Our Board
Compassionate Leaders Guiding the Shelter Forward
The members of the Board of Directors of Noah’s Ark Animal Foundation each contribute a uniquely valuable set of skills and taken together they create a whole that is definitely “more than the sum of its parts.” Even more importantly, they are a cooperative team with a good sense of humor and they like to have fun!
David Sykes
David Sykes, one of the original founders of Noah’s Ark Animal Foundation, is a lawyer and businessman, and is currently the chairman of the Noah’s Ark board. David is also an Iowa Attorney with offices in Fairfield, Iowa. David’s vision of Noah’s Ark and his long dedication to its mission continue to provide guidance to the Foundation.
Ken Ross
Ken Ross is President of Triverant, LLC, a partnership with AEA Investors that is focused on the food safety industry. From 2006 to 2017, Ken served as CEO of FoodChain ID, a provider of food safety testing and certification services to the global food and agriculture industries. FoodChain ID developed The Non-GMO Project.
Ken has been active in the entrepreneurial community in Fairfield and was a founder, in 1989, of the Fairfield Entrepreneur’s Association. He is currently on the Board of the Fairfield Arts and Convention Center and FEDA (the Fairfield Economic Development Association).
Ken resides in Fairfield with his wife, Sheila, and two daughters, Taylor and Julia. He enjoys golf, pickleball, skiing, and going to Iowa Hawkeye football and basketball games. The entire Ross family are great animal lovers having had dogs, cats, cockatoos, hamsters, fish, parakeets, and more over the years. He is proud to help Noah’s Ark continue its great tradition of serving the Southeast Iowa animal community.
Dr. Richard Sarnat
Dr. Richard Sarnat is Alternative Medicine Integration Group’s (AMI) co-founder and Chief Medical Officer. AMI is a national leader in developing medical management strategies, which measure the clinical and cost outcomes of utilizing complementary/alternative medicine when integrated with conventional medicine in a managed care setting. Dr. Sarnat has been a member of the Board of Directors of New Chapter, Inc. from 1993 – 2011 and has been a trustee of the National University of Health Sciences from 2001 – 2010.
Starting out as a volunteer walking the larger dogs since 2004, Richard joined the board to give support to a cause he is passionate about – the saving of innocent lives.
Terrance Smith
Terry’s background includes the field of both commercial and corporate real estate. He worked for several years with the real estate division of the Marriott Corporation. He also was a Vice President of a Washington, DC real estate syndication company, and held a Series 22 Securities License as well as being a licensed Real Estate Broker. Terry functioned as the Portfolio Manager of a Mortgage Banker firm overseeing over $2 Billion dollars within the portfolio.
He later ‘retired’ from real estate and started a second career in the field of body work. He successfully completed the entire practical course work in Osteopathic Medicine, earned a Ph.D. in Manual Therapy and put that into practical use in assisting in the healing of tens of thousands of treatments over his 23 years as a body worker practicing in Fairfield, Iowa.
Terry is now retired, but his real estate karma has caught back up with him, and he now serves as a director and officer in over six homeowner’s associations. Together with his wife, Eva, he is an animal lover and dedicated to making the world a better place, one stray cat – or dog – at a time.
Jill Hebert
Jill Hebert and her daughter Solstice moved to Fairfield in 2010 from Fairbanks, AK. Since then Jill has adopted two cats from Noah’s Ark and blended them into part of her family. Jill currently serves the Noah’s Ark Foundation board as Treasurer. Her years of work experience for a CPA and more currently as an Accounting Associate for Cambridge Investment Research, Inc. lend her the skill involved in her role as Treasurer. You’ll find Jill & Solstice hiking the Jefferson County trails with their dog Izzy and regularly bonding with all the rescues at Noah’s Ark.
Shane Zisman
I completed my law degree from Vermont Law School and hold an undergraduate degree in Business Management.
I have participated in numerous grassroots campaigns including EarthOpenSource and the American Heart Association to benefit underrepresented communities domestically and internationally, engaging with people of various socio-economic backgrounds. My own experience growing up in a low-income family serves as ongoing motivation to advocate for clients in need of financial advocacy and planning.
In my spare time, I enjoy playing sports, rooting for the Hawkeyes, and outdoor adventures with my dog, Rufus.
Emeritus Status
Janet Mullen
Janet Mullen joined Noah’s Ark in 2000. She has served as the Foundation’s Executive Director, Board President, Treasurer and Director of CCSNAP, Noah’s Ark’s Caring Community Spay Neuter Assistance Program. Janet continues to support Noah’s Ark in various capacities, particularly spay neuter initiatives and fiscal management.
Diane Bolte-Silverman
Diane Bolte-Silverman started volunteering at Noah’s Ark in 1991 and was board president from 2000-2006. Diane performed a variety of tasks at the shelter, but her favorite activity was simply spending time with the cats and dogs. Diane, Jay, their four cats and two dogs now live in Oregon, and her primary contribution to Noah’s Ark is supporting the on-going work of this exceptional shelter.
Carol Kline
Carol Kline is a freelance writer and editor and the co-author of five books in the bestselling Chicken Soup for the Soul® series, including Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover’s Soul and Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover’s Soul released in 2005. She and her husband Larry were very involved in the design and construction of the new shelter, but right after the shelter was completed, they moved to Ojai, California. Now that she no longer lives in Fairfield, her main duties at Noah’s Ark, according to the volunteer list, are working on shelter newsletters, answering shelter design questions and providing “good vibes.”
Karen Joost
Karen Joost is vice president of a local architecture firm and an occasional artist. She helps the shelter by going to adoption day events and has given tours of the shelter facility highlighting it’s special features.