Meredith Rose
Director
My name is Meredith Rose and I am the Director of Open Arms Adoption Network. Working with our Open Arms team, JFCS and our birth and adoptive families is an honor and pleasure that I feel grateful for each day. I am the mother of two. My first child joined our family through birth and my second child joined our family through adoption. We have all always enjoyed and benefited from our relationship with my daughter’s birth family. I have been working with families in the field of social work for over 20 years and happily found my place in Open Adoption in 1996. I hold an MSW and an MPH in Maternal and Child Health from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. You can reach me at mrose@openarmsadoption.net.
Meredith Rose
Director
My name is Meredith Rose and I am the Director of Open Arms Adoption Network. Working with our Open Arms team, JFCS and our birth and adoptive families is an honor and pleasure that I feel grateful for each day. I am the mother of two. My first child joined our family through birth and my second child joined our family through adoption. We have all always enjoyed and benefited from our relationship with my daughter’s birth family. I have been working with families in the field of social work for over 20 years and happily found my place in Open Adoption in 1996. I hold an MSW and an MPH in Maternal and Child Health from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. You can reach me at mrose@openarmsadoption.net.
Lisa Walters
Adoption Coordinator
Hi, my name is Lisa Walters and I am an Adoption Coordinator for Open Arms, working out of our Philadelphia/South Jersey/Delaware office. I work with both women considering adoption as well as adoptive families. I also assist adult adoptees who were adopted under the system of confidential adoption with searches and reunions. I am a parent by adoption, and I myself was adopted as an infant as well. l have worked in the field of social work for more than 25 years in both healthcare and adoption, and I began working at JFCS in 2001. I earned an MSW from Temple University. I can be reached at lwalters@openarmsadoption.net.
Michele LeMasney
Adoptive Family Support & Training Coordinator
Hello! My name is Michele LeMasney, and I am the Adoptive Family Support & Training Coordinator at Open Arms. I coordinate educational workshop programming, support forums and all events for our families. Additionally, I coordinate trainings for professionals who work with clients facing unplanned pregnancies. I facilitate our Coffee Talk sessions and support our families as they navigate all areas of the adoption process. Adoption greatly encompasses my life as I am an adopted individual and a mother of five children, two of whom joined our family though open adoption! I have been with Open Arms since 2008 and feel truly blessed to work in a field that I love so much! You can reach me at mlemasney@openarmsadoption.net.
Jenny Sved
Outreach Coordinator
Hi, my name is Jenny Sved, and I joined Open Arms as Outreach Coordinator in 2012. My primary responsibility is handling our outreach and marketing efforts, both for potential adoptive families and expectant mothers considering adoption. I have been in the nonprofit sector since graduating with a BA in English Communications in 2007. Post-graduation, I was responsible for the marketing efforts in the Office of Alumni Affairs at my alma mater. I am thrilled to have entered the world of Adoption, as it is an incredible journey for families that I love being a part of! I can be reached at jsved@openarmsadoption.net.
Alexandra Wallis
Administrative Coordinator
Hello! My name is Alexandra Wallis, I am the Administrative Coordinator for Open Arms, working out of our Philadelphia/South Jersey/Delaware office. I joined Open Arms in 2018 and provide administrative support for coordinators and adoptive families throughout the adoption process. I am also working toward my MSW at Temple University. Working in this field is incredibly rewarding and I am grateful to be part of such a dedicated team! I can be reached at awallis@openarmsadoption.net.
Dori Kavanagh
Adoption Coordinator
Hello! My name is Dori Kavanagh and I am an Adoption Coordinator in our North Jersey/ New York office. I work with expectant parents, birth parents and adoptive families. I am passionate about adoption and it is a privilege to be helping Birth Parents, adoptees and parents navigate through their journeys and become the narrators of their stories. I have worked with children and families for over a decade and specialize in complex family building, foster care, infertility, post-partum mental health, transracial adoption and LGBTQ+ families. I am a parent of three girls, one of whom joined our family through adoption. I have a BA in Psychology and a MSW from Hunter College. I also have Post Graduate certifications in both Clinical Social Work from Hunter College and in Adoption from Rutgers University. I can be reached at dkavanagh@openarmsadoption.net.
Shantanai Sealy
Adoption Coordinator
Hi. My name is Shantanai Sealy and I am an Adoption Coordinator based New Jersey. My role is to work collaboratively with expectant parents, birth parents and adoptive families. As a licensed social worker, I have provided therapy to families formed through adoption as well as those coping with mental health and substance use diagnoses. I have a BA in psychology and a MSW with a concentration in Clinical practice with children and families from Monmouth University. I also have Post Graduate certifications in Clinical Practice in Adoption from Rutgers University. I am excited to partner with you and assist you in your journey. I can be reached at ssealy@openarmsadoption.net.
Susan Meeker
Adoption Coordinator
Hi, my name is Susan Meeker and I am an Adoption Coordinator at our Philadelphia/South Jersey/Delaware office. I work with expectant parents considering adoption as well as adoptive families. My background includes 25 years of working in the fields of women’s reproductive health/human sexuality, parenting education and child welfare. I received my MSW from Widener University. I am committed to helping women make empowering decisions as well as supporting families in their open adoption journey. I can be reached at smeeker@openarmsadoption.net.
Milly Ramos
Adoption Coordinator
Hi there, I am Milly Ramos, an Adoption Coordinator based in our Wilmington, DE office. I work with expectant and birth parents, as well with as with adoptive families. I graduated from Wilmington University with a BS in Behavioral Science and I currently attend Temple University’s Master of Social Work program and will be graduating in 2021. I joined Open Arms after working with pregnant women, babies and families at the Division of Family Services in Delaware. Prior to that, I worked with the mental health population (predominately adolescents) for five years. I am excited to have now joined the world of adoption. I also am Bilingual and enjoy working with our Spanish-speaking clients. I can be reached at mramos@openarmsadoption.net.
Nicole Russo
Administrative Assistant
Hello! My name is Nicole Russo, I am the Administrative Assistant for Open Arms. I joined Open Arms in 2020 and provide administrative support to the Open Arms team as well as to families during the adoption process. I received a Bachelor of Arts from Holy Family University in 2017 and have been working in the non profit sector ever since. I am thrilled to be working alongside such a wonderful and dedicated team and feel blessed to be able to assist families in the adoption process. I can be reached at nrusso@openarmsadoption.net.
