Board Of Directors

Charis Circle recruits board members from a broad cross section of the Atlanta feminist community. If you are interested in serving on the Charis Circle Board or as part of one of our board’s volunteer committees, please email our board chair, Jennifer Thilo at Jennifer@Chariscircle.org.

Specific responsibilities differ among various board members, but all are equal members of the board with equal and shared responsibility for the vision and mission of Charis Circle.

Board Biographies

Jennifer Thilo Board Chair
Jennifer Thilo is the 2013 Board Chair, mother of two boys, avid reader and writer, longtime feminist and closet painter.  She is also the Executive Director of Delmar Gardens of Gwinnett, a full continuum senior living community.  She has previously served on boards including the Boston National Organization for Women and the Women’s Resource Center to End Domestic Violence in Decatur.  She currently has leadership and fundraising roles on boards including the United Way Women’s Leadership Council in Gwinnett, the American Cancer Society Leadership Council in Gwinnett, and Friends of Gwinnett County Senior Services.  A transplanted Connecticut “yankee” she immediately felt at home in the south when she stepped through the doors at Charis.

Beth Levine
Beth is an Organization Development Consultant and faculty member at the GA Campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.  She remembers when she was an undergraduate at UGA and Charis opened its doors.  She has supported Charis ever since.  After living in San Diego and NYC, she returned to Atlanta and is grateful to now have some ”extra” time she can devote to Charis Circle and its mission of providing feminist programing and place for the region.

Maryum Lewis Fundraising Chair
Maryum Lewis currently serves as the Director of Policy Studies, with an emphasis in Non-Profit Management, from Georgia State University.  She holds the Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) designation and is active in the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) – Greater Atlanta Chapter, where she was recently named the Vice President of Diversity. Maryum is a native of Michigan that never returned to the snow once liberated during graduate school. She lives in Atlanta with her partner and 4 year old daughter. In her free time she enjoys creating pottery and sleeping in tree houses.

Ellen Rapier Treasurer
Ellen Rapier has been an avid supporter of Charis Books and Charis Circle since first coming to the bookstore as a freshman at Agnes Scott College in 1998.  She has worked in the back office of a local, independent Broker/Dealer for nearly a decade.  In that time, she has offered financial literacy workshops to youth and adults in Atlanta, including through Charis Circle.  She brings her passion for financial health, especially in social justice circles, to her work as Treasurer for the Circle.   Ellen lives in Roswell with her husband and two children.

Charlise Lyles- Bio to Come

Jenny Hoffner-Bio to Come

Kalani Amina Jalil-Bio to Come

Charis Books Co-Owners
Charis Books employees do not serve on the Charis Circle Board in official or unofficial capacities, but they are vital pillars of the Charis Circle support team and often help with strategic visioning and support Charis Circle’s community efforts by outreach and publicity in the bookstore. 

Sara Luce Look (Charis employee since 1994, Owner since 1997) She is co-owner and book buyer at Charis Books & More, Atlanta’s independent feminist bookstore, where she has been a bookseller since 1994. Sara co-founded Atlanta’s Lesbian Avengers and has also served on the boards of several non-profits, including The Atlanta Lesbian Health Initiative, The Atlanta Pride Committee, and The Georgia Breast Cancer Coalition. Sara graduated from Emory University in 1992, with an undergraduate degree in Women’s Studies and Creative Writing. Originally from Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, she came South for college and stayed. Sara@charisbooksandmore.com

Angela Gabriel (Charis employee since 1999, Owner since 2005)
Angela is a Charis Books co-owner who manages consignment, sidelines, and school book fairs.  When she’s not at Charis you can find “Miss Angela” teaching Pre-K at City Schools of Decatur. Angela currently serves on the board of Our House. She can be reached at Angela@charisbooksandmore.com