District 30 Democratic Club Officers and Board of Directors

Officers

Sharon Blugis, President

Sharon Blugis  has dedicated her career to serving and uplifting communities and has been a dedicated advocate for Democracy and Marylanders’ reproductive freedoms. With a career in public service and community advocacy, Sharon brings to D30 Club expertise in community and   political organizing and nonprofit leadership. After working 10 years as a litigation paralegal, Sharon earned a Master’s in Health Science and then joined the Anne Arundel County Health Department. She then managed the AACO Fire Department’s Fire and Life Safety office, a position she held for over 10 years. In 2019, Sharon joined the AACO County Executive's Office where, among other responsibilities, she served as the County Census 2020 lead. In January 2020, she joined the Office of the Maryland Comptroller as the Community Affairs Outreach Manager. In mid-2021, she became the Executive Director of a non-profit educational organization dedicated to public safety.  In addition to her work experience, Sharon has partnered with several public health and gender justice organizations in mobilizing communities and fighting anti-abortion legislation in Maryland’s state and local governments. Sharon is skilled in working in political arenas and identifying opportunities for reform and advancement, as well as brainstorming with community stakeholders to build effective coalitions and executing those ideas and policies.  Sharon and her husband, Adam, are residents of Annapolis. 

Genevieve Torri, Vice President 

Genevieve Torri is the CEO and Founder of Phronesis Strategies in Annapolis, MD. Before starting her own company, Genevieve was the Campaign Director for Annapolis’s Mayor Gavin Buckley’s re-election campaign for 2021. Genevieve was born in Michigan and moved to Maryland in 1997. In 2006 she moved to Nashville, TN to serve as a marketing director and social media influencer in the Entertainment Industry. For 12 years she also volunteered as an activist and campaign worker for many Tennessee Democrats before returning to Annapolis in 2018 and running Mayor Buckley’s campaign.

Genevieve’s strategy firm Phronesis delivers successful, effective strategies for their clients by building award-winning solutions through innovative platforms. During her 30-year career in the Commercial Hospitality Design and Development fields, Genevieve has earned trusted networking relationships in many aspects of the community through a dedicated work ethic on various projects for others as well as for projects she has self-started. She is a strategist driven by curiosity and the challenges of uncovering the next great idea while also solving the problems that may arise during the final formation of a project's concept. Through her experience of project managing and campaign directing, Genevieve has continued her work of promoting local community projects to wider audiences and inspiring economic growth through these actions. Her motto is to build better and applies it to all aspects of her life.

Genevieve has been an avid participant in the sustainability of the Arts and Entertainment communities for most of her career and within personal achievements. Genevieve continues to pursue new goals within the Economic Growth and Development sectors, using the Arts as a prominent platform. Genevieve currently holds the elected Chair position as the Ward 1 appointed Commissioner on the Art in Public Places Commission for the City of Annapolis. Alongside The Arts Council of Anne Arundel County, Genevieve is co-leading a team of Art Entities in developing a 10-year Master Plan and obtaining Grant funding for future City of Annapolis's Arts Community projects.

In Genevieve's spare time she is currently managing a 1,200sqft home addition project and homeschooling her 7 and 10-year-old boys.

Helen Chin, Treasurer 

Helen was born and educated in Australia where she attended business college before moving to USA. She is a dual citizen of Australia and USA. She has been a member of Maryland District 30 since 2012.

Helen has been retired for several years following a 35-year background in business with various employers, mostly in areas of banking and development/economic aid. She had a long career with the World Bank in Washington DC with a focus on office management and resource planning for managers with lending programs in the Middle East and African countries. During retirement she served for 10 years as treasurer of Ikebana International Washington DC Chapter, a 501C7 non-profit that promotes Japanese arts. She continues as auditor for this organization.

Prior to moving to Annapolis in 2012 from Montgomery County, her political interests lay in international and national politics. While that still applies, her interest has broadened to the state and local levels and has included local campaign volunteering with D30, and participation in the 2019 Legacy Leader Program, a partnership between University of Maryland and the Maryland General Assembly. Assignments included the offices of Delegate Susan Proctor (Prince George’s County) and Senator Ronald Young (Frederick County). Other volunteering involvements have included Hospice of Montgomery County, Anne Arundel County Women Giving Together, Planned Parenthood of Annapolis and Maryland Hall for the Arts.

Josh Paper, Secretary 

Josh Paper is the Chief of Staff to Delegate Dana Jones, representing District 30A in Anne Arundel County. During the 2022 Gubernatorial election, he served as her campaign manager for the general election. Prior to coming on to Delegate Jones’ staff, he volunteered for the District 30A Slate during the primary election. Prior to beginning his political career in Annapolis, Josh attended St. Mary’s College of Maryland where he graduated as a double major in Political Science and Public Policy, with a focus on local and state government. During school Josh was a member of the Varsity Sailing Team, one of the top sailing teams in the country, and served as team captain his senior year. When he wasn’t in class or on the water he worked as a Saferide manager, tour guide, and in the College’s Center for the Study of Democracy.  

 Josh was born and raised in Howard County, District 9A. He fell in love with Annapolis as a young child and is incredibly excited he is able to live and work in District 30A today. Josh enjoys coaching high school and collegiate sailing on the weekends. When he isn’t working, Josh enjoys spending time with his friends, and being active outdoors including running, sailing, and hiking. 

BOARD MEMBERS: