City of Jacksonville

Officers

Elly Liao, Chair
Born to Taiwanese parents in Thomasville, GA, Elly was raised in Leesburg, Florida and has lived in Jacksonville for about 10 years. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida in Criminology, graduating with honors. Following in the footsteps of her family (her father was the Senior Advisor for the Overseas Compatriot Affairs Council and President of the Florida Chinese Business Association), Elly feels passionate about serving her community to create more unity and spread more cultural awareness.

Elly is the founder of a life coaching organization called ENSPIRd Life Coaching.  She is a Board-Certified Coach who is passionate about helping clients create more balance, fulfillment, and happiness in their lives. Along with this, she serves as the Fundraising Chair for the University of Florida's Association of Asian Alumni and is a member of Toastmasters serving previously as President and VP of Membership. Elly is grateful to have the opportunity to serve her community and for the unwavering support from her loved ones. In her free time, Elly enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, investing in real estate, and reading/self-development.

Franchesca Williams, Vice Chair
Franchesca Williams is the Director, Third Party Risk Management at Ameris Bank within Jacksonville, Florida. Her breadth of experience spans topics of merger, acquisition and portfolio integration, procurement, risk management, contract administration and negotiation, and supplier diversity. She has a B.S. in Business Management from the University of Phoenix and has been in the financial industry for 19+ years. Franchesca has been a Jacksonville, Florida native for more than 20 years and is passionate about learning and sharing Asian culture with those around her. Franchesca has served previously as the Chair of the Asian Heritage Employee Resource Group at VyStar Credit Union and continues to be part of employee resource groups associated with Asian culture at Ameris Bank. Franchesca strives to create an inclusive environment to celebrate Asian heritage and advocates for inclusivity of Asian culture among the community.

William Vasana, Secretary
William Vasana is a licensed real estate associate with Keller Williams Jacksonville Realty. Originally from Thailand, he grew up in Bangkok and graduated from Assumption University with a bachelor of business administration (BBA) degree in marketing. His great grandfather migrated to Thailand from China during the reign of King Rama IV and his maternal family served as royal courtiers under King Rama IV, Rama V and Rama VI. He studied several foreign languages and - as a child - he won numerous awards for his watercolors and paintings in Southeast Asia. He moved to the United States in 1988. He graduated from the University of Tampa in Florida with dual master of business administration (MBA) degrees in marketing and finance. Before beginning a real estate career, he served as director of marketing, IT and e-commerce for Fortune 100 Companies, including Time Warner and Comcast. He has extensive experience in cable television, radio, Internet marketing, book/software publishing, and business consulting. He relocated to Jacksonville in 2002. An early interest in Chinese classical literature led to his two-decade study of feng shui, the ancient Chinese art of living in harmony with one’s environment. In his real estate career for the past 19 years, he has earned distinguished designations and specializes in residential/commercial real estate, international properties, new construction, luxury homes, investment properties, corporate/military relocation, probate real estate, short sales, and REOs.

Board Members

Ms. Purnima Ganju
Ms. Purnima Ganju is a Vice President at VyStar Credit Union, Northside Branch. She is an effective leader and an experienced management professional with strong financial, sales and business development background. She possesses a strong entrepreneurial spirit and an instinctive desire to strive for excellence. Her work experience over the past several years has been focused on leadership, administration, business development, and marketing. Purnima enjoys helping people and takes pride in serving local community. She currently serves as Advisory Board Chair for MAAAB, Mayors Asian American Advisory Board, Indo-US Chamber of Commerce of NEFL and Stake Holders Task Force at Jacksonville Women Business Center, Jax Chamber Foundation. Purnima is passionate about improving financial situation of her members. As a Financial Matters Mentor at JWBC and a Money Makeover Coach at VyStar Credit Union, she works hand in hand with her clients and her members to strengthen their financial situation. Purnima also serves as an Advisory Board Member to Jacksonville Women Business Center, Jax Chamber Foundation and as a Committee member to North East FL Regional Council where she helps in developing a Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy for NEFL. In 2013-14, under Purnima’s leadership, Indo-US Chamber of Commerce of NE Florida received several awards and also won the Diversity award for making difference in NEFL local community.

Marice Hague
Marice Hague is the Director of Marketing at the Florida Small Business Development Center at the University of North Florida (FSBDC at UNF), she assists with overseeing program development of special projects, marketing, social media, community outreach and public relations for an 18-county region, as well as serving as a liaison to resource partners in the small business community.  She has been with the FSBDC at UNF since 2004.  She earned a bachelor's degree in communication and a master's degree in public administration both from the University of North Florida.  She currently serves on the Florida Public Relations Association Jacksonville Chapter Board, the Jacksonville Women’s Business Center Advisory Board and the board for the First Coast Business Alliance, Inc.

Parveen Kumar
Parveen Kumar was the honored 16th President of the Indo-US Chamber of Commerce of NE Florida for 2018-2019. His leadership and resources for a diverse audience included; community leaders entrepreneurs, business executives, employees and educators.   He arranges numerous program events to help members and business partners develop strategic relationship with their communities to allow for personal and business growth in Jacksonville. Parveen Kumar serves his community to the best of his ability and is honored to be part of Mayor's Asian American Advisory Board.

Sharol Pausal Noblejas
Sharol Pausal Noblejas was born Long Beach, California to Filipino parents and moved to Jacksonville in 1998. Following the example of service to community, (both her parents were President’s of Filipino Organizations), Sharol is passionate about preserving the culture and traditions of the Philippines. She received her Bachelor of Science in Health Information Management from the University of Central Florida and Master of Business Administration from Orlando College, graduating with honors. She has over 30 years’ experience as a healthcare executive and was President of the Florida Health Information Management Association, on the Board of Directors and received the Distinguished Member and Outstanding Professional awards. Currently, Sharol works for Leidos Health as a Senior Consultant. Sharol is very active in the Filipino Community serving as Florida State Chair for the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA), Executive Director of the Filipino Cultural Dance Group, Fil- Millennials, is the Secretary for the Filipino American Council of Northeast Florida, represents the Filipino Community on the Board of Directors for Night of Asia and also serves on the Asian American Federation of Florida. Sharol is also President of the Filipino Language and Cultural School, which will launch in Fall 2017. In addition to her work in the Filipino Community, she is also Vice-Principal of the Jacksonville Chinese Association Chinese School and on the Program Advisory Committee for Fortis College.

Parag Shah
Parag Shah was born in Mumbai, India and has been a Jacksonville Native for over 17 years. He is co-owner of Deerwood jewelers located in Jacksonville, Florida and has been associated in the corporate stream for over 35 years. He has an immense passion for community service and has been associated with several non-profit organizations in the Jacksonville area.  He has served as an executive at different levels, Board Chair, Board Member, President, etc. Parag’s association with Mayor’s Asian American Advisory Board spans over 8 years. Parag is thankful for continued support in pursuing his passion from his wife Meeta, his son Rohan and daughter in law Dhwani. It is his extreme privilege to serve the City of Jacksonville and the Asian community.

Kie Young
Japanese native, Kie Young is an advocate and affiliate for a global wellness company.  She is also a substitute teacher for Duval county schools, and a freelance translator specialized in Education and Health fields.  She is the president of Japanese Association of Jacksonville, and a board member of Night of Asia.  She uses her positive attitude and out of the box thinking to encourage people around her to work hard and succeed.  She has a bachelor’s degree in Public health and health education.  She is a certified health education specialist for last 10 years. In addition to Japan and U.S., she has lived in Singapore, Taiwan, and Ireland.  Kie is inspired daily by her husband Kent and their four grown children, their spouses, and a grandson.  In her free time, Kie enjoys traveling, volunteering, jogging, and yoga.

Past Members