Board of Directors

Is the retired President and CEO of Covia, a progressive, not-for-profit organization providing housing and services to older adults in northern California. Covia operated six continuing care retirement communities, nine affordable housing communities, as well as a broad array of innovative national community service programs. Kevin structured and guided the affiliation of Covia with Front Porch in early 2021 to create the 13th largest not-for-profit senior living organization in the United States.

Prior to joining Covia in 2005, Gerber was President and CEO of The Episcopal Home Communities in Alhambra, California and also served as Vice President of Operations at The Internext Group (now Front Porch). Earlier in his career, Gerber held a number of positions at California Lutheran Homes from 1987 until 1999, including Chief Operating Officer.

Gerber received his B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis and graduated with a M.P.A. in Heath Services Administration from the University of Southern California; he holds a certificate in Long-Term Care Administration also from USC.

Board service has been integral to Gerber’s career: he is the Board Chair of On Lok, Inc., the first program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), now replicated across the nation. Gerber also serves as Vice Chair of the board of Heritage on the Marina, a continuing care retirement community in San Francisco, CA.

Peter Schakow, President, serving on the Board of Directors since 2008, and as President since 2013. Peter Schakow is an experienced organizational leader and entrepreneur whose career spans technology innovation, cultural heritage, and nonprofit governance.

As President and Chairman of the Board of Aldersly, he has led the community through a decade-long masterplan culminating in the Marselisborg Building—the most significant expansion in Aldersly’s century-long history.

Peter began his career in Denmark with Xerox, introducing the first plain-paper copier technology, before earning his MBA from the University of California, Berkeley. He later joined the early personal computing industry as Product Manager for WordStar, then the world’s leading word-processing program, and advanced to Sun Microsystems, where he established the Marketing Center of Excellence and New Media Group during the dot-com era. His leadership extended to global projects including the White House Millennium Evenings and the Mars Rover Project with LEGO and The Planetary Society, inspiring youth engagement in STEM.

He co-founded HopeOrCope during the COP15 UN Climate Conference to create financial frameworks for global sustainability and served seven years as President of the DanishAmerican Chamber of Commerce – Northern California.

A lifelong advocate for youth development, Peter has dedicated more than 39 years to the Boy Scouts of America, earning the Silver Beaver Award for distinguished service. Deeply rooted in his Danish heritage, he remains active in Dania and Dannebrog lodges, promoting cultural exchange and community fellowship.

Jesper Wind is an entrepreneurial and results-driven business development leader with over 20 years of experience in B2B SaaS, technology sales, and international market expansion. He has a proven track record of founding and scaling startups, driving enterprise and channel sales, and leading transformative initiatives that deliver sustained commercial growth.

Currently serving as Country Manager for North America at Qbit, Sper spearheads market entry and strategic growth for the fintech integrator. Previously, he co-founded Cohera, an IIoT startup that achieved enterprise pilot deployments across pharmaceutical, FMCG, and utilities sectors. His leadership at PeerPilot resulted in a successful turnaround, securing funding and guiding the company to acquisition.

Earlier in his career, Sper drove 800% portfolio growth at IBM, built channel networks for SuSe Linux, and executed major IT transformations recognized by PA Consulting. His diverse experience spans executive roles, consulting, and entrepreneurship, combining deep technology insight with strategic vision.

Jesper is passionate about contributing to organizations that make a meaningful impact. His interest in joining the Aldersly board stems from a commitment to thoughtful governance, long-term stability, and continuous improvement of services—ensuring residents feel at home now and in the future.

Bent T. Jensen is a seasoned technical management professional with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Sønderborg Teknikum in Denmark. He holds dual Danish and U.S. citizenship and brings decades of experience in engineering leadership and software development.

Bent began his career managing R&D teams at Convergent Technologies and later at Silicon Graphics, where he focused on enterprise networking innovations. At Cisco Systems, he served as Senior Engineering Manager, overseeing global teams and delivering advanced network communication solutions.

His expertise spans product development, quality assurance, and web technologies, demonstrated during his tenure at Iptec as a Web Developer and at Netflix as a Quality Assurance Specialist for Danish localization. Since 2016, Bent has contributed to sustainable energy projects as a part-time engineer at Lauritzen, Inc., working on solar tracker systems.

Known for his strategic vision and hands-on leadership, he has successfully navigated both corporate and entrepreneurial environments. Beyond his professional achievements, Bent is deeply involved in community leadership, serving as a commissioner on the Los Gatos Arts & Culture Commission and participating in local planning committees.

He co-founded the Danish Information Systems Professionals group and has held board positions with the Danish American Chamber of Commerce. Bent’s career reflects a commitment to innovation, collaboration, and cultural engagement across international and technical domains.

A retired lawyer. His professional career included working more than 40 years as a corporate and business lawyer. Primarily representing small and medium size businesses in their formation, capital raising efforts, executive compensation plans, growth, acquisitions, and, ultimately, their sale.

Early in his career he was very involved in transactions to develop renewable energy projects and was active in many dot.com venture capital deals. Mark also was fortunate to meet some leading Danish Bay Area business leaders. As a result, he represented some Danish companies and served as pro bono counsel to the Danish-American Chamber of Commerce and served on the DACC Board of Directors.

He also has served on the Boards of Directors of quite a few nonprofit corporations operating primarily in the areas of the performing arts and youth sports.

Marks education background consists of a BA and an MA in Philosophy at Stanford University and a law degree from the UC Berkeley Law School. Personal interests include music (I have sung in the San Francisco Bach Choir for many years), long walks and hanging out with our grandchildren. My wife and I recently celebrated our 47th anniversary. We have two sons and three grandchildren.

Per Caroe is a multi-generational Aldersly board member, and grew up playing in the old White House with his sister Pia. Per has been married to Denise Andresen (auxiliary and Arts Sub-Committee member) for over 30 years. They have three children. Thor, who recently passed the California State bar (Quinnipiac University- J.D./ Santa Clara University- B.S.), Henrik graduated in Mechanical Engineering at Wentworth Institute of Technology, and Skye is a junior at Cornish College of the Arts at Seattle University studying audio engineering.

Per has been in the Behavioral Marketing space for over 20 years, focusing on permission-based email marketing. He currently runs sales for the third largest emailer in the world- Netcore. Per has served on various boards since the age of 17 and is known as the guy asking hard questions in a room, and as a non-linear thinker.

Ruth Vosmek, MSW, LCSW, DSW, was born in Wisconsin and grew up in a family of medical missionaries (doctor and nurse) that travelled around the globe including Ethiopia, Honduras, and Thailand. When not travelling in her youth she enjoyed both of Wisconsin’s seasons.

Ruth has worked as a Medical Social Worker in Marin County for over 20 years – at both of the hospitals. She is currently the Coordination of Care Director at Kaiser Permanente in San Rafael. Ruth has her master’s degree in social welfare from UC Berkeley and is a licensed clinical social worker. Ruth received her doctorate from the University of Southern California’s Doctor of Social Work Program, where she learned about the 12 Grand Challenges of Social Work. She has a passion for patient advocacy and community collaboration.

Ruth has been happily married for nearly 30 years. When not at work you can find her in the swimming pool or hiking with four adult children and two dog friends.

Michael Bo Hansen, a Board Member since 2020 and Investment Committee member since 2018, is an independent CFP® (Certified Financial Planner) who offers customized financial planning in a fiduciary capacity. He is passionate and caring about his clients’ financial well-being and invests at least 10 hours per week researching and learning about issues that potentially can have an impact on their financial situation.

Michael is originally from Denmark and has lived, worked and traveled on four continents. He has a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Copenhagen (a.k.a. cand. polit.) and with his international work experience, he has a thorough understanding of global economics and geo-political issues. Michael has a passion for traveling and has been to more than 45 countries so far.

Outside of work, he enjoys the cultural scene, reading and exercising. He is fluent in Danish, English, Norwegian and Swedish and has a working knowledge of French and German. Michael is married to Jennifer, and they have a son Sebastian.

Ed Lewis, a Board member since 2019, has many years of property management experience in the Bay Area. As the President of Keegan and Coppin Co., Inc., he is directly responsible for all property management, having up to 3 million square feet, 950 tenants, and encompassing over 100 properties.

His career includes working with Grubb and Ellis Co., David T. Egan/Coldwell Banker, and Wells Fargo Bank. Over the years he has generously volunteered with Marin Art & Garden Center as the Vice President of the Trustees and Chair of the Nominating Committee; Lifehouse, Trustee on the Board; and Marin Center for Independent Living, Board Member, Board of Trustees, and Board President for 3 years.

He has received a CA Real Estate Broker’s License, Certified Property Management, Secondary Teaching Credential from Dominican University, and received a Bachelor of Arts from Trinity College.

Ed’s mother was a resident of Aldersly.

Birgit Jacobsen is excited about rejoining the Aldersly Board after taking time off for a few years for a very time-consuming job. Birgit is a Danish native, who first came to the US when her father was posted to New York by the Danish Foreign Ministry. She received her BA and MA in German Language and Literature from Middlebury College, with additional studies in Theatre and Stage Design. When her parents and siblings returned to Denmark, she married her college boyfriend and moved to San Francisco, where she gradually built an Interior Design business which has kept her busy ever since.

Birgit works with private, commercial, and institutional clients, has taught several courses at the Academy of Art University, and has consulted on countless remodel projects. Birgit has three grown children: Christian, Finn and Molly, who are in the worlds of wine making, science education and Family/Childrens’ Support. It’s a nice selection. One saves the Earth, one saves families and children, and one makes sure they all get to live with the best of what the earth produces.

Extensive volunteer board commitments have been in the areas of health, education, and church administration. Birgit was recently asked to create a new color scheme for a large church, which combined her interests in space planning, history, harmonious and appropriate design choices, as well as making sure a large number of diverse users of the space could all come to a satisfactory result together.

That is what is so wonderful about Aldersly: there is a true sense of creating the best possible space where a large number of people can live and/or work together in an atmosphere of dignity and respect.