Wendy L. Wiebalk, Esq.
(NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ) -- State Theatre New Jersey (STNJ) has announced that Wendy L. Wiebalk, Esq. has been elected Chair of its Board of Trustees effective as of July 1, 2025. Wiebalk succeeds John Fitzgerald, who has served as Chair since 2021. Elected as Vice Chair is longtime State Theatre Trustee, Robin Suydam and as Secretary, Joey Kareem Grinkley.
“I am honored to serve in this important role,” said Wiebalk, who has served on the STNJ Board since 2016. “I look forward to working together with my board colleagues to ensure that State Theatre New Jersey not only continues to thrive but grows even stronger in the years ahead.”
As Chair, Wendy Wiebalk will oversee the operation of the State Theatre New Jersey Board of Trustees alongside the Board Executive Committee: Robin Suydam, retired insurance agency owner, STNJ Board Vice Chair; Joey Kareem Grinkley, Associate Director, Global Supply Business Development for Merck Manufacturing Division, STNJ Board Secretary; and Richard Leist, retired from MetLife, STNJ Board Treasurer.
“Wendy, Robin, and Joey have been incredible champions of State Theatre’s mission throughout their entire tenure on our Board,” said Sarah Chaplin, President & CEO of State Theatre New Jersey. “Their leadership and unwavering commitment are a tremendous strength for STNJ.”
“As a decades-long supporter of State Theatre New Jersey and an avid arts advocate, I am proud to accept the role of State Theatre New Jersey’s Vice Chair,” said Suydam.
“I am thrilled to join such a strong Executive Committee,” said Grinkley, who has served on the STNJ Board since 2021. “I look forward to working together to build on State Theatre New Jersey’s legacy as a leading performing arts center in the Northeast.”
A resident of Piscataway, Wendy L. Wiebalk, Esq. is a certified Civil Trial Attorney and has been a Partner at Cahn & Parra since 2017. Prior to Cahn & Parra, Wiebalk was the Director of Human Resources and Assistant City Manager for the City of Englewood. A lifelong New Jersey resident, Wiebalk has been involved in the arts since she began singing at an early age. She went on to receive an Applied Music scholarship to study voice in college. She is particularly proud to have sung at Carnegie Hall with Princeton Pro Musica in conjunction with the Opera Orchestra of New York.
Certified as a Civil Trial Attorney by the New Jersey Supreme Court in 1997, she was named to the Civil Certification Committee in 2024. Wiebalk received her B.A. cum laude with Honors in English and a J.D. at the College of William & Mary.
Robin Suydam
Robin Suydam, a resident of Somerset, has been a business and community leader in Central Jersey for the past 45 years. For 40 years, she led her family’s insurance agency business, specializing in business and not-for-profit clients throughout New Jersey. In 1991, she was the first woman elected as President of the Professional Insurance Agents of NJ and served on regional and national trade association boards. Since 1993, she has served on the Board of Directors of Franklin Mutual Insurance Company (FMI).
Her community work has included seven years on the board of the Central Jersey Community Development Corporation and seven years on the board of New Brunswick Theological Seminary. Suydam is a graduate of Bucknell University.
Joey Kareem Grinkley
Joey Grinkley is a 25-year veteran of the pharmaceutical industry, holding various leadership positions in Manufacturing Operations, Global Trade Compliance, Supply Operations, Supply Chain Strategy and Product Launch and Product Lifecyle Project Management for Bayer, Novartis, and Merck.
Grinkley is an engineer who values both S.T.E.M. and the Arts. He is passionate about charitable giving and routinely contributes to and volunteers for a variety of causes, including cancer care advocacy, educational scholarships, wounded veterans, and live performing arts. Grinkley is a graduate of North Carolina State University (B.S., Chemical Engineering) and graduate of Rutgers Business School (MBA).
After major renovations, State Theatre New Jersey celebrated its 100th Anniversary in December 2021 in a fully renovated theater. Originally built as a silent film and vaudeville palace, State Theatre’s historic significance was honored by PBS by featuring it in its documentary series, Treasures of New Jersey. Today, State Theatre is the largest performing arts center in Central New Jersey and has welcomed more than six million people through its doors since reopening as a nonprofit performing arts center in 1988.
State Theatre New Jersey is a cornerstone of the cultural vitality of Middlesex County and averages a total economic impact on New Brunswick and the surrounding area of more than $18 million a year. The mainstage programs feature high-caliber artists such as Diana Ross, Tom Jones, Kevin Hart, Ringo Starr, Melissa Etheridge, John Leguizamo, Harry Connick, Jr., Diana Krall, and Crosby, Stills & Nash. Program offerings include Broadway, orchestra, family, dance, comedy, rock/pop, jazz, Performances for Schools, and Sensory-Friendly Performances.
State Theatre New Jersey’s programs are made possible by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. Grant funding has been provided by the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners through a grant award from the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund.For information on events, go to MiddlesexCountyCulture.com.
