Leadership

Members of the Reston USE Board

Acting President, Kathy Bush

Role:  Oversees, coordinates and manages Useful Services Exchange. Sets overall tone and agenda of the organization. Supervises website, membership records, index of services, records of hours, publicity and outreach. Presides over monthly USE board meeting, oversees quarterly newsletters and other publications.  Along with the other members of the USE Board of Directors sees that board positions are filled and appropriate members are appointed to chair ad hoc and standing committees. Represents USE in the community.

Note: The USE Board of Directors continues to search for a full-time president and welcomes any candidates interested in applying for this position.

Bio: Kathy has been a member of Reston USE since 2012 and has been on the USE board since shortly after that. Starting with the quarterly USE newsletter, her responsibilities have increased over the years. She coordinates our social events, which occur approximately every month on a small scale and twice a year on a larger scale for our entire membership. Kathy has been acting president of USE for the last several years. Being part of USE has provided Kathy with much personal fulfillment and many new friends. 

Treasurer, Jerry Harasty

Role:  Collects member dues and oversees the fiscal operations of the organization. Records dues, maintains USE checkbook and bank statements, pays bills and other USE financial obligations. Files necessary forms with the state and the IRS. Attends monthly board meetings.

Bio: Jerry has been a member of Reston USE since 2020. For the past year he has served as Webmaster, keeping the USE website up to date. He moved to the Herndon-Reston area starting in 1974.  After a 22 year absence as a retiree living in Florida, he returned in 2017.  Jerry has extensive experience in financial services, managing portfolios and developing banking applications in Australia and Japan. He currently is a volunteer with Fairfax FISH, finding funds to help financially distressed families. Jerry enjoys the various activities of Reston USE and actively participates in the Walking Group.

Membership Chair, Alvarez LeCesne

Role:  Works with the Membership Committee to plan the annual membership campaign; is responsible for promoting membership throughout the year; is responsible for seeing that dues are collected, and provides membership reports to the USE Board. 

Bio: Alvarez has lived in Reston since 1977 and has been a member of Reston USE for three years. He and his wife Brenda are both graduates of Loyola University School of Law, class of 1973. He is a retired trial lawyer for the Civil Tax Division, of the US Justice Department, and Director of the Emerging Scholars Program. In Reston, he was the Director of Government Affairs and Community outreach for the Reston Association and Director of Community Partnerships for the Reston Community Center. Some of his voluntary activities in the Reston area include memberships in: Reston Optimist Club, Fairfax County NAACP, and the Herndon Rotary Club.

President Emeritus, Cheri Wubbels

Role:  After many years as a Reston USE member and after having served on the USE Board of Directors as timekeeper, newsletter editor, publicity chair and president, as well as in several other capacities, Cheri  has earned an emeritus status on the Reston USE Board, where she continues to serve. 

Bio:  In 1975, Cheri met Henry Ware, the founder of USE, and became member 100. Henry was a phenomenal personality and because of him USE thrived, but upon his death in 1999, USE began to flounder. Together with Ellie Fusaro, Cheri helped revitalize USE. They recruited a working board, recaptured members who had fallen away, and attracted new ones. Cheri have served in numerous positions on the Reston USE Board of Directors. She co-founded the Care Committee, USEcares, which is the most actively participating group (The Lunch Bunch) in USE at this time.

Cheri is a former educator, was the owner of a marketing firm for 15 years and was the producer and talent of a cable garden program for seven years. Cheri presently enjoys her grandchildren and friends she has developed in USE, and says she benefits by trading talents with the great USE members.

Outreach/Communications Chair, Joanna Faust

Role:  Suggests ways to raise awareness of USE within the community. Drafts or collects articles to be submitted to local media regarding USE and ensures the USE website is up to date with fresh material about USE.  Identifies and makes recommendations for community events to be added to the USE calendar. Identifies potential fundraising opportunities. Keeps promotional materials about USE, such as our rack cards, in strategic locations.

Bio:  Joanna joined Reston USE in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic quarantine.  A Reston resident for over 20 years, she wanted to find a way to connect with her Reston neighbors and help out.  Joanna wants to help spread the good news about Reston USE and encourage potential members to join and realize all the benefits USE offers.  Her day job is supporting the County as a whole, as a Fairfax County employee.  

Members at Large:

A member of the board “at large” has no specific duties unless assigned by the chairman of that board or a board committee but has the same rights and responsibilities as other board members.

Member at Large, Beth Balmer

Bio:  Beth has been a member of USE for three years. She is a retired educator, with a career that included 16 years working in international schools that were supported by American Embassies. While living overseas, it was her mission to climb as many mountains as she could. She climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, Kilamantan in Eastern Borneo, with two climbs in the Himalayas, several in Thailand and the mountains of northern Greece. Currently she is teaching English at the Reston Library and leading school groups at Sully Historic Site. 

Member at Large, Jim Seret

Bio: A few years ago, Jim was searching for someone to assist him with a project. Reston USE was suggested as a good source, and shortly he found expert help. Wanting to get more involved with USE, Jim began taking photos at USE events for the newsletter. By contributing to Reston USE functions, he found his social life has expanded. Jim is semi-retired, has resided in Reston 4+ years, has taught and tutored humanities, including: ESL, English grammar, writing and literature, history, social studies, and art.

*Note: Any USE Member interested in filling one of the above vacant positions on the Board, please contact VP Kathy Bush at Email: mkbwrk1@hotmail.com for further information and consideration.

Supporting Volunteers

Webmaster, Jerry Harasty  and hOurworld & IT Guru, Rohith Rao

Role:  As a team, they provide support to USE in technology services. Gather information from board members about USE activities and keep USE website and the hOurworld application current. This includes domain registration and administration; web application selection, installation, development and maintenance; web content moderation; administration of organization’s e-mail accounts; and familiarity and/or willingness to learn WordPress technology. Attend monthly board meetings as needed.

Bookkeeper, Susan Kousek 

Role:  A retired professional organizer who did bookkeeping in a previous life, Susan is an ideal fit as our volunteer bookkeeper. An expert in Quicken who loves working with numbers, she records all of USE’s financial transactions (both income and expenses), reconciles the bank and PayPal accounts, and generates monthly reports for the board. Attends monthly board meetings as needed.