Meet the Board

Meet the Board

S. Louise Phanstiel, Chairlady
Louise Phanstiel began her career in 1985 as an accountant and retired in January 2007 from Wellpoint Inc., where she held several positions over the years, including president of specialty products. Louise has been involved in many nonprofit organizations, including serving on the boards of the Los Angeles chapters of the American Heart Association and the I Have a Dream Foundation. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Howie, and their cats Muriel, Winston and Wallis.

Francis Battista, Vice Chair
Francis Battista is one of the founders of Best Friends Animal Society. Along with his wife, Silva, Francis created Best Friends' Los Angeles Programs, launching many model programs such as the Catnippers spay/neuter program for feral cats, celebrity events such as the Lint Roller Party, Pet Adoption Festivals and public awareness campaigns such as DeSex and the City, a spay/neuter campaign. Francis currently works as an advisor to Best Friends Community Programs and Services.

James F. Rodgers, Treasurer
Jim Rodgers was a college economics professor before going into policy research and management. He retired in 2003 after nearly 30 years as a health policy and research executive at the American Medical Association and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. Jim makes his home in Chicago, Illinois, with his wife, Cynthia Bathurst, Best Friends' national director of Project Safe Humane.

Anne Mejia, Secretary
Anne Mejia (pictured with Bodhi, her sweet lab/pittie boy) is one of the founders of Best Friends Animal Society. In the beginning Anne established the Welcome Center, which includes volunteer coordination, the gift shop and tours of the sanctuary. During that time she helped create Angels Rest Pet Memorial Park to honor the passing of Best Friends' cherished animal residents. She was one of the leaders in the Katrina rescue operation in 2005. In 2006 Anne was involved in creating the Development Division and now is one of its senior fundraisers. Anne resides at the sanctuary with her husband Cyrus and their family of dogs and cats.

Kraig Butrum
Kraig Butrum has over 25 years of non-profit management and fund-raising experience. Serving a wide variety of organizations, Kraig has served as president, vice president, campaign director, director of development and consultant to nonprofit organizations throughout the U.S., including groups such as Conservation International, the National Park Foundation, the Nuclear Threat Initiative and Earth Day Network. Kraig has been an animal lover since age seven, when his parents brought his first dog, Blitz, home from a shelter. He helped manage the family's horses, numerous guinea pigs, and six cats. Kraig lives with his partner of 32 years, Dave Stewart, and their English Lab, Caleb, in Washington, D.C.

Gregory Castle
One of the founders of Best Friends Animal Society, Gregory Castle now serves as CEO. Gregory created No More Homeless Pets in Utah, a campaign involving animal welfare and rescue organizations, animal control officers, veterinarians, schools, and animal lovers from across the state in aggressive spay/neuter, adoption, and public awareness programs. Gregory also initiated Utah's Week for the Animals, now in its 15th year. The week includes educational and public awareness programs, special discount spay/neuter services, pet adoption fairs, and public service awards.

Molly Jordan Koch
Molly Jordan Koch is a certified Jungian analyst with a private practice in a little yurt that sits under an oak tree in Topanga, California where she lives with her husband, Hawk, their two dogs, 2 horses and a pond full of frogs. She earned her Masters Degree in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute and is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Prior to becoming a psychotherapist, Molly worked for Dr. John C. Lilly at the Human/Dolphin Foundation whose focus was on inter species communication. While there she coordinated benefits, published the foundation's newsletter and acted as public and press liaison for Dr. Lilly and his wife, Toni.

Cyrus Mejia
Cyrus Mejia is one of the founders of Best Friends Animal Society. He was born in New Orleans, and studied art in Mississippi. in 1984 Mejia was part of the advance team, arriving in Kanab to build the sanctuary. He later worked with his wife Anne to create the Welcome Center and the visitor's experience at Best Friends. Mejнa now works as Best Friends Resident Artist. His artwork has been exhibited nationally, spreading the message of kindness and compassion and serving as a call to action for the animals. Cyrus Mejia lives in Kanab, Utah, with his wife Anne and their family of dogs and cats.

Peter Warshaw
Dr. Peter Warshaw is a senior partner at RHR International, a firm of corporate psychologists and consultants. Much of his practice involves working with CEOs, their direct reports and corporate boards of directors. Pete has consulted at the senior level in a wide array of industries, including energy, distribution, communications, financial services, transportation, manufacturing, health services and retailing. Pete's wife, Julie, introduced him to Best Friends through her volunteer trips to the Sanctuary over the past decade. He and Julie have two grown children and two dogs, Chico and Lacie.

Brian Wolf
Brian Wolf retired in March of 2012 from Grosvenor Capital Management, a leading firm in the hedge fund industry with $25 billion under management. Brian was a Partner and member of the Investment Committee at the time of his retirement and had been at Grosvenor for over 17 years. He is a graduate of the University Notre Dame (MBA, magna cum laude, 1993) and Bradley University (B.S., summa cum laude, 1992) and resides in Chicago with his wife, Melanie; his son, Julian and the family feline, Basil. Brian grew up in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin and remains a devoted fan of the Brewers, Packers and Bucks.