Jeffrey Sitcov is the Founder & President of Doors of Change (also known as Photocharity.)
Jeffrey, a physical therapist for 18 years, suffered a career-ending injury in 1998. After much soul-searching and praying he committed to dedicating his life to helping disadvantaged and homeless youth. After interviewing over 100 nonprofit organizations he went on outreach to find homeless youth and, that evening, his life was changed.
In 2001 he formed Photocharity. Also an award-winning photographer, Jeffrey met and photographed music industry greats while working at the SDSU Open Air Amphitheater. These music legends were moved by Jeffrey’s vision to help homeless youth and, through their donations of signed music memorabilia, provided significant funding to help the organization get off the ground. Billy Joel, Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, B.B. King, and many others have helped raise over $850,000.
As President of Doors of Change, Jeffrey leads a group of committed, caring people (mostly volunteers) to help homeless youth. He considers himself only the “quarterback” of this amazing team.
Jeffrey has received awards locally and nationally, including the Channel 10 Leadership Award, Torrey Pines Bank Circle of Excellence Award, La Mesa Rotary “Peacemaker of the Year Award,” and the Jewish Family Services Volunteer of the Year Award. He was also a national semifinalist for the Volvo for Life Award.
Steve has been on the board of Doors of Change for over 14 years. He has four decades of experience in real estate development including developing, constructing, and managing desperately needed affordable housing for low-income people and families.
Steve has participated in many other programs and charitable ventures including being Chairman of the UCSD Architectural and Construction Department, volunteering and contributing to rehabilitate family housing shelters, assisting another non-profit teen homeless shelter organization to develop a facility, volunteering and donating funding to Providence Place (a program that helps women who have been incarcerated get back on their feet and stay out of trouble), and has run the YMCA’s Annual Giving Campaign for the Coyote Nation.
Gabriel Igartua is a native of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. At 16 he moved to San Diego to finish high school and attend college at San Diego State University. Gabriel now has over 17 years of banking and finance experience and is currently a Vice President of Homestreet Bank.
During his 20 years in San Diego Gabriel has seen the impact that homelessness has within our community and after meeting Jeffrey at a chamber event, Gabriel realized he can be part of the solution by volunteering with Doors of Change.
Gabriel is married to his best friend, Ziza Alarcon, and they have a 20-month-old son who is also named Gabriel.
Over the past two decades, Andrew Miner has been assisting and leading numerous non-profits that focus on helping homeless youth, at-risk youth, and individuals and families that have experienced crisis and/or sudden loss. He has helped develop programs to give young homeless children valuable life skills in the form of music, art, athletics, and entrepreneurship with a focus on education.
Andrew is an active advocate for youth and has served in various roles such as President and Chairman of an education based non-profit. In his spare time, he is a business development executive and marketer who has helped launch and grow Neil Patel Digital into one of the World’s most sought after Digital Marketing Agencies. Andrew has also held Director roles at Tech Startups, ownership of a logistics agency, and Management at a Fortune 500.
Andrew also enjoys playing a variety of sports with his wife and children. They are also active in the San Diego theater, music, and dance communities.
Andrew is excited and honored to be a part of the Doors of Change Board!
Laura is an attorney Registered as a Foreign Legal Consultant in California, licensed to practice in Mexico and also licensed to practice in New York with over 25 years of experience. Laura is currently a member of the Corporate and Labor and Employment Practice Groups in the firm’s San Diego (Del Mar) and New York offices.
Laura’s legal practice focuses on cross-border transactions involving Mexico and other countries of Latin America. Laura also handles international mediation cases involving cross-border issues or Spanish-speaking parties. Laura acts as a mediator and arbitrator for disputes and controversies between US corporations and Mexican/Latin American corporations and individuals.
Laura is involved in Casa Cornelia assisting in asylum matters and visas. Also, from 2002 through 2011 she participated and worked on the Rady Children’s Hospital Auxiliary, for two of those years as a member of the Del Mar Unit and for the seven other years she founded, chaired and participated in the Milagros Unit of the Rady Children’s Hospital Auxiliary.
Laura grew up in Tijuana, Mexico and moved to San Diego in 1997. Laura is fluent in Spanish and English, and conversant in French and Italian.
Laura has two teenage sons that helps her realize the importance of providing love, guidance and care to young persons in this critical phase of their lives and specially appreciates the importance of working with homeless youth as they have found themselves in the despair or problems that took them to become homeless in San Diego.
Laura is very proud and enthusiastic about being a member of the Board of Directors of Doors of Change and working with this organization knowing how it helps homeless youth change their lives and become independent self-supporting individuals.
John was born in Boston, MA, and educated at Brown University. He is a retired executive VP of ABC Supply Co., a $10 billion exterior building products distribution company. In his 30 years with the company John was entirely responsible for P&L and was the line authority for the West Region (one of five regions designated in the company). John now spends his time giving back, traveling, growing his tequila business, and consulting in the distribution industry.
Kim has been in the Wellness business for over 25 years, most of that time with Egoscue, Inc., serving in various positions including Director of Clinic Relations and Vice President of Finance.
Kim has been supporting Doors of Change for many years. She strongly believes in volunteering and giving back to the community. She is excited to be a member of the Board and looks forward to helping homeless youth.
Kim has two sons and lives in Carlsbad with her husband. She enjoys traveling, swimming, hiking and spending time with her family.
Julie has more than 35 years of human resources experience and has spent the last 30 years in law firm management. As Administrator and Chief Operating Officer she oversees the day-to-day operations of her firm’s eight office locations throughout the Western United States. She has established firm policy and procedures, handles recruitment, employment, and employee relations, and has designed and implemented the firm’s health and welfare plans. Julie is also responsible for strategic planning, marketing, and client development.
A favorite part of her job is involving staff in various community volunteer programs. She is a strong advocate to give voice to the voiceless and to empower those without power, and she can be spotted at various community events as a volunteer including Produce for Good, The Salvation Army, Coastal Roots Farm, Habitat for Humanity, Father Joe’s, Special Olympics, Meals on Wheels, and many local food banks. She is an advocate for homeless youth in San Diego and is committed to helping Doors of Change continue as a beacon of hope for underserved youth.
Phil Baker is an authority on product development, a former tech columnist, and the author of two books, including his latest, “To Feel the Music,’ co-written with Neil Young. He currently works for Young developing the most extensive musician’s archive ever created. He has been responsible for scores of products, including audio, photography, and consumer electronics for companies including Apple, Polaroid, Seiko and Barnes & Noble. Phil has a BS, MS, and MBA, holds several dozen patents, and lives with his wife in Solana Beach.
LaCretia Kelly started working at age 16 with at-risk youth under EDD’s Youth Employment Opportunity Program (YEOP). While working at YEOP, LaCretia helped youth (ages 16 to 21) with interviewing skills and how to locate jobs. LaCretia’s passion for helping young people was inspired by her father. Her father’s example of being a pastor, career counselor, teacher, and mentor to so many, in San Diego, shaped LaCretia’s desire to help whenever and wherever she could.
After becoming a single mom of 2 beautiful daughters, LaCretia left college to pursue a career in the insurance industry around 1995. Over the years, LaCretia was fortunate to gain valuable experience while working at companies like Prudential, Unum, and Principal Financial Group. LaCretia later joined Teague Financial Services in 2008. LaCretia roles with Teague Financial Services has evolved from being Office Manager and Life agent, Account Executive, to Group Service Manager and Group Sales Agent. What LaCretia values most is being able to help clients fulfil their personal or business needs thru insurance.
LaCretia continues to serve her community by volunteering weekly at her church’s Super Food Pantry. Every week, she gives out hundreds of bags of food to families in need. Our motto is “We can’t do Everything…but we can do Something!”
Raising her four wonderful children taught LaCretia the importance of developing the next generation to be compassionate and caring to ALL. LaCretia is excited about being a part of an amazing organization, Doors of Change, where she can help serve homeless youth in whatever capacity.
Garett Houseal is a Commercial Insurance Broker who is a 20-year resident of San Diego County and specializes in providing Insurance and Risk Management to businesses in San Diego County for the past 16 years.
As a trusted advisor to hundreds of San Diego businesses he has a passion to help them manage their risk and helps them navigate the insurance marketplace. From offering a robust set of skills to knowing what his clients want and need has allowed him to grow his special knowledge of the manufacturing industry into a very special relationship for his clients.
He is married to wife Danielle, and has two beautiful children, Graham 7 years old and Dylan 4 years old. He loves to surf and spend time with his family when he is not working.
Joanne comes to Doors of Change after 25 plus years working as Director of Client Services for an investment advisory firm. She began volunteering over 3+ years ago for the music and art program, helping with outreach and working with the youth to achieve their goals. After witnessing her full commitment, passion for the program and her natural ability to connect with the youth she was asked to be Program Director. Joanne is determined to make the music and art program a platform for youth to receive the support, trust and resources to better their lives.
John January is a music teacher, guitarist, singer and performing artist who has been honored by the Blues Hall of Fame in Chicago and by Billboard magazine for songwriting. John has performed for audiences throughout the United States and in Canada, Mexico and Central America. As the Lead Music Instructor for the TMATS outreach program John recognizes the important bridge that music and art provide for every homeless youth. In finding a common ground, John and the team of instructors can establish a level of trust with youth as they begin to understand that there is a life for them off of the streets.
I graduated in 2014 with a BS in Criminal Justice with a minor in psychology. After working in social services and being a foster parent for 3+ years I realized that social services was my calling. As the Doors of Change case manager I look forward to meeting and supporting the youth while helping to identify services and providing support throughout the continuum of services.
As a Dean’s List graduate of Southern Connecticut State University in spring of 2020 I quickly moved from the East Coast to San Diego to get involved in helping the homeless community. Working as a case manager for a global nonprofit helping individuals experiencing homelessness was my first job out of college. I have loved the work I do and the impact I am able to make. I look forward to connecting with the youth to identify and work through barriers, connect to vital resources and services and to provide support along the way.
June comes to Doors of Change with a wealth of resource development and program experience in national affiliate and grassroots non-profit organizations. June is devoted to fighting for opportunities to triumph over painful circumstances, especially for young people who find themselves lost or alone. With skills built carving out career milestone achievements in national organizations like Habitat for Humanity, American Heart Association, and Boys & Girls Clubs, and regional organizations like AIDS Project Los Angeles, Clinica Sierra Vista, and Allan Hancock College; June is thrilled to join the incredible Doors of Change family and help build on its life-changing, beautiful work.
June believes that grant writing; all fundraising, in fact, is a form of sacred storytelling. With each story, lives are at stake, hopes can rise, and dreams can be realized. She holds the honor of telling the stories of the young people served by Doors of Change close to her heart. The privilege of joining this team is a dream of her own coming true.
Marshall Lewis is the head of Lewis, Hoxie & Spear, APLC, a San Diego law firm that concentrates in tax and estate planning and business formation and transactions. He contributed his services to form this organization and has helped with legal compliance and contract documents ever since, without charge. He holds five diplomas from UCLA and began his legal career on Wall Street servicing major corporations and bringing companies public. After working for two years in Paris he longed to return to California and has lived here happily ever after, solving peoples’ problems and leading community revitalization and youth orchestras to help the homeless live self-sufficiently off the streets.
Kate began volunteering with Doors of Change every Thursday and Sunday as an Art Instructor in 2017. After witnessing firsthand how the program transformed the lives of homeless youth, Kate was compelled to contribute marketing expertise to further support the organization. Kate aids in marketing efforts behind-the-scenes by creating quality content, managing our social media accounts and writing blogs. Kate is passionate about sharing how Doors of Change makes a powerful impact on the lives of homeless youth by providing a safe place, social services, self-sufficiency, and empowerment.
Ken is a senior graphic designer with over 25 years experience in several different facets of design, from production/preflight to creating eye catching designs. He began creating print materials and other design projects for Doors of Change back in 2013 as a freelance designer and has been with us ever since. Ken is excited to be a part of our organization and loves our mission of transforming the lives of San Diego youths.