Board of Trustees

Elizabeth (Liz) Gates (Philadelphia Yearly Meeting and New England Yearly Meeting) has a wide background of Quaker service over 45 years.  She has served a Clerk of Lancaster Monthly Meeting in Pennsylvania and was active in Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC) for over 25 years, serving on the Executive Committee of the Section of the Americas, as Assistant Clerk on the Central Executive Committee for the World and as co-clerk of the planning committee for the World Gathering of Friends held in 2012 in Kabarak, Kenya.  She and her husband Tom worked at Friends Lugulu Hospital in Western Kenya for three years and in Lisungwi, Malawi for a year and a half.  Now retired from conservation work at a seminary library, Liz has a love of gardening, bookbinding and paper marbling.

Marian Beane (Piedmont Friends Fellowship and Yearly Meeting) has served as a Quaker volunteer internationally in Ramallah (1968-1970) and Kenya (1970). She has also held many positions of leadership in Quaker organizations, including Friends World Committee for Consultation and as Clerk of Central Committee for Friends General Conference. From 1976-2015 she taught international education with international students. 

Tom Gates (Philadelphia Yearly Meeting) has spent his career as a family doctor and medical educator, bookended by two stints of medical work in rural Africa: 1991-94, at Friends Lugulu Hospital in Kenya, with Friends United Meeting; and 2015-17, at Lisungwi Community Hospital in Malawi, with Boston-based Partners in Health. He is a member of Lancaster Friends Monthly Meeting, and has authored five Pendle Hill Pamphlets (319, 341, 371, 422, and 435). In his retirement, he works 3 days a week at our the Community Health Center in Lancaster, PA (dubbed by the BBC as “Americas Refugee Capital”) taking care of many refugees and immigrants.

Phil Goodchild (Western Yearly Meeting) lives in Zionsville, Indiana.  He grew up in various developing nations as the son of a U.S. Foreign Service officer, and spent his career as a commercial real estate lawyer.  He is a member of Indianapolis First Friends Monthly Meeting, and is active as an advocate with Friends Committee on National Legislation, and on the state level with Indiana Friends Committee on Legislation.  He is privileged to serve RSWR, furthering a collaboration with women's groups in other countries that promotes both self-determination for them and a deeper understanding of what "enough" is for us.

Spence retired after serving in the financial services industry for 40 years as a sales leader and commercial lender to public and private companies across many industries.  A graduate of Guilford College, he has served on many not-for-profit Boards including several that were Quaker related.  He and his wife live in Charlotte, NC.  He is drawn to the work RSWR does because of the dignity RS brings to women in societies where they have little to no standing as well as the thoughtful and efficient manner with which it deploys its resources.

Peggy Horner (New England Yearly Meeting) splits her time between Maine and Missouri, where she attends Quaker meetings in both places. Her experience as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Sierra Leone in the early 80s gives her a personal connection to the RSWR mission, and her travels to Mozambique on a medical mission in 2009 renewed her interest in staying involved in humanitarian work with underprivileged peoples. As a retired Executive Director of a non-profit conservation organization, she now enjoys and appreciates being on a board dedicated to training and supporting women in partnerships and ensuring the long term success of RSWR.

Carolyn Lejuste lives in Lansing, MI, with her wife, Joann Neuroth, and her standard poodle, Ginger Rogers. She has served Quakers in her local Meeting (Red Cedar Friends), in her Yearly Meeting (Lake Erie), at AFSC (Chicago Region), and at FGC (Central Committee - Ministry on Racism). At FGC she was deeply involved in the Institutional Assessment on Racism. Now retired from the Disability Rights Movement, she advocated over many years for people across a spectrum of disabilities. Her friendships with people with disabilities who lived creative and satisfying lives on a level 35% below poverty taught her viscerally about what constitutes "enough" and that lives free of abuse and filled with dignity, respect, and freedom are not only possible but sustainable. Carolyn is passionately committed to equality and justice for people across the globe.

Joe Magruder is a member of Berkeley Meeting in Pacific Yearly Meeting. He is a convinced Friend who is active in his Monthly, Quarterly, and Yearly Meetings. He is currently also on the Board of Trustees of the Ben Lomond Quaker Center. He is a social worker who works in a child welfare research center at the University of California, Berkeley.

Retha McCutchen is a member of Tigard (OR) Community Friends Church. During The past 50 years, she has served Friends as pastor, associate pastor, associate superintendent of Northwest Yearly Meeting, director of the Ramallah Friends Schools in Palestine, director of World Ministries, and general secretary of Friends United Meeting. In retirement, Retha responded to a request from Northwest Yearly Meeting to serve as interim superintendent, a position that lasted two+ years. She has a deep love and respect for the way Quakers express God's love and action throughout the world.

Currently, Retha is involved in Tigard (OR) Friends FoodShare. Once a month they provide food and household goods which recently looked like six bags of groceries to 168 families representing 750 people.

Becky Garris Perry has been a part of Western Yearly Meeting her whole life. Her involvement with Quakers includes camp director, camp counselor, YM committee member, Meeting treasurer/clerk, adult sponsor for Youth Cabinet, First Day teacher, and Quaker Haven board member. Her employment has been in the field of finance and her experience has ranged from healthcare to retail to public accounting and the nonprofit association field. A motivating quote from John Woolman is “conduct is more convincing than language”.

Beirne Roose-Snyder (Baltimore Yearly Meeting) lives in Takoma Park, MD. She is a human rights lawyer working at the intersections of U.S. foreign policy, HIV/AIDS, LGBTQI+ rights, and women’s health. She served at Quaker Cottage in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is a lifelong camper, counselor, and now parent at Farm & Wilderness Camps, and is deeply immersed in Quaker education, including as a graduate of Westtown School, Earlham College, and as a current Sandy Spring Friends School parent.

Bob Runyan is a member of Chico Friends Meeting in northern California. He served in the Peace Corps in Seychelles from 1983 to 1985 and then worked in the computer software industry. He served three years as the Executive Director of Sierra Friends Center and eight years as Co-Director (with wife Kathy) of Ben Lomond Quaker Center. Bob currently enjoys working as a piano technician.

John Reuthe is a member of the New England Yearly Meeting. John became a Quaker after working with his wife facilitating conversations between groups that were in conflict around the world. He has served as the Clerk of the Committee for Friends Camp in China, Maine. He enjoys mentoring young adults to become leaders in their communities and work life and critical succession planning for organizations who will need those young leaders.

Necia Quast is a retired Foreign Service Officer. She served in the U.S. State Department for 26+ years as an economics officer, with tours in Guyana, East Germany, Zambia, Kyrgyzstan, India, Ukraine, and Nigeria, her final tour being as Deputy Chief of Mission in Tajikistan. Necia coordinated U.S. foreign assistance in Ukraine and Tajikistan, including microcredit projects. She retired in 2011 to San Juan Island, Washington. In 2017 she did a five-month stint as a volunteer with the UN in Bangladesh doing internal earthquake preparedness.

Necia is a member of Lopez Islands Friends Meeting and the co-clerk of the San Juan Island worship group. Having served in several positions for Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting, she is currently Clerk of Ministry and Counsel. She has served on the Outreach and Visitation Committee for North Pacific Yearly Meeting and still manages the NPYM Facebook page. Necia attended Pacific Northwest Quaker Women’s Theology Conference several times and was on the initial 2020 planning committee.

Colin Saxton is a member of North Valley Friends in Newberg, OR. He and Janine are the parents of four grown children and two grandchildren. 

After working for Quaker organizations for most of his adult life, Colin now serves as the Everence Stewardship Theologian and Director of Church Relations. Through teaching, speaking, writing, and facilitation, he helps individuals, congregations, denominations, and non-profits reimagine approaches to generosity and faithful stewardship.

Colin has served the Quaker community as a pastor, adjunct professor, fundraiser, retreat leader/speaker, Yearly Meeting superintendent, and General Secretary of Friends United Meeting. He has had the privilege of serving as a board member for many organizations, including RSWR, and traveled the world visiting and teaching among Friends and others. Colin received his M.A. from Eastern Mennonite Seminary and D.Min. in leadership and spiritual formation from George Fox University/Seminary. He has written for several publications, including a handful of books through Friends United Press. 

Mico Sorrel (Whidbey Island Friends Meeting, North Pacific Yearly Meeting) has served Quakers in many capacities including as clerk of NPYM, Friends Association of Services for the Elderly, and as co-clerk of the Friends General Conference 2006 Gathering. A career in osteopathic medicine, with patient care devoted to chronically ill and developmentally disabled children, continues to offer professional leadership opportunities including international teaching.

Jackie Speicher, a recorded pastoral minister, received her M.Div. from Earlham School of Religion. Jackie is a member of member of West Richmond Friends and the New Association of Friends. She was Program Secretary for RSWR for 4 years, traveling among monthly and yearly meetings providing programs on simplicity and on global economic disparities and wrote a Right Sharing curriculum for First Day School children. She serves several leadership roles in her monthly meeting. She worked 20 years in community development in economically challenged communities in the U.S. and in Berlin, Germany, working with Native Americans and immigrants from Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Turkey. As Executive Director of a job skills training program for unemployed and underemployed women she helped start similar programs in 6 states and trained staff for startups in India and Tonga.

A recorded minister, Ruthie was raised in Northwest Yearly Meeting, and served in pastoral ministry in Iowa and Western Yearly Meetings of Friends.  Prior to this, Ruthie was an elementary music teacher and holds a master’s degree in Education/Creative Arts in Learning.  Ruthie prompted the experiential curriculum Quaker Affirmation – a Course of Study for Young Friends for middle school students needing to learn about Quaker history, faith, and practice. Ruthie writes, leads worship and study groups, and volunteers as the Children’s Program Coordinator at her local Library.

Brooks Shippen-How, formerly a member of Fresh Pond Monthly Meeting, Cambridge, MA, attended Friends Camp in China, Maine for many years.  She graduated from Guilford College and now resides in Greensboro, NC.  Working as an Epidemiologist within the Public Health sphere, Brooks has also partnered with many Quaker based national and international organizations helping build community capacity and housing/clinics. Brooks has a Graduate level background in monitoring and evaluation coupled with a passion for women, gender, and reproductive studies.  

Sally Weaver Sommer (Lake Erie Yearly Meeting) has a PhD in Economics with one focus being Economic Development. For the past 35 years she has worked as a faculty member and administrator at Bluffton University, a Mennonite university in Bluffton, Ohio. Sally also is co-owner of "The Food Store," a natural foods store in Bluffton, which opened in 1981. 

Diane Thistle Weinholtz is a member of Hartford Friends Meeting and New England Yearly Meeting. Throughout her career as a science educator and school administrator she has worked with students of all ages in Connecticut, Rwanda, Tennessee, Iowa, and North Carolina. During this time she facilitated Help Increase the Peace (HIPP) Workshops with students in the US and teachers in Rwanda. In addition Diane served in different Quaker capacities including clerk of Hartford Meeting, religious education teacher, member of Ministry & Counsel, and member of the NEYM Permanent Board. In retirement, she and her husband Donn enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren.