Leadership

Rev. Kimberly Wood comes to the Cornerstone Fund after serving as the Conference Minister of the Southeast Conference of the United Church of Christ. She earned her Bachelor of Social Work degree from Aurora University and her Master of Divinity from Bethany Theological Seminary. Kim has served as an associate minister, a solo pastor, a head of staff/senior minister, and a bridge pastor, and she is experienced in both settled and intentional interim ministry. She has worked extensively with congregations in transition, conflict resolution, and revitalization in suburban/urban and rural settings. Kim and her spouse, Ron, celebrate the gift God has given them in a beautiful family that includes four children, their spouses/significant others, and two adorable grandchildren. Kim enjoys music, reading, sports, history, and story, learning about other faith traditions, visiting new places and landscapes, game nights with family and friends, and meeting people wherever she might be. 

Tami Marinella came to the Cornerstone Fund from the national setting of the United Church of Christ. Prior to joining the UCC National Setting as its CFO, Marinella served as the CFO of Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority for seven years.  CMHA is the oldest and seventh largest public housing authority in the Country.  Marinella also served in financial roles at the Cleveland Department of Public Health, the Cleveland Department of Public Utilities, and Northcoast Behavioral Healthcare.

Rebecca Perera is Cornerstone’s Chief of Credit. Prior to her appointment as CoC, Rebecca was the Fund’s Director of Lending, where she developed and codified lending operations and served as primary underwriter. Rebecca came to Cornerstone from the Economic and Community Development Institute (ECDI), a nonprofit SBA micro lender, where she shepherded dozens of small business owners through underwriting and provided both pre-loan technical expertise and post-loan business development consulting to support their enduring success.

Rebecca’s commitment to community-oriented and equitable access to resources — whether financial, educational, or cultural — makes her a vital contributor to Cornerstone’s mission-oriented approach to lending. Prior to her career in finance, Rebecca was a professional orchestral musician, performing on stages worldwide and spearheading a number of community engagement projects in the arts. This early work was the genesis of her ongoing commitment to community and economic development, including board service with a diverse array of organizations such as Noteworthy Federal Credit Union, Les Delices Early Music Ensemble, Metro West Community Development Organization and Cleveland Public Theatre’s Masrah Al-Arabi.

She holds degrees from Oberlin College and Rice University.

Maria C. Coyne serves as the President and CEO of the UCC Cornerstone Fund. Maria is a financial services executive with over 30 years of experience in commercial and retail banking. Nationally recognized as an engaging leader, Maria is featured in several books and publications including How Women Lead by Dr. Sharon Hadary, and Off the Sidelines by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. She has also worked with several “fintech” companies providing strategic consulting, and as a senior consultant at the telos institute. While at KeyCorp from 2001 to 2015 she served as an Executive Vice President and a member of KeyCorp’s Executive Council. She was the founder of the Key4 Women program and also held leadership positions in Retail/Consumer Banking, Business Banking, Strategic Planning, and Client Experience. She was named twice (in 2013 and 2014) as one of American Banker’s “25 Most Powerful Women in Banking”, and twice as one of the “Women to Watch” (2011 and 2012). Prior to Key, she spent three years at the Greater Cleveland Growth Association and over 10 years at Bank One Cleveland, serving in various management capacities before becoming Director of Marketing. She is a prominent thought leader on small business and women’s leadership and has been featured frequently in media including the Wall Street Journal, CNN, NPR, Bloomberg News, and BusinessWeek. Maria has considerable experience serving on non-profit boards including the Cleveland Catholic Diocese finance council, the Ursuline Sisters finance council, Beaumont school, the MacDonald Women’s Health Council of University Hospitals, the Sovereign Order of St. John, and she was an inaugural member of the United Way Women’s Leadership Council.

Maria is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame with a Bachelors of Business Administration in Finance. She also completed the Key Executive Experience at the Case Weatherhead School of Management. Maria is a proud Clevelander, where she and her husband raised their two adult children. She is an avid rower and enjoys travel and learning about new cultures.