Board of Directors
Our Approach to Leadership
Lift Women’s Foundation is led by a working board deeply committed to advancing women’s economic empowerment.
Our leadership model is built on partnership, stewardship, and shared commitment to mission. Lift benefits from a strong partnership with Royal Neighbors of America, whose support provides leadership resources and in-kind services such as marketing, accounting, and legal expertise. This partnership allows Lift Women’s Foundation to focus more resources directly on programs and impact.
Our Board of Directors plays an active role in guiding the organization’s strategy, supporting fundraising and partnerships, and ensuring the Foundation continues to grow its impact and reach. Board members bring diverse professional expertise and a shared belief that investing in women’s economic opportunity strengthens families and communities.
The Foundation is currently implementing a new strategy to significantly grow the impact of its mission in the next five years. The board is committed to responsible stewardship, strategic growth, and meaningful impact.
Amy Jones, President
Amy Jones serves as President of Lift Women’s Foundation, where she leads the organization’s strategy, programs, and partnerships focused on advancing women’s economic empowerment. Her work centers on expanding access to education, entrepreneurship, and community support systems that help women achieve economic mobility and long-term financial stability. Royal Neighbors provides this position in-kind to Lift.
Amy also serves as Senior Director of Social Impact at Royal Neighbors of America, where she leads enterprise-wide social impact and philanthropic strategy. Through this work, she has helped grow programs that invest millions of dollars annually into communities across the country.
She is passionate about the belief that when women have access to opportunity, families stabilize, businesses grow, and communities thrive. Her work focuses on building systems, partnerships, and programs that unlock economic opportunity for women and strengthen communities as a result.
Angie Kendall
Angie Kendall is the CEO of Hand in Hand, a Quad Cities nonprofit providing inclusive childcare, recreation, and adult day services for children and adults of all abilities. Her work focuses on strengthening programs that support families, expand workforce participation, and create communities where people of all abilities can live, work, and engage fully.
Angie brings a background in nonprofit leadership, philanthropy, and public policy, with experience advancing community partnerships and sustainable funding for human services. She is actively involved in regional leadership through board service and policy work that supports families and care providers.
She is proud to support LIFT Women’s Foundation and its commitment to advancing opportunities for women and strengthening families across the Quad Cities.
Marla Glabe
Marla Glabe is Senior Advisor for Management Control International, Inc., a privately owned family asset management firm, and serves on the Board of Directors for Wintrust Financial Corporation, Wintrust Wealth Management, Northwest Community Hospital Foundation, and is a member of the Executive Advisory Committee for First Insurance Funding and Wintrust Life Finance. Previously, Marla served as a senior executive with Allstate Insurance Company, President of North Shore United Way, and Board of Director for Royal Neighbors of America.
Earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Actuarial Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Marla is also a graduate of Duke’s Strategic Executive Education Marketing Program and a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries.
For the past 25 years, Marla has mentored women through the Menttium Corporation and is committed to the success of female business entrepreneurs.
Celena Anderson, Vice President
Celena Anderson is the Human Resources and Membership Engagement Executive at Royal Neighbors of America, where she provides executive leadership across human resources, marketing strategy, and philanthropic initiatives. A key member of the executive leadership team, she partners closely with the Board of Directors to advance organizational strategy and mission impact.
Celena brings deep experience in organizational development, human capital strategy, and change leadership across multiple industries. Previously, she served as Chief Human Resources Officer for a start-up organization, guiding it through critical growth phases including international expansion and business maturity.
Celena is passionate about the Lift Women’s Foundation because of its commitment to expanding economic opportunity for women and empowering them to build financial stability for themselves, their families, and their communities.
Amanda Boyer, Treasurer
Amanda Boyer is a First Vice President at Quad City Bank & Trust, where she brings more than 15 years of experience in commercial banking. She works closely with local businesses across a variety of industries, serving as a relationship manager and supporting clients in all aspects of their banking needs — from lending to optimizing working capital through treasury management services. Ms. Boyer also leads business development efforts for the commercial banking team.
Prior to joining Quad City Bank & Trust in 2013, Ms. Boyer served as Vice President and Senior Relationship Manager at Wells Fargo Bank. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Iowa and completed Wells Fargo’s College of Commercial Credit. She also holds Series 7 and Series 63 investment licenses.
Ms. Boyer is actively involved in the community. In addition to her service to Lift, she serves on the Scott County Appraisal Jury Board. She is also engaged with several local and national nonprofit organizations, including Big Brothers Big Sisters, United Way, and Habitat for Humanity.
Janet Sichterman
Janet Sichterman is Senior Vice President of Innovation, R&D, Quality, and Regulatory at Kent Consumer Brands, Inc., based in Muscatine, Iowa. In this role, she leads efforts to drive innovation and identify new opportunities for growth and collaboration across the organization.
Prior to her current position, Ms. Sichterman served as Executive Vice President of Enterprise Innovation and as Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Communications at Kent. She also held a variety of executive and leadership roles at Bandag, Inc., spanning multiple disciplines.
Ms. Sichterman earned a Bachelor of Arts from Central College and holds a Master of Business Administration, Master of Accounting, and Master of Organizational Leadership from St. Ambrose University. In 2019, she was recognized as an honoree of the Athena International Women’s Leadership Award.
She has served on several foundation, healthcare, and nonprofit boards at both the local and national levels. Ms. Sichterman was elected to the Royal Neighbors of America Board of Directors in 2020, where she serves as Chair of the Compensation Committee and is a member of the Governance and Investment Committees. She will serve as board president in 2026.
Karen Hayes
Karen Hayes is an experienced insurance professional and leader with a specialty in business process improvement. She currently serves as Operations Executive at Royal Neighbors of America, where she oversees Underwriting, Agent Services, and the Customer Support Center.
Since joining Royal Neighbors in 2011, Ms. Hayes has held leadership roles across multiple functional areas. As Senior Director of Agent and Customer Services, she led key Society functions including Customer Support, Claims, Underwriting Operations, Licensing, Contracting, and Commissions. Prior to joining Royal Neighbors, she served as a Senior Manager at Allsteel in Muscatine, Iowa.
A native of the Quad Cities, Ms. Hayes earned a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration and Management from the University of Northern Iowa. She holds both the Leadership Institute Fellow (LLIF) designation from the Life Insurance Marketing and Research Association (LIMRA) and the Fellow, Life Management Institute (FLMI) designation.
Ms. Hayes is an active community volunteer. She has supported Junior Achievement of the Heartland, previously served on the United Way Mental Health and Substance Abuse Strategic Investment Committee, and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the YWCA of the Quad Cities.
Outside of her professional and volunteer work, Ms. Hayes is an avid football fan and rarely misses a University of Iowa home game. She and her husband, Aaron, have four children — Cassandra, Grace, Brooke, and Caden — and she enjoys spending time with her family, traveling (especially to the beach or the Northwoods), and being together.
Shannon M. Gruhlke
Shannon M. Gruhlke serves as Manager of Accounting Operations at Royal Neighbors of America in Rock Island, Illinois. She holds the Certified Manager (CM) designation from the Institute of Certified Professional Managers and the Associate, Life Management Institute (ALMI) designation from LOMA®.
A proud former Marine, Ms. Gruhlke brings a strong sense of discipline, service, and leadership to both her professional and community roles. Prior to joining the Lift Women’s Foundation Board of Directors, she served on the Board of Dress for Success Quad Cities and contributed as a member of its Finance Committee.
Her service on the Lift Women’s Foundation Board reflects a strong belief in the power of economic opportunity to transform lives. She is deeply committed to advancing financial empowerment for women as a pathway to long-term impact for individuals, families, and communities.
Outside of her professional and volunteer work, Ms. Gruhlke enjoys spending time in nature, especially fishing for largemouth bass on quiet lakes. She and her husband, Louis, enjoy traveling — particularly to Florida, where they visit their daughter, Grace, and spend time together on the beach.
Tara Miller
Tara Miller is Senior Counsel at Royal Neighbors of America, a national fraternal benefit society headquartered in Rock Island, Illinois. In her role, she advises on complex legal, regulatory, and compliance matters, manages litigation strategy, and supports enterprise-wide initiatives involving risk management and governance. Tara’s background also includes private practice experience across family law, probate, real estate, and business matters, as well as service as a judicial law clerk.
Recognized as a 2025 Quad Cities Business Journal 40 Under 40 honoree, Tara is committed to advancing leadership and opportunity for women. She brings a strong interest in women’s economic empowerment to her work with LIFT Women’s Foundation, informed by both her legal training and her early career in marketing and communications. Tara has also been actively involved with the Junior League for more than a decade.
She supports LIFT’s mission because economic stability and access to opportunity are foundational to thriving families and communities.