Founder

Tom Slicklen founded Provision Ministry because he saw that the fundraising needs of many grass-roots nonprofits were not being met and could be met by companies and individual donors that he personally knew.

Tom believes that his extensive years of experience working in the corporate and nonprofit world, as well as his personal experience with struggle, has brought him to a unique place where he has the qualifications and passion to make connections that will help meet the needs of the underserved.

His experience, skill set, track record of networking, relationship building, and delivering a strong return on investment (ROI) on charitable donations enables this unique ministry to have a dramatic impact.

Tom has nearly two decades of experience working in nonprofit fundraising and program management roles. For the last six years, Tom was the Director of Development for Straight Ahead Ministries, which is an international, nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing recidivism among young offenders through varied re-integration services. Since 1987, Straight Ahead has served over 75,000 youth in over 400 secure facilities across the United States. Tom worked with major donors, corporations, and foundations to help build long-term partnerships that supported and sustained the programs at Straight Ahead.

Prior to joining Straight Ahead, Tom spent ten years as the New England Area Director for World Vision. World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization with 46,000 employees, dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the root causes of poverty and injustice. World Vision provides hope and assistance to communities through their work in nearly 100 countries, joining with local people to find lasting ways to improve the lives of children and families in need. Tom led donor mission trips to Africa, Central and South America, Mexico, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. He worked closely with donors communicating the needs of the poor and inspiring them to engage and support World Vision’s programs around the world.

Before working for World Vision, Tom had an accomplished sales career in the footwear industry. His experience includes extensive travel to the Far East and the founding of Slicklen Sales Company.

Tom holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and a Black Belt in Tai Kwon Do.

Board of Directors

Thomas J. Slicklen – President & Treasurer

Tom is the President & Founder of Provision Ministry, Inc. Before starting Provision Ministry, Tom was Director of Development for Straight Ahead Ministries and worked with major donors, corporations, and foundations to help build long term partnerships that supported, sustained, and developed the programs at Straight Ahead.

Prior to joining Straight Ahead, Tom worked for World Vision as Area Director in New England for over 10 years. Tom led donor mission trips to Africa, Central and South America, Mexico, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. He worked closely with donors to communicate the needs of the poor and inspire them to engage and support World Vision’s programs around the world.

Before working for World Vision, Tom had an accomplished sales career in the footwear industry. His experience includes extensive travel to the Far East and the founding of Slicklen Sales Company.

Tom holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and a Black Belt in Tai Kwon Do.

Brian Burns

Brian Burns is Chief Executive Officer of Validant, based in the New England region. Validant is a regulatory and compliance services firm headquartered in San Francisco, CA with locations in Maryland, Cork (Ireland), Tokyo, and Shanghai.

Prior to joining Validant he served as Executive Vice President Global Quality and Regulatory for Haemonetics, Fresenius, and Boston Scientific.  Prior to that, he held various Quality Assurance, Operational, and General Manager roles with Cardinal Healthcare, Allegiance Healthcare, and Baxter Healthcare.  He is formally trained as a Chemical Engineer.

He has held several private and public board positions and is currently on the Validant and Safecare Mission International Boards.

Laurie Casagrande

Laurie is driven to make a positive impact in her life and career. She started laying the foundation in business school with a concentration in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and today continues using her role in Sales Strategy & Ops as a force for good at UNFI, a Premier National Wholesaler whose legacy is in better-for-you food.

Laurie has established herself as a skilled professional in delivering insightful business proposals that target opportunities for retail customers to add value and build their business with UNFI’s expertise, depth of solutions and leadership in organic/natural foods and full-store assortment.

Prior to UNFI, she was the Sales & Marketing Manager for Preserve, a mission-driven company offering beautiful products made from 100% recycled plastic. Laurie has worked for Cause Marketing Consulting Firm and she began her career by interning with leading brands including Dunkin’ Brands, CVS Health, and The Greater Boston Food Bank.

Jay Chung

Jay is an entrepreneur. He is the owner of Seoul Kitchen in Westford, MA. Seoul Kitchen opened 5 years ago and is one of the premier Asian restaurants in Massachusetts. Previously, Jay was the founder and owner of Sapporo Korean BBQ & Sushi Restaurant in Westborough which he owned and operated for 12 years before selling it in 2019.

Jay is also the founder of the non-profit charity, “Eat To Give.”  Eat To Give partners with restaurants to provide meals for those in need through a ‘Buy One Give One’ concept. Jay holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Finance from Northeastern University.

Jay’s primary duty at Provision Ministry, Inc. is to serve as a member of the Board of Directors.

Sarah Day – Secretary

Sarah is a Senior Vice President, Commercial Loan Officer for St. Mary’s Credit Union where she has been a team member for the last 10 years. She has worked in the banking industry for 18 years holding positions in commercial banking, retail banking and bank marketing. She was also an adjust professor for Nichols College in 2015 when she designed and taught a mixed undergrad/MBA student course entitled “Money, Banking & the Economy.”

Sarah’s prior non-profit advisory positions include seats at Baby’s Breath in Worcester, Rachel’s Table in Worcester, the AeroVenture Institute in Mansfield, and St. Bernadette School in Northborough. Sarah has also travelled to Fiji as part of an international team of Habitat for Humanity and had been the race director for the Running with the Wolves 10k and White Fang 5k in Marlborough and Hudson, MA to raise funds for the food pantries in these communities.

Sarah earned a B.S. in Human Factors Psychology from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2002 followed by an MBA from Nichols College in 2007. She graduated from the American Bankers Association National Commercial Lending School in 2014 and the Association’s Graduate Commercial Lending School in 2016. She will also graduate from the Stonier Graduate School of Banking in June 2021 with a diploma from Stonier and a Leadership Certificate from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Sarah’s primary duty at Provision Ministry, Inc. is to serve as a member of the Board of Directors as Secretary.

Carol Slicklen

Carol is the Director of Administration for Nowspeed, Inc., a digital marketing agency.  At Nowspeed, Carol is responsible for a wide variety of support functions including accounting, human resources, sales support, and office management and her role integrates with all operational functions of the company. Prior to Nowspeed, Carol was Cash Manager for Marshalls, Inc. and Treasury Manager for Cullinet Software, Inc. Carol holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Babson College.

Carol serves as a member of the Board of Directors and also provides bookkeeping and administrative support to the operations of Provision Ministry.