Business notes for Nov. 19, 2023

Palm Beach Daily News
·3 min read
Rachel Docekal
Rachel Docekal
Joseph Singer
Joseph Singer

The Mounts Botanical Garden of Palm Beach County has named two new members to its board of directors.

Rachel Pappert Docekal, CEO of the Hanley Foundation, and Joseph Singer, managing director of Mish Fine Jewelry in Palm Beach, were announced as new board members during the nonprofit’s annual meeting Nov. 6.

In addition to her work at the Hanley Foundation, which provides substance-abuse prevention, Docekal is chair-elect of the Palm Beach County Criminal Justice Commission. She also chairs two policy committees for the Economic Council of Palm Beach County, where she is a member of the board.

Singer, a gardener who enjoys orchid cultivation, has chaired the New York Botanical Garden’s Rare Plant Fair for the past 15 years. In the spring, he and Mish Trowkowski will chair the Mounts Botanical Garden’s Spring Benefit.

In a prepared statement, Mounts Director Rachelle Wolberg called Docekal and Singer “talented, insightful professionals who will be invaluable assets for Mounts Botanical Garden.” The garden sits on 20 acres at 531 N. Military Trail in suburban West Palm Beach.

***

Laura Rehnert
Laura Rehnert
Eric Hansen
Eric Hansen
Ronald S. Kochman
Ronald S. Kochman
Laura Rehnert
Laura Rehnert
Margaret Wilesmith
Margaret Wilesmith

Five new members have been appointed to the board of the Center for Creative Education, a 30-year-old nonprofit that aims to use creativity and the arts to improve school education.

CEO Robert L. Homan announced the following members:

  • Laura Evans, a Palm Beach resident who is president of the West Palm Beach-based Willits Foundation and owns Vineyard Valley in Umbria, Italy. She is a former American folk art specialist for Sotheby’s.

  • Eric Hansen, a partner at Blue Sea Capital, a West Palm Beach-based private equity firm. Hansen concentrates on growth for companies in the aerospace industry.

  • Ronald S. Kochman, an attorney who manages Kochman & Ziska in Palm Beach, where he focuses on trust and estate planning. Kochman has served on the boards of the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts and Palm Beach Opera.

  • Laura Rehnert, a nonprofit executive who currently is on the development committee for the Lost Tree Foundation in North Palm Beach. She has served on the boards of four Boston-area nonprofits: the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Joslin Center for Diabetes, the Carroll School and Horizons for Homeless Children.

  • Margaret Wilesmith, founder of Wilesmith Advertising and Design in West Palm Beach, where she served as president and chief creative director until 2018. Wilesmith has extensive experience as a brand strategist, copywriter and adjunct professor.

Homan said in a prepared statement that the CCE’s new board members “are deeply committed to fighting the literacy crisis in our community, and their knowledge and passion for the arts will help safeguard the continued growth of our unique education model and community resource."

***

Hope Levin.
Hope Levin.

The MorseLife Foundation has named Hope Levin its vice president of leadership giving, the senior-care nonprofit announced Nov. 13.

A fundraising veteran with more than 25 years of experience, Levin comes to MorseLife from the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, where she was vice president of major giving. Levin has also been program director for the Jewish Community Center of the Greater Palm Beaches, and managing director of the Jewish Agency for Israel North American Council.

A resident of West Palm Beach for more than 30 years, Levin holds degrees from the University of Illinois and Yeshiva University.

“Hope is a dedicated and thoughtful professional with a proven track record of success in shaping initiatives that inspire, motivate, and empower Jewish community life in the Greater Palm Beaches, in Israel and around the globe,” MorseLife CEO Keith Myers said in a prepared statement.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Business notes for Nov. 19, 2023