Uptown Main Street Welcomes New Board Members

Since our program began last year, our Board of Directors have been hard at work supporting our local businesses and laying the groundwork for our organization’s growth. We’re delighted to announce that our Board is expanding to include three new community members. We invite you to learn more about each of them below.

Gayle Berkley, CPA & CFP

Gayle is a native Washingtonian who grew up in Ward 4. She graduated from Benjamin Banneker Academic High School. She earned her BS in accounting at the University of the District of Columbia and went on to earn her Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license in DC. She also holds a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) certificate from Georgetown University School of Continued Education. She brings more than 15 years of accounting knowledge and experience. Gayle has performed advisory services in various areas of accounting for individuals, small size businesses and exempt organizations. Throughout her professional career, Gayle has exhibited the qualities of an entrepreneur. A few examples include partnering with others in a tax franchise venture with over 500 clients and managing a volunteer tax site which serviced low income taxpayers. She is driven by inspiring others to be aware of their personal finances and to see the “big picture”. Even at a time when work-life balance called her to leave corporate life to spend more time with family, Gayle managed to continue to stay busy. She spent a number of years as an independent consultant advising clients through a network of affiliations and working with other like-minded professional women. Gayle still lives in Ward 4 with her mom, two sons and dog Bentley.

Russell Clark

Russell Clark is a 20-year resident of the 16th Street Heights neighborhood and moved here looking forward to someday walking to thriving commercial corridors nearby. But learning over the years that it takes more than just time for that to become a reality, Russ is eager to lend his time and experience to support UMS’ efforts to help bring this about. He is an environment and sustainability professional currently working for the U.S. GSA having held past positions at the U.S. EPA and DOEE. He joined the historical society in his town at the age of 10 which led into a nearly life-long passion for historic preservation, restoration, green building and the green restoration of every inch of his 16th Heights row home. Russ also co-founded Community Forklift, the DC region’s primary salvage and surplus building material non-profit reuse center as well as DC’s first green building non-profit, GreenHome, which promoted the feasibility of delivering healthier and more efficient low-income homes through demonstration projects in partnership with Habitat for Humanity.

Wendy Harman

Wendy is a 17-year resident of DC, 6 of those years proudly residing in Brightwood. She is honored to be part of the UMS board and looks forward to helping with initiatives that encourage community development and historic preservation efforts within the UMS borders. She is a connector of creative ideas, a collaboration enthusiast, a digital nerd, a human-centered designer, and a civic hacker. She has 15 years' experience in nonprofit and federal program management, communications, and operations. She currently helps federal agencies establish and adopt Customer Experience best practices through the GSA Centers of Excellence. Previously, she completed a tour of duty as a Presidential Innovation Fellow and spent 10 years at the American Red Cross in various roles. Before all that, she went to law school.