Our Team
Patrick Kowalczyk
President
FOUNDED PKPR: 2006
EXPERIENCE: Michael Kaminer PR, U.S. Representatives Lynn Woolsey and Frank Pallone, Middlesex County Democratic Organization
BOARDS: Theatre of the Oppressed NYC, Live Out Loud
EDUCATION: Rutgers University
HOMETOWN: Middletown, New Jersey
His favorite books are Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner, Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, Delicious Foods by James Hannaham, The Tennis Partner by Abraham Verghese, Winners Take All by Anand Giridharadas, Zeitoun by Dave Eggers, and The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. His favorite movies are Beasts of the Southern Wild, Moonlight, Nomadland, Children of Men, Michael Clayton, and The Florida Project.
His travel wishlist includes Sri Lanka and Thailand. His dream clients are The New Yorker Festival and The Emerson Collective. His all-time favorite concerts are Daft Punk in Coney Island (2007), Robyn at Madison Square Garden (2019), and Florence and the Machine at Barclays Center (2018).
His must-read is New York Magazine, his must-listens are Song Exploder, Throughline, Object of Sound, and On the Media, and his must-watch is Succession, Somebody, Somewhere, and The Handmaid’s Tale.
Helena Dea Bala
Account Director
EXPERIENCE: Author, lobbyist, lawyer, Capitol Hill staffer
EDUCATION: The George Washington University Law School
HOMETOWN: It’s Complicated. (Ask me about it!)
One of Helena’s most re-read books is Stay Up with Me by Tom Barbash, particularly the last story – The Women. This is certainly not an impartial take, but she also really enjoyed writing her own book, Craigslist Confessional. Her comfort watches include Frasier and Golden Girls reruns, and some of her favorite feel-good movies are Moonstruck, The Birdcage, When Harry Met Sally, Turner and Hooch, Landline, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Heartburn, and Bull Durham.
Her travel wishlist includes Greece, Turkey, Switzerland, Denmark, Colombia, Peru, South Africa, Kenya, and Japan.
Her dream client is The ONE Campaign and, predictably, her favorite concert was U2 in 2010, though her most memorable moment was singing along with Dolores O’Riordan in the front row of a Cranberries concert. Other great artists she’s had the privilege of seeing in concert are Muse and Stromae, and she’s looking forward to seeing Andrea Bocelli at Madison Square Garden this December.
Jack De Gilio
Senior Account Executive
EXPERIENCE: Development Counsellors International, Unison Media, Carmichael Lynch Relate, Cornerstone Agency, Blogologues (MWW)
EDUCATION: Hofstra University
HOMETOWN: Poughkeepsie, NY
His favorite movies are Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, My Cousin Vinny, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, Mean Girls, and Clue. His favorite TV shows include Parks and Recreation, The Other Two, Superstore, Hacks, and Saturday Night Live.
His travel wishlist includes Australia, Japan, and Greece. He loves to attend live concerts, and some of his favorite artists include Alvvays, Caroline Polachek, Carly Rae Jepsen, Fleet Foxes, Phoebe Bridgers, and Maggie Rogers.
His favorite books include I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy, Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner, Horror Stories: a Memoir by Liz Phair, and Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb.
Janey Lorenzo
Account Coordinator
EXPERIENCE: AMD-PR, The Small Business Collective, Fordham Fashion Collective, and Shakespeare on the Oval
EDUCATION: Fordham University
HOMETOWN: West Hartford, CT
Her favorite movies are The Sound of Music, Bridget Jones’s Diary, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Clueless, Tangled, Mamma Mia, and Coraline.
Her travel wishlist includes Italy, Greece, Scotland, Ireland, Austria, and Iceland. Her all-time favorite concert is Eloise at Bowery Electric (2022).
Her favorite books are My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh, The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Her must-watch series are Gilmore Girls and New Girl.
Revaz Grigolidze
Account Coordinator
EXPERIENCE: MikeWorldWide (MWW)
EDUCATION: Fashion Institute of Technology
HOMETOWN: Brooklyn, NY
Revaz’s favorite movies are And Then We Danced, The Devil Wears Prada, Grease, The Conjuring Universe, Titanic. His favorite genre of shows to binge watch are dramas, thrillers, and horrors.
His favorite musicians are Hozier, Sting, Tom Grennan, Sam Smith, Adele, Halsey, Lewis Capaldi, and James Arthur.
His travel wish list includes Egypt, Dubai, Australia, Italy, Japan and Greece.
Juan A. Garcia Cid
Digital Media Producer
EXPERIENCE: GRC Advising, Morelia Verde, Almirante.io, Enliken, Community TechKnowledge, Inc.
EDUCATION: Full Sail University, B.S., Digital Arts & Design
HOMETOWN: Morelia, Mexico
His favorite books are A Pale Blue Dot by Carl Sagan, Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty by The Met Museum and Becoming Steve Jobs by Rick Tetzeli. His favorite movie is Akira by Katsuhiro Otomo.
His all-time favorite concerts are Post Malone at Madison Square Garden (2019), Billie Eilish and Robyn at Austin City Limits (2019), Twenty One Pilots and Lana Del Rey in Mexico City (2016), Ayumi Hamasaki at Yoyogi Stadium in Tokyo (2013), Paul Oakenfold at Ultra Music Festival Miami (2010) and Britney Spears at Foro Sol in Mexico City (2002). Juan’s dream client is Apple Music.
Juan’s favorite podcasts are The Daily and Kara Swisher’s Sway by The New York Times, and Song Exploder. His must-watch TV show is Modern Family.
Randi Rosenbloom
Public Relations Consultant
EXPERIENCE: Ogilvy Public Relations, Emanate PR, Rubenstein PR
EDUCATION: SUNY New Paltz
HOMETOWN: New York, NY
Her Top 10 Favorite Movies are Grease, West Side Story, Love Actually, Die Hard, Wizard of Oz, The Wedding Singer, Pulp Fiction, Silence of the Lambs, Life is Beautiful, and The Usual Suspects. Her all-time favorite concerts are Prince’s Welcome 2 America Tour 2010, and U2’s 360° Tour 2011. Her travel wish list includes Greece, France, Italy, Iceland, and Hawaii.
Her favorite books are The World According to Garp by John Irving, Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn, and Wally Lamb’s I Know This Much is True and She’s Come Undone. Her must watch series include Stranger Things, The Sopranos, Orange is the New Black, Breaking Bad, Twin Peaks and Seinfeld.
Gretchen Griffin
Writer
EXPERIENCE: Macmillan Publishers, LeapFrog Enterprises, NRDC, MKPR, Berlitz, Da Capo Press, Theatre Communications Group
EDUCATION: Rutgers University, B.A., Journalism
HOMETOWN: :Toms River, NJ
Her favorite book is The Once and Future King by T.H. White and her favorite movie is Magnolia by P.T. Anderson. Her travel wishlist includes Ireland. She cites Michel Gondry as a creative inspiration and her dream client would be The Dalai Lama. She saw Ray Davies at The Academy in New York City in 1995.
Her proudest professional moments are our red carpert events. She says “the teamwork under pressure is fantastic.”
Her must-read author is Andrew Sullivan, her must-watch series is Community and she thinks you should follow Ruth Buzzi on Twitter.
Liam Dahlborn
Intern
EXPERIENCE: WFUV Radio, Fordham Student TV, L.C. Williams & Associates
EDUCATION: Fordham University
HOMETOWN: Chicago, Illinois
Liam’s top movies include Mission Impossible, Back to the Future, and Toy Story 3. He enjoys watching Friends, Outer Banks, and Manifest.
He listens regularly to podcasts from WFUV Radio, especially Cityscape. His all-time favorite childhood books are Wonder by R.J. Palacio and Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White. Currently, he is reading Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman.
His travel wishlist includes Australia, Japan, Iceland, and Greece.
Steven Barbero
Intern
EXPERIENCE: Life Beyond Brain Injury, Purchase College
EDUCATION: Purchase College, SUNY, B.S., Communications
HOMETOWN: Thornwood, NY
His top books include It and Desperation by Stephen King, as well as the Dune trilogy by Frank Herbert. His favorite shows are The Walking Dead, Stranger Things, and Breaking Bad.
His movie recommendations are The Dark Knight, Star Wars: A New Hope, and Halloween (1978).
His travel wishlist includes Japan, South Korea, Italy, and Australia. He hopes to one day be a traveling PR agent with plenty of opportunities to see the world.
His dream client is Nintendo.
Ellis Lewis
Intern
EXPERIENCE: Our Time Press, The Amsterdam News, Emma Bowen Fellow, BFJ Editorial Board
EDUCATION: Beloit College (Class of 2020)
HOMETOWN: Brooklyn
His favorite movies change from time to time but here are a few, The Big Short, MoneyBall, No Country For Old Men, The Dark Knight, Scott Pilgrim Vs The World, Spider-Man: Into The Spider-verse and Django Unchained.
Similar to his movie list, his favorite list of shows also changes from time to time. Currently his favorites are Regular Show, Rick and Morty, Seinfeld, Bojack Horseman, One Punch Man and Hunter x Hunter (2011).
His favorite books include, Another Country by James Baldwin, No Country For Old Men by Cormac MCcarthy, A Clash Of Kings by George RR Martin, Monkey by Wu Cheng-En.
His travel wishlist includes but isn’t limited to Japan, Italy (Again), Germany, United Kingdom and Morocco.