Board of DiRectors

Mia Furlong and her husband Mark first moved to North Center in 1994 and have been here ever since. Mia was born and raised in Chicago, leaving only to attend William College. Her first job in the city was as a social worker at Thresholds — she actually worked for the Young Adult Program when it relocated from Lincoln Park to North Center. After graduating law school in 1996, Mia  worked for the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, where she worked in the Staff Attorneys Office specializing in habeas corpus and discrimination cases. Since resigning in 2017, Mia has been active in the League of Women Voters, canvassing for local and national political candidates, and volunteering at Common Pantry.

Shane Devins is an attorney with Clean Energy Counsel, a mission-driven law firm focused on accelerating the transition to sustainability and clean energy. He and his husband, Ryan,
moved to North Center in 2022, but have lived in the Chicago area most of their lives. Shane has years of experience on nonprofit boards, including Friends of the Parks and SGA Youth & Family Services in Chicago. Shane is an avid Bulls fan, and in his free time enjoys exploring the latest restaurants and breweries in the City. 

Inka Cherry is originally from Germany and is married to a Brit. She first moved to Chicago with her family more than 13 years ago. After almost returning to Europe, she and her husband bought and rehabbed an old two-flat in North Center.  Her two sons attend Lane Tech.  Inka has a background in finance and has volunteered on the Friends of Coonley board for 7 years. She also works part-time as a swim instructor at LSAC, but is looking for more involvement in the broader community. When she is not enjoying pouring over excel spreadsheets, Inka likes to run, swim, bake and be outside.

Meghan Olin moved to North Center with her husband, Jake, in 2022 and has loved getting to know the neighborhood! Meghan is a realtor and works out of the Compass office in Bucktown. She loves helping her clients explore different areas of the city and is always excited to tell people more about all the great things North Center has to offer. Her greatest accomplishment in 2024 was becoming a mom to her son, Henry. When Meghan isn't working or on mom duty, you can find her out walking, shopping at thrift stores or grabbing a drink in the neighborhood!

Betsy Harman has had a long career in fundraising and marketing.  She moved to Chicago in 1995 to work for Chicago Public Radio where she was responsible for diversifying their revenue streams to spend less time fundraising on air.  She was instrumental in starting their online fundraising and email marketing efforts.  Most recently Betsy worked at Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organization which is based here in Chicago.  During her 11 year tenure there, she helped grow their direct marketing revenue by more than 200%.  In March of 2023 Betsy left full-time work to begin her next chapter which includes time with family and friends, focus on health and fitness, travel and adventure, life-long learning pursuits, and giving back to the community. 

Betsy moved to North Center from the Andersonville neighborhood in 2017 when she got married to her husband, Mike McKewin, who has lived in North Center for over 20 years.  Her step-son Eric attended Lane Tech.  Hunger relief is an important issue to Betsy and she has volunteered at both The Friendship Center and The Common Pantry.  She and her husband have loved attending the North Center Garden Walk and last year she had a great time as a volunteer for the walk.  Betsy is thrilled to be joining the board and looks forward to serving on the Compassion in Action Committee and as a neighborhood front porch drop off location for the Common Pantry.  

Mary Keyes moved to Chicago in 2016. After her two young children joined a North Center elementary school in 2019, they moved from Lakeview to North Center in 2023. As a mother, Mary shifted from full-time positions to part-time roles focusing on social media, marketing, and event planning. Mary thrives in leveraging her creativity and networking skills to connect with others and bring people together.

Allison Noback is the General Counsel at the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA). She has worked in public transportation since 2008, serving as a Chief Attorney at the CTA and later as Deputy General Counsel and Director of Human Resources at the RTA before becoming General Counsel. She attended the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. She graduated from Loyola Chicago School of Law. Allison has lived in the North Center neighborhood since 2006 with her husband and two daughters. Her daughters attend Lane Tech High School, and Allison spends much of her free time volunteering with her daughters’ activities. Allison is excited to be a board member with the North Center Neighborhood Association and looks forward to working with the board and members.

Originally from Mutare, Zimbabwe, Nillam recently moved to Chicago with her husband and toddler. Nillam is a makeup artist by profession and studied in the United Kingdom after which she settled in beautiful Cape Town, South Africa. Nillam is looking forward to becoming part of the North Center community and serving the neighborhood, making long lasting friendships. Nillam enjoys cooking, trying different cuisines, yoga and pilates.  

Raised in Tennessee, Maureen (Mo) Richey has lived in Chicago for more than six years and moved to North Center in 2021. She has a Masters in Public Policy and works at a consulting firm focused on affordable housing, homelessness, community development, and public health. She has been a member of the NCNA Planning & Zoning Committee since 2021 and enjoys walking her dog around the neighborhood, spending summers in northern Michigan with her family, reading, sleeping, food and wine, crossword puzzles, and true crime podcasts.

 Kevin Saunders grew up in Philadelphia and moved to Chicago in 2006 to attend law school at Chicago-Kent College of Law. He is a regulatory attorney at a Chicago financial institution. Kevin, his husband and their daughter moved to the North Center neighborhood in 2022 after 10 years in Andersonville.

Corrine was born and raised right here in North Center! and is a graduate of St. Benedict’s

GS and HS. After living and working in this area until she was 29, she headed out to

Southern California to visit some family. She ended up staying for 32 years! She returned to Chicago in 2020 and knew she wanted to live in the area she grew up in. She is so grateful to be back in North Center and for having found a great street with wonderful neighbors. Corrine has spent the last several years working in Title/Escrow. Over the last 25 years, she has worked in animal rescue with a concentration on her favorite breed, Basset Hounds. After her 15-year-old Basset, Charlie, passed away in 2022, Corrine started her own dog-walking business so she could continue her love of taking care of animals. When she’s not walking dogs, you can find her walking in some of our wonderful parks or on the paths along the river.