About Us
Our Executive Leadership

DAN POWELL
Chief Executive Officer
Dan has been involved with the VNA of Somerset Hills for several years as a Board member, Board Chair, and now as President and CEO. He brings to the VNA more than 25 years of broad-based experience as an operating general manager, business combination specialist, and senior strategist for both high-growth and established businesses leading initiatives to grow revenues, reduce costs and improve operations. He has served as a CEO and an adviser to Boards of Directors for numerous companies and been active in the banking, private equity, and management consulting industries with McKinsey & Company, Alvarez & Marsal, and Citicorp. Dan holds an MBA in business administration from Harvard University, and a BA from Williams College.

JUDY ADAMCSIK, RN, MSN
Vice President of Operations
Judy oversees the VNA of Somerset Hills’ home health, hospice and rehabilitation services. With the VNA since 1999, Judy has held positions of increased responsibility including Staff Nurse, Referral Center Manager and Nursing Team Supervisor. Judy has over 30 years of nursing experience including prior hospital staff nurse and supervisory positions. She currently serves on the Board of the Home Care Association of New Jersey and Ridge Oak Senior Housing. She holds an MSN from the University of Phoenix and BA in Nursing from Bloomfield College.

NICK KOUYIALIS, CPA
Vice President of Finance and Business
Nick brings the VNA over 30 years of experience in strategic, financial and operational management, including 12 years as Director of Finance at VNA Health Group. He oversees our accounting, budgeting, and reporting procedures to ensure the VNA is compliant with all regulatory requirements. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Nick is a member of the American Institute of CPA’s, New Jersey Society of CPA’s, and the Government Affairs Committee of the Home Care Association of New Jersey.

MARIE SPERBER, MS
Vice President of Business Development and Philanthropy
Marie oversees all VNA of Somerset Hills sales, marketing, fundraising and communications. Previous VNA positions included Director of Sales & Marketing and Manager of Community Relations and Volunteers. Marie brings the VNA a background in corporate and nonprofit leadership. She served as Director of Corporate Publicity for Kellogg Corporation, President & CEO of Snelling Temporaries, Battle Creek and currently serves on the Bedminster Board of Health. She holds an MS in Nutrition Science from Penn State University and BS in Nutrition from Drexel University.

RITA TRUEX, MSN, RN
Director of Quality Care Management
Rita focus is to ensure that the VNA consistently provides patients with an exceptional care and service experience. Prior to this position she served as Manager of Staff Education. Rita brings the VNA eleven years of experience at VNA Health Group. She is currently a member on the Home Care Association of New Jersey Quality Committee, and an Adjunct Clinical Faculty member at Seton Hall University and St. Paul’s School of Nursing. She holds an MSN and BSN in Nursing Informatics from Thomas Edison State College. Rita is a Certified Care Transitions Coach and Certified Integrated Chronic Care Manager.

DEBRA HOPPEL, RN
Director of Hospice & Palliative Care
Deb is passionate about the benefits of hospice and palliative care, and has focused on this area throughout her career. As part of the VNA family since 2005, she served as a home health and hospice field nurse and Home Care Manager before being appointed to her current position. Prior to joining the VNA, she worked at Somerset Medical Center where she gained valuable experience as both a hospice and palliative care nurse and as Patient Advocate. She holds a BSN from DeSales University.

Christie Ponessa, RN, BSN
Associate Director of Referral Services & Sales
A long-time member of the VNA of Somerset Hills family, Christie currently focuses of providing our referral partners high-quality service experience. Since joining the agency as a Staff Nurse in 1999, she has served in roles of increasing responsibility including Intake Liaison and Referral Service Manager. Additional clinical experience includes serving as a Senior Nurse Clinician at NYU Medical Center and Manager of Utilization Management with Kaiser Permanente and St. Claire’s in Denville. Christie received her BSN from Mount St. Mary College, School of Nursing.

AUDREY TAFFET
Associate Director of Adult Day Center and Private Care Services
Audrey oversees the Adult Day Center at the VNA of Somerset Hills and Private Care Services. Since 2007, she served as a VNA Sales & Marketing Manager. Audrey brings the agency strong marketing and management experience, including 20 years in the medical device industry. She has a passion to help caregivers seeking support, education and resources. Her educational background includes an MBA from Columbia University and a BA in Biology from Brandeis University.
2018-19 Board of Trustees
Peter Mercer Chair
Reggie Yoskowitz, MPH 1st Vice-Chair
Elliot Stein, MD 2nd Vice-Chair
Jim Helpinstill, Treasurer
Kathy Cummins, MS, RN Secretary
Ellen Christman
Denise Coyle, Esq.
Robert Goldberg, DO
Judith Hazelwood, MD, MBA
Lesley Hetherington, CPA, MBA
Susan Lichtenberger, RN, MPH
Christopher Liwski, Esq.
Myra McGinley
Barbara Niedz, RN, Ph.D.
Evelyn Prather
Charles Reid III, Esq.
Janet Robertson, MD
Maureen Zampella, APN, MBA
C. Walter Zimmerman
2018-19 Advisory Council
Grania Allport, RN
Peter Burke, Esq.
Carol Butera
Dorothy DeMaio, RN, Ed.D., FAAN
Denis Dooley
Katie Dooley
Carol Earle
Heather Gallagher
Mona Gibson
Nancy Hutchins
Charlotte Jones-Burton, MD
Brian Lawrence
Sue Manley
Charles Miller
Patricia Neill
Juliet Patsalos-Fox
Maureen Schneider, RN, MSN, MBA, Ph.D
Diane Simon
Glenn Taylor
Julie Valentine
Nina Vitale
Deborah Wilbur
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