• Womens History Month
• Bowl For Kids' Sake
• Waiting Little

Cassandra Meynard is the immediate past Chair and current member of the Executive Committee for the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona’s Board of Directors.  She is a partner at Udall Law Firm, LLP and has served on the Board of Directors since 2017 however Cassandra’s connection to Bigs goes back further to when her son was matched as Little in the program.

Cassandra grew up in the Washington, D.C. area and lived overseas for 13 years before settling in Tucson in 2002. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies from the University of Mary Washington and continued her education in Tucson with a Master of Fine Arts and Juris Doctor from the University of Arizona.

Although Cassandra was familiar with Big Brothers Big Sisters as a parent of a former little, it was not till 2017 that her exposure was expanded. A colleague and friend re-introduced her to the agency by inviting her to join his Bowl for Kids’ Sake fundraising team. This led her to meet CEO Marie Logan, sparking Cassandra's interest in deeper involvement. As a result, she promptly applied to join the board of directors. Cassandra has since remained a dedicated Bowl for Kids’ Sake fundraising team captain for the past five years, raising over $3,000 in 2023 through individual donors and Udall Law sponsorship!

“I was attracted to serve on the board because of the CEO Marie Logan, the mission of the organization and wanting to give back to an organization that had helped my family.”

Cassandra’s desire to serve her community comes from a personal moment in her life that was transformative. “When I was in high school, I had one teacher who told me that I was better in English than I realized. That small comment of mentorship meant more to me than she ever knew. The impact of one-on-one mentorship cannot be overstated. If we want our community to thrive, there is no better investment to make than to help kids find guidance and support they may be lacking in their own lives.”



Cassandra is a proud mother of adult twins, a son, and a daughter. Cassandra’s son still maintains a very close friendship with his Big Brother. Both children moved to Europe after college, attending graduate school there. With her daughter in London and son living in Spain, Cassandra loves to travel to Europe a few times a year to visit. Cassandra especially loves Greece and secretly wishes to live there, part time one day. She also enjoys watching movies, reading, University of Arizona Basketball, yoga, and hiking

Paola Tomassini is the Secretary of the Board and a current member of the Executive Committee for the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona’s Board of Directors. She is a Private Client Advisor with Bank of America Private Bank and has served on the Board of Directors since 2020.

At age 24, Paola began her career in the Financial Services industry as a part-time teller and spanned nearly 4 decades. Paola credits her success to several key mentors in her professional circle that empowered her move into roles that advanced her career. Paola has securities and insurance licenses.

Paola was first introduced to Big Brothers Big Sisters in 2013. She met the CEO, Marie Logan, when she delivered a grant check awarded from Bank of America. Paola recalls, “we stayed connected through the years and although I always knew I wanted to be a part of the organization I was supporting a few other nonprofits, and my time was limited. In 2020 Marie asked me if I would be interested in joining the board and the timing was right!!”

“I would say that if you want to be a part of team that effects change and who do exactly what they say they’re going to do…and then some…this is the place to be. If you want to know that your time and money is going directly to help kids and families right here in our community, you’re in the right place.”

Paola takes the team approach to heart as a passionate fundraising bowler in Bowl For Kids' Sake. Over the past three years, Paola has led her own bowl team as captain in addition to recruiting her adult children and husband to lead their own teams. The competition to raise the most money is all in good fun and in 2023, Paola’s teams raised close to $12,000 in support of one-to-one youth mentoring!

Paola is happily married with two sons, one daughter, and nine grandchildren. She loves to cook and entertain and considers anything outdoors to be her happy place. Paola says she works so that she can travel and looks forward to someday doing that full-time.