Associa Cares Impact Report: June

A member of the Associa staff since 1988, Helen Eden Carona brings a broad historical perspective of the company to its Executive Board. Having served the firm in management, accounting, and administrative roles, she has a comprehensive understanding of operations, human resources, and financial matters, both on the corporate and client levels. In her role as Executive Vice President, Helen is responsible for the administrative affairs of the company as well as the firm’s corporate governance. In addition, she serves on the board of Associa Cares, a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting families and communities in crisis as a result of natural and man-made disasters.

Based in Dallas, Texas, Helen is also the President of Associa’s subsidiary insurance agency, which specializes in the provision of commercial property and casualty insurance coverages for community associations across the U.S.

Helen is married and a devoted mother and grandmother. She is an avid reader, a passionate chef and enjoys entertaining with her husband.

Favorite Quote:

A great man is always willing to be little.

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Jeff Gourlie is responsible for the operations and growing success of LandArc Management.

Gourlie’s expertise in the community management industry spans the decades. He has extensive knowledge in the area of buildings and grounds maintenance, which was acquired during a career of more than 30 years that included positions as a resident manager and maintenance supervisor, giving him invaluable knowledge necessary for the everyday operation of community associations. Prior to becoming President of LandArc Management, Gourlie has been Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, and President of Kramer-Triad Management Group.

He has been awarded the Association Management Specialist (AMS) and the Professional Community Association Manager (PCAM) designations from CAI. He has been a lecturer at both CAI Michigan Chapter educational seminars and at the United Condominium Owners of Michigan (UCOM) annual seminar. He has served on the CAI Michigan Chapter Board of Directors twice as President as well as Treasurer and Secretary. Gourlie also served as the Vice Chairman on the Membership Advisory Committee for CAI on a national level.

Outside of his responsibilities at LandArc, Gourlie serves on the board of Associa Cares, a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting families and communities in crisis as a result of natural and man-made disasters.

One of Gourlie’s favorite quotes is:

A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption of our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider in our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving us the opportunity to do so.

– Mahatma Gandhi, Leader of Independence in British-Ruled India

As Senior Vice President of Integrated Services, Matt is responsible for the oversight of several Associa service entities throughout North America. His responsibilities in this capacity include serving as a leader to these business unit leaders to help them achieve Associa’s core corporate objectives as well as uphold Associa corporate policies. Matt also educates our teams throughout the company on Associa programs and services that are available for our communities to take advantage of. 

Matt was formerly the Sr. Vice President of Branch Operations for the west/southwest region of the U.S. and previous to that, Vice President of Associa’s National Field Services, where he was responsible for the oversight of the maintenance operations in Associa branches to further develop service and product offerings.

Prior to his position with the corporate office, Matt was President of Associa’s Real Property Management in Columbus, Ohio. He holds his AMS®, CMCA® and PCAM® designations from the Community Associations Institute (CAI) with more than 25 years in the community association management industry.

Matt has been married for 18 years and has a son and two daughters. He and his family currently reside in Frisco, Texas.  Previous to that, he was based out of our Scottsdale, AZ location.  

Favorite Quote:

Do the right thing.

As a project manager of Associa, Faith DeSmet assists the Operations and Executive team with completing projects and initiatives for the company. She is also the event planner and coordinates employee events at both the Home Office and the CSSC.

DeSmet serves as director for Associa Cares, the company’s 501(c)3 charitable organization dedicated to assisting families and communities in crisis as a result of natural and man-made disasters.  She heads the local Dallas committee and plans fundraisers across North America, allowing Associa Cares a greater reach to help those in need.  In addition to managing the request process from receipt to distributing outgoing donations, she also handles general filings for the organization to ensure compliance with various state and federal laws.

A graduate of Johnson & Wales University, DeSmet worked as a pastry chef for seven years throughout Charleston and Dallas. After working in Dubai as an executive pastry chef for Emirates Airlines, she returned to Dallas where she began her paralegal career at Associa. She then graduated summa cum laude from The University of Texas at Dallas with a Bachelor of Arts in interdisciplinary studies. Over the past two years, DeSmet has been assisting Associa’s Chief Operating Officer and the executive team as a project manager.

Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.

– Maya Angelou

As the HOA Division Director for Community Management Corporation, Bryant oversees a portfolio of 135 HOA communities in the greater Washington D.C. region. Since 2017, he has served as chairman for the metropolitan Washington DC region’s Associa Cares annual Vendor Fair which is Associa Cares largest annual fundraising event raising an average of $250K per year for Cares. Before joining CMC, Phillips held roles in the hospitality industry ranging from kitchen manager to director of sales for national hotel brands such as Hyatt, Sheraton and Westin. Bryant honed his hospitality and culinary skills at Johnson and Wales University in Charleston, South Carolina and has a passion for food!

As Senior Vice President at MRCM Associa, Luanne has worked closely with the President’s office for 21 years, responsible for corporate administration with a strong focus on customer service.  

Luanne was originally a client of MRCM’s and sat on a condominium Board of Directors serving as president for more than a decade before joining MRCM.  At the time of joining, MRCM was a company of 18 employees and managed under 50 communities and Luanne worked alongside the Founder and President. MRCM is a little company that grew, now serving over 300 communities. Involved in many corporate initiatives including internal and external communications, Luanne is the central contact for any client concerns.  Luanne is also the company’s internal and external event planner, coordinating employee retention events at MRCM, including the annual golf tournament in support of Associa Cares for over a decade, and the coordinator of Board Education events available to our clients.  Luanne is passionate about customer service excellence.

Prior to MRCM, Luanne was an executive administrator to the President’s office at Laura Secord, a Canadian chocolatier company with offices across the country. Supporting the leadership team for 15 years, Luanne was also the customer service contact for all customer concerns. This was, without a doubt, a “sweet” career.

An honour graduate of Ryerson University, Luanne holds a bachelor’s degree in Administration.

What lies before us and what lies behind us are small matters compared to what lies within us. And when we bring what is within out into the world, miracles happen.

HENRY DAVID THOREAU

Pauli Wong has more than 15 years of community association management experience and has previously held several positions at Associa Hawaii, including senior vice president. Ms. Wong has volunteered for the Community Associations Institute (CAI) for more than 10 years and resided as CAI Hawaii chapter president for two years.  

Ms. Wong has been accredited the Professional Manager of Community Associations (PCAM®️)  designation through CAI and has received numerous awards for her role with CAI seminars. She holds the record for the best membership retention rate during her CAI Hawaii presidential terms and is also one of a handful of certified Reserve Specialists in the state of Hawaii.