Ava Benach is Chair and a founding Board member of DC Girls Baseball. DCGB got started after Ava's daughter, Paloma, participated in an all-girls team sponsored by Baseball for All that won a major tournament in Chino Hills, CA in 2014. Ava was a long-time coach with the Capitol City Little League (CCLL) beginning in 2012. She has served on the Board of Directors and as a league commissioner with CCLL. Ava and her wife, Mona, have three children, Paloma, Alex and Teddy, all of whom pitch and play first base. When not on the dugout step, Ava is the Managing Partner at Benach Collopy LLP, a Washington DC law firm specializing in immigration.

Jen Stillerman is President and a founding Board member of DC Girls Baseball. Jen was inspired to help launch DCGB by her daughter, Alice, a catcher who was nine at the time. Jen previously served as a Supervising Attorney with the Child Advocacy Program at the DC Volunteer Lawyers Project and Associate General Counsel at The George Washington University.

Daniel Curry is a Board member and Treasurer of DC Girls Baseball. He is a registered architect, practicing in the District of Columbia, Virginia, and Maryland. He specializes in the design learning environments and has been involved in the modernization of several local schools. Prior to starting his firm, he was a Principal with Quinn Evans Architects. As an adjunct faculty member, he has taught at the University of Maryland and Catholic University of America.

Daniel is a past chair of the AIA|DC Committee on Architecture for Education. He has also volunteered with the Washington Architectural Foundation’s Architecture in the Schools program. During the years his daughter played with Capitol Hill Little League, he volunteered as a Team Manager, and had the honor of serving as an assistant coach for the 12U summer tournament team. Daniel is a member of the American Institute of Architects and the Society for Architectural Historians.

Adam Martin is a Board member and Secretary of DC Girls Baseball. Adam serves as the Chief Digital Officer with the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History in Washington, D.C., helping support the museum's mission to provide innovative, accessible, and inclusive educational experiences for a diverse, global community. Adam's daughter Olivia is a current DC Force player who also plays for the Burtonsville Athletic Association where Adam has acted as a volunteer assistant baseball coach for the past three seasons. Adam and his family make their home in Montgomery County, Maryland but he still finds himself cheering for his “home town” Boston Red Sox. description

Joel Churches is a Board member of DC Girls Baseball and served as Treasurer for several years. Joel has been a special agent with the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation Division for over 28 years. He currently instructs various foreign government agencies and investigators regarding conducting financial investigations. During his tenure with IRS-CI, Joel has worked in south Florida; south Georgia: Denver, CO: and now Washington DC in various investigative and teaching roles.

Joel previously has served as coach and assistant coach for several little league teams in Washington DC and Arlington, VA for teams on which his daughter, Ruby, played on. Ruby has been a DCGB member for over six years and currently plays on the 16U team.

Kimberly Churches is a Board member of DC Girls Baseball. Professionally, Churches is President of The Washington Center, a national nonprofit creating flexible, immersive pathways to enhance the pipeline of diverse talent and build more equitable, inclusive workplaces and communities. She previously served as the CEO for the American Association of University Women (AAUW), a leading voice in advancing equity for women and girls through research, advocacy and education. Prior to AAUW, Churches was the managing director of the Brookings Institution, an internationally recognized public policy think tank where she strategically guided Brookings, providing vision and problem-solving skills while focusing on expansive partnerships, external relations and advancement.

A passionate servant leader, Churchers serves as the board treasurer of 1455, a nonprofit for the literary arts, and formerly served on the board of the Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights, She is a member of the International Women’s Forum. In addition to being fervent baseball fans, Churches and her family also support the performing arts in the greater DC region.

Chris Payne-Tsoupros is a member of the Board of Directors of DC Girls Baseball. Chris is the Education Policy Counsel for the National Association of the Deaf (NAD), a civil rights organization serving deaf and hard of hearing individuals living in the U.S. At the NAD, Chris advises on legal and policy issues related to the education of deaf and hard of hearing children and youth. Chris also teaches law school courses (and many years ago, she taught elementary school). Chris is a parent of two baseball players, including a DC Force 10U player. Her children also play in Banneker City Little League and with DC Dynasty.

Nick Rhodes is a Board member of DC Girls Baseball. Professionally, Nick is the Director of Growth and Strategy for the digital services company, Ad Hoc LLC, which provides digital solutions to several federal agencies. Nick’s daughter Vivian is a current DC Force player who also plays for Chantilly Little League and Travel Team, where Nick is a coach and Board Member. Nick’s love for the game of baseball spans from his college baseball experience at division one UNC Charlotte where he played as a four-year starter. Nick looks to infuse his over 30 years of baseball experience into the development and growth of DC Girls Baseball.

Melissa Westman-Cherry is a Board Member of Girls Baseball. Due to a spectacular lack of athleticism, she has committed herself to being the ultimate sports fan. Her favorite baseball player is Piper Cherry, the dynamic outfielder for DC Force and The Field School baseball team. When she is not watching, talking about, or thinking about sports, Melissa works as a lawyer at the Federal Trade Commission. She is happy to discuss the baseball exemption to the antitrust laws with any, and all, interested parties, but the views expressed will be her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Commission or any individual Commissioner.

John Wulf is Assistant Director of Player Development for the Washington Nationals. He first started working for the Nationals as a minor league video intern with the Potomac Nationals in 2013. In his current role, John supports the day-to-day operations of player development, in addition to strategizing long-term goals for players and the department as a whole. He enjoys visiting the Nationals’ affiliates from Class-A Fredericksburg to Triple-A Rochester. John graduated from Hamilton College in 2012 where he played Division III baseball. He lives in Eastern Market with his wife Abby who has a superior throwing arm.