The board members of Patronato San Xavier

Fr. Gregory P. Adolf is a priest of the Diocese of Tucson and represents Bishop Kicanas on the Board of Directors. He is pastor of St. Andrew the Apostle Catholic Church in Sierra Vista, Ariz., and has been a member of the Board for 15 years.

Chuck Albanese FAIA, a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, accepted a teaching position at the University of Arizona in 1967 and eventually became Dean of the College of Architecture & Landscape Architecture until his retirement in 2008. While pursuing his academic career, he also practiced architecture, primarily in the firm of Albanese Brooks Architects AIA and now practices as a sole practitioner. He has had major responsibility for 275 built projects in Southern Arizona. He has served on more than 20 community boards and remains active at the University of Arizona. Chuck is also a watercolor artist and teaches travel painting on organized trips to Europe.

Kristin Almquist, a second generation Tucsonan, is passionate about her community. She is currently a member of the Arizona Public Media Advisory Board and the Tucson City Parks Commission. In the past, she served on the boards of the Pima Council on Aging Foundation and the Metropolitan Tucson Convention and Visitors Bureau. Prior to her two-year stint from 2007-2009 as director of the Southern Arizona Office for the Governor, she led Community Development for Habitat for Humanity in Tucson. She was named a "Woman on the Move" in 2007 and is the 2010 recipient of the Ann Eve Johnson Award for community service, given by the Junior League of Tucson. Also in 2010, she was honored by Interfaith Community Services with the Director's Award for outstanding volunteer recognition.

Fr. Stephen Barnufsky is an ex oficio member of the board and is pastor of San Xavier Mission. He has been a Franciscan priest since 1976, and has experience in pastoral and administrative ministries.

Laura Brown and her husband, Arch, arrived in Tucson soon after their marriage and have been contributing members to the Tucson community for more than 25 years. Laura has been intimately involved with both the Nature Conservancy and the Humane Society. She is immediate past president of the board of the Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

David Carter came to Tucson in 1959. He studied at the University of Arizona and at Oxford. He has been a reporter, editor and columnist and since 1983 has built and renovated homes in the Barrio Libre.

Dawn Cole, an award-winning Television Producer whose programs aired nationally on PBS, is a longtime Tucson resident and has served on numerous community boards.

Natalie Davis came to Tucson to attend the University of Arizona. "At age 19, I borrowed a bicycle and rode out to see San Xavier Mission and fell in love, never dreaming that I would eventually be part of its resurrection." She has been on the board since 1991 and served as treasurer until 2006. She recorded Patronato's finances through some very lean times. In 2007, she was named treasurer emeritus.

Patty Doerr was born in Tucson and has been a community volunteer for the past 35 years. She is the founder/director of the Summer Fine Arts Program for children. She graduated from De Pauw University with a bachelor's degree and from Northern Arizona University with a master's in Education.

Lorraine Drachman, native Arizonan, devoted member of the Patronato; and, for more than 12 years, director of fundraising for the preservation of Mission San Xavier.

Ann B. Fallon has a bachelor's degree magna cum laude in Fine Arts from Milwaukee-Downer College. She also studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She's a primary sponsor of the San Xavier Christmas Concerts.

Elizabeth Firkins, a community volunteer for Habitat for Humanity and the Community Food Bank as well as the Mission, is a fifth generation Tucsonan. Her great grandfather was a well-known carpenter who spent many years doing work at the Mission. The small side doors are examples of his work.

Bernard L. Fontana, Ph.D., Patronato board secretary emeritus, is a former ethnologist in the Arizona State Museum who retired in 1992 as Field Representative in the University of Arizona Library. He is one of the founders of the Patronato San Xavier.

Fred Frelinghuysen has lived in Tucson for more than 20 years. He has served on the boards of the Tucson Botanical Gardens, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and the University of Arizona Library.

Folklorist Jim Griffith spent his professional life studying the traditional art forms of this border country. He is the author of several books and for many years had a weekly spot on KUAT-TV. He is cofounder of the well-known local "Tucson Meet Yourself" festival.

Kathy Hard is a second-generation Arizonan, born in Ft. Defiance. She is the fourth generation of her family to live in Arizona. A long-time volunteer, she has served on the state board of the Arizona Historical Society and the board of St. Luke's in the Desert.

Michael McNulty was born in Tucson, but moved to Bisbee shortly thereafter. After 12 years in Bisbee public schools, he attended Yale University, and then received his law degree from the University of Arizona. He worked in Washington for Rep. Morris K. Udall and then returned to Tucson in 1981 to run the Southern Arizona office of the Arizona Department of Water Resources. Currently at Lewis & Roca, L.L.P., his law practice has focussed on water and water utility law, and in intellectual property. Michael has served on the boards of a number of local organizations including the Tucson Pima Arts Council and the Center for Software Excellence. He is an avid nature photographer, and an amateur botanist who has studied Japanese gardening at the Kyoto College of Art and Design..

Barbara Peck has lived in Tucson for more than 30 years. A graduate of the University of Arizona, she is a public relations consultant, and a founder of LP&G, a marketing, advertising and public relations agency. Named Tucson Chamber of Commerce 2000 Woman of the Year, she has served on the boards of numerous local charities and organizations that include the University of Arizona Alumni Association's National Board of Directors, Salpointe Catholic High School, the Volunteer Center of Southern Arizona and the Tucson chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

Patricia O'Rielly Pettis, an eighth generation Tucsonan, graduated from Tucson Senior High School and the University of Arizona. Among her interests are SAAF (Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation), Tohono Chul Park, The Nature Conservancy, Southern Arizona Humane Society, Handi-Dogs and the Empire Ranch Foundation.

Jim Pyers, Patronato board president, is a nearly sixty-year resident of Tucson and retired Vice President from Tucson Electric Power Company with a long history of community service. Past volunteer efforts include roles with The Pima Council on Aging, Big Brothers, Big Sisters, United Way of Tucson, Habitat for Humanity, The Beacon Foundation, The Community Food Bank, and Tucson Electric Power Company Community Action Team and many other groups in the Tucson region. Jim's hobbies include golf, motorcycle riding and leadership mentoring for young men and women with senior executive management goals.

Jeffrey L. Willis , a partner in the law firm of Snell & Wilmer LLP, received his bachelor's degree from Northern Arizona University and graduated cum laude from Washington & Lee University School of Law. His practice is concentrated in complex commercial litigation, environmental law and intellectual property and technology. He was named 2009 Best Lawyer of the Year in The Best Lawyers in America. He has been an active board member for COPE Community Services and the Northern Arizona University Foundation.

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