The professional staff at GAR Foundation is dedicated to meeting the needs of the community through charitable giving.
Our offices are located at the Andrew Jackson House, 277 East Mill Street, Akron, Ohio 44308. Our business hours are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. For information about the Foundation, please contact us by phone at 330-576-2926 or via email at info@garfdn.org. Visit our contact page for additional details.
Christine Amer Mayer
President
330-576-2911
cmayer@garfdn.org
Born and raised in Akron, Christine Amer Mayer has deep ties to the Foundation's base in Summit County. She received her bachelor's degree in English from Duke University in Durham, N.C., and her law degree from The Ohio State University.
For eight years after law school, Mayer practiced commercial litigation and business law with Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs. She has worked with GAR Foundation since 2001. Mayer has a special interest in regional economic development and has been heavily involved in The Fund For Our Economic Future – a philanthropic collaboration focused on improving the economic trajectory of Northeast Ohio. She presently serves as vice chair of the Fund and the chair of its Grantmaking Policy and Partnerships Committee. Mayer also serves on the boards of United Way of Summit County, Leadership Akron, ideastream and Milestones Autism Organization. Mayer and her husband Richard live in Solon with their three young children.
Candace Campbell Jackson
Consulting Program Officer
330-972-7709
candac7@uakron.edu
Candace Campbell Jackson has worked with GAR Foundation since 1998. In recent years, she has served as a Consulting Program Officer for GAR, dedicating the majority of her professional time to her role as Vice President and Chief of Staff at the University of Akron. Formerly, Jackson was in the public law and corporate departments of law firm Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs LLP. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Journalism from Howard University in Washington D.C. and a law degree from the University of Akron. She and her husband, Mark, have four children.
Kirstin S. Toth
Senior Vice President
330-576-2917
ktoth@garfdn.org
Kirstin Toth joined GAR Foundation in 2007. Previously Toth served as the consulting project director for the Great Lakes Environmental Finance Center at Cleveland State University's Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs. Toth has also worked in the private sector at Bank One and in the public sector as an aide to the president of the Board of Cuyahoga County Commissioners. She earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Ohio University, and a Master of Public Administration in economic development from Cleveland State University.
Currently, Toth serves as chair of the Summit Education Initiative and on Summit County's First Things First advisory committee. She is a member of the national Grantmakers for Education, and is active in the education advisory group of Ohio Grantmakers Forum. She lives in Hudson with her husband, David, and their two sons.
Julie Rittenhouse
Program Officer
330-576-2913
jrittenhouse@garfdn.org
Julie Rittenhouse joined GAR Foundation in 2008 with nine years of philanthropic experience in Cleveland that included strategic initiatives, special projects, program management and evaluation. Rittenhouse is a lecturer at Cleveland State University's Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Studies. She has managed community development and leadership training projects at the Levin College and has consulted on affordable housing initiatives. She has also been an active volunteer with social services and educational organizations throughout her career. Rittenhouse earned a Bachelor's degree in Government and International Studies from the University of Notre Dame and a Master's degree in social administration from Case Western Reserve University. She is a long-time resident of the Ohio City neighborhood of Cleveland.
Julie A. Watson
Grants Manager, Program Assistant
330-576-2915
JWatson@garfdn.org
Julie Watson is GAR Foundation's Grants Manager and Program Assistant. She has been with GAR since 1998. Previously, she served as an administrative assistant with the former Roadway Services Inc. (now Caliber Systems Inc., a part of FedEx Corp). Watson earned a Bachelor's degree from Bowling Green State University. She lives in Akron.
Kate Harmon
Communications & Operations Manager
330-576-2916
kharmon@garfdn.org
Kate Harmon joined the Foundation in late 2010. She previously served as an administrator at the Myers School of Art, The University of Akron where she continues to teach art history, on a part-time basis, as a Senior Lecturer. She holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in art history as well as a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in art history and a Bachelor of Arts degree in anthropology from Ohio University. She is currently ABD at Indiana University-Bloomington where her dissertation research focuses on examining Venetian art in Early Stuart England.
Harmon lives in Hudson with her husband, Jef, and is an active member of the Hudson community having co-founded the Hudson Farmers Market and Junior Leadership Hudson as well as serving on the boards of Leadership Hudson and The City of Hudson's Architectural & Historic Board of Review.