Our Team

The board of directors and staff of Ronald McDonald House Charities South Texas ensure that each family and patient receives the care and comfort they need 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Board of Directors 2026

Executive Committee

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Deven Bhakta

Chair

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Natalie Forbes

Chair Elect

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Chris Knapick

Treasurer

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Laura Commons

Secretary

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Amanda Kocurek

Past Chair

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Kayla McMains

Director At-Large

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Michelle Horine

RMHC STX Chief Executive Officer

Board Members

Tony Alcoser
Shane Casady
Tracy Cazalas
Travis Cruger
Courtney Durham
Lia Lang

Nicki Murray
Daniel Nash
Yvonne Neves
Janice Palm
Jason Skrobarcyzk

Staff 2026

Michelle Horine
Chief Executive Officer
Email: mhorine@rmhcstx.org
Duke
Chief Cheer Officer & House Service Dog
Email: duke@rmhcstx.org
Claudia Solis
Marketing & Communications Manager
Email: csolis@rmhcstx.org
Christina Gomez
Development Manager – Events
Email: cgomez@rmhcstx.org
Miriam Cepeda-Gelman
Development Manager – Rio Grande Valley
Email: mgelman@rmhcstx.org
Emily Guzman
Donor Relations & Grants Coordinator
Email: eguzman@rmhcstx.org
Lydia Montes
Business Coordinator
Email: lmontes@rmhcstx.org
Judy McNierney
Development Coordinator
Email: jmcnierney@rmhcstx.org
Tara Galvan
Chief Operating Officer
Email: tgalvan@rmhcstx.org
Crystal Benavides
Finance Manager
Email: cbenavides@rmhcstx.org
Felicitas Flores
Guest Services Manager
Email: fflores@rmhcstx.org
Claudia Silva
Housekeeping Manager
Email: csilva@rmhcstx.org
Neydin Costilla
Rio Grande Valley Family Room Manager
Email: ncostilla@rmhcstx.org
Angela Gomez
Chef
Email: agomez@rmhcstx.org
Guadalupe Diaz
Facility Manager
Email: gdiaz@rmhcstx.org
Steve Solis
Shuttle Driver
Email: ssolis@rmhcstx.org

Our House Dog Duke, Chief Cheer Officer

Meet our House Service Dog, Duke!

His full name is Duke Dean McDonald. Duke is a lovable yellow lab, and he is the Chief Cheer Officer at Ronald McDonald House Charities South Texas. Duke began his job at our House in 2018. He comes to work every day, just like his coworkers.

He is responsible for bringing joy and comfort to the children and families who stay at our House. Duke’s other job duties include welcoming our guests as they come through our doors and creating a feeling of home in the House that Love Built. He is great at knowing when someone wants to run around and play or when someone just needs a friend to lean on.

In Duke’s spare time, he loves to swim, take long naps, go on road trips, and go bird hunting.

Our former House Dog, Sophia, has gone into retirement. She was the resident cheer-giver of the Ronald McDonald House of Corpus Christi from 2007 to 2018.

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