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C. Andrew McCawley

President and Chief Executive Officer

Andy joined NECHV in June 2011 after a 30 year career in the U.S. Navy as a Naval Officer and Aviator. He commanded a Navy fighter squadron and two ships, including the aircraft carrier USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN, CVN72.

Andy earned his B.S. in Naval Architecture from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, an M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterrey, CA, and graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School. In 2001, he completed the Advanced Management Program at the Harvard Business School.

Following active duty, Andy worked in the aerospace and defense industry, most recently as Vice President, Afghanistan Program for Alenia North America.

Kevin A. Ward

Senior Vice President, Finance and Strategy & Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Ward joined the Center in 2003 and oversees the accounting, budgeting, strategic planning, information technology, grants and contracts, treasury, and payroll functions at the Center. Previously, Kevin spent over 20 years in senior and executive management positions at healthcare institutions including Boston Medical Center, St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, Hebrew SeniorLife, and Beth Israel Hospital.

Kevin played a key leadership role in the merger of Boston City Hospital and University Hospital in 1996, which at the time was the largest merger of a public and private healthcare institution in the U.S.

Kevin received a B.S. in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting from North Adams State College. He has achieved the designation of Fellow in the Health Care Financial Management Association, a Certified Manager in Patient Accounts and has successfully completed his C.P.A exam. Kevin is a former Board Member and Chair of the Finance Committee at Hearth.

Charlene F. Pontbriand

Senior Vice President, Advancement

Charlene joined the Center in December 2011 as Senior Vice President for Advancement which includes fund raising and community relations. She has an extensive background in fund raising and marketing, the majority in health care. She was Vice President for Marketing, Development and Planning for Good Samaritan Medical Center, Vice President for Development for Brockton Hospital Foundation and Signature Healthcare, and for Walker Home and School until she joined the Center.

She has been involved in several hospital mergers and identity changes, has managed marketing for multiple physician practices and successful health care ventures, has won more than twenty regional and national marketing awards and has led six capital campaigns, including the successful closure of a number of seven-figure gifts. She has also served on a number of boards and was a member of the board at NECHV for seven years prior to taking her current position.

A graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Ms. Pontbriand is a member of many professional organizations including the Massachusetts Chapter of the Association for Fund Raising Professionals.

Victoria Bifano

Vice President, Human Resources

Victoria Bifano joined the Center in October 2012 as Vice President of Human Resources. She has over twenty years of experience as a Human Resource and Operations professional within varied industries. Prior to joining the Center she was Vice President of Human Resources for Rockland Federal Credit Union. For seven years she served as Director of Human Resources and Administration at Vantage Partners, LLC.

She has been involved in several start-up companies including driving the development and growth of the Human Resource department at the British Schools of America, a private International school with five locations in the US. Victoria has also played a key role in operations overseeing numerous construction projects including several company relocations and serving as project manager for the construction of a new school facility.

She is a member of several professional organizations including Society for Human Resource (SHRM), New England Human Resource Association (NEHRA) and the Association of Training and Development (ASTD). She holds several industry certifications from Bentley College and holds a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR®) certification.

Kristine DiNardo, MEd., LMHC

Vice President of Clinical Services

Kristine DiNardo, LMHC, MFT is the Vice President of Clinical Services at the New England Center and Home for Veterans.  Beginning her work as a clinical case manager for Veterans with co-occurring disorders in May of 2001,   she now oversees a clinical staff of 45, and 13 specialized behavioral health and housing programs.  She has a Masters of Education degree in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) and a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies in Mental Health counseling, of which she maintains a professional license (LMHC).

Kristine has over 30 years’ experience in human services, education, training and management. Her clinical experience includes work in trauma / domestic violence, family therapy, clinical case management, mental health and addictions counseling, clinical supervision.  Her experience as an educator include Adjunct Professor at the University of Mass Graduate School of Counseling and School Psychology, workshop  development and facilitation on psychological, social and economic effects of trauma on children and adults, and best practices for senior homeless Veterans. As part of the Executive Leadership team at the NECHV, Kristine is an integral part of strategic planning and growth for clinical programming and for staff training and development.  

In her tenure as Vice President of Clinical Services, she ensures the highest quality of programming and service provision to the men and women who have found themselves in the condition of homelessness and those who are at risk of becoming homeless. For her leadership in bringing harm reduction and low threshold programming and models of service delivery to NECHV, Kristine was awarded the “Unsung Hero Award” in 2013, from the National Coalition of Homeless Veterans.   Currently, she is providing leadership bringing trauma informed care into the organization’s service provision, policies and procedures.

She continues to maintain longstanding relationships and collaborations with the Veterans Administration, Department of Veterans Services, Boston Continuum of Care  (Boston area network of agencies devoted to ending homelessness),and numerous private and public service providers  for Veterans and their families.  Through the Center’s national leadership, Kristine and her team of highly motivated and dedicated staff are an important part of preventing and ending Veteran homelessness.