Our Team - Gulf Coast JFCS

Dr. Sandra Braham

President/CEO

Dr. Sandra Braham was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Gulf Coast Jewish Family and Community Services in March 2016. At $50 million with more than 550 full time staff, Gulf Coast JFCS is one of the largest JFS agencies in the United States. Dr. Braham has brought stable leadership, vision and skills in organizational development that are redefining the agency’s role as a regional leader in providing wraparound human services. She has broad experience in solutions-oriented strategic planning, technology utilization and integration, diversity, and staff and community engagement.

Dr. Braham brings more than 20 years of leadership experience in the not-for-profit sector. Before coming to Gulf Coast JFCS, she spent 25 years in El Paso, Texas where she served for 10 years as CEO of the YWCA El Paso del Norte Region and led 450 employees, managed an annual budget of more than $30 million and supported a $9 million foundation. While at the YWCA, she lowered the agency’s crippling deficits by more than 70%, while raising salaries and making significant investments and improvements in its operations and IT infrastructure.

Dr. Braham also served as Associate Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies and Assistant Vice President for Outreach Programs at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) from 1992 to 2006. At UTEP, she secured more than $20 million in federal grants and developed programs to support low-income youths’ access, enrollment and success in higher education. She also spent eight years as an adjunct faculty member in the University’s College of Education where she mentored master and doctoral-level students through courses including qualitative research methodology, organizational change and development, and educational leadership in a diverse society.

Dr. Braham received her Bachelor of Arts in Biology from the University of Missouri at Columbia and her Masters and Doctorate Degrees in Educational Leadership and Administration from UTEP. She is a graduate of Leadership Texas, Leadership America and The Harvard Business School’s Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management executive education program. Dr. Braham also completed Jewish leadership studies with the Federation of Florida’s Gulf Coast which culminated in a 10-day trip to Israel. Among her civic activities are membership in the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce where she is the current Board Chair and its first African American woman to hold this post. She is a Board member of the Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce. Professionally, she serves as co-chair for the Network of Jewish Human Service Agencies (NJHSA) Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Affinity Group and she mentors other Leaders of Color in the non-profit sector.

Dr. Braham was named “2018 Business Woman of the Year” by the Tampa Bay Business Journal. In January of 2019 she was honored by Academy Prep Center of St. Petersburg as one of its “Five Fabulous Females” and The Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce named her their “2019 Dottie Berger Mackinnon Woman of Influence.” She lends her support to the community through up-and-coming young professionals, and by sharing her expertise through presentations to professional associations and community groups.

Dr. Braham’s memoir, “An Angel for Detroit,” was published in November 2022.

Dr. Eliza McCall-Horne

Executive Vice President

Dr. Eliza McCall-Horne joins Gulf Coast JFCS with over two decades of social services experience, including more than 16 years in executive leadership. Her past role included managing an $87 million budget as the Executive Director of Eckerd Connects. A child welfare expert, Eliza’s leadership has resulted in successfully establishing community programs, effective relationships, and agency partnerships. She is known for her comprehensive community outreach, leadership, and budget oversight. Prior to joining Eckerd Connects, she served as Executive Director for Children’s Home Society of Florida (CHS) overseeing Circuits 10 and 13 where she was instrumental in the development of the Community Partnership School in Hillsborough County.

Eliza obtained her bachelor’s degree in Criminology, a master’s in Counseling and her doctorate in education.

Melanie Hoffman

Chief of Staff

Melanie is a seasoned executive with over 25 years of experience in technology and management consulting. She has held senior positions at startups, medium-sized, and large organizations.

Recently leading the Southeast region for a prominent consulting firm, Melanie has successfully overseen countless large-scale technology implementations. With a deep expertise in operations, organizational effectiveness, change management, and relationship management, Melanie is known for driving operational excellence and fostering impactful organizational transformations.

Melanie has extensive experience across multiple industries including healthcare, telecommunications, financial services, and retail. Melanie earned her Bachelor of Science from Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania and holds certifications as a Project Management Professional (PMP) and a Certified Scrum Master (CSM).

Melanie relocated to Florida almost three years ago with her family. She enjoys soaking up the Florida sunshine and any activity outdoors.

Anthony Saccento

Chief Financial Officer

Anthony joined Gulf Coast JFCS as Chief Financial Officer in October of 2024. His experience in Public Accounting includes tax, auditing, and general accounting. His Private Accounting experience includes being CFO and holding senior positions in investment, publishing, oil & gas, architecture, and non-profit industries. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from St. John’s University. He received both an M.B.A. in Finance and an M.S. in Taxation from Fordham University. Anthony is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in the states of New York and Florida. He has periodically led accounting seminars through a major financial newspaper and has occasionally taught accounting and finance classes at the university level. He volunteers on the Deacon Board at his home church and has performed certified audits for a children’s mission in Kodiak, Alaska. He loves the outdoors and moved to upstate New York over a decade ago, from New York City, to pursue those opportunities. He now looks forward to expanding those experiences by having relocated to Florida.

Lisa Circle

Senior Vice President of Quality, Compliance, and Contracts

Lisa Circle started at Gulf Coast JFCS in 2004 as a Case Management Supervisor in the child protection program in Pinellas County. She left Gulf Coast JFCS in 2006 to pursue other professional opportunities but returned to Gulf Coast JFCS in April 2014 as Director of Quality Improvement. In September 2014, Ms. Circle was appointed Vice President of Quality Improvement. In April 2017, she was designated as Vice President of Quality, Contracts, and Compliance. Ms. Circle is responsible for the development, coordination and implementation of the agency’s quality improvement, contracts utilization management, risk management and compliance programs.

Prior to re-joining Gulf Coast JFCS in 2014, Ms. Circle served as the Director of Child Safety at Directions for Living. Ms. Circle has over 20 years of experience in Child Welfare programs in Miami-Dade, Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.

Ms. Circle has a Bachelor of Science in Psychology.

Elke Cumming

Senior Vice President of Programs and Administration

Elke Cumming, Senior Vice President of Programs and Administration, has dedicated over 30 years in service to vulnerable communities developing, directing, and managing diverse human services programs in El Paso, Texas, Mexico, Guatemala, Paraguay and now throughout the state of Florida.

As a servant-leader, Elke has directed residential and case management services for survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking with a focus on establishing safe spaces for vulnerable youth, newly arrived immigrants, and elders.

Elke is a proud graduate of the “2021-derful” Class of Leadership St. Pete and holds a master’s degree in public health from the University of Texas School of Public Health.

Kelly Jordan

Vice President of Philanthropy

Kelly Jordan has been a fundraising professional for over 20 years. In January of 2016 she moved from Washington D.C. to Florida to become the Chief Development Officer at Clearwater Marine Aquarium. In this position, Kelly provided leadership, direction, and coordination of fundraising strategies and activities that enabled CMA to make critical investments to ensure the institution remains a leader in marine life education, research, rescue, rehabilitation, and release. This included overseeing CMA’s successful $15-million-dollar capital campaign for its $80-million-dollar expansion that opened in October 2020. Previously Kelly served as the Major Gift Officer for 8 years at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C.

Melanie Brady

Vice President, Children and Family Services

Melanie has been with Gulf Coast JFCS for 19 years and provides operational support to more than $17 million in children and family programming which includes direct oversight for Case Management, Family Reunification, Kinship Support Services, Heart Gallery of Pinellas and Pasco, and Family Services Initiative. Melanie is a former co-chair of the Florida Coalition for Children Statewide Case Management Subcommittee and remains an active member of the COO Council. Melanie holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology, a Master of Science in Human Services Leadership and Organizational Management, and a Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership. She is a Certified Child Protective Professional with over two decades of experience, providing oversight to child protection, licensing, intervention, and diversion programs.

Melanie has been recognized in multiple circuits with awards for her leadership and partnership and is a previous recipient of the Gladys Schutz Exceptional Leadership Award presented annually to a Gulf Coast JFCS outstanding leader.

Nicole Guincho

Vice President of Clinical Services

Nicole has been in the behavioral health field for more than 20 years. Mrs. Guincho has been with Gulf Coast JFCS since 2004. She is the Vice President of Clinical services and oversees 12 programs in 37 counties, one of them being the Community Assistance and Life Liaison program (CALL).

Nicole holds two Masters Degrees, one in Human Behavior and a dual degree in Mental Health and Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of South Florida. She is Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the state of Florida and is also a Certified Addictions Professional. Ms. Guincho is a CARF surveyor and travels all over the United States and Canada completing surveys throughout the year. She is a part of a private practice in Trinity, Florida.

Nicole serves as a training instructor for two separate law enforcement Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training programs in adjoining Pinellas and Pasco counties. She teaches Geriatric Mental Health Issues, Signs and Symptoms of Mental Health, coordinates Scenario Based Training, and co-instructs Calm, Assess, Facilitate. In addition, she previously sat on the Pinellas National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) board and currently sits on the University Of South Florida’s Rehabilitation & Mental Health Counseling advisory board.