Meet Three Remarkable Bay Area Jewish Leaders
This year's recipients of three notable awards: Sinton, Dinkelspiel, and Chapman
The Federation is proud to recognize these exemplary leaders of our community who have worked tirelessly to enhance Jewish life and the greater good of our Bay Area community. Mazal tov on the great honor for their extraordinary volunteerism, contributions, and leadership!
Dana Corvin
Robert Sinton Award for Distinguished Leadership
Dana is a third-generation San Franciscan. She was a principal and vice president of Cal-Steam, a wholesale plumbing supply distributor. Prior to that, she was a principal and president of Angelus Furniture and a Special Education teacher for the San Francisco Unified School District.
Since selling the business in 2006, Dana has concentrated her efforts in the nonprofit world. She currently serves on the boards of the Contemporary Jewish Museum, Morris Stulsaft Foundation, JVS, San Francisco State University Foundation, and Mt. Zion Health Fund, of which she is the Chair. She has been active with the Federation since 2000, serving as a board member and officer. Dana is a former board member and officer of Congregation Emanu-El, American Red Cross, Jewish Family and Children’s Services, J. The Jewish News, and United Way of the Bay Area for Alameda County. She is an active supporter of the Guardian Scholar Foster Youth Program.
Dana is a graduate of U.C. Berkeley and earned a M.A. in Special Education from San Francisco State University. She lives in Piedmont with her husband, Harris Weinberg. She is the stepmother of three and grandmother of five.
This award was named in honor of Robert Sinton, a businessman and community leader whose dedication to the Federation and other Bay Area organizations spanned more than five decades, this leadership award embodies his passion for Jewish communal volunteerism and includes a financial stipend to a Jewish agency or organization chosen by the recipient.
Gale Mondry
Judith Chapman Memorial Women's Leadership Award
Gale has had a long career as a professional and lay leader in the nonprofit community. Trained as a lawyer, she served as Staff Counsel for Stanford University and then as Vice President for Legal Affairs at California Pacific Medical Center. After 20 years practicing law, she transitioned to nonprofit development and administration, becoming the Director of Development at Gateway High School, and later Chief Program Officer at the Koret Foundation and Vice President of Development at UpStart.
As a lay leader, Gale has been active in both the Jewish and secular communities. She was the Chair of the Board of Directors of the JCC of San Francisco and co-chaired its capital campaign for the new facility that opened in 2004. She co-founded Gateway High School, an award-winning charter school, and served as its Board Chair. She is also a past Board Chair of the Jewish Film Institute and previously served on the boards of the Federation, Contemporary Jewish Museum, and UpStart.
Currently, Gale is Co-Chair of the Board of Urban Adamah and Chair of the Board of Education Pioneers. She is also a board member of Children’s Council of San Francisco and Beyond Differences.
Gale received a B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, from Brown University and a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School. She is married, with four grown children, and three grandchildren.
This award was named in memory of Judith Chapman, an esteemed volunteer leader, friend, and member of our Jewish community, this award honors a woman from the Federation’s service area who exemplifies significant and sustained volunteer leadership, and who values her Jewish identity and the importance of tzedakah in her life.
Abra Annes Sills
Lloyd W. Dinkelspiel Award for Young Leadership
Abra is a philanthropic facilitator in her personal and professional life. A former professional at the Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund, she is passionate about the health of our global Jewish community. Abra is the founder and owner of Generosity Auctions and Generosity Media, a fundraising consulting firm. Generosity Auctions has raised over $80 million in partnership with its clients.
Abra is currently a member of the National Young Leadership Cabinet and serves as the National Campaign Co-Chair. She regularly travels with the Cabinet, visiting Jewish communities in Azerbaijan, Turkey, Romania, Hungary, and India. Abra is Chair of Time to Wonder for the Children's Museum of Sonoma County, a Board Member of the Association of Fundraising Professions Wine Country Chapter, and regularly donates her skills and expertise to local organizations. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Communication from Northwestern University.
In her personal life, Abra is married to former Dinkelspiel Award winner Jordan Sills, with whom she has two children. The two met through the Federation and have been partners in philanthropy and life ever since. They recently endowed their gifts to the Federation and are proud to create a Jewish Legacy for their family. They live in Sonoma County.
This award was named in honor of the first president of the Federation, Lloyd W. Dinkelspiel, and inaugurated in October of 1959 with the goal of recognizing an outstanding young leader in the local Jewish community.
