Meet the People Behind Delray Beach Initiative

I met so many people and enjoyed the feeling of camaraderie working together toward common goals. I helped Pineapple Grove fundraising through 1999.
While a PTA member at S.D. Spady Elementary in 2006-2009, I spearheaded several programs including their Business Banner, Adopt-A-Class and Matching Gifts to generate much needed funds.
In 2005-2014 I volunteered for the Mark Gerretson Memorial Fishing tournament where I was the Program Advertisement and Sponsor Chair.
I became an officer at the Delray Beach Elks Lodge #1770 as their Treasurer in 2009-Present. While an ELK, I began writing grants from the Elks National Foundation to use for Community Investments. We now receive several grants annually for local nonprofits that have included: Miracle League, Caring Kitchen, Achievement Centers, and Delray Citizens for Delray Police, Caridad Center, Milagro Center, Family Promise, Community Caring Center of Boynton and the Cities Educational Foundation.
The Delray Elks joined the Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce in 2010. I am currently a member of the Non-Profit Council and a Chamber Ambassador.
My future volunteer endeavors continue with the Delray Beach Elks Lodge, The Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce, and Delray Beach Initiative raising much needed money for our community.
My 16 year old daughter, Nikki Dugan, presently sits on the City’s Education Board and attends Atlantic Community High School. I am married and constantly entertained by my husband James Eaton!

disabilities, and a variety of lesson programs. Most recently Ronnie has been engaged as the Director of Instruction at Boca Greens Country Club. Beginning this summer, Ronnie will be administering the Kids Rule Golf Camp and Academy, hosting adult clinics, and teaching private lessons.

Current Civic Involvement
• Chair Delray Beach Initiative “Enriching Delray’s Children” 2013- present
• Board Member and Past President The Colony at Delray HOA 2006- present
• Board Member for Family Promise Community Advisory Board 2014- present
Past Civic Involvement
• Operational Board Member Achievement Center for Children and Families
• Board President Creative City Collaborative
• Board Member Delray Citizens for Delray Police
• Member Delray Beach Chamber Men’s Group
• Board Member Prep & Sports
• Vice Chair Delray Beach Planning & Zoning Board
• Member Delray Beach Parking Management Advisory Board
• Chairperson Delray Beach Affordable Housing Advisory Committee
• Chairperson Delray Beach Education Foundation
• Board Member Gold Coast Builders Association
• Executive Board Member Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce
• Vice Chair Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Committee
• Vice Chair Delray Economic Leaders Political Action Committee
Awards and Acknowledgements
• Delray Beach Business of the Year 2013-2014
• Delray Beach Business Person of the Year 2010-2011
• Ken Ellingsworth Community Service Award 2008, 2011, 2013
• Community Service Commendation Delray Beach Police 2006
• Special Recognition Award City of Delray Beach 2006
• Graduate Leadership Delray 2007
• Nominated for Sun Sentinel Small Business Award 2008
• Principal for the day Banyan Creek Elementary 2007, 2008, 2009
Community Support
2012- Current Assisting with time, financial aid and other resources in helping educate the kids in the
Atlantic High School Construction Academy
2012 Assisted with time, financial aid and other resources to renovate the 4 bathrooms of the Child
Care Center at the Achievement Centers for Children & Families Foundation saving this 44
years old Delray organization over $20,000
2010 Purchased the historic Franklin House from the Delray Beach CRA and my time, financial aid
and other resources to renovate/ rebuild and donate to the Delray Beach Community Land Trust
so it can remain an affordable home in perpetuity in the city
2008 Assisted with time, financial aid and other resources to renovate the new offices of the
Achievement Centers for Children & Families Foundation saving this 44 years old Delray
organization over $35,000
2006- Assisted with time, financial aid and other resources to add two new classrooms to the Delray Beach Youth Vocational School saving this charter school that works with troubled kids over $150,000
Provided personal or corporate volunteer time and/ or contributions to:
• Delray Beach Garlic Fest
• Delray Affair
• Delray Beach Chamber Education Foundation
• Delray Beach Principal and New Teacher Breakfast
• Delray Beach Elks Club
• Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce Capital Campaign
• Delray Beach Sister Cities
• Delray Citizens for Delray Police
• Delray Beach Toys for Tots
• Delray Beach Wine & Seafood Festival
• Delray Beach 4th of July Celebration
• Delray Beach St. Patty’s Day Parade
• Delray Beach Holiday Parade
• Delray Beach Center for the Arts Concert Series
• Delray Beach Library
• Delray Beach Marketing Cooperative
• Boy Scouts of America
• Achievement Centers for Children & Families
• Delray Beach Miracle League
• The Arts Garage
• The Milagro Center
• The Spady Museum
• Prep & Sports
• Bethesda Hospital
• Atlantic High School
• Building Officials of Palm Beach County
• Adopt A Family of the Palm Beaches
• YWCA of the Palm Beaches
• Mark Garretson Fishing Tournament
• Family Promise
• Knights of Pythagoras Mentoring
• Pine Grove Elementary School
• Atlantic High School

Since moving to Delray Beach Allen has enjoyed becoming active in the community and has held several positions on the board of the Arts Garage, including a year as president. His passion to help children has brought him to the Delray Beach Initiative, a group of individuals with a desire to volunteer to help children in Delray Beach.

Education: Wharton School, Finance for Non-Financial Managers, Syracuse University College of Law, JD-Labor & Real Estate, SUNY, Buffalo, NY, B.S. Business Administration.

Stephen is a graduate with a degree in Marketing from the University of Denver. His interests include charity work, golf, tennis and photography.



Dan has been engaged in community service for ten years and as a board member of an organization that DBI assisted in some highly successful fund raising events, he saw a way to reach out and extend his assistance to the community by joining DBI
Dan and Susan are retired and have three children and 3 grandchildren. They traveled over seas extensively for work during their careers and continue to do so for pleasure as retirees. However, their favorite trips are to see their children and grand children right here in theUSA!
Dan is a retired senior executive and consultant to the retail industry for over 35 years. While he was born and raised in Ohio, his residences for the majority of his business career were in the North East. He has worked with such companies as Federated Department Stores (currently Macy’s), General Mills, Levi Strauss, Limited Brands (Victoria Secret and Express) and other less known brands.

A native of Worcester, Massachusetts, where he earned the rank of Eagle Scout, David spent most of his career in Suburban Philadelphia, working in the Aerospace and Pharmaceutical fields. In addition to helping raise three children with his wife Cindi, David was also involved as a volunteer in Scouting, singing in the church choir, and playing tennis. In 2011, the Freeburns purchased a vacation home in Delray Beach and decided to make Delray Beach their permanent residence in 2014, leaving the corporate rat-race to found Exhilaride Golf Cart Rentals, an eco-friendly small business in Delray Beach.
David holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University and a MBA degree from Temple University. In addition to being co-owner of Exhilaride, David is active in Impact 100 Men, Kiwanis, and the Delray Elks. He also volunteers with Scouting in Palm Beach County and spends time playing on and managing tennis teams in the area. He was motivated to join the Delray Beach Initiative by a desire to contribute to an organization that works to support the needs of children in Delray.

Rich Pollack has been a Delray Beach resident since 1975 and has worked as a journalist covering the community for most of the years since. He is a strong believe in community service first being introduced to non-profit organization leadership while serving on the board of the then Delray Beach-based Child Care Resource and Referral in the mid 1990.
Education is focus of Rich’s community service. He was on the founding committee of Delray Reads Day and has served several terms as the committee chair. He has been active in the City’s Campaign for Grade Level Reading and has been mentoring a young woman, now a junior in the nursing program and Florida International University.
Other community involvement include:
- Co-Chair Delray Chamber of Commerce West Leads Group
- Co- Treasurer, Gold Coast Public Relations Council
- Member and former Chair Delray Beach Chamber Ambassadors
- Kitchen Volunteer for Meals on Wheels of the Palm Beaches
- Celebrity Chef for Real Men Bake, sponsored by the Woman’s Club of Delray Beach
Rich is a graduate of Leadership Delray Beach and a 2000 graduate of Leadership Palm Beach County.
A communications veteran with more than 30 years of journalism and public relations experience, Rich is now president of Pollack Communications, a small writing, editing and content providing firm based in Delray Beach.
For much of his career, Rich worked as a journalist for the Sun-Sentinel where he learned to put a strong focus on the needs of readers when writing, editing or planning a publication’s content. As a reporter, Rich covered a variety of beats and assignments including the Pulitzer divorce trial and the grounding of the Mercedes II in Molly Wilmot’s back yard. As an editor, he supervised a team of reporters responsible for local community coverage.
During his last seven years at the Sun-Sentinel, Rich worked in corporate communications where he edited the company’s weekly employee newsletter, doing everything from writing and photography to planning and designing the 6-page publication. Rich also was the Sun-Sentinel’s spokesman and handled a wide variety of corporate communications functions including press releases and media relations.
Since he and his wife, Carol Csomay, started their business, Rich has handled writing assignments for several South Florida companies and has written for a wide array of publications including magazines and newspapers. He currently writes about a variety of topics for the Coastal Star newspaper based in Ocean Ridge and for Delray Beach Magazine. He has also worked on newsletters for several organizations, including corporations, small businesses and non-profit organizations.

Rich Pollack has been a Delray Beach resident since 1975 and has worked as a journalist covering the community for most of the years since. He is a strong believe in community service first being introduced to non-profit organization leadership while serving on the board of the then Delray Beach-based Child Care Resource and Referral in the mid 1990.
Education is focus of Rich’s community service. He was on the founding committee of Delray Reads Day and has served several terms as the committee chair. He has been active in the City’s Campaign for Grade Level Reading and has been mentoring a young woman, now a junior in the nursing program and Florida International University.
Other community involvement include:
- Co-Chair Delray Chamber of Commerce West Leads Group
- Co- Treasurer, Gold Coast Public Relations Council
- Member and former Chair Delray Beach Chamber Ambassadors
- Kitchen Volunteer for Meals on Wheels of the Palm Beaches
- Celebrity Chef for Real Men Bake, sponsored by the Woman’s Club of Delray Beach
Rich is a graduate of Leadership Delray Beach and a 2000 graduate of Leadership Palm Beach County.
A communications veteran with more than 30 years of journalism and public relations experience, Rich is now president of Pollack Communications, a small writing, editing and content providing firm based in Delray Beach.
For much of his career, Rich worked as a journalist for the Sun-Sentinel where he learned to put a strong focus on the needs of readers when writing, editing or planning a publication’s content. As a reporter, Rich covered a variety of beats and assignments including the Pulitzer divorce trial and the grounding of the Mercedes II in Molly Wilmot’s back yard. As an editor, he supervised a team of reporters responsible for local community coverage.
During his last seven years at the Sun-Sentinel, Rich worked in corporate communications where he edited the company’s weekly employee newsletter, doing everything from writing and photography to planning and designing the 6-page publication. Rich also was the Sun-Sentinel’s spokesman and handled a wide variety of corporate communications functions including press releases and media relations.
Since he and his wife, Carol Csomay, started their business, Rich has handled writing assignments for several South Florida companies and has written for a wide array of publications including magazines and newspapers. He currently writes about a variety of topics for the Coastal Star newspaper based in Ocean Ridge and for Delray Beach Magazine. He has also worked on newsletters for several organizations, including corporations, small businesses and non-profit organizations.