Board of Directors
Joe Gershman - President
Joe and his family have been members of the Club since 2009. He's served on the board since 2015. His kids are members of the swimming and tennis teams, and both Joe and his wife Karen have played on Birchwood USTA tennis teams. Joe is a partner at the law firm of Rich, Intelisano & Katz.
Rachel Hunger - Corresponding Secretary
Rachel joined the board in 2024. She has lived in Chappaqua since 2019 with her husband and two children. She is looking forward to being a part of the Birchwood community. Rachel works as an elementary school principal.
Ian Heller - Recording Secretary
Ian and his family have been Birchwood members since 2020. His two daughters spend as much time as possible enjoying the Birchwood pool in the summer months. Professionally, Ian serves as the General Counsel at Party City. He joined the Board in 2024.
Giora Payes - Membership
Giora and his family have been Birchwood members since 2005 and he joined the Board in 2016 as Membership Chair. He likes spending family time at Birchwood with his children and friends, many of whom he and his wife have met at Birchwood. Giora played competitive tennis as a junior and at the collegiate level and enjoys playing in the Birchwood Men’s Tennis Singles Championship each summer.
Lisa Dixon - Swim
Lisa joined the board in 2023 and has been a Birchwood member since 2016 when her family moved from Brooklyn. Her three children are members of the Swim and Dive Team. Lisa grew up in Michigan, and holds a degree in Business Administration from The Ohio State University. Lisa served as PTA Chair for her children’s elementary school and works as a Teacher Assistant for the Chappaqua Central School District.
Leigh Shirvan- Tennis
Leigh joined the board in 2024. Bio to come
Sean Higgins - Paddle
The Higgins family joined Birchwood in 1990 upon becoming residents of New Castle. He is semi-retired from a career in law and real estate. During his free time he loves playing paddle and volunteers as an ambulance driver for the Chappaqua Volunteer Ambulance Corps, and spending time with his grandchildren.
Shannon Johnson - Marketing & Technology
Shannon joined the board in 2016. She and her family have been members of the club since 2007 joining shortly after moving to the area. Outside of her Birchwood commitments, she works for a financial services firm.
Mike Kanter - House & Grounds
MIke and his family have been Birchwood members since 2017. Prior to moving to Chappaqua, he lived in NYC. Mike's interests include anything outdoors or sports related. Mike is a graduate of University of Wisconsin Madison, holds a law degree from Brooklyn Law and a MBA from Zicklin Business (Baruch). He worked for AYCO/Goldman Sachs Family Office for 8 years and is currently employed by Linden Global Strategies as CFO.
Dana Gorelick - Social
Dana and her family joined Birchwood shortly after moving to the area in 2019, and joined the Birchwood Board in 2022. Dana and her husband, Mark, have enjoyed spending summers with their twin boys and daughter, swimming and playing tennis. In fact, Birchwood Swim Team is where one of their sons found his love of competitive swim. Dana has a bachelor's degree from Ithaca College and a law degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and works for the Bank of America Private Bank in Greenwich, CT.`
Doug Schiz - Treasurer
Doug joined the board in 2024 - Bio to come