FOUNDERS
Paul Halme
A graduate of UCLA and UC Hastings College of Law, Paul is an attorney who lives in Solvang, California. His parents were friends with Consul Y. A. and Leonora Paloheimo since the 1940s. As a result, Paul knew the Paloheimos from the time he was a young boy, which became the basis for their subsequent trusted relationship. In the late 1970s, they began working together to finalize the Paloheimos’ estate planning and support for the cultural institutions they had established, including the Pasadena Museum of History and El Rancho de las Golondrinas. On the Paloheimos’ passing, Paul became the Trustee/Executor of their estate and ultimately the Chair of the Paloheimo Foundation. It is his commitment and leadership that has preserved Acequia Madre House™ and guided the development of WISC.
Linda Donnels
Linda is a senior university administrator and consultant with expertise in organizational management and design, college student development, regulatory compliance and crisis response. Until her retirement in 2010, Linda was the Associate Vice President and Dean of Students for George Washington University. At George Washington University she initiated the first services for students with disabilities at a time when new laws required all college campuses to become accessible.
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Throughout her career, Linda has been active in national and regional professional organizations. In Santa Fe, she helped establish the Mentor to Market Program of the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market and serves on the Board of Directors of the Santa Fe Botanical Garden. She and her husband reside in Santa Fe full time.
Gloria Zamora
Gloria retired after 31 years at Sandia National Laboratories, where she was a manager in the Government Affairs Office. She is a member of the Special Libraries Association, and the Grants Administrator of the New Mexico Library Foundation where she is a board member and serves as chair of the Academic Advisory Committee (AAC).
When she is not working, Gloria enjoys cooking and indulges her passion for movies and classical music. She lives with her husband Bob in Santa Fe, NM.
J. Revell Carr
Revell in enjoying retirement after a 31-year career at Mystic Seaport, the Museum of America and the Sea, where he was Chief Curator for eight years and the museum’s Director and President for 23 years. During his tenure he served as President of both the Council of American Maritime Museums and the International Congress of Maritime Museum. Since then he has written three books, and lectures at sea for Road Scholar and Holland America Lines.
He lives in Santa Fe where he has helped establish the Women’s International Study Center at Acequia Madre House™. He serves as a trustee of Santa Fe Pro Musica, and Veterans Helping Homeless Veterans.
Marilyn Mason, Ph.D.
Marilyn is an author, speaker and management consultant. An organizational psychologist, Marilyn specializes in executive leadership development and change management. A Dean with the Family Office Exchange Learning Academy and former faculty member of the University of Minnesota where she received her PhD, Marilyn is a consultant to corporations, foundations and families. Marilyn has been a dynamic presence in Santa Fe playing a leading role in numerous non-profit organizations and contributing significantly to her community.
Janet McKay
Janet L. McKay is a Santa Fe attorney with three decades of professional and volunteer service to the community. For many years she had her own firm, and is now a partner in the Sommer Udall Sutin Law Firm. Her legal focus is on estate planning, real estate transactions and business and commercial transactions. Janet’s service has benefitted many cultural and educational institutions in Santa Fe. These include the International Folk Art Museum, the School for Advanced Research, Santa Fe Preparatory School, and the Lensic Performing Arts Center as well as being a founder of the Women’s International Study Center.
Helen Ribe, Ph.D.
Helena is an international development economist and a retired senior executive from the World Bank. She holds a Masters and a Ph.D. in Economics from Yale University. She has co-authored a book and is a frequent speaker. Helena is passionate for economic development, social justice and folk art. In addition to being a Founder and Board member of the Women’s International Study Center, she is a Board member of GoPhilantropic and the Washington Office for Latin American Human Rights (WOLA), and of the Program Committee of the Santa Fe Community Foundation, and a mentor to folk artists and young professionals.
Maria (Bunny) Huffman
Bunny grew up living abroad. She studied at the Sorbonne and graduated from Georgetown University in Languages and Linguistics. Her illustrations have been exhibited at the NM Museum of Art. For 16 years, her murals and design work were part of the changing exhibits at the living history museum, El Rancho de las Golondrinas. She has written cultural history books for children for the Museum of New Mexico Press, and created illustrations for Pomegranate and the Huntington Library Press. Her “Day of the Dead” designs for Pomegranate Press appear in books, cards, on fabric and are sold internationally.
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She has resided in New Mexico since 1973, living in Alamogordo before coming to Santa Fe in 1985.