Our Team
Ginger Smith, MSW
Founder & Executive Director
With thirty years of experience in the social services, divided equally between program development, fundraising, and direct practice, Ginger Smith has the experience, passion, and drive to launch and scale SOAR Together to become a nonprofit leader and collaborator in the movement to end the epidemic of loneliness. From her early career as a community organizer and boots-on-the-ground social worker walking journeys with youth and families to Directing the 9/11 Relief Program for The Children’s Aid Society in NYC, Ginger has committed her career and life to helping change life outcomes.
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An honors graduate of Dartmouth College and All-American athlete in two sports, Ginger received a Master of Social Work degree from Boston University. Her competitive athletic career led her to Dartmouth’s Athletic Hall of Fame, the Ironman World Championships, and 50K/50M trail races across the country. Most recently, she inked a final win at the Lake Placid Marathon in June 2022 post breast cancer surgery where she hung up her racing shoes. Ginger’s resilience to overcome is a trademark, and her fierce advocacy alongside and on behalf of those facing life challenges comes from an unbridled place of deep faith.
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After many years in fundraising, first as a Senior Campaign Manager for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and then Director for The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, she returned to her direct practice roots in 2017, working with adults with intellectual disabilities across four locations throughout Fairfield County. SOAR Together is a natural extension of her career-long work, a way to help establish innovative and coordinated efforts to end epidemic levels of social isolation and loneliness.
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In her words: "Throughout my life I have experienced highs and darkness like so many others. I implicitly know loneliness and social isolation, both individually and at times simultaneously. What I also know is that to heal a wound of any size we must have the faith and courage to persevere, to keep putting one foot in front of the other even if some days it begins with crawling from one's knees. We can tackle this epidemic if we chip away at it one gesture of kindness, one smile, one uplifting comment at a time."
Judith Panthauer, LCSW
Flower Power Program
Judith Panthauer brings decades of expertise in both social services and floral design to SOAR Together, joining the team in 2024 to help oversee our growing Flower Power program across Fairfield County.
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Judith was an undergraduate major in psychology and sociology, and from there she earned a Master of Social Work degree from Columbia University. As a clinical social worker, she had a long and meaningful career working with individuals and families in a variety of settings, from mental health centers to schools, and ultimately, into years of private practice.
Always a flower enthusiast who surrounds herself with flowers, Judith began taking classes in floral design from experts in the field which led to recent work in the floral industry in Fairfield County.​ SOAR’s mission to help end loneliness fits perfectly with Judith’s passionate belief in the joy that flowers bring to people and the ways in which creating and gifting bouquets help bring people closer to one another.
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In her words: “This is a dream come true to be part of a program that weaves together my love of flowers and my desire to enrich people’s lives.”
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Kate Fitzpatrick
Marketing & Communications
Kate Fitzpatrick is a wife, mother of three and communications consultant based in Ridgefield, CT. After developing a diverse set of public relations and editorial skills in the international magazine publishing industry, she was motivated by her passion for health and wellness to transition into the nonprofit world. Over several years, she honed her public relations, website management and social media skills at the T.J. Martell Foundation for Cancer Research in Manhattan.
Driven to help small businesses find success in an increasingly competitive industry, she then leveraged this experience to launch Kate Fitzpatrick Consulting, using her love of social media to give a voice to health and wellness practitioners looking to bring their messages to the masses. She has since broadened her client base to include entrepreneurs across several industries including travel and real estate, as well as a wide variety of nonprofits mostly based in Fairfield County including The Iris Fund, Ridgefield Theater Barn, Ridgefield Chorale and Temple B'nai Chaim.
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In her words: "A lifelong flower enthusiast, I'm passionate about mental health and loves SOAR’s mission of helping people feel less alone."