Wildcat Club Team

Suzanne joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in 2011 in her current role as Assistant Athletics Director for Major Gifts. She is responsible for identifying, cultivating, and securing major gifts for the Wildcat Club. She also oversees the Wildcat Wheel Club.

Suzanne brings a broad set of experiences to the Athletics Department. She has spent the past 22 years in the greater Phoenix area working in the public and private sector where she was involved with fund development, grant writing, event planning, operations management, program development and public relations.

Suzanne is a native of Arizona and a graduate of the University of Arizona. Suzanne and her husband Tom (also a UA graduate), have three children; Jack, Megan and Owen.

Steven Andrade joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in 2015 as a Development Associate with the Wildcat Club. Since 2017, Andrade has been the Coordinator of Major Gift Support Services. He is responsible for tracking major gift metrics, identifying major gift prospects, and ensuring the recognition of major gift donors for facilities.

A native of Northern California, Andrade came to the University of Arizona to study Ethics and completed his Bachelor's degree in Philosophy in 2015. While obtaining his degree, Andrade worked as a student-intern for the Wildcat Club.

Connor Bravard joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in August 2017 as a Program Coordinator for Annual Giving within the Wildcat Club. His responsibilities include overseeing the Student Intern Program, coordinating gift acknowledgments, managing the Student Wildcat Club, and assisting with day-to-day development needs.

Prior to Arizona, Bravard played football at Troy University while earning his bachelor's degree. He continued at Troy as a graduate assistant in Tickets and Development while completing his master's degree in Sport Management in 2017. Bravard is originally from Des Moines, Iowa.

Callista Elmore joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in January 2012. Callista is currently the Director of Regional Development with the Wildcat Club. Her responsibilities include major gifts, annual giving, and increasing awareness and engagement throughout Maricopa County. Callista began her tenure with Arizona as a Development Assistant with the A-Club.

Prior to her development career, Callista was a two-time National Champion for the Arizona Softball team. She lettered four years at Arizona, won a Gold Medal at the USA University World Cup in Taiwan, then went on to play for the NPF Washington Glory. Callista was involved in many of our student-athlete programs including, P.A.L and S.A.A.B. In addition, she was a homecoming finalist, heavily involved in community service, and served as the Director of the Giving Tree.

Callista is a native Tucsonan and received her Bachelor's in History with a minor in Business Administration. She has Master's in Public Administration (MPA). She enjoys volunteering her time with local Little Leagues and Gabriel's Angels. Callista is married to Ricky Elmore, a former defensive end for Arizona. They have a son named Rekker.

Rosie Fernety joined the Athletics Department in March 2018 as an Administrative Associate for the Wildcat Club. In her role, Rosie provides customer service to donors, assists Development staff as need, assists with scheduling, preparing reports, and general office correspondence.

Rosie has been with the University of Arizona for over three years. Prior to that, she spent 25 years as a paralegal in the areas of insurance defense and medical malpractice. Tucson has been Rosie’s home for the last 12 years. She is the proud mom of Gabby, a recent UA Eller graduate, and Kyle, who is currently attending UA.

James “Jimmy” Gehrels was born and raised in Tucson, Arizona and joined the Wildcat Club and A-Club in May of 2018. In his role as Assistant Director of Alumni Letterwinners Jimmy works closely with all former letterwinners, participants and coaches to bring them back to campus and keep them involved in Arizona Athletics through programming and events. Jimmy received his BA in Sport Administration from Pepperdine University where he played four years of NCAA Division I Men’s Volleyball. Prior to Arizona, Jimmy spent almost a year at the University of Florida working with Gator Boosters, Inc. and pursuing his Masters in Sports Management.

Ashley Hart joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in August 2017 as an Associate Director of Development with the Wildcat Club. She is responsible for major gifts and developing/maintaining donor relationships.

Prior to Arizona, Hart was Director of Development at the University of Louisiana Monroe, where she oversaw all aspects of development including annual giving, stewardship, and endowments. She also coordinated all Athletic Foundation events.

Hart received a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from University of California Riverside in 2015, and her Master of Science in Sports Management in 2016 from ULM. At UCR, she was Captain of the cheerleading squad and interned for three years with the Athletic department.

Ashley is originally from the rainy city of Seattle, WA.

Ryan Hastings joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in August 2015 as a Director of Development with the Wildcat Club. Hastings is responsible for identifying, cultivating, and securing major gifts in support of Arizona's nearly 500 student-athletes.

Prior to Arizona, Hastings was the Assistant Athletic Director for Development at Eastern Illinois. Hastings led all development efforts including the annual campaign, hospitality events, special events, and donor services. Hastings also managed the corporate sponsorship portfolio, oversaw the Panther Wheels courtesy car program, and served as a member of the senior staff.

The Mattoon, IL native earned his bachelor's degree in Recreation, Sport, & Tourism from Illinois in 2007 and his master's degree in Sport Administration in 2008, also from Illinois. The former Illini baseball standout was a member 2005 Big Ten Championship squad, and lettered the four years he competed.

Judi Kessler began her tenure with the Arizona Athletics Department in April 1984. Kessler’s current role is Associate Athletics Director for Major Gifts and Development. She is responsible for identifying, cultivating and securing major gifts for the Capital Campaign. With over 14 years of development experience, she played a key role in five major capital campaigns undertaken by Arizona Athletics including the state-of-art $72 million Lowell-Stevens Football Facility, the $30 million Phase 1 of the McKale Center Renovation Project and the recent $7.5 million Ginny L. Clements Academic Center. Kessler is one of only a few staff to secure multiple million-dollar gifts for these campaigns, and over $33 million overall to benefit Arizona Athletics.

When Kessler initially joined the staff in April 1984, she was a bookkeeper and gift processor with the Wildcat Club. In October 1985, she was promoted to Coordinator of the Wildcat Club. From 1991-1997, Kessler was the Director of Priority Seating. In December 1997, as Director of Donor Relations and Priority Seating, her responsibilities were expanded to include overseeing the Wildcat Club priority-seating program, the parking benefit program, and coordinating the post-season ticket allocation for Arizona Athletics. In October 2002, Kessler became an Assistant Athletics Director for Wildcat Club and Annual Giving. She oversaw the annual giving program, the gift club level benefit program, and served as a development officer in helping to raise funds for Campaign Arizona.

Kessler was named an "Honorary Bobcat" by the University of Arizona in 1999, and has been a UA President’s Club Member since 1988. She is a Tucson native and received her B.A. in business economics from University of California, Santa Barbara. Judi has a son, Mitch, and a daughter, Melissa, who are both recent graduates of the University of Arizona.

Phil Maben joined the Arizona Athletics Department in 2013. Maben’s current role is Director of Development, where he is responsible for identifying, cultivating, and securing major gifts for the Wildcat Club, as well as developing and maintaining relationships with a number of current Wildcat Club members. Additionally, he manages the department's Courtesy Car Program and Basketball Scholarship Row seating.

During Maben's time at Arizona he has been an important part of two major capital campaigns undertaken by Arizona Athletics, the $30 million Phase 1 of the McKale Center Renovation Project, and the newly constructed $7.5 million Ginny Clements Academic Center.

Maben started with the Wildcat Club as a Development Coordinator of Donor Services where he oversaw all benefits, donor trips, and solicited annual gifts under $1,000. Maben's prior employment includes stints at the Tiger Athletic Foundation, Louisiana State's Athletic Department, and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas where he held various development positions. Prior to his career in development, he started his career in athletics managing the Hillenbrand Aquatic Center in the role of Assistant Aquatics Director.

A native of Inglewood, CA, Maben moved to Tucson with his family when he was young, which is where he considers home. His career crossed paths with his wife's, Brandy Maben, former Arizona Swimming & Diving Assistant Coach & Recruiting Coordinator. Phil and Brandy have two children, daughter Collins and son Miles.

Maben earned his BS in Sports Management with a minor in Business from Louisiana State University and his Masters in Educational Leadership from the University of Arizona. He is an Honorary Letterwinner at both the University of Arizona and Louisiana State University.

Joe McLean joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in January 2015 as a Director of Development. He is responsible for identifying, cultivating, and securing major gifts for the Wildcat Club, as well as developing and maintaining relationships with a number of current Wildcat Club members.

Prior to Arizona, Joe worked for the University of New Mexico Athletics Department as their Director of Premium Seating where he oversaw all suites and club seats in “The Pit” as well as club seats for football. While at New Mexico, he oversaw all aspects of premium seating; customer service, retention and sales as well as the department's courtesy car program. Prior o UNM, Joe spent two years working with the Phoenix Suns as a member of the New Business Team and an Account Executive.

Joe is an Arizona native. He was born in Prescott and grew up in Phoenix. In 2010, Joe graduated from the University of Arizona with a BS in Business Administration from the Eller College of Management. During his time as a student, Joe worked as an intern with the Wildcat Club and the outbound ticket office. Joe also has a Master's in Sports Administration from the University of New Mexico.

Joe and his wife Nicole have two sons, McKay and Hunter.

Tatiana Motevalli-Oliner joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in November of 2017 as the Director of Annual Giving. Motevalli-Oliner is responsible for managing all annual giving strategies for the Wildcat Club in support of Arizona's nearly 500 student-athletes.

Prior to Arizona, Motevalli-Oliner served as the Assistant Director of Development Operations for Temple University from 2015-2017 where she oversaw all internal development operations and events. Prior to Temple, Motevalli-Oliner worked at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD for the Hopkins Athletics' Blue Jays Unlimited (BJU). At both of her previous institutions, Motevalli-Oliner was part of annual giving teams that set record membership numbers and broke previous annual fund records as well.

The Baltimore, MD native graduated with a degree in Marketing Communications from Emerson College in 2014. While at Emerson, she was a four-year starter for the Emerson College varsity softball team. She continues to serve her alma mater as a board member with the Emerson College Athletic Trust Fund.

Since graduation, Motevalli-Oliner has also served as a successful softball coach for the Bryn Mawr School and MD Black Ice 18U Club Team. Under her leadership, the 2015 Bryn Mawr softball team completed a 17-0 season and won the IAAM B Conference Championship title.

Motevalli-Oliner is a current Masters Candidate for the M.S. in Sport Business program at Temple University, expected to graduate in December of 2018.

A native Tucsonan and lifelong Wildcat fan, Gina joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in 1992. Gina works in the Wildcat Club, coordinating the processing of the Capital Campaign and major gifts. She also supports the Marketing unit as an administrative assistant.

Gina's husband, Stephen, is a high school English teacher. Her daughter, Marina, is a Dedicated Recovery Coach with C.O.D.A.C. Both are proud Arizona alums.

Patrick Sojka, a Tucson native, joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in August 2017. He is responsible for identifying, cultivating, and securing major gifts for the Wildcat Club, as well as developing and maintaining relationships with a number of current donors.

Patrick came to the Wildcats from the University of Iowa, where he served as Associate Director of Development on a team that was successful in all areas of revenue generation, including major giving, annual giving, premium seating, and corporate engagement, resulting in record-high support of Iowa Athletics. Patrick led the I-Club (annual fund) to the best year in department history, and played an integral role in the Kinnick Stadium renovation capital campaign fundraising and marketing efforts.

Prior to joining the development team at Iowa, Sojka served as Assistant Director of Athletics Communications for the Hawkeyes, leading the communications efforts for a number of programs.

Patrick earned his bachelor's degree in business administration in marketing and master's degree in sport and recreation management from the University of Iowa. Patrick resides in Oro Valley with his wife, Allie.

Tom “Theo” Theodorakis is an ambitious, passionate, process-driven leader with over a decade of college athletics experience at the Division 1 level as an administrator, coach, and national champion student-athlete. Theo serves as the Associate Athletics Director for Development and as a sport liaison. He brings extensive experience in leadership roles in development, marketing, sales, events and public relations.

Theo was previously at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he served as the Associate Athletics Director for External Affairs and supervised the day-to-day operations of the development office, which yielded over $38M in annual support for UCLA Athletics in 2015 – the second highest total in the history of the University. Theo was an integral part of an accomplished staff that produced exponential growth in Westwood with the groundbreaking of two comprehensive training centers, the $75 million Wasserman Football Center and the $35 million Mo Ostin Basketball Center.

Prior to UCLA, Theo spent five years at the University of Arizona and was an important part of two major capital campaigns undertaken by Arizona Athletics, the state-of-art $72 million Lowell-Stevens Football Facility and the $30 million Phase 1 of the McKale Center Renovation Project – also serving as the Pac-12 conference representative for NACDA. Prior to Arizona, Theo had the distinct honor to work in the Marketing and Development office at the United States Air Force Academy charged with revenue generation for all Falcon Athletics programs and assisting with the initial plans for the $18 million Holaday Athletic Center - the largest privately funded capital project in the Academy's history. Theo also served as a volunteer coach on the Men's Lacrosse team.

A native of Stony Brook, NY, Theo earned a bachelor's degree and was a national champion student-athlete (Lacrosse) from Syracuse University and earned a master's degree from the University of Northern Colorado. Theo is also a 2013 graduate of the Executive Program of the Sports Management Institute and attended instruction at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business and the University of Texas McCombs School of Business.

Theo and his wife, Jackie, a national champion student-athlete as well, have a daughter named Olivia. They have three rescue dogs that serve as therapy animals in the Tucson community.

Erica Travassos joined the University of Arizona Athletic Department in August 2016 as the Assistant Director of Annual Giving. Her primary responsibilities include implementing various annual giving initiatives to increase funds raised as well as Wildcat Club memberships.

Prior to joining Arizona Athletics, Erica worked in development and alumni relations for the University of Arizona College of Architecture, Planning, and Landscape Architecture. Prior to that, she worked in development and community affairs for the University of Arizona College of Nursing.

Erica spent her adolescence in Willcox, AZ (a rural town east of Tucson), but is a Rhode Island native. She earned a bachelor's degree in psychology with a pre-law minor in 2012 from the University of Arizona, and is currently pursuing a master's degree in human relations and public management from Northern Arizona University.

Ray joined the University of Arizona Athletic Department in January 2013. Wells is currently an Associate Director for Development and Major Gifts, where his responsibilities include major gifts, annual giving, and increasing awareness and engagement.

Prior to his role in development, Ray served as the Coordinator of Alumni Letterwinners and Annual Giving. In this role, Ray oversaw activities for Homecoming, Sport Reunions, and alumni weekends. He also coordinated letterwinner programs, including the C.A.T.S. Forever program and Career Networking Social.

Ray earned his bachelor’s degree in History from the University of Arizona, and was a two year letterman in Football and Track & Field, earning All-Conference honors in both sports from 2000-2003. After playing 3 years in the NFL for the Tennessee Titans and the San Francisco 49ers, Ray began coaching high school football and track & field in Nashville, TN and later at his alma mater in San Diego. Ray and his wife Arika have two children, Delawrence and Jeremiah.