Leadership - PCs for People

Leadership Team

Casey Sorensen

Chief Executive Officer

Casey graduated from Minnesota State University Mankato with a degree in Computer Information Systems. After college Casey began his career working in technology automation with Deloitte Consulting, however, his true passion was to help others join the digital world. In 2008, Casey left consulting and went on to incorporate and establish PCs for People. Under his management the organization has grown to become a leader in digital inclusion for low-income families and individuals, serving thousands in need across the nation.

Bryan Mauk

Chief Innovation Officer

Bryan has been serving the community for over 15 years helping to provide outreach and employment services to individuals who were homeless and previously incarcerated. Bryan has a B.A. from John Carroll University and a Master’s Degree in Nonprofit Organizations (MNO) from Case Western Reserve University. Bryan has also served as an adjunct faculty member at John Carroll University teaching classes on social entrepreneurship at the graduate and undergraduate levels.

Joseph Benson

Vice President of Business Development

Joseph has spent the last 27 years in sales, sales management, and marketing roles in various companies and industries. His focus is primarily on coaching and mentoring sales teams, especially those poised for hypergrowth and expansion, and helping to create synergies between marketing and sales. Joseph is passionate about PCs For People’s mission and takes pride in supporting the work we do.

Joseph lives with his family in Southwest Florida and can often be found taking advantage of the beautiful weather, be it at the beach, the golf course, or on his patio while working.

Jonathan Fischer

Vice President of Technology

Jonathan is a leader in technology innovation with over 15 years of non-profit experience who is passionate about bringing technology and people together. He holds both Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Information Science from the University of Pittsburgh. In his previous role as Director of IT, Jonathan led the development of the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Institute’s national member ecosystem which earned him the 2022 Pittsburgh Technology Council’s CIO of the Year Rising Star award.

Damir Huseinovic

Vice President of Operations

Damir was born in Yugoslavia and moved to the States as a young teenager. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and spent the first 15 years of his career in Fortune 500 companies in various sectors of operational management from single unit’s to 45+ units statewide. He then expanded his professional scope and jumped into logistics and supply chain management. Prior to joining the PCs for People team in 2022, Damir spent four years as the COO with an entrepreneurial company.

Damir has resided on the Gulf Coast of Florida ever since coming to the U.S. and feels very at home there. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with family—especially his child. He also enjoys traveling and exploring the real estate and stock market.

Kathy Jones

Vice President of Finance

Kathy joined the PCs for People team in 2023, coming to us with over 20 years of experience in accounting, finance, IT, facilities, and purchasing. She previously worked at Deloitte, Touch CPA firm, and a major healthcare provider in Alaska after graduating from the University of Alaska Fairbanks with her bachelor’s degree in Accounting. Kathy has also earned her MBA specializing in Information Technology and her Juris Doctor specializing in Contract and Healthcare Law.

While living in Alaska, Kathy traveled all over the state and gained an appreciation for nature and animals. Though she eventually packed up her four horses and six dogs to move across the country to Virginia, she now loves to spend time with her six grandchildren and teach them about loving the land and animals of our world.

Market Directors

Bevin Bowersmith

Managing Director – Cleveland, OH

Bevin Bowersmith was born and raised in the Greater Cleveland area and found a passion for volunteering with nonprofits at a young age. Bevin joined PCs for People in 2019 after recognizing the need to bridge the digital divide and to help families in her community become better connected. Bevin lives in Westlake, OH, with her husband Bo, toddler daughter Rowan, and a rambunctious dog named Laika.

Chris Cairo

Managing Director – Minnesota

Chris came to PCs for People with over thirty years of management, sales, and procurement experience in the agriculture and food market spaces. A graduate of Northeastern Illinois University, he has served on various Boards (Family & Children’s Service, Easter Lutheran Church, Zeeland Lumber) and has a lifetime of volunteer experience, including four years working with youth at Treehouse Hope. A passionate soccer fan (Go Loons!), Chris and his wife reside in Eagan, MN.

Alejandro Dopico

Executive Director – Denver, CO

Alejandro Dopico is originally from Spain and spent many years as the Chief Operations Officer for an international export company based in Hong Kong. Alejandro combines his experience in international sales with a deep understanding of technology to execute the day to day operations as well as the long-term strategic plan of the Denver branch. After relocating to the United States, Alejandro decided to expand his skills by joining the nonprofit sector and passionate about the life-changing impact of computers and internet on individuals, especially the youth population.

Tom Esselman

Executive Director – Kansas City, MO

Becoming part of the PCs For People organization fulfills a vision Tom articulated when he joined Connecting For Good as CEO in 2016: for digital inclusion to become a financially sustainable model for every community, providing demonstrable long term improvements in Education, Employment, Economic Impact and the Environment. Tom and his wife Mary live in Kansas City, and have 4 kids, and a growing number of grandchildren.

Brian Hooker

Managing Director – Atlanta, GA

Brian Hooker is a community development professional skilled in leading employees to work as a team in support of a mission, and motivating volunteers, partners, community members and other
stakeholders to take action. As market leader for PCs for People in Atlanta, Brian gets to channel his lifelong passion for technology, his experience, and network to bridge the digital divide and uplift local
residents. Brian began his career as an IT project manager supporting one of the most important projects in Atlanta’s history; the 1996 Olympic Games. Along his journey Brian has worked in large corporations, tech startups, public agencies, and non-profit organizations focused on real estate development, economic incentives, job creation, and technical skill building to make a positive impact on Atlanta and other communities.

CeAira Sargent

Managing Director – Metro East, IL

CeAira is a native of St. Louis and proud St. Louis Public School graduate. She has nearly fifteen years of experience in college access and college success leadership and programming. Her roles and responsibilities varied from building institutional and community partnerships, facilitating curriculum and training, and designing and implementing innovative programming. CeAira joined PCs for People after supporting high school and college students through the pandemic which emphasized the urgency to bridge the digital divide. CeAira believes deeply in the power of access to disrupt poverty. When she’s not supporting the community, CeAira loves spending time with her husband and three-year-old son.

Michael Sherrod

Managing Director – Baltimore, MD

Michael graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Sociology. He was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, but has lived in Baltimore, MD, for the last sixteen years. Michael has fifteen years of experience in the non-profit sector with ten of those years at the executive level. Michael’s entire career has been spent focusing on helping the most disadvantaged people and communities through youth development programs, community resource programs, and events. Michael joined PCs for People to continue to fulfill his lifelong mission of helping people who are most in need. During his free time, he enjoys reading, sports, and spending time with his family.

Erin Sherwood

Managing Director – Cook County, IL

As a Buffalo-native, Erin Sherwood relocated to Chicago over thirteen years ago to pursue her graduate degree in Integrated Marketing Communications from Roosevelt University. She went on to then manage a small, but robust corporate education and training institute for over a decade. Using effective communications and storytelling, she has helped to elevate professionals in their careers and is excited about the opportunity to now help bridge the digital divide across the state of Illinois and beyond. When she’s not working, she can be found chasing her nearly three-year-old son, exploring the many parks and sights Chicago has to offer or cheering on the Buffalo Bills.

National Directors

Anila Din

National Human Resources Director

Anila Din joined the PCs for People team in 2022, bringing over fifteen years of experience in full-cycle human resources management. She has worked in progressive HR roles in higher education and in a non-profit in Indianapolis, IN.

Anila currently lives in Indianapolis and serves on the board of a local non-profit geared to support refugees in Indiana. She also is part of a volunteer cook-group at a local Indianapolis soup kitchen. She enjoys gardening, spending time with family, and traveling.

Natalie Friedl

Development Director

Natalie lives in Cleveland, OH, with her four boys and two Newfoundlands. She taught high school English for one year with her Bachelor’s Degree from Kent State University before entering the nonprofit sector and receiving her MBA with a concentration in NP Management from Walden University in 2008. While the majority of her nonprofit career has been in fundraising, she has human resources, program management, and evaluation experience.

Owen Koester

Director of Customer Experience

Owen Koester came to PCs for People in April 2021 after 5.5 years working for the financial technology company Square. One of the first hires at Square’s St. Louis office, he started as a support representative, was an inaugural member of the Quality Assurance team, and led email, phone, and messaging support teams. Over the course of three years, he established KPIs, processes, and built out the asynchronous messaging channel. At PCs for People, his goal is to incrementally improve the customer experience and ease with which folks can reach out for support and digital skill building.

Andrea Lindsay

Director of Strategic Initiatives

Andrea joined PCs for People as the Operations Manager launching PCs for People Ohio and since then has supported teams in Illinois and Georgia as well as grown national partnerships. She has been engaged in the nonprofit and workforce development field for more than 10 years and has been in operations and leadership roles for over 5 years. A Seattle native, she moved back to the Pacific Northwest in 2021. Andrea has a B.A. from Williams College and a Certificate in Professional Fundraising from Boston University.

John Sharer

National Director of Operations

John was born in Germany in an armed forces base and moved to the US at the age of 18. Prior to PCs for People, John managed his own business as a drone filming and video producer. He also worked for a software company training dealership employees across the country in the use of this software.

Since joining PCs for People as a customer service representative in 2019, John has been a vital asset to the organization’s operations and e-recycling teams. After serving in a variety of positions, he was promoted to National Director of Operations in 2021.

John currently lives in Colorado and is an avid Packers, Brewers, and Bucks fan.

Meet the Governing Board

Learn more about our board members and their respective roles.