Board of Trustees

Meet our Board

Heifer Foundation’s nine member Board of Trustees is a forward thinking dynamic group of professionals from diverse backgrounds in the business, agriculture, academic and private sectors. Sustaining the mission of Heifer Foundation to support Heifer International’s work, they are strong advocates and share their knowledge and skills in investments, finance, estate planning, fundraising, setting strategic direction and institutional management. They are passionate stewards of the funds entrusted to Heifer Foundation, seeking to protect those funds and find innovative ways to grow the endowments while fulfilling the Foundation’s mission.

Martha Brantley

Heifer Foundation Board of Trustees – Chair

Martha is the Director of Strategic Partnerships for Kiva, an international nonprofit with a mission to expand financial access to help underserved communities thrive.

Previously, Martha was the Director of Strategic Partnerships for Shared Interest, a non-profit social investment fund providing loan guarantees in Southern Africa. Before that, she was the Director of Strategy and Business Development for the Clinton Development Initiative, an initiative of the Clinton Foundation that develops inclusive agribusinesses and provides training and market access to smallholder farmers. She also spent five years on the Special Situations and Arbitrage desk at D.E. Shaw & Co., investing in health care and consumer goods companies. She has also worked as an associate at Deutsche Bank and a consultant at McKinsey & Co. She holds a BA, cum laude, in History from Yale University. Martha is a native of Little Rock but has lived in New York City for the last 16 years; hence, she considers herself a “New Yorker.”

She has served on the Heifer Foundation Board of Trustees since 2016.

Sarah Alexander

Heifer Foundation Board of Trustees – Vice Chair

Sarah Alexander is a recognized authority on private and impact investment in emerging and frontier markets, with over two decades of work in this area in the public, non-profit and private sectors. She currently serves as Investment Committee Chair and Senior Managing Director for Investments at the Global Innovation Fund, a pioneering evidence-driven, impact-first investment vehicle focusing on the world’s poorest.

Her prior work has included advising institutional investors and fund managers on the design and development of their private capital strategies in emerging and frontier markets. She has been a direct long-term investor in the developing markets of Asia and served as a Managing Director at The Abraaj Group, a leading investor in emerging markets.

Sarah was the Founding CEO of the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association (EMPEA), leading the organization from 2004-2013. Earlier in her career, she worked in private sector development at the World Bank Group and in international economic and development policy at the US Department of State and in the US Congress.

Ms. Alexander holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, an MPA from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University and a BA, summa cum laude, from Emory University.

She has served on the Heifer Foundation Board of Trustees since 2019.

Elizabeth Bawden

Heifer Foundation Board of Trustees – Secretary

Elizabeth is a partner in the private client and tax team at WithersWorldwide. She focuses her efforts on estate planning, planned giving and tax-exempt organizations. Elizabeth represents clients in matters related to family wealth transfers for large estates, sophisticated estate and gift tax saving techniques, charitable planned giving, and complex probate and trust administrations. She also regularly represents tax-exempt organizations in formation, organizational and operational issues.

Elizabeth is certified by the California Board of Legal Specialization as a legal specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law and a fellow in the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC).

Elizabeth is a graduate of Wheaton College (IL) and the UCLA School of Law where she served as Executive Editor of the UCLA Law Review. After law school, she clerked for Judge Wiley Y. Daniel of the Federal District Court in Colorado. Elizabeth is currently adjunct faculty at the UCLA School of Law teaching Estate and Gift Tax.

She has served on the Heifer Foundation Board of Trustees since 2017.

Susan Grant

Heifer Project International – Executive Committee

Member & Voting Liaison for Heifer International Foundation

Susan is an At-Large director for Heifer International. She is currently serving as Former Chair of the Heifer International Board and as the Voting Representative for Heifer International Foundation.

Susan brings her down-to-earth personality, values-driven strategy, and kindness to organizational leadership. She cuts through bureaucratic obstacles with focus, humor and collaboration. Susan relishes her current role as non-profit Board leader, community activist and mentor coach. She recently retired from CNN, where she led a portfolio of global digital and affiliate businesses as Executive Vice President, CNN News Services. During her tenure, CNN Digital became the Internet’s leading news destination globally across myriad online and mobile platforms. Her portfolio of businesses included CNN Digital, CNNMoney, CNN Newsource Sales, CNN ImageSource, the CNN Library, CNN Student News and CNN Business Operations. CNN’s affiliate businesses built exceptional, sustainable collaborations with their broadcast, radio and licensing partners.

For her leadership in off-air management, the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation honored her with its First Amendment Service Award in 2008. In 2013, Grant received Womenetics’ POW! Award, celebrating her for stirring the status quo with excellence in leadership, and she received New Trier High School’s 2013 Alumni Achievement Award, joining her high school’s “Hall of Honor”.

Grant serves as Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Morehouse School of Medicine; and Chair of Agnes Scott College’s Board of Visitors. She continues to lend her voice to raise awareness about race relations on the Board of Directors of Leadership Atlanta, the oldest sustained community leadership program in the nation. She is also a member of the CHRIS Kids Advisory Board and the Grady Ambassador Force. She is a graduate of Vassar College.

Stephanie Buckley

Stephanie Buckley serves as senior vice president and senior regional fiduciary manager of Philanthropic Services within The Private Bank. Wells Fargo Philanthropic Services helps charitable individuals, families, and nonprofit organizations work toward their unique goals by providing specialized advisory services. Ms. Buckley leads a team of experienced specialists that provides philanthropic advice to Wells Fargo clients throughout the Southwest and California Regions. She is responsible for enhancing our philanthropic offering to clients, helping her team deliver exceptional client service, and managing risk within her region.

Prior to joining Wells Fargo, Ms. Buckley worked at Pepperdine University for over 10 years as an associate vice chancellor of the Center for Estate and Gift Planning. There she worked with current and prospective donors to structure gifts in the most tax efficient manner, including identifying and creating estate and financial planning tools specific to each donor’s needs. Also, while serving as an associate vice chancellor at the law school she raised major gifts, managed the school’s board of visitors, and taught as an adjunct faculty member. Ms. Buckley has worked in philanthropy for more than 20 years.

Ms. Buckley earned a BA degree in Economics with high honors from the University of California, Santa Barbara, a JD with a specialization in business law from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, and a LLM in taxation with honors from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. Ms. Buckley is a member of the State Bar of California, on the editorial board for Planned Giving Today, a former and current Trustee for Heifer Foundation and a past president for both the Los Angeles Council for Charitable Gift Planners and the Planned Giving Council of Ventura County. She serves on the faculty of the American Institute for Philanthropic Studies and formerly taught at UCLA Extension. Ms. Buckley is a former college gymnast. She has served on the Heifer Foundation Board of Trustees since 2020.

Stephen Butler

Stephen Butler is the Chief Development Officer for Fund for Teachers. Previously, he was the Assistant Dean for Advancement and External Relations at Oklahoma City University School of Law. Stephen also worked at Pepperdine University School of Law where he directed the annual giving program, the Law Associates. Prior to this, Stephen served as a grant writer and community organizer with the Industrial Areas Foundation in Los Angeles and Dallas, TX.

In Los Angeles, Stephen was active in mentoring programs and coordinated the Omega Educational Foundation’s Youth Leadership Conference. He also developed a Street Law Academy to educate young men of their 4th, 5th and 6th Amendment rights and how to interact with police. Since coming to Oklahoma City, he has joined the boards of directors of Cristo Rey OKC and the Oklahoma Association of Charitable Gift Planners and the Advisory Board for the Foundation for Oklahoma City Public Schools, as well as serving on the YMCA Downtown Branch Advisory Council, Oklahoma Contemporary Art for Every 5th Grader Committee, and Cookie Manager for Girl Scouts Troop 1184.

Stephen grew up in Tulsa, OK, and attended the University of Oklahoma for undergraduate and law school. He is married to Gabrielle, and they have a daughter, Ruby, and a son, Toussaint. He has served on the Heifer Foundation Board of Trustees since 2020.

Teresa Dunbar

Teresa Dunbar is the Director of Finance and Investments at Kalliopeia Foundation, a foundation whose work is rooted in the understanding that ecological, cultural, and spiritual renewal are interdependent. She is responsible for financial oversight and management of its endowment which is nearly 100% values aligned. She also conducts investment research on highly mission-aligned investment opportunities.

Prior to working at Kalliopeia Foundation, Teresa was the Director of Impact Investing at Manchester Capital Management, a Registered Investment Advisor and family office where she was responsible for developing and managing a platform of funds and direct investments focused on environmental, social, and governance risks, opportunities, and capabilities across asset classes.

Teresa has over fifteen years of experience working in international development, microfinance, and philanthropy with the Hewlett Foundation, Kiva.org, Oikocredit, and the Christensen Fund. Her subject matter experience has focused on regenerative agriculture, biological and cultural diversity, indigenous rights, and economic empowerment for under-represented & under-served communities.

Teresa holds an M.B.A. from the University of California, Davis and a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology and Sociology from Saint Mary’s College of CA.

Alex Tee

Alex is a partner at Beneficial Returns, a debt fund that invests in companies in Southeast Asia and Latin America reducing poverty. In his work, he gets to help the rich invest with both the head and the heart, in a way that benefits the poor.

Prior to joining Beneficial Returns, Alex spent 15 years in the financial markets, last as Managing Director of the Bank of America. He is an avid student of ecology and soil health and hopes to combine his knowledge of finance with an understanding of ecology to influence the way capital is directed. He holds a Bachelor of Accountancy (Second class Upper honours) from the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

Alex is a father to 3 children, and he considers fatherhood a true privilege. Alex has been married to Channy for 14 years and together, they hope to raise children who will be a blessing to others wherever they are. The family loves to take walks together.

Elizabeth Weindruch

Elizabeth Weindruch is a Managing Director of Barings Alternative Investments. She is responsible for originating and underwriting private equity funds and co-investments in North American and Latin America. She has also spent time managing the European private equity portfolio.

Prior to joining Barings, she was with the Wells Fargo Investment Institute where she led the strategy, due diligence, implementation and support efforts for private equity and private real estate products across the alternative investments platform. She also held various due diligence and client-facing roles with Citi Private Bank, Brooke Private Equity Associates, and Investor Group Services. Prior to entering the realm of financial services, she also worked in lobbying and public policy. Elizabeth holds a BA in Political Science from Davidson College. A native of Little Rock, AR, Elizabeth has spent multi-year stints in Washington, DC and Boston, MA. Today, she calls Charlotte, NC home.

She has served on the Board of Trustees since 2017.

Alberto Irezabal

Non-Voting Liaison from Heifer International

Alberto Irezabal is the director of the International Investigation Center of Social and Solidarity Economics (CIIESS) of the Universidad Iberoamericana (Ibero) at Mexico City, specializing in financing, capacity building and multi stake holder strategies for social enterprises. He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City, a master’s in business administration of social economy from Mondragon Unibersitatea in Spain and a PhD in advanced organizations of social economy from the same university.

Since 2007 he has worked alongside tseltal indigenous communities in the norther jungle of Chiapas, México in the promotion of inclusive development alternatives for the organic coffee, honey, personal care and finance value chains. He serves in both national and international academic, editorial and business boards and committees.

Trustees Emeriti

  • Stephanie Buckley
  • Miller Davis
  • Richard Eyre
  • Don Hammond
  • Patty Jischke
  • Craig Leventon
  • Ron McLean
  • Roger Natzke
  • C. Douglas Smith
  • Ken Steiner
  • Norm Doll
  • Allen Berry
  • Joan G. Cleveland
  • Lionel Derencourt
  • Susan Eyre
  • James Howell
  • Carol Keeling
  • Bayard Livingston
  • Dr. Barrie O’ Bannon
  • Cecilia Stallcop
  • Charles Stewart
  • Trevor Tomkins
  • Gwen Morgan
  • Doug Nunn
  • Gary Cooper
  • William Eykamp
  • Dr. Marion Hammarlund
  • Jane Jennings
  • Rev. Mark Lancaster
  • Jo Luck
  • Jewell Murphy
  • Fred Stallcop
  • Lowell Watts
  • Arlene Withers
  • George Petty
  • Tom Nickell
  • Trustees Emeriti In Memoria

    • Bill Appelgate
    • Dorothy Appelgate
    • Joan Brandt
    • Dr. E.R. Henning
    • Dee Bennet Lewis
    • Mahlon Martin
    • Dr. Ronald Stenning
    • Ursula Bartel
    • Dr. Tom Bruce
    • Richard C. Butler
    • Carole Hillard
    • Walter Lewis
    • Steve Mondora
    • Charles Taylor
    • Willard Bartel
    • Dan Clifton
    • Majorie Kreager
    • Marvel Lund
    • Charles Postel
    • Gloria Postel
    • Dr. Randolph Murphy