Elaine & Alayna, Co-Founders

Elaine is also the Executive Director and deals with every aspect of the foundation from helping with web design to fundraising as well as working directly with medical personnel and the recipient’s families and everyone in between. Alayna plays a very important role alongside her Mom and directly with the recipients themselves. 

Married for 30 years and mother of three, family has always been a driving force in Elaine’s life. She has always played a key role in helping, supporting and volunteering for the numerous activities, organizations and schools her children have been involved in. 

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As a realtor, Elaine’s experience with multitasking, negotiations and calm level headed approach helped her navigate through the world of pediatric oncology after her daughter, Alayna’s diagnosis. She quickly learnt that you had to be your own advocate! 

Throughout Alayna’s journey, both Elaine and Alayna were overwhelmed with gratitude by the love and support they received from their community, family, friends and strangers. It inspired both them to want to pay things forward and to turn the negative into a positive by helping other adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients wanting to use the cold cap.  

It is their hope to begin to shed light on AYA cancer patients and their needs. They experienced first hand how the AYA cancer patient needs differ drastically to a pediatric or adult going through cancer. Their philosophy is, “If we all do just a little to help each other then we can accomplish a lot!” And of course, “You don’t know until you ask, so ask!!!”

Daisy- Official Mascot

The first thing Alayna asked after receiving her diagnosis was,

“Does this mean I get my puppy now?”. Obviously, no was not an option for her Mom. Alayna had already chosen a name for her new puppy years prior, DAISY. 

Alayna and her Mom along with the help of many others, began the search for DAISY until a perfect match was found. Daisy was the last puppy left of her litter and when Alayna and her family went to meet her they knew immediately she was the one!

Daisy brought so much joy, spunk and laughter into Alayna's life at one of the darkest times. Daisy was a great comfort to Alayna on the days she couldn’t get out of bed and would snuggle right in to keep Alayna company. She has so much personality and was the best distraction for Alayna during this time. Alayna could not have done it without you DAISY!!!

We later learnt that the daisy flower is very symbolic within the medical world of nurses and the oncology world. It represents hope and strength and is a prestigious award that nurses receive to represent their hard work and kindness.

This makes Our DAISY that much more special!

Jeanne Reichardt, Treasurer

Jeanne followed Alayna on her journey through social media.  When Elaine reached out in need of guidance with her vision for a foundation, Jeanne was honored to become a part of the Alayna  Jayne Foundation. 
 
Jeanne has been a board member with Mary’s Place by the Sea for over 10 years.  Having this experience as well as non profit accounting and reporting experience she feels she can help Alayna and Elaine fulfill their mission.
 
She is a mom of 3 wonderful, successful, loving daughters as well as a Mimi to Ellie, Bennett and Mackenzie.
 
Jeanne Reichardt
Accountant
 
Donato, Hayes & Co., CPA’s
201 Main Street
Allenhurst, NJ  07711
732-531-3388 Phone
732-531-7161  Fax

Jillian Miller, Board Member

Jillian has known Alayna and the Riozzi-Bodine Family for over a decade, as a coach and teacher to Ethan, Christian, and Alayna. They traveled to compete in Triathlons at the National & local levels, and countless swim meets up to the State Championship level! 

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Jillian helped homeschool Alayna as she was going through Chemotherapy. She found herself being in complete awe of Alayna as she persevered through her battle with cancer while continuing to stay on track with her school work and college preparation and also found time to inspire others going through their cancer journeys. 

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It was a natural choice to have Jill be part of the Alayna Jayne Foundation team and we’re so happy she agreed! Jillian would love for the foundation to touch the Triathlon Community! She is a mom of 2, Ellie & Bennett, and they love everything outside!!

Erin Stewart-DeLuca, Recording Secretary 

Erin is a licensed and certified Speech-Language Pathologist with almost 30 years experience.  Her passion lies in helping others communicate using any means possible, whether it’s natural speech, sign language, picture communication symbols, or synthetic speech generating devices.   She especially enjoys working with those with special needs and gets great satisfaction helping children find their “voice”.  

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As a recent breast cancer survivor, Erin sees the great need to maintain “normalcy” during treatment by keeping your hair.  She eagerly joined the Alayna Jayne Foundation and shares in their mission.  Regardless of type of cancer or age, every patient should at least know to ask if scalp cooling may be an option for them.   

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Erin has been happily married for 27 years and has two children and a dog.  She is an active member of her church and is currently the co-president of the St. Rose High School Athletic Club.  In her free time, you can find her relaxing on the beach, traveling, reading, and drinking beer with family and friends.
 

Emily Pollio, Website Manager & Designer 

Since 2020, Emily has been the owner and operator of a boutique social media, marketing & website design company in Point Pleasant, New Jersey. Emily was born in San Antonio, Texas and adopted by her two selfless, loving parents, from birth. Emily would not be where she is today without the constant support of her Mom and Dad always helping her achieve her goals and dreams.

She met Elaine 3 years ago at a family party when Emily’s boyfriend brought her to meet his family for the holidays. Elaine and Emily got to know one another and Emily told her if she ever needs marketing advice or anything that she would be happy to help Elaine however she can.

In August of 2022, Elaine contacted Emily asking her to help create and design a website for The Alayna Jayne Foundation. Knowing how important this was to Elaine, Emily got to work immediately, stayed up into the early hours of the morning, and had a website ready to show Elaine & Alayna!

Emily started her company because she loves to help people. She realized her knowledge of digital marketing and her creativity could be used to benefit local businesses who were struggling to manage & keep up in a digital world. She is honored to be a board member for The Alayna Jayne Foundation and considers Elaine and Alayna family.

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Emily Pollio

ER Social Marketing, LLC

www.ersocialmarketing.com

Gloria DeFalco, Business Development 

When Gloria DeFalco’s children were in grammar school that’s when she found a love for volunteering. Jumping right in and becoming class mom, volunteering at sporting events, running large and small events to raise money for their private schools, and holding a seat on the Board of Directors as treasurer. 
 

For 9 years she held a seat on the Board of Directors for a local Chamber of Commerce as a Board of Director, Treasurer, and President. Taking on the Executive Director position where she would oversee the nonprofit’s Board of Directors, and was responsible for leading the organization. Gloria was responsible for creating the conditions for financial success. She was responsible for planning, organizing, marketing, and promoting a series of events that the chamber would host for the local community. 
 
Currently, Gloria is the Business Development Manager for their family-owned and operated sign company, Northeast Sign & Lighting in Point Pleasant, NJ. Founded in 1997 by her husband, Mike, Being a business owner allows her to network with other local businesses and volunteer her time for non-profit organizations. 

For her, planning and executing a successful, profitable event is most rewarding, especially when it is for a non-profit organization.

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Gloria DeFalco
Business Development Manager 
​Northeast Sign & Lighting, Inc.
gdefalco@northeastsignco.com | 732-899-2887

Lizabeth Turtle, Team Member

Lizabeth wears many hats with style and grace. She is a mom of two twin boys, a wife, art teacher, soccer coach, zumba instructor, breast cancer survivor, and lover of the sun and sea. Liz married Michael Turtle in 2008, their two twin boys named Luke and Jace are the light of their lives. When Liz isn’t running around being a soccer mom on the sidelines of Jace’s games or building Legos with Luke , she enjoys spending her time with family and friends and counting down the days until the summer sun is out.
 
Liz is deeply committed to her profession, and is currently in her 24th year of teaching high school art! Liz treasures her students, treating them as if they are her own. She not only loves being in the classroom but extends her reach to being a class advisor where she can connect with students outside of the art room walls. Her favorite class is an adaptive art course where Lizzie works with a group of students from HHS’s autism program and supports their continued development of fine motor skills. 

Anyone who knows Lizzie, knows she is a positive, light hearted, and comedic. These personality traits carried when she was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer during the height of the pandemic. Liz knew her world was going to change but her attitude did not have too. She faced the challenge with a positive outlook, knowing her students still needed her and chose to continue teaching virtually. Liz said that is what kept her going, all of the love and support from her family, friends, and students.