Mercy Connections, a Burlington-based nonprofit that empowers people to make significant life changes through education, mentoring, entrepreneurship training and community, has added four new staff members to its team. They are Raquel Aronhime, director of education and evaluation; Caroline Olson, AmeriCorps VISTA member; Claire Wheeler, program director of entrepreneurship and small-business development; and Kim Norman Mercer, director of marketing and communications.
“I’m thrilled to work with this smart and committed group of women,” said Executive Director Lisa Falcone. “Since our founding 20 years ago, Mercy Connections has continued to grow and evolve to meet new challenges in the community. These new staff members will strengthen the services and impact we provide during this difficult period of a pandemic and as we recover and move forward.”
Aronhime comes to Mercy Connections from United Way of Northwest Vermont, where she served as community impact manager. In her new role, she will help build an expanded portfolio of classes and programs that serve historically disadvantaged populations and lead Mercy's evaluation process to ensure continuous program improvements and relevancy.
Olson will serve Mercy Connections as a member of AmeriCorps' VISTA program. She is researching residential reentry programs for incarcerated women to better understand their perspective and the services they need to successfully transition back into community.
Prior to joining Mercy Connections full-time, Wheeler operated her own strategic design and facilitation company catering to nonprofits and community-based businesses and taught in the Women's Small Business Program. In her new role, she will lead the design and delivery of expanded small-business and self-employment education and networking programs.
Mercer, who joined the staff several months ago in the newly created marketing and communication position, has been charged with expanding the reach of Mercy Connections by growing awareness of — and support for — the work of the organization. She has formerly worked at the University of Vermont, The Shubert Organization in New York City, the US Senate and the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont.