CapNY Changemakers: Deshanna Wiggins, CEO of the Albany Black Chamber of Commerce  

Updated: July 2025

In the Capital District we have many individuals who are looking to improve our larger community in terms of mental and physical health, wealth, and connectivity. Here at CapNY we call those champions of advancement changemakers.
One champion of change we’d like to highlight is returning Upstate NY native Deshanna Wiggins, CEO of the Albany Black Chamber of Commerce (ABCC).
  • About Deshanna

Deshanna is accomplished and driven, having secured her undergraduate degree and professional development certificate at Clark Atlanta University and Emory University respectively, and working in various Black-led mayoral offices and judicial offices  in the years thereafter. Deshanna is currently based in Troy and returned to the area after her phenomenal work in Atlanta to bring a fresh new perspective on Black and Brown entrepreneurship. “I think upstate is great, and people seem to think New York is just New York City. I’ve long wanted to pop that myth to let everyone know, including people here, that there are a lot of resources here. There’s a lot of opportunity here, it’s just about connecting the dots. Connecting the right people to the right companies and organizations.” With Deshanna at the helm of the ABCC the dots of preparation and opportunity will surely connect. The Capital Region is ready for entrepreneurship and ownership to reflect the community it engages in. We’re ready for a revitalized and renewed Albany, NY.

  • How She Services Our Local Community

“Our whole idea with the ABCC is to pay close attention to Black and minority businesses. Contrary to popular belief, although there’s a huge wage gap when it comes to people of color in this country at large, and Black and minority businesses are often overlooked, we do have some Federal legislation, we do have a lot more support coming in. However there is a cultural difference in terms of how we go about starting our businesses. We have to start from scratch in all figures of speech– in finances, resources and in mentorship. So the whole idea behind the BCC is to provide these business owners with resources and the connections they need to take care of business further.”

  • How Her Work Impacts the Cap Region

The ABCC offers space for the community to congregate, learn about economic sustainability, and provide advocacy for Black and brown business owners. In this coming year the ABCC will provide programming open to all to engage and empower the local ecosystem. In addition to that,  Deshanna doesn’t limit herself nor the ABCC to working with millennials and older generations of business, they recognize the importance of getting youth involved to make a sustaining impact. “We’re really getting into the student body here. We have a huge collegiate population here and in some ways they’re overlooked in terms of being able to take those students right out of school and match them with companies and organizations, or sell and pitch to them about keeping the businesses they do start here and keeping them local.” It’s no one person’s or organization’s responsibility but it’s all of ours to make sure this community and the larger Black and minority businesses are at the table and they are part of the conversation.”

  • Why She’s Passionate About Her Work

“I’m a native of here, my parents both worked in the school district, so educations always been very important to me in my household. I felt I got the best support and access to education here, but I did not have direct examples of what I wanted to do and who I wanted to be professionally. When I went on those field trips or I started working part-time in high school those people in those positions did not look like me, nor was I called in. I was supported because I was smart and it afforded me a lot of opportunity but I wasn’t necessarily welcomed. So I knew emphatically that I needed to leave here to find out who I was going to be, but the goal was always to bring what I learned back to this area. I’m very happy to say that’s exactly what I did.” Her experience in Black owned or Black-led entertainment, politics, and legal offices speaks to this. She has learned what it takes to build, strengthen and sustain a community such as this. As Deshanna says it has afforded her a new lens on what’s possible.

  • Hopes for The Future & How to Get Involved

Deshanna understands that true progress “It’s no one person’s or organization’s responsibility but it’s all of ours to make sure this community and the larger Black and minority businesses are at the table and they are part of the conversation.” With this mentality we’re sure to see rapid success and growth in this area in both culture and community. 

If Deshanna’s mission aligns with you, click to stay connected with the Albany Black Chamber of Commerce. There will be ample opportunity to both serve and be a part of this tour de force.

  • Written by: Arielle Steele

CapNY Changemakers: Introducing J’Vanay Santos

Updated: July 2025

Being known affectionately (or maybe sardonically depending on the mood) as Smallbany, the Capital District is known for having a close-knit community with limited offerings but those of us in the know know that this is a misconception. Millennials have been working overtime to give this region a much needed reboot, bolstering niche communities rife with culture. These individuals leading the charge are changemakers– advocates of cultural, spiritual, and mental progress that are leaders in any given space.
  • Forging a New Path in Maternal Care

One Changemaker is making her disruptive entrance into the maternal care space. Albany native J’Vanay Santos is forging a new path in maternal care and she’ll be sharing her gift with the tri-state area soon. Co-founded by J’Vanay, MyLÚA Health is an emerging maternal health platform that specializes in support for birthing persons and their care teams through personalized education, connection to resources, and health insights to improve quality and equitable decision-making. MyLÚA Health is an AI-powered early risk detection service that identifies & manages the risk of pregnancy-related complications.

In J’Vanay’s words, “MyLÚA Health supports allied health professionals to ensure birthing persons have access to knowledge and resources to achieve a safe and healthy pregnancy for themselves and their babies. With predictive analytics, automation tools, and a robust network or partners, the company determines needs at the individual level and matches them to localized resources. After answering a brief intake, MyLÚA will provide a personalized risk assessment; along with evidence-based, actionable education and connections to both clinical and non-clinical resources to address care needs. Additionally, MyLÚA partners with community-based organizations to enhance support systems at the local level. “The goal here,” J’Vanay says,” is to focus on missed and delayed diagnoses that stem from poor screening and lack of data, which hinders a provider’s understanding of a birthing person’s lived experience.”

  • The Inspiration

J’Vanay’s inspiration for the creation of MyLÚA lies in her up-close experience with the racial gap in maternal care, “U-Leea Santos, our Chief Experience Officer, and my sister, was denied medical intervention despite establishing a code word for wanting intervention. The mental and emotional tool of such an experience was challenging and left us wondering why we could not advocate for U-Leea’s wishes. As one of 8 [children] and the glorified doula of my family after being a part of 5 prior births, I knew something was wrong. So, we decided to dive into the literature and unearthed many issues with the maternal care system.” And that she did. J’Vanay and U-Leea partnered with a group of like minded health care providers, data scientists, and engineers to bring their dream to fruition.

J’Vanay’s passion for equity in the maternal health care space lies in the desire to give voice and agency to those that have been stripped of it, “We are amplifying the voices of birthing persons/mothers that have historically been left out of the narrative. When speaking with birthing folks, we continuously hear that they feel rushed, unheard, and express concerns about their pain being ignored. Trust has been in the maternal care system as structural racism has led to outcome disparities and inequities. We provide a platform that equips birthing persons with knowledge, resources, care advocates, and risk detection so all birthing persons can access their right to a quality and safe birthing experience for themselves and their babies.” Though this is a weighty call to task, it’s one worth striving for. Per NPR the maternal death rate for Black Americans was 69.9 per 100,000 in 2021 alone, which is 2.6 times higher the rate for white women.

  • Bridging the Gap

Bridging the gap in any way we can means increasing access to quality care, identifying diagnoses early and finding community care to help address those needs where busy hospitals and health care centers cannot. MyLÚA Health is one of the many organizations trying to push us in the right direction. They are changemakers and the community is ready to receive them with open arms. From panel opportunities to partnerships with doula and community based organizations to funding, the community at large has embraced them– and soon NY State at large will be too.

At this time MyLÚA is focused on securing further partnerships before they go live later this year. If you’d like to get involved or receive support, reach out to the team here

  • Written by: Arielle Steele

From Westchester to CapNY, A Transplant Story

Updated: July 2025

Gabby Lichtenberg is a perfect example of the power of the CapNY network. And that network is open to anyone, whether you’re a lifetime resident or find your way here as a transplant.

Making the Move

Lichtenberg, 37, and her husband moved to CapNY in 2017 from Westchester. They were spending enough hours a week commuting to consider it a part-time job. With the desire to start a family, have a home of their own, and time to enjoy both, they targeted CapNY as their next step. With her family in Syracuse and his in Poughkeepsie, it was a perfect central location and offered a cost of living that would help their salaries go a bit further. 

In 2018, they bought a home in Clifton Park. Six months ago, they welcomed their first child. 

“It’s so much more affordable living and you can get more for what you’re working for,” she said. “We’re able to have a great family life in the region simply because of the cost of living and because of accessibility to everything. And that was a big drawing point for us.”

Finding Work

Upon arrival to CapNY, Lichtenberg got involved with the Capital Region Chamber’s Young Professionals Network. Right away, she found a supportive network of people quickly. 

“I would say what I really appreciate about the people and the culture of the area is when you connect and you do make your circle of friends and they’re just so warm and welcoming, they become like a second family to you,” she said. “People here are very authentic.” 

Those connections have helped her career grow in the few years she has been a CapNY transplant. When she first moved here she was working in higher education and through connections, transitioned into an account executive role at the Albany Business Review and later, a commercial real estate advisor position.

“It’s all who I’ve worked with. As in, those who are my clients or whoever I partnered up with, and they see the work ethic or the relationship that’s been built with them personally and then being asked to join the team from there, which is a different approach. But I was really able to hit the ground running and building up those relationships. And then it just kind of created a bunch of endless different opportunities that I didn’t even know existed.” 

She’s gearing up to take on a new challenge as director of membership recruitment with the Business Council of New York State. 

“Ultimately, I will be someone with feet on the ground, listening to what businesses need or where they’re having issues and then advocating on their behalf,” she said. “This aligns with the mission of work that really matters to me. I’ve worked in sales and marketing for a number of years but primarily within small businesses.They are the heart of a community and what makes it special.” 

Family Fun

Lichtenberg and her family love to go to concerts at Saratoga Performing Arts Center or spend a morning at the Troy Waterfront Farmers Market and subsequent small business browsing. They are also big fans of Thacher Park in Voorheesville. 

“One of the cool things about the Capital Region is that you can drive 30 minutes and you can go to green pastures or you can go into a different city. There are a lot of aspects of nature that you get to enjoy,” she said. “And from where I live in Clifton Park, we can get to Saratoga or Lake George and visit an amusement park or go hiking. We’re lucky to have the accessibility to that diversity in landscape and topography.” 

Supporting Local

Lichtenberg advocates for small businesses and she is also a top supporter of many here in CapNY. Some of her favorites are in Schenectady, including the Whistling Kettle and Grounded Goddess.

Closer to her Saratoga County home, she is a big fan of Artique, a co-op of nearly 100 small artisan vendors all in one place.

“They all have the most unique things,” she said. “I love those types of businesses and finding unusual things.”

And in addition to her professional networking, she got involved with the Albany Barn and the Albany Center Gallery. While she was working closer to the city, one of her positions was with an art gallery, and the passion for art has stuck with her. Looking ahead, she hopes CapNY can continue to bolster the arts scene and create more and more ways to support creatives. And there’s room there for everyone, she says. 

“To live here now, it means that you get to be part of something bigger than yourself. And you can get involved more easily. It’s small enough here that you can make an impact and make change quickly. And while you’re making this impact, you’re becoming part of something bigger than yourself. That, in a sense, allows you to create a legacy for yourself if you wanted to. So if that’s something that’s important to you or matters to you, that’s the great thing about living here, is that you can have those opportunities. You can create that for yourself.”

  • Written by: Lauren Mineau