Help support the children and families of first responders who have been killed or injured in the line of duty
Mission Statement
“I believe there is no more important mission than helping the children of our nation’s first responders and educating all children through the programs offered by these heroic organizations. This is a long-term commitment, a promise to the people who defend and protect us, and a major investment in the future of this nation. It is our responsibility as a society to ensure that these children achieve their full potential as active citizens and thriving members of the community. We’re grateful for your support in putting the children of our first responders first.”
Alfred R. Kahn, Founder & Chairman
For 23 years, the Foundation has had a significant impact on the country’s first responder community.
Approximately 225 First Responders are killed in the line of duty each year, leaving behind their children and families.
First Responders Children’s Foundation supports first responder family members left behind, to help them feel the strength of our community, and to honor their loved ones who have made the ultimate sacrifice
How we help
Hotel Rooms
Cash Grants
Masks
Holiday Toys
Funerals
College Scholarships
Meet the people working everyday to support the children and families of our first responders.
Al Kahn - Founder & Chairman
Al Kahn is an iconic figure in the entertainment and licensing industry, renowned for his outstanding contributions and unwavering commitment to philanthropy, particularly in support of children’s causes. Throughout his remarkable career, he has been instrumental in spearheading the licensing of numerous blockbuster children’s products that have captivated the imaginations of millions worldwide.
Jillian Crane - President & CEO
Jillian Crane joined the First Responders Children’s Foundation’s Board of Directors in 2013. She became Board President in 2019 and was instrumental in leading the Foundation in a more mission-focused direction. In 2022, Jillian was appointed President and CEO, after securing a major gift from McKenzie Scott that she strategically crafted around the Foundation’s commitment to law enforcement, women first responders, and diversity.
Board of Directors
Al Kahn is Chairman and CEO of Kidtagious and has been responsible for many of the biggest hits in licensing including Cabbage Patch Kids, Pokémon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Yu-Gi-Oh! He is also credited for the marketing and licensing programs for other iconic brands such as Nintendo, Mario Bros, Zelda, Donkey Kong, James Bond, World Wrestling Federation, WCW, Monster Jam Monster Trucks, Xbox, and Polly Pocket. In June 2005, Kahn was inducted into the International Licensing Industry Merchandisers’ Association (LIMA) Murray Altschuler Licensing Hall of Fame. That very same year, Kahn was also inducted into the Kidscreen Hall of Fame. Kahn started VeVe collectibles with David Yu and Dan Crothers, 3 years ago, which is now one of the recognized leaders in the NFT space. He also became the chief marketing officer for VitiPrints, which is just introducing the first Viracide masks that deactivate COVID-19 and its variants within a minute of contact with the mask’s surface. Mr. Kahn also serves on the Board of Long Island University and is Chairman of the University Relations Committee.
Beyond his professional endeavors, Mr. Kahn is the Founder and Chairman of First Responders Children’s Foundation (FRCF), a prominent National 501(c)(3) organization established in the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks when 800 children lost a first responder parent while responding to this tragic event. Over the years, FRCF has grown into a nationally recognized organization that delivers a range of services and programs catering to the unique needs of first responder children and their families. From bereavement grants and college scholarships to hardship grants, mental health counseling, and community engagement events, FRCF is dedicated to making a lasting positive impact. In 2022 alone, the Foundation positively impacted over 130,000 children.
Mike CoryVice Chairman
Mike Cory is Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, responsible for overseeing CSX’s operations strategy and coordinating all aspects of the company’s Transportation, Mechanical and Engineering department performance. Cory joined the company in September 2023 after a 39-year career with the Canadian National Railway, where he contributed to establishing scheduled railroading as a transformative operating model for the rail industry.
Cory served as CN’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer from 2016 to 2019, during which time he managed rapid volume growth and oversaw the completion of 49 capital projects. After leaving the company in 2019, he consulted with a diverse range of firms on transportation and logistics issues. In 2021, he served as president of Pacific National, Australia’s largest private railroad.
Cory joined the CN in 1981 as a laborer in the Mechanical Department and rose steadily through positions of increasing responsibility. After completing the company’s operations leadership development course, he served in a series of front-line supervisory roles before being named project manager for implementing a new operating system in Western Canada. He also served in marketing positions, working with customers to improve fleet utilization. In 2009, Cory was appointed Senior Vice President of the Western Region, where he developed and implemented many tools and processes that have become industry best practices. Also during this time, he led three national labor negotiations with the union representing engineers and conductors.
Cory has completed the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program.
Coye NokesTreasurer
Coye Nokes is a Partner in OC&C’s Retail and Consumer Practice and the global lead of OC&C’s Beauty and Luxury Practice. Her work includes corporate strategy where she advises companies on topics like growth strategy, market expansion, and digital transformation. Coye’s clients also include private equity funds and banks where she advises on M&A transactions. Some of her recent transactions include advising Unilever on the acquisition of Dollar Shave Club, Dermalogica, and Murad.
Coye brings passion and an entrepreneurial mindset to her interests. Coye has been inspired during her time on the First Responders Children’s Foundation Benefit Committee and looks forward to helping to raise the profile of such the organization. Coye holds an MBA from London Business School.
Coye Nokes is a Partner in OC&C’s Retail and Consumer Practice and the global lead of OC&C’s Beauty and Luxury Practice. Her work includes corporate strategy where she advises companies on topics like growth strategy, market expansion, and digital transformation. Coye’s clients also include private equity funds and banks where she advises on M&A transactions. Some of her recent transactions include advising Unilever on the acquisition of Dollar Shave Club, Dermalogica, and Murad.
Coye brings passion and an entrepreneurial mindset to her interests. Coye has been inspired during her time on the First Responders Children’s Foundation Benefit Committee and looks forward to helping to raise the profile of such the organization. Coye holds an MBA from London Business School.
Dan Nigro became the 33rd Commissioner of the New York City Fire Department on June 9, 2014. As Commissioner, he led a workforce of more than 17,000 uniformed and civilian members. Prior to his appointment as Fire Commissioner, he served for nearly 33 years as a uniformed member of the Department. A native and lifelong resident of Queens County, he entered the Fire Department in 1969 and quickly and steadily rose through the ranks from firefighter to lieutenant, captain, battalion, and deputy chief. He was appointed a staff chief in October of 1994. His vast experience includes service in the boroughs of Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, and Brooklyn as well as various administrative positions. As Assistant Chief of Operations, he worked toward instituting a Certified First Responder Program which brought, for the first time, fire units into New York City’s Emergency Medical Response. He was instrumental in the merger of EMS and FDNY and became the first FDNY Chief of EMS in 1996.
Cristina KimJ.P. Morgan
Cristina Kim is a Managing Director in the Strategic Investments group at J.P. Morgan. The team partners across the firm to make minority investments in emerging technology and FinTech companies to further accelerate innovation and digital transformation. Cristina leads the North American Corporate Investment Banking sector within the group.
Cristina joined J.P. Morgan in 2004 and held positions in the Investment Banking group in Hong Kong and the Strategy and Business Development team in London. Prior to that, she worked in the Direct Investment Group at Merrill Lynch working in both the New York and Sao Paulo offices.
Cristina was born and raised in Paraguay, and her family is from South Korea. Cristina received her MBA from Columbia Business School and holds a BA in Political Science from Yale University. She is fluent in Spanish (native), Korean (native), Portuguese, and English.
Howard Cash is President and CEO of software companies Gene Codes Corp and Gene Codes Forensics, creating tools for academic, biotech and pharmaceutical scientists, and human identification software for crime labs and medical examiners, respectively.
He was on the managing board of the international Human Genome Organization during the Human Genome Project. Later, special projects included helping the CDC characterize H1N1 flu variants from the 2009 global outbreak, and identifying historical human remains including Nicolaus Copernicus and Russia’s Czar Nikolai II.
After 9/11, New York City turned to Cash for help identifying World Trade Center victims. One result was the Mass-Fatality Identification System (M-FISys). It has been used to help nations and NGO’s in other criminal and humanitarian efforts including the rape and murder of hundreds of women in Juarez, Mexico, post-conflict identifications from Guatemalan and Libyan wars, victim identification after natural and industrial disasters, and the Oct 7 Israel-Gaza conflict.
Toni L. Lupo serves The Walt Disney Company (TWDC) as Principal Counsel at Hulu. In her current role, Toni provides legal counsel in connection with a wide range of matters impacting Hulu/TWDC such as compliance, marketing, strategic initiatives, negotiation, and maintenance of content distribution agreements for Hulu + Live TV, premium add-ons, and ESPN+ on Hulu.
Toni is an active member of The WICT Network (formerly known as Women in Cable Telecommunications), a leadership organization designed to empower women in media, entertainment, and technology. She has been recognized by Super Lawyers Magazine as a “Rising Star” and The Best Lawyers in America as both “Ones to Watch” in the Entertainment and Sports Law category and “Women in The Law: Ones to Watch”.
Toni brings to the First Responders Children’s Foundation her passion for engaging in activities that serve to advance community and civic interests and support diversity, equality, equity, and inclusion.
Kent Chrisman has served as Vice President, Security and Corporate Services for Devon Energy Corporation in Oklahoma City, OK for over 14 years. Kent is accountable for Devon’s global security operations, and corporate service functions: Aviation, Emergency Management, Fleet Management, Office Services and Travel & Hospitality.
Moreover, Kent served 14 years as a Special Agent with the United States Secret Service with both investigative assignments in various field offices and protective assignments, which included Presidential, Vice Presidential and numerous Foreign Dignitary Protection assignments. Kent’s last assignment was Assistant to the Special Agent in Charge in the Oklahoma City Field Office, overseeing all investigative and protective responsibilities for the district.
Prior to the US Secret Service, Kent spent 3 years as a deputy sheriff in Omaha, Nebraska and 6 years in the United States Air Force.
Kent graduated from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and resides in Oklahoma City, OK. He is married with 2 adult children and 4 grandchildren.
Jacqueline Rosinsky joined Renaissance in 1994. Her responsibilities include overseeing the IT, security, and facilities groups. Prior to joining Renaissance, Ms. Rosinsky worked at Unisys and Image Business Systems where she was a software engineer. Ms. Rosinsky holds a BS in Computer Science from the New York Institute of Technology and an MS in Computer Science from Polytechnic University, now part of New York University.
Ms. Rosinsky’s husband, James, is a retired Captain from the New York City Fire Department. He spent 23 years with the department. She has two daughters, Megan, 18, and Nicole, 14.
Lionel Leventhal is the founder and Managing Member of Royalty/Revenue Interest Capital, a merchant bank that provides non-dilutive royalty capital for licensing and franchise-based businesses across multiple industries; and is a Managing Director and the head of Ladenburg Thalmann’s Royalty and Revenue Interest Financing practice, serving as an investment banker to raise non-dilutive capital for biopharmaceutical and medical device companies worldwide.
Previously, Mr. Leventhal was a co-founder and general partner of Paul Capital Healthcare and Paul Capital Partners, respectively. At Paul Capital, Mr. Leventhal is credited with having been a pioneer in the creation of synthetic royalty (a.k.a. revenue interest) financing and a co-founder of the first private equity fund established to buy passive royalties and provide revenue interest financing to the biopharma market in 1999.
Matt McCauley’s practice is focused upon the representation of September 11th first responders who were injured or have developed illnesses due to their invaluable service at Ground Zero, Fresh Kills, and other disaster sites during the rescue and recovery operations following the 9/11 attack, and civilian survivors who lived or worked in lower Manhattan and are now afflicted with some of the same post-attack diseases. Matt, a former NYPD police officer and still-licensed paramedic, was a 9/11 first responder and has now been advocating on behalf of first responders and survivors for over 13 years.
Together with some of the country’s best advocates, Matt lobbied feverishly for the passage of the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010, affording benefits and compensation to ill and injured first responders and civilian survivors through the creation of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, administered by the U.S. Department of Justice. Matt and other dedicated advocates of the crucial legislation successfully redoubled their efforts and got Congress to reauthorize the “Zadroga Act” in 2015, and will fight for the cause of the September 11th first responders and civilian survivors for as long as the need exists.
Michael Beneville is a storyteller. He works across all scales and is agnostic to medium. His creative practice is informed by a life that, from his earliest days, has been lived across the globe – in Beirut, Morocco, India, Mauritius, Senegal, Ivory Coast, London, and the United States.
Michael and his team specialize in realizing the visions and telling the stories of their clients, whether individuals, families, or corporations. Working collaboratively with multiple teams, Beneville Studios’ creativity inspires the genesis of the design, grounds it in the mission of its clients, and forms the connective tissue that holds the teams and the concept together as the project progresses.
Michael and the Beneville Studios team have been creative consultants for the award-winning New York City headquarters of iHeartMedia, the completely reimagined entrance to the Empire State Building Observatory, the lounges for BLADE helicopters in both New York and Miami, and the Warner Music Group offices in Los Angeles. Today, the firm’s purview includes millions of square feet of design and projects that span the globe and the metaverse.
Allison Isaacson Beahm joined SERVPRO HQ’s Training Division in 2013 to develop a best practices program, host personal development workshops, and help improve the company’s operating system. In 2017, she joined the Communications Department—creating the organization’s first KPM resources and developing editorial and multimedia content about storm events, industry events, and SERVPRO franchise teams. From 2019 to the present, Allison has been leading SERVPRO HQ’s Communications Department, which is responsible for editorial management, intranet management, field reporting, multimedia services, public relations, brand reputation management, digital asset management, digital signage, peer-to-peer best practices dissemination, and fostering company culture.
Throughout her career, Mrs. Beahm has served on the boards of directors of nonprofits such as the Sumner County Family YMCA, Restore Small Groups, Pope John Paul II Preparatory Academy, and First Responders Children’s Foundation. Allison Isaacson Beahm graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2012 with majors in both economics and communication studies as well as a minor in corporate strategy.
Marc hagleTricor International
Marc Hagle is President and Chief Executive Officer of Tricor International LLC. Tricor is a multi-faceted real estate company presently engaged in the development, management, and ownership of real estate throughout the United States. With the main office in Winter Park, Florida, Tricor owns properties in seventeen states. Real estate owned includes shopping centers, office buildings, warehouses, free standing net leased projects, ground leases and raw land. Marc is a guest lecturer at Purdue’s Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business, teaching students Real Estate from a real-world perspective. He is Involved in numerous philanthropic events including SpaceKids Global, Purdue, UCF and various children’s and cultural organizations.
As a Senior Executive in high-level government operations for over two decades, Raymond Donovan’s track record showcases distinctive leadership and exceptional results. Now, as the Founder and CEO of Stack21 Solutions, Raymond and his highly trained team deliver tailored solutions, leveraging extensive experience to provide informational and strategic excellence.
Two years after launching his law enforcement career as a U.S. Border Patrol Agent, Mr. Donovan became a DEA Special Agent in the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, the nation’s most prestigious task force. After earning multiple leadership promotions, Mr. Donovan was assigned to the Special Operations Division, a multi-agency, anti-drug trafficking organization. Under his leadership, the team achieved many significant accomplishments, including the capture of one of the world’s most notorious drug cartel leaders.
Transitioning his skills to the corporate world, Mr. Donovan has proven himself not only as an adept investigator, but also as a visionary business leader. During his tenure as COO and CSO, he revamped DEA’s mission for global operations, managed over 300 offices worldwide with more than 10K employees, and directed operations in 70 countries. Mr. Donovan has won more than 50 organizational and national awards for his performance and has delivered hundreds of interviews as a thought leader in his field.
Mr. Donovan holds a B.S. degree in Criminal Justice from St. John’s University and has earned certifications from Harvard University, New York University’s Stern School of Business, University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, and University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business. He is a chairman and board member of several charitable organizations and has received multiple national recognitions and awards, to include the President’s Rank Award, one of the most prestigious awards in federal government.
Cindy Brown is a founding partner of C2 Advisors, a women-led Private Wealth Management business at UBS. As a senior member, Cindy takes a lead role in delivering holistic guidance to her select group of clients- multi-generational families, business owners, foundations, and other institutional investors. She parlays her 30 years of experience to comprehensively address the complex issues that often accompany substantial wealth, including estate and tax planning, investment management, and philanthropy. Cindy and her team have been recognized as a Forbes “Best-In-State Wealth Management Team” for several consecutive years.
Throughout her career, Cindy has actively served on non-profit boards that help children in need, including Hedge Funds Care, JDRF, and Capital for Kids. She is excited to leverage her experience to advocate for the mission of the First Responders Children’s Foundation.
Since September 2023, Kerry Watson has served as Executive Vice President of Public Affairs for The Baltimore Orioles, where he leads government affairs and community engagement. Before joining Major League Baseball, Kerry spent 20 years with the Prince George’s County Police Department in Maryland, serving in patrol, K9, and leadership roles, including Vice President of the Fraternal Order of Police.
His deep ties to the first responder community remain strong through his work on several nonprofit boards, including MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center, Problem-Solving Courts of Prince George’s County, and the National Center for Victims of Crime. A native of Prince George’s County, Kerry is a proud husband and father, committed to uplifting communities through service.
Laurence LevyBoard Emeritis
Larry Levy focuses his legal practice at Greenberg Traurig on campaign finance, and political law in both national and state matters. Additionally, Larry advises clients on regulatory matters, internal investigations, non-profit entities, litigation, and ethics. He has represented Presidential candidates, as well as campaigns and political committees in various federal and state matters.
Larry is a founding board member of FRCF. He was a founder of the Twin towers Fund after the terrorist attacks of 2001, the Twin Towers Scholarship Fund, and America’s Camp, a program for children who lost a parent in the terrorist attacks or lost any first responder parent who died in the line of duty. He has counseled or been on the board of several other charities. Currently he also serves as the pro-bono counsel to the Nassau County Police Department Foundation.
Prior to entering private practice in 2002, Larry served in various roles in New York City, including working as an Assistant District Attorney, and serving as an Administrative Law Judge and attorney. Starting in 1981 he served in various positions in the New York City Office of the Corporation Counsel, including being a member of the executive staff, Senior Litigation Counsel, and Inspector General. He directly counseled Mayor’s Koch, Dinkins, and Giuliani. From 1997 to 2001 he worked in City Hall as the sole Deputy Counsel to the Mayor. In that role he expanded his work to focus on public safety, economic development, public private partnerships, and emergency management. He was instrumental in bringing minor league baseball to Brooklyn and Staten Island, including the development of the two new stadia. In addition, he was an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Law at both Fordham and St. John’s Law Schools.
Recognition for Larry’s work includes, the Corporation Counsel’s Award for Legal Excellence, the Republican Lawyer of the Year Award, and as a team member of Best lawyers in America for government relations.
Board of Directors
Alfred R. Kahn
Founder & Chairman
Laurence A. Levy
Vice Chairman
Cheryl Whaley
Treasurer
Lisa Hamilton Daly
Secretary
Coye Nokes
Cristina Kim
Daniel A. Nigro
Howard Cash
Toni Lupo
Christina Rehkop
Jacqueline Rosinsky
Lionel Leventhal
Matthew J. McCauley
Michael Beneville
Theresa Ashton
Allison Isaacson Beahm
Board Member Name
Advisory Board
First Responders
Robert Ganley
Deputy Commissioner, New York City Police Department (Ret.)
John P. Gilbride
Special Agent in Charge NYC, U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (Ret.)
Geraldine Hart
Commissioner, Suffolk County Police
Anthony Lacorazza
Assistant to the Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service
Tony Mussorfiti
Lieutenant, Fire Department of New York City (Ret.)
Rishi Seth
Vice President of Operations, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital
Bryan Woodard
Deputy, Tarrant County, Texas Constable’s Office Precinct #7
Daniel A. Nigro
Fire Commissioner, City of New York
Entertainment Personalities
Ben Vereen
Jason Alexander
Victor Garber
Jane Kaczmarek
Isaac Mizrahi
Vincent Pastore
Ahmad Rashad
Isaac Mizrahi
Ronen Rubinstein
Business & Corporate
Kenneth Klug
Director of Intellectual Property, Louis Vuitton
Franke Previte
Academy Award-winning composer
Kirk Saduski
Producer, Playtone
Non-Profit
Stephan Bognar
Director of Sustainability Asia-Pacific, Wildlife Works Carbon
Staff
President & CEO
Jillian Crane
Jillian@1stRCF.org
Chief Financial Officer
Jeff Barlow
Jeff@1stRCF.org
(929) 687-2041
Chief Philanthropy Officer
Randy Acosta
Racosta@1stRCF.org
(410) 937-2986
Job Position
Name
Email
Phone
Chief Operating Officer
Travis Punt
Travis@1stRCF.org
(443) 472-2988
Vice President of Marketing & Communications
Mary Costa
Mary@1stRCF.org
(646) 822-4236
Chief National Public Safety Liaison
Theresa Tobin
Terri@1stRCF.org
(646) 822-4236
Finance Manager
Ellen Arsenault
Ellen@1stRCF.org
(929) 687-2095
Media Relations & Communications Manager
Joshua Natoli
Joshua@1stRCF.org
(646) 822-4236
Digital Content Manager
Chris Pautler
Chris@1stRCF.org
(646) 970-3306
Program Operations Manager
Richard Lindenfelzer
Richard@1stRCF.org
(551) 239-3596
Program Coordinator
Program Coordinator
Development Specialist
Lizzy Vickstrom
Lizzy@1stRCF.org
(732) 630-3080
Development & Events Specialist
Haley Blauch
Haley@1stRCF.org
(929) 687-2043
Job Title
First Last
info@1stRCF.org
(646) 822-4236
Social Media & Communications Coordinator
Danielle Mumpower
Danielle@1stRCF.org
Program Coordinator
Operations Coordinator & Grant Analyst
Program Coordinator
Special Projects
Randall Greenwald
Randall@1stRCF.org
(929) 687-1704
Public Relations
Bill O’Reilly
Bill@oreillycommunications.com
(212) 396-9117
Administrative Assistant and Office Manager
Jocelyn Hart
Jocelyn@1stRCF.org
(646) 822-4236
Human Resources
Connie Alderfer
Connie@1stRCF.org
Warehouse Managers
Nick Stanberry – Nick@1stRCF.org
Jonnta Watson – Jonnta@1stRCF.org
Special Assistant to the Executive Director
Antonia Lanzi
Antonia@1stRCF.org
Special Projects
Randall Greenwald
Randall@1stRCF.org
Website Manager
Miguel Rojas
Miguel@1stRCF.org
Sponsors & Partners
Sponsors
In-Kind Donors
Foundation Partners
Public Safety Agency Collaboration
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