Meet the Board of Directors of American Wild Horse Conservation
The American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) is proud to introduce its Board of Directors. These dedicated individuals bring a wealth of experience and passion to the organization, advocating for the humane treatment and protection of wild horses and burros across the United States.
Eleanor Phipps Price, President
As the owner of a Sonoma County winery and a 2,000-acre Northern California wild horse sanctuary with more than 200 rescued mustangs and burros, Ellie brings to the Board of Directors business management experience and an extensive knowledge of the issues and challenges of wild horse advocacy and management. Ellie has been a key supporter of the American Wild Horse Conservation for more than six years and is a leader in numerous other charitable and political causes.
Stephanie Zill, Treasurer
Stephanie Zill is a Certified Public Accountant and business manager located in Southern California. She has over 30 years' experience in accounting in a variety of fields including entertainment, law, and logistics. Since 2010, Stephanie has had her own practice with a focus on small to mid-sized non-profit organizations. She has been active on a variety of non-profit boards including Step Up Women's Network, Full Disclosure in Media, and the Center for Biological Diversity.
Suzanne Roy, Secretary
Suzanne brings to the Board over 25 years of political, public affairs, and animal welfare advocacy. She has worked as a press secretary for local and national political campaigns, a public affairs specialist for a Fortune 500 company, and Director of Communications and Programs for two non-profit animal welfare organizations. From 2008-2014, she served as a member of the Orange County, North Carolina Animal Services Advisory Board, and is currently a board member for the California-based Gray Whale Coalition and an advisor to Montgomery Creek Ranch, a private wild horse sanctuary in northern California. Since 2010, she has worked as the Director of the American Wild Horse Conservation.
William M. Hake, Director
Bill Hake is the regional managing partner of the San Francisco office of Wilson Elser. He is a litigation attorney with national trial counsel, mediation, and litigation management experience. For more than 25 years, Bill has taught and lectured at Harvard University School of Law and Stanford University School of Law on trial advocacy and on trial practice, evidence, civil litigation, and mediation for the California State Bar Continuing Education Program and for the University of San Francisco School of Law. Bill also taught alternative dispute resolution and mediation for the U.S. Department of Justice and in the federal practice program for the federal court in Northern California. Bill’s legal expertise and negotiating skills are strong contributions to the Board and the work of the American Wild Horse Conservation.
Deniz Bolbol, Director
Deniz brings more than 25 years of public relations, media, and public policy experience to the Board. She has more than 10 years of corporate public relations and media experience. Her work at Ketchum Public Relations in New York and Washington DC included corporate branding and strategic media outreach for major corporations. In addition, she worked for high-tech start-up companies and Silicon Valley giants on a variety of media and analyst relations programs. Prior to entering public relations, Deniz worked for the CBS affiliate in San Francisco where she won a regional Emmy Award and she worked in the newsroom at the Fox affiliate in Salinas, California where she founded a gang football nonprofit to help young gang members turn away from violence. For the past 15 years, Deniz has primarily worked on animal welfare programs ranging from public education to legislative policy work. She is presently Director of Field Operations for the American Wild Horse Conservation.
Neda DeMayo
Neda DeMayo, founder and CEO of Return to Freedom, is an expert in wild horse advocacy and management. In 2004, Neda founded the American Wild Horse Conservation, which has operated as a project of Return to Freedom since that date. Since 1997, Neda has led Return to Freedom’s advocacy, public education, and conservation efforts, as well as its operations in managing and caring for more than 400 wild horses at its sanctuaries in coastal central California. Neda is a lifelong equestrian and nationally recognized horsemanship expert. Prior to founding Return to Freedom, she worked in the film industry as a stylist and in costume design.
Virginie Parant
Virginie L. Parant is a transactional attorney whose practice encompasses all aspects of the entertainment and tech industries, including content and technology licensing, intellectual property management, joint ventures, and other business transactions. In addition to her law practice, Virginie is actively involved with wild horse protection issues. She is pro-bono counsel for Return to Freedom and is a co-founder of the American Wild Horse Conservation, for which she built a coalition of national organizations representing over 10 million supporters.