AWC Berlin Board of Directors 2023 NOMINEES
PRESIDENT – JENNIFER POST DRÄGER
Originally from Central Florida, Jennifer Post Draeger came to Berlin in 2015 following a three-year stint in Paris, where she met her German husband (in a Scottish bar.) As it happens, she was the very first new member to find AWC Berlin online and join the club after its 2015 relaunch, and since then, she’s been an active participant in a wide range of Club activities, including as a presenter for the Women’s Salon and the Newcomer Orientation program, and began serving as Club President in 2022. She began her professional career with the Walt Disney Company in Florida, and later held executive roles at Overture Center for the Arts and the Madison Region Economic Development Partnership, both in Madison, WI. She served on the boards of numerous community organizations in the US, in roles from marketing to finance to vice chair. In Paris, she pursued graduate research on theatre in former industrial sites, translated the book “Rodin and the Dance of Shiva” (Niyogi Books: New Delhi), and began coaching international MBA candidates. She has taught communications strategy in business schools in Paris and Berlin, and in 2018 founded Bright Outlook Global Prep, an educational consulting firm. She and her husband are parents to two young children, both born in Berlin. Jennifer holds an MBA in Arts Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a BA in Marketing from the University of South Florida and listens to far too many nonfiction books on Audible
FIRST VICE-PRESIDENT – SILVIA MALO RASINSKI
Silvia Malo Rasinski was born and raised in Mexico City. She studied Media and Communication at the Universidad Iberoamericana (majoring in Advertising and Filmmaking) and worked as a brand strategist. In 2015, After almost 20 years in the NY/NJ area, Silvia and her German husband Georg decided to move to Berlin with their 2 children, Nicolas and Verena, then 13 and 11, in order to provide an opportunity for the children to experience life in a different country, and where part of their heritage is. Upon landing in Berlin, Silvia deep dove into learning German, earning her C2 level. After 4 years, she is finally fluent -with some mistakes, yes, but happy to be able to communicate with those who do not speak English or Spanish. Silvia is passionate about authentic, well curated Mexican food. She is the queen of Guacamole and loves to cook for friends. A most enjoyable thing for her is a long “sobremesa” with a good mezcal accompanied with sliced oranges and some sal de gusano. Silvia worked as stage manager of the AWC Berlin’s 2018 production of The Vagina Monologues and volunteers in the club’s Programs team. Silvia currently serves as 1nd Vice President of AWC Berlin.
SECOND VICE-PRESIDENT – M.H.
SECRETARY – ANNAMARIA THAL
Although she has spent most of her adult life far away from her roots, Annamaria Thal is originally Hungarian. After having lived in Stuttgart, Brussels, and Düsseldorf, and having studied in the Netherlands, she moved to Berlin in 2014, together with her husband and partner of 20 years. As a classically trained harpist, she has traveled and performed extensively all over Europe, the United States, and the Middle East. She has been fortunate to perform in some of the most prestigious concert halls and venues, in front of princes and princesses, ambassadors, renowned conductors, celebrated artists, colleagues, friends, family members, and even crowds of over ten thousand people a night. No matter their titles, they all provided her with equally ‘nerve-racking’ and exhilarating experiences. Annamaria has also served as a Board Member of the International Summer HarpMasters Academy for professional harpists, held every year outside of Bern, Switzerland.
In an effort to spend more time with her husband, she became an equal partner in the business that they now run together. Throughout the years she developed a keen interest in ‘the business side of life’ and started studying for a Masters’ degree in Cultural Management at the University of Lüneburg, Germany. Annamaria holds a BM and a MM in classical music from Conservatorium Maastricht, Zuyd University (the Netherlands). In her free time, she enjoys exploring new destinations, reading, walks in nature, long weekend brunches with her husband and friends, trying out new vegan recipes from around the world, and passionately spoiling her cat kids.
TREASURER – TWANA RHODES
Twana Rhodes: Considering myself a native of El Paso, Texas, I was born in Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. Born into a military family, I began preschool education in Heidelberg, Germany. I graduated high school in El Paso and went on to study at Hampton University, VA, and then, at the United States International University in San Diego, CA. (Music Theatre). I completed my BA in multidisciplinary studies at the University of Texas at El Paso. In 1998 I was contracted as a featured vocalist at Berlin’s renowned Friedrichstadtpalast and have lived here ever since. I established the company Redwind Music Promotion in 1999. I’ve raised monies for and managed to executive produced several albums in addition to coordinating bookings, travel, musicians, and performances at theatres and concert venues throughout Germany. AWC Berlin is a fantastic club, a vibrant community, and a people-supporting vessel. I am happy, hopeful, and confident, in continuing to watch the doors of our financial transactions.