BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS
Mark Finkelstein
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Mr. Finkelstein is a retired U.S. Navy Commander with a career which included assignments in Japan, the Philippines and Thailand, among other nations. Following his distinguished service in the U.S. Navy, Mr. Finkelstein has devoted himself to a variety of charitable endeavors, including his leadership of The Pat Palmer Foundation and the Gerson and Helene Finkelstein Burn Patient Foundation. Mr. Finkelstein was instrumental in the creation of The Pat Palmer Foundation while serving as the executor and trustee of the estate of the late Pat Palmer Bernard. Knowing of the love she had for her own parrot, Mr. Finkelstein endeavored to create a foundation which would fulfill the dream she had of protecting and preserving parrots. To that end, Mr. Finkelstein created and organized The Pat Palmer Foundation in 2010 as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation. In addition to his charitable work, Mr. Finkelstein is also an internationally-known expert on pool and billiards, and is the author of the acclaimed book, Pool Ramblings, published by McNally Jackson publishers. Pool Ramblings is available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle. For more information about the book, please click here.
Mr. Finkelstein is an ACS Level 4 and PBIA Master Instructor. He was on the staff of the National Billiards Academy, and is the co-owner of Cue Master Pool School with Mark Powell. Mr. Finkelstein is a highly sought-after master instructor, who takes time from his busy schedule to volunteer teaching pool and billiards to underprivileged youth.
Matthew J. Trachtenberg
Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer
Mr. Trachtenberg is an attorney, and Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Orchestral Association. In 2006, Mr. Trachtenberg retired from a career in banking, having held a variety of senior officer positions, including Senior Vice President with U.S. Trust, Managing Director of First Republic Bank, and Corporate Secretary of Manufacturers Hanover Corporation, among others. Mr. Trachtenberg is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Macula Foundation (dedicated to leading-edge research on diseases of the retina, including macular degeneration), where he serves as Chairman of the Audit Committee. Mr. Trachtenberg’s prior service to non-profit organizations includes two decades as a Trustee of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, where he was Treasurer and Chairman of the Finance Committee. In 1998, he was a recipient of the United Hospital Fund of New York’s Distinguished Hospital Trustee Award. He also served as a Trustee of Continuum Health Partners, was a member of the Education Advisory Committee for the Lighthouse for the Blind, a trustee of the Joffrey Ballet, and is a former President of the USO of Metropolitan New York.
Mark Powell
Vice President, Assistant Secretary and Assistant Treasurer
Mr. Powell retired from the Department of Defense ("DoD") in 2014 as the Director, Information Resources Management (GS-15) for the Defense Media Activity, headquartered at Fort Meade, Maryland, following a distinguished 25-year career. Prior to joining the DoD as a civilian Systems Analyst in 1988, he held various data processing management positions over a thirteen-year period, following a four-year active duty assignment in the United States Air Force as a quantitative analyst. Mr. Powell holds a B.S. in Business Analysis from San Francisco State University and an MBA from Adelphi University, Garden City, NY. Mr. Powell joined The Pat Palmer Foundation in 2018. Mr. Powell is also a Certified Master Instructor with the Professional Billiard Instructors Association, and has worked with over 1,000 students since 1985. In addition, Mr. Powell is an accomplished contemporary blues, rock and jazz pianist.