Founders Note
I started The ReThread Project during the WGA and SAG strikes. As a working costume designer I found myself with unexpected time on my hands. Like all new ventures and ideas I needed to be open to see where it would take me. I knew my goal was to bring more understanding to my chosen field. As the child of a social worker who championed wrap-around services long before it became a standard I understood that to address the problem you had to look at the whole circle. You need the workers to be trained, the business to have open doors and to be able to source the raw materials to be creative.
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While our focus has been on sustaining and growing the costume business it has taken on a new form with the urgency of the MSMX rezoning plan inside New York City and new partnerships formed. The New York Fashion Workforce Development Coalition created a collecting point for fashion, costume, unions and historic preservationists to come together for the fight to help create a sustained home inside the garment district. Working alongside Erik Bottcher and Keith Powers our group inundated their offices to show the city this very active industry. We achieved the goal and a carve out was achieved inside the historic district allowing for new investments into the tried and true craft. We have long held the belief that small artisan businesses can and will continue to thrive if given the opportunity to flourish.
- Carisa Kelly
Board of Directors & Advisory Team
Our Board of Directors and Advisory team brings together leaders from across the creative, academic, and nonprofit communities who share a commitment to preserving and advancing our mission. Their insight, experience, and vision help guide our work and ensure that our programs remain impactful, relevant, and true to our values.
Founder, Executive Director & Board Member
Carisa Kelly’s work has been seen internationally on stage and screen. She has worked on Broadway with legendary Tony award winning designer Martin Pakledinaz, and her film credits include Don’t Think Twice (Mike Birbiglia), Late Fame & Diane ( Kent Jones), and Goodnight Mommy (Matt Sobel) One of her favorite places she has worked is 52nd Street Project, where she helps bring plays written by kids to life fulfilling her dream of inspiring the next generation.
Board Member
Sally Ann Parsons and her husband James Meares founded Parsons-Meares in 1980. Working at first out of an abandoned school building, the business grew to become one of the premier costume shops in New York City. Awards include a Tony Honor (first ever costume maker) and TDF’s Irene Sharaff Artisan Award.
Board Member
Kent Jones
IMDB
Kent Jones is an internationally recognized filmmaker and writer. His most recent film is the universally acclaimed Diane (2019). He is the author of multiple books on cinema and he has written for publications throughout the world. From 2013 to 2019, he served as director of The New York Film Festival. In 2015 he was made a Chevalier in the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Government.
Board Member
Tessa Maffucci is a teacher, researcher and organizer advocating for ethical fashion economies. She teaches fashion history and theory focusing on the intersections of fashion and labor, with an emphasis on sustainability, technology and material culture. She has taught at Parsons School of Design and Pratt Institute, where she is currently the Assistant Chair of the Fashion Department. She coordinates the New York Fashion Workforce Development Coalition (NYFWDC), an advocacy collaborative of New York’s fashion community, including manufacturers and designers in the Garment District. Tessa is a recipient of the Made in NYC Fellowship and has written for publications including Architectural Digest, Bloomsbury Fashion and The Fashion Studies Journal.
Board Member
Tony Frenzel
LinkedIn | TF*Creative
Tony Frenzel is a seasoned and versatile creative director with over three decades of experience in brand building, creative direction, visual design, marketing strategy, and content creation. He supports the ReThread Project's mission through strategic branding, messaging and marketing development. His career has spanned diverse industries, including B2C, B2B, e-commerce, and entertainment. His proven track record demonstrates his ability to create exceptional brand experiences for both established brands such as Samsung, Allstate, Clorox, Kingsford, GLAD, Brita, Liquid-Plumr, as well as startups and small businesses.
Executive Leadership Team
We are proud to introduce the Executive Leadership team of The ReThread Project. This passionate group of forward-thinking professionals is the driving force behind our day-to-day operations and long-term strategic vision. With deep roots in the arts, costume and garment design, organizational management, and community building, our executive leaders champion our mission to support, connect, and empower garment professionals.
Adrienne Matlosz
Project Manager
Adrienne comes to The ReThread Project with over 30 years of marketing experience.
She has worked at some of the top advertising agencies and in-house brand design groups in New York City for brands like Cunard, CitiBank, Verizon, Hewlett Packard, Capital One and UBS Wealth Management. In her many roles as an award-winning Creative Director, Adrienne has set design standards, hired and run creative groups and developed scalable systems to manage marketing tactics such as branding, social media and strategic initiatives, while always keeping business goals in mind​.
Thea Briggs
Strategic Advisor
Thea Briggs is a strategic communications and branding professional who specializes in helping organizations navigate complex messaging landscapes and establish deep trust with their audiences. A central component of her practice is participatory research design, an approach that prioritizes collaborative inquiry and ensures that the lived experiences of a community inform the overarching brand strategy. Her perspective on community narrative is deeply rooted in New York City where, after early creative training at a performing arts high school, she earned a degree in history from Barnard College, where she focused her thesis on women's history of nineteenth-century NYC.
Paul Leibowitz
Real Estate Advisor
​Born and raised in New York City, Paul Leibowitz is a fervent advocate for its arts and cultural soul. That is why he founded Plot, with the aim of informing, guiding, and ultimately growing the City’s creative community. Paul’s 30-year career in real estate is equally distinguished. Focused on investment sales and capital markets in New York, he has orchestrated over $30 billion in transactions, involving everything from capital raising and partnership structuring to negotiating record-breaking deals.
Tony Frenzel
Creative Director
Tony Frenzel is a seasoned and versatile creative director with over three decades of experience in brand building, creative direction, visual design, marketing strategy, and content creation. He supports the ReThread Project's mission through strategic branding, messaging and marketing development. His career has spanned diverse industries, including B2C, B2B, e-commerce, and entertainment. His proven track record demonstrates his ability to create exceptional brand experiences for both established brands such as Samsung, Allstate, Clorox, Kingsford, GLAD, Brita, Liquid-Plumr, as well as startups and small businesses.
Adam Friedman
Chief Strategy Officer
​Adam is Principal of AV Friedman LLC and a Senior Strategic Advisory with the Better World Group. He supports organizations to advance their mission, develop opportunities and strategic relationships, navigate risks, develop sectoral initiatives, and raise funding. Adam is committed to a wholistic approach that integrates equitable economic growth, community and environmental wellbeing and inclusive and transparent decision-making. Adam has particularly deep expertise and experience in the fashion industry.
Carisa Kelly
Executive Director / Founder
Carisa Kelly’s work has been seen internationally on stage and screen. She has worked on Broadway with legendary Tony award winning designer Martin Pakledinaz, and her film credits include Don’t Think Twice (Mike Birbiglia), Late Fame & Diane ( Kent Jones), and Goodnight Mommy (Matt Sobel) One of her favorite places she has worked is 52nd Street Project, where she helps bring plays written by kids to life fulfilling her dream of inspiring the next generation.
Isabel Yagerman
Social Media Communications
Isabel Yagerman is the designer behind IRY Designs. Isabel was born and raised in Queens, New York and has been designing since the age of seven and sewing since she was in middle school. She is a recent graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fashion Design.
Debi Bodett
Graphic Designer / Web Designer
Debi Bodett, of 33 Image Design, is an independent graphic designer in Olympia, WA. With more than 25 years of experience in print and web design, she specializes in transforming ideas and information into clear, engaging visual communications. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Art with a minor in Marketing and has a deep appreciation for color, form, function, and thoughtful design. Debi plays an intregal part in developing and creating the communications materials needed to help promote the organization.
Elyse Bendeicto
LinkedIn
Special Advisors
Lanthy Truong
LinkedIn
Mi Jong Lee
LinkedIn
Leah Archibald
LinkedIn
We are thrilled to introduce The ReThread Project's Special Advisors, who are a dedicated group of industry veterans, designers, and creative leaders who help guide the vision of our costume collective. Bringing diverse expertise across design, production, and storytelling, this advisory team provides the invaluable insight needed to shape our initiatives and drive our mission forward. Their strategic guidance ensures we continue to innovate, elevate our craft, and foster a vibrant, supportive community for costume professionals and creators.
