ABOUT THE SANCTUARY

The Board of Directors

Gay Dorsey

Gay Dorsey is part owner with her husband Mike of Poppoff, Inc., a concrete contracting firm in Yakima, WA. She has extensive experience in volunteering and fundraising for non-profits such as the American Cancer Society, Planned Parenthood, and the Allied Arts Council. She has served on several local and regional boards, and brings a an Eastern Washington connection to the CSNW board. Gay is a strong supporter of CSNW with a passionate interest in primate welfare in general and a sincere desire to provide the best possible care for the Cle Elum Seven in particular. Gay and Mike have two grown children, both of whom have become involved in CSNW as well.

Julia Gallucci, MS

Julia Gallucci first began working with apes in 2000 and has since cared for both gibbons and chimpanzees in a variety of settings. Julia currently works as an advocate for great apes and other exotic animals exploited by the entertainment industry. She has a BA in anthropology from California State University, Northridge, and an MS in primate behavior from Central Washington University. Julia's master's thesis examined gestural dialects in wild and captive chimpanzees.

Holly Harris Reid, MBA, Treasurer

Holly Harris Reid has a diverse background with 20 years of combined non-profit and corporate experience. She is the Controller for Best Friends Animal Society in Kanab, Utah. She has an MBA in Accounting and a BA in Journalism. Although conservation and primate welfare are her first loves, she chose to pursue her MBA which led her into business for several years. Prior to her accounting career, Holly was the Managing Editor for a multi-authored book, Wild Mammals in Captivity. Her special interest and affinity for the Great Apes took her to work for Zoo Atlanta and the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. When the opportunity to work again for a non-profit in animal welfare came along, she happily said good-bye to the corporate world and has never looked back. Holly and her husband's furry family include two dogs and two cats.

Erica Knauf Santos, Esq., Secretary

Erica Knauf Santos is a Seattle attorney in private practice. Along with legal experience, Erica brings three years of experience caring for non-human primates from her time at the Chimpanzee & Human Communication Institute. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Great Ape Project and the Advisory Board for IDA-Africa, and is an at-large member of the Washington State Bar Association's Animal Law Section. Erica received her BS in primate behavior and ecology and BA in psychology from Central Washington University, and her JD from Seattle University School of Law. She lives in Seattle with her husband, Enjay, and son, Nicolas.

Cynthia LaChappelle

Cyndi LaChappelle brings to CSNW five years of experience as a senior animal keeper for great apes, including chimpanzees, at the Dallas Zoo and Forth Worth Zoo. Her responsibilities included training and supervising new keepers, as well as daily animal care, including food preparation, behavioral enrichment, and basic medical care. Cyndi currently lives in Texas with her two daughters

Keith LaChappelle, Founder

In May of 2002, Keith LaChappelle read an article in Discover magazine about the lives of chimpanzees in biomedical research and the need for sanctuaries to care for them once they were released. Keith had always cared deeply about all life on this planet, and learning about the plight of these chimpanzees was a life-changing experience for him. He wondered if he could apply his professional skills of managing major construction projects to build a sanctuary home for chimpanzees. Keith carefully researched the feasibility of starting such a project. He spoke to many people and traveled to several sanctuaries - learning everything from policies and procedures to the gauge of steel used for caging. On one of these trips, he met Billy Jo, a chimpanzee who had finally found sanctuary after a lifetime of abuse in entertainment and research. Looking into Billy's eyes transformed Keith's desire to "do something" into the realization that he had found his calling. Keith has worked diligently not only to build the physical structures for the sanctuary, but also to build a sustainable non-profit that will carry the organization into the future.

Jessica Martinson, MS, President

Jessica Martinson began working with chimpanzees in 1999 as a graduate student at the Chimpanzee & Human Communication Institute. In 2003, Jessica volunteered as the manager of IDA-Africa's Sanaga-Yong Chimpanzee Rescue Center in Cameroon, Africa. She is currently the chair of IDA-Africa's Advisory Board and helps coordinate their annual fundraising event. She has 8 years of experience working for nonprofit organizations. Jessica holds an MS in psychology and primate behavior from Central Washington University and an undergraduate degree from Drake University. Jessica lives in Seattle with her two dogs.

Mary Murray, MA

Mary Murray brings more than a decade of experience in strengthening the efforts of nonprofit organizations. As founder of MEMconsultants, Mary provides a variety of consulting and training services designed to support community-based agencies to fulfill their missions. Additionally, Mary is a passionate advocate for primate conservation, and has served as a volunteer keeper-aide, providing care for great apes at the National Zoo in Washington, DC, and Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle. Mary holds a BA in psychology from Haverford College and an MA in community & prevention research from the University of Illinois at Chicago.  Mary lives in Seattle with her husband, Derek, and son, Nathan.

Felicia Nutter, DVM, PhD

Felicia Nutter is a wildlife veterinarian and conservationist, with more than 15 years of experience with great apes. She has worked with both captive and wild chimpanzees, gorillas and other primates in the US, Africa, and Asia. Felicia has a strong commitment to protecting the health of wild primates, and providing the best possible care for those in sanctuaries and other captive settings. With her husband Chris, also a wildlife veterinarian, Felicia has worked at both Gombe National Park in Tanzania, and with the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project in Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. While with MGVP, she helped establish the first interim sanctuary for orphaned mountain gorillas and Grauer's gorillas in the region. Her undergraduate degree is from Yale, she went to veterinary school at Tufts, and then completed an internship, residency, and PhD at North Carolina State University. Felicia serves on CSNW's Direct Care Committee.

Mel Richardson, DVM

Dr Mel has been providing care for captive chimpanzees and other captive wildlife for more than 40 years, as zookeeper, primate research technician and veterinarian.  In 1982 Dr. Mel earned his Doctor in Veterinary Medicine from the University of Georgia.  He has worked and consulted with zoos and wildlife parks in the USA, Africa, Colombia, and Taiwan.  He was veterinarian for the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project 1992-93. From 1995-1996 Dr. Mel was Project Director for the Projet Protection des Gorilles, a lowland gorilla orphanage in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, where he cared for gorillas and bonobos.  Dr. Mel has been an advocate for humane treatment of captive wild animals since 1997.  He is committed to relieving the suffering endured by captive chimpanzees and other captive wildlife.  Dr. Mel works with non-profit organizations to bring to the attention of the public the realities of day to day anguish suffered by captive wild animals in circuses, entertainment, research and zoos.

Bruce Wagman, Esq., Vice President

Bruce Wagman is a partner at the San Francisco law firm Schiff Hardin LLP. His practice focuses on animal law, with a special interest in chimpanzee issues. Bruce works tirelessly as an advocate for animals, and has won major victories for shelter dogs in Georgia; chimpanzees in Hollywood, California; and nearly 1,000 dogs in hoarding situations in North Carolina. He is also the co-editor of the Animal Law textbook used in law schools across the country. Bruce graduated from University of California - Hastings Law School, and has undergraduate degrees from Columbia and Cornell.