Dennis Strazulo

Dennis Strazulo, a native of San Francisco where he grew up amidst The City’s iconic music scene, has been a practicing attorney for over 30 years. He now serves as Managing Partner of Chicago-based O’Hagan Meyer’s Northern California law office in Sausalito. Dennis received Bachelor of Arts degrees in Communication Arts/Mass Media Studies and English at the University of San Francisco prior to earning his Juris Doctor there. He sustained his connection with media following a tenure as sportswriter and entertainment columnist for the San Francisco Foghorn newspaper, working at historically renowned KSFO radio station as Associate Promotion Director, appearing in a weekly segment for several years on The JOB Talk Radio Show, addressing employment law topics for Bay Area listeners, and now as a guest music writer for Mill Valley Living Magazine. Dennis, who is also a Licensed Talent Agent, brings his professional experience, creativity, and love for music to the MHI Board.

Tony Sauza

Tony Sauza taught secondary music in Los Angeles for eight years before joining the music ed non profit, Little Kids Rock. He is now the Senior Developer of Curricular Programs where he assists in developing resources for music teachers across the country. Tony received his bachelor’s degree from UCLA in Ethnomusicology while minoring in Chicana/o Studies. He then earned his California Single Subject Teaching Credential in Music in 2010 and his master’s degree in Afro-Latin Music from California State University, Los Angeles in 2012.

Tony Sauza is a multi-instrumentalist and has been playing guitar for over twenty years. He currently tours nationally with his reggae project, Tone Irie, along with guest appearances and collaborations with international artists. He is an avid supporter of music from around the world, a firm believer in recreational music making, music therapy, and has a deep passion for Afro-Caribbean music.

Merl Saunders Jr.

Merl Saunders Jr., the namesake of legendary keyboardist Merl Saunders, grew up in the heart of the Bay Area music scene with other well known ”music families” like the Grateful Dead and Creedence Clearwater Revival.

From his first tour with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, to subsequent gigs with Michael Jackson, Robert Cray, David Crosby, and Frank Zappa, Merl developed a unique ability to excel in the music business. As Director of Marketing and Artist Relations at Gibson Guitars, and as Senior Marketing Coordinator and Artist Relations with Dean Markley Strings, he led creative teams to produce successful campaigns and endorsements for many top GRAMMY winners.
Merl produced Gibson’s 100th Anniversary Celebration. Pulling together talent, Merl brought to the stage Country Joe and the Little Fish, Little Feat, Greg Kihn, Gregg Allman, Elvin Bishop, Hot Tuna, Moby Grape, and Bob Weir, as well as his dad, Merl Sr.

In July 2000, Merl was named Executive Director of the San Francisco Chapter of the Recording Academy. His mission was to help promote music and arts education.

In early 2013, Fenix Supper Club opened in San Rafael, CA and Merl was named Executive Director of Fenix Entertainment Group. Merl’s objective was to expand the Bay Area music scene by creating a state-of-the-art venue for live performances along with the technology to record and share music by streaming it to the world.

Melissa Pegus

MHI Board Treasurer

Melissa is a Senior Associate at Tech Square Ventures where she is responsible for sourcing new deals, deal execution, and supporting portfolio companies.
Melissa has spent more than 10 years leading high-growth ecommerce technology companies resulting in 5 acquisitions to-date. Most recently, she was the Chief Revenue Officer at mBolden (acquired by She Runs It), Head of Revenue at Diff Agency, SVP of Sales and Strategic Partnerships at MPP Global, Director of Strategic Partnerships at Curalate (acquired by BazaarVoice), Manager of Strategic Partnerships at Spree Commerce (acquired by Fiserv), Presales Consultant at Active Risk (acquired by Sword Group), and Senior Analyst, Product Solutions at Frontier Strategy Group (acquired by Boathouse Capital).
Prior to her career in technology, Melissa was a consultant specializing in emerging markets. Melissa graduated from Georgetown University earning an undergraduate degree in Government.

Pete Fisher

Grammy-nominated in 2017 for Best Music Film for his work on “An American Saturday Night – Live From the Grand Ole Opry.”  During his 30-plus years in the music industry, he has executive produced over 300 music-centric television episodes and specials and is regarded as a highly- knowledgeable and well-connected organizational visionary.  His illustrious career has taken him to all facets of the music industry including, music publishing, A&R and artist management.  In 1999, he progressed to overseeing all aspects of the world-famous Grand Ole Opry as VP/GM and is largely credited with transforming the legendary institution over his 17-year tenure.  He promoted unprecedented levels of star-power utilizing his talent-laden relationships with Opry member inductions of superstars such as Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Little Big Town, Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton, and others. Most recently, he served as CEO of a leading music trade organization, the Academy of Country Music in Los Angeles and executive produced the 52nd, 53rd and 54th ACM Awards on CBS; one of music’s top 3 award shows.  Currently, he is involved in a variety of projects as President of Fisher Entertainment Consulting, based in Nashville, Tennessee. 

Gloriana Mejia-Gund

Gloriana Mejia-Gund is a committed architect and conservation activist, born and raised in Costa Rica with 12 years of experience in the hospitality and coastal residential projects fields focused on sustainability and regeneration. Gloriana’s design philosophy is based on Passive Strategies, portrayed in projects ranging from small boutique hotels to celebrity private homes. True to her core deep ecologist and social wellness activism, Gloriana is a passionate advisor  to non-profits in Costa Rica and United States including the G.Frederick Gund Foundation, Electric Planet and OSA Conservation. Being a connector  between cultures, she brings empathetic vision to endeavors that range from construction, planning, investment , architectural design, local business administration, and management of local resources amongst others.

She received her bachelor’s in  degree in Architecture at University of Costa Rica,  trained in urban design at Gehl Architects in Copenhagen and is certified as an ashtanga yoga instructor by Yoga Alliance.

She currently lives with her husband and daughter in San Rafael, California.

Paul Beaubrun

A scion of Haitian musical royalty, Paul has spent his life living to the beat. Son of the Grammy nominated band Boukman Eksperyans, his earliest memories are of rhythm and sound. Moving to New York as a youth he was inspired by his heritage to begin crafting a sound all his own. Constantly aware of his roots, the struggle of an immigrant and the drive of New York life, Paul began to create a path where music, activism and history meet.
A unique and transfixing sound he calls ‘Roots/Blues’, Paul weaves his impeccable guitar skills, rich, vocals, musical ingenuity and cultural history together; all while performing a smooth melange of both English, French and Creole (the native tongue of his Haitian roots).

Sara Wasserman

MHI Board President and MHI Founder/Executive Director

A singer/songwriter, recording artist and producer, music has always been an important part of Sara Wasserman’s life. The daughter of Grammy-winning bassist Rob Wasserman, she first began performing on tour with her father and Bob Weir’s band, RatDog. This was followed by solo tours of the US and Europe and the release of her debut album Solid Ground, which featured collaborations with Aaron Neville, Lou Reed, Christian McBride, Stephen Perkins, Bob Weir and Rob Wasserman. Sara joined the Board of Directors of the Peruvian children’s orphanage Casa de Milagros in 2007 and produced a series of fundraising concerts, featuring many of the artists with whom she has collaborated. She also served on the host committee in 2013 and 2014 for Sean Penn & Friends Help Haiti Home Gala. Her passion for music and helping children build better lives led her to volunteer in Haiti with J/P Haitian Relief Organization (J/P HRO) in 2012 and ultimately launch Music Heals International.

Stephanie Clarke

MHI Board Secretary

Stephanie Clarke has been a marketing/communications professional for over 30 years. She has co-owned one of the Bay Area’s most highly respected and successful Northern CA PR agencies, Hamilton Ink. She also, in the early 2000’s, was a seminal part of the marketing team for a technology startup, Atomic Tangerine, one of the original internet security firms spawned by Stanford Research Institute (SRI) in Menlo Park, CA. In addition to her extensive media work, her background includes entertainment, film, and live music and film events for the Mill Valley Film Festival, co-produced with her longtime music partner, Clare Wasserman. Together they produced two star-studded concerts for the Clinton 52nd and 53rd Presidential Inaugurals in Washington, DC. Following these, they produced an all-star concert at the Beacon Theater, NYC for the release of Rob Wasserman’s TRIOS album. This was preceded by overseeing the creation, development and releases of Rob’s Grammy winning musical trilogy. Additionally, they co-produced, with the Mark Morris Dance Group, multi performances of “Dances to American Music” at Brooklyn Academy of Music and internationally which featured Yo-Yo Ma, Rob Wasserman and Mikhail Baryshnikov.

Ashley Orton

Strategy & Impact Advisor

For over two decades, Ashley’s skill in strategic planning, impact measurement, training and fundraising has bolstered the growth of small, dynamic nonprofits working in East Africa, the Caribbean and Central Eastern Europe. In 2015, she began supporting Music Heals International in the role of Strategy and Impact Advisor. She also partners with visionary organizations in East Africa to promote equitable, sustainable community development as Director of East Africa Programs at the Confluence Institute and advisor to the Foundation for Community Development and Empowerment in Uganda. Prior to that, she led the creation of Asante Africa Foundation’s Girls’ Advancement Program while overseeing education and youth development programs in Tanzania and Kenya. Ashley has also supported large, internationally focused U.S. institutions and initiatives, including the Peace Corps, Amnesty International USA, the National Democratic Institute and USAID’s Democracy Network Program.

Ashley earned a Master of International Affairs in economic and political development from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a bachelor’s degree from Claremont McKenna College. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area where she loves running in the headlands and heading to the Sierras to backpack with her family. When not out and about, she’s a dedicated “Suzuki parent” supporting her son as he learns piano.