Mercy Center Announces New Board Members

ASBURY PARK, N.J. - April 10, 2024 - PRLog -- Mercy Center is pleased to announce the addition of New Jersey  business leader Carol Stillwell and Monmouth County nonprofit founder Miriam Tort to its board of trustees.

"Mercy Center is honored to welcome two remarkable women to our board whose exceptional accomplishments and commitment to making a positive impact align seamlessly with our mission to empower people, enrich lives and educate children," said board Chairwoman Mary Catherine Cuff.

Stillwell is owner, president and CEO of Stillwell-Hansen, Inc., an Edison-based company that provides data center infrastructure solutions. She has been recognized as one of the top women business leaders in New Jersey each year since 2009. Most recently she was honored with the 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award by NJ Biz.

A resident of Holmdel, Stillwell has a long history of supporting philanthropic causes, including serving on numerous boards including 180 Turning Lives Around, Bayshore Medical Center Foundation, Brookdale Community College Foundation, CASA of Monmouth County, Count Basie Theatre, Monmouth University, SCAN, Tigger House, United Way of Monmouth and Ocean Counties, and YMCA of Greater Monmouth County. She also serves on advisory boards for Hackensack-Meridian Health, Lunch Break and Parker Family Health Center.

Stillwell has been honored by many nonprofit organizations for her generosity and has received countless awards for helping to improve lives.

Tort, of Rumson, has helped launch three nonprofit organizations, and has been an active volunteer, following a career in accounting.

She is a founding trustee of Trinity Hall High School, an independent, all-girls school in Tinton Falls that educates and empowers young women in the Catholic tradition. She has led the school's board of trustees as a chairwoman and vice chair, helping to grow enrollment from 30 in 2013 to 310 in June 2023.

Six years ago, she and her husband founded Saint Joseph's Workshop, a nonprofit devoted to repairing and refurbishing furniture that is donated to women referred by 180 Turning Lives Around, a shelter for battered women. In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, she and a group of friends organized the nonprofit Room in Our Heart to assist families whose homes were destroyed. They furnished and decorated homes rebuilt by Habitat for Humanity in low-income neighborhoods.

She volunteered at the schools that her children attended – Holy Cross Academy, Christian Brothers Academy and Red Bank Catholic. She also served in ministries at Holy Cross Church in Rumson and recently joined the pastoral ministry at Riverview Medical Center, where she also serves as an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion.

Mercy Center's Executive Director Kim Guadagno said the organization will benefit greatly from both Tort's and Stillwell's deep experience, skills, and perspectives.

"As a nonprofit that is working to break the cycle of generational poverty, we are grateful for their service, leadership and knowledge," Guadagno said.

About Mercy Center
Mercy Center, founded by the Sisters of Mercy, is a nonprofit charitable organization working to break the cycle of generational poverty in the greater Asbury Park area. Our food pantry nourishes families, caring programs and services help stabilize them, and our Sisters Academy provides a quality education to put an end to the cycle of poverty, one child, one family at a time. To donate, volunteer or learn more about how we empower, enrich, and educate the people we serve, visit www.MercyCenterNJ.org.