Buffalo, N.Y. — The Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo is pleased to announce that two local leaders have joined its Board of Directors in 2026. New members are: Nickole Garrison, CPA, CFP®, Chief Client Service Officer and Co-Founding Partner, Garrison Murphy Wealth Management, LLC; and Paul Vukelic, Executive Chairman, Try-It Beverage.
Nickole M. Garrison, CPA, CFP® is Co-Founding Partner and serves as Chief Client Service Officer of Garrison Murphy Wealth Management, LLC, a fiduciary multi-family office providing services to oversee the management of families’ net worth through time and across generations. Previously, Ms. Garrison spent nearly 30 years in senior roles in wealth management, public accounting and consulting. She serves on a number of nonprofit boards including: Buffalo Center for Arts and Technology (Treasurer and Audit Committee Chair); Western New York Women’s Foundation (Audit Committee Chair); and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. Ms. Garrison earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Binghamton University.
Paul Vukelic is the Executive Chairman of Try-It Beverage, a prominent beverage distribution company that serves Niagara and Erie counties. Mr. Vukelic is a board member and past chairman of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, and is a board member of: Open Buffalo; the Buffalo Renaissance Foundation; the Canisius College Board of Regents; and Aviceda Therapeutic in Cambridge, Mass. Additionally, Mr. Vukelic is a member of the Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable and served as co-chair of the Buffalo 5/14 Survivors Fund. Mr. Vukelic earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from St. Louis University.
2026 officers of the Community Foundation Board of Directors are: Steve Finch, Chair; Tamara O. Alsace, Ph.D., Chair Elect; Jeffrey H. Katz, Esq., Vice Chair; Luis Rodriguez, Vice Chair; Nancy Ware, Secretary; and Cheryl A. Jankowski, Treasurer.
Other members of the Community Foundation Board of Directors are: Jennifer Chalmers Balbach; David J. Blesy; Brigid Doherty; Hon. David L. Edmunds, Jr.; Darby Fishkin; Owen Herne, Esq., John G. Horn; Hal D. Payne; DeLawndrea C. Purdue-Grant; Hon. Rose H. Sconiers; John F. Somers; and Charles Torres.
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About the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo
For more than a century, the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo has enhanced and encouraged long-term philanthropy in the Western New York community. A 501 (c)(3) organization, the Community Foundation’s mission is: Connecting people, ideas and resources to improve lives in Western New York. Established in 1919, the Community Foundation has made the most of the generosity of individuals, families, foundations and organizations who entrust charitable assets to the Community Foundation’s care. Learn more at cfgb.org.