight years in Tokyo, where I ran an English
entertainment/lifestyle weekly. I commuted between New York and Tokyo for one year while
I was getting a Master‘s in Journalism at Columbia University and working as a freelancer
before rejoining my husband in Japan. We moved to London in 2007 when my husband was offered
a job at QVC UK, an American-owned TV shopping network. Last October, my husband was asked
to help start up QVC Italy, which launches this October and, consequently, we moved to Milan
in January with our three cats and beloved labradoodle, Kuma. I am currently studying Italian
and looking forward to getting involved in Benvenuto, meeting lots of new people, and learning
all there is to know about my new home.
Treasurer
position open
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