LogoAbout...Our Contributors, Friends, Supporters, and Volunteers
The Mary T. and Frank L. Hoffman Family Foundation

This section is an acknowledgement of the people who are an active part of the Mission and Purpose of our Foundation, and who wish to be included in this section.

If you would like to be included in this section, please submit a photo and comments about yourself and your activities.

Table of Contents

 
Susan Alexander

Susan Alexander - Duluth, Minnesota USA

My husband and I have been vegan since 2008. I couldn't have been successful without the help of many websites, including all-creatures.org. This website is a fabulous source of information and provides ample "food for thought." Frank and Mary Hoffman have given me a lot to "chew on" over the years. (Pun intended.) Seriously, I have spent hours on their website reading articles and downloading recipes. Thank you, to all, who have made the website possible.

Read more about Susan Alexander
Harold Brown

Harold Brown - Hector, New York, USA

Harold "Farmer" Brown was born and raised on a cattle farm in south central Michigan and spent over half his life in agriculture including three years in the dairy industry. Harold is featured in the Tribe of Heart documentary, Peaceable Kingdom, the Journey Home. His story is one of transformation from animal farmer to vegan animal advocate. He also works as an advocate for animal rights, sustainable independent family farms, environmental justice, social justice, and peace through non-violence. His web site is www.farmkind.org

Read more about Harold Brown
Maynard S. Clark

Maynard S. Clark - Cambridge, MA, USA

Age group: (seldom disclosed) - Here's my public claim (and it's true): "Vegan over half my natural life, longer than most human earthlings have been alive" (do a little calculation and 'go figure'). I founded the Boston Vegetarian Society (BVS) in the mid-1980s, where I began the now highly successful Boston Vegetarian Food Fair. Annually I attend the annual NAVS Vegetarian Summerfest, where I see Frank and Mary Hoffman almost every summer.

Read more about Maynard S. Clark
Bernard (Bernie) J. Coombs

Bernard (Bernie) J. Coombs - Australia

Born - July 24th 1925 in Somerset, right down the South of England. Both Parents were strict Wesleyans, Father being a lay (no pay, He was an engineer) Preacher. In 1947, I moved to Australia.  After losing many pets over a long lifetime, I decided to really research the Holy Bible to find out the truth about what happened to all these other creatures that died – whether beloved Pets – or abused/tortured other creatures. It took me over twenty years. You can read the result on: All Creatures Go To Heaven

Read more about Bernie Coombs
Alejandro G Cossio

Alejandro G Cossio - Queretaro, Mèxico

I share your love for God's creatures, but in a very special way with deer. That beautiful doe in the photo with me is Timber, and yes, if I seat or kneel she will slurp all my face. I bottle feed this doe when I rescued her as a baby, and she is 4 years old now, she is like one of my children, you can't imagine the kind of company, care and love that I have received from all my deer, they are the most extraordinary companions.

Read more about Alejandro Cossio
Jan Fredericks

Jan Fredericks - Wayne, New Jersey, USA

Jan Fredericks founded God's Creatures Ministry (GCM) in 2001 and she is currently Chairman of Catholic Concern for Animals in the USA (CCA-USA) since 2005. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Christian Educator. She graduated from the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary and believes that the Word of God has much to say about our treatment of God's animals. She produced the PowerPoint presentation "God Knows...Animals Matter" and directed and produced the DVD (which can be seen online), "Christian Concern For All God's Creatures" based on GCM's 2006 conference.

Read more about Jan Fredericks
Beryl Furman

Beryl Furman - Kauniainen, Finland

I am an artist and an animal activist from Finland. I found the enormously vast information bank in www.all-creatures.org when I was looking for photos about chicken slaughter for one of my exhibitions. I thought that so much important work had been done for helping poor animals by creating these web sites, that I felt I had to thank the people who did it. So I came to know Frank Hoffman and found closeness to his thinking in many ways. That is why I want to support his and Mary Hoffman's most important work with my own presence.  See some of Beryl's Artwork.

Read more about Beryl Furman
John Gilheany

John Gilheany - South Wales, UK

I became involved in Christian vegetarian campaigning in the early 1990s with a view to expanding the audience for insights which have been revealed in the handful of books by vegetarian clergy.

John is the author of: Familiar Strangers: The Church and the Vegetarian Movement in Britain (1809-2009).
He is also the contributor of the content of The Fellowship of Life.

Read more about John Gilheany
J. R. Hyland

J. R. 'Regina' Hyland - Sarasota, Florida USA (1933 - 2007)

J. R, Hyland was the founder of Humane Religion - Their mission statement follows: "HUMANE RELIGION is committed to developing materials that will nurture and support those who have been called to be part of the spiritual evolution that is manifesting itself among those who understand that love and compassion must be the hallmark of our relationship with all God's creatures." See: www.HumaneReligion.org or Humane Religion

Read more about J. R. Hyland
Deborah M. Jones

Deborah M. Jones - Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, UK

Deborah Jones has been working (part time) as General Secretary of Catholic Concern for Animals since 1999. She combines that with freelance journalism and has just completed a doctorate, the title of the thesis being ‘Can there be a Roman Catholic theology of animals?’ In addition to her work for animals, she indulges at times in her interests of painting, reading and making music.

Read more about Deborah Jones
Lisa Kemmerer

Lisa Kemmerer - Ocean Shores, WA
CEO, All-Creatures.org

Philosopher-activist, professor, and award-winning author of ten books (and more than one hundred articles), Lisa Kemmerer (PhD) is known internationally for her work in animal studies. Dr. Kemmerer’s areas of specialty include ethics, environmental justice, comparative religions, and intersectionality.

Read more about Lisa
Lance Landall

Lance Landall - Wellington, New Zealand

There's not a doubt in my mind that taking the life of any human or creature is a wrongful and abhorrent act; and that flesh food and dairy products are very injurious to our body. I therefore support Frank and Mary in their mission to educate people regarding: the abhorrentness of killing, and cruelty to either humans or creatures; the dangers of flesh food and dairy products. I also support their call for a world in which peace and unconditional love reign; and their call for a return to godly values, standards, principles and morals.

Read more about Lance Landall
Marcela Lopez

Marcela Lopez - Cairo, Egypt

I am originally from Venezuela and Argentina. I am a music teacher. I became vegetarian when I was 23 years old, I am 45 now. And I became vegan when I first visited the www.all-creatures.org web site and I found out about how bad dairy products can be.

Read more about Marcela Lopez
Suzana Margaret Megles

Suzana Margaret Megles - Lakewood, Ohio, USA

The year which I considered a "defining" one was 1975 when I got my first puppy, Peaches. She more than anyone or anything else changed my life and put me on a path I had never been on before and that was Animal Rights. She brought so much joy into my life that I began to delve into everything re the animals. I was much saddened by the cruelty I found practiced in research labs - much of it unnecessary and done in order to get lucrative grants. I was also unhappy finding out about how our animals were raised and slaughtered for food. In no time at all I became vegetarian and shortly thereafter vegan.
Read more about Suzana Margaret Megles
Jenny Moxham

Jenny Moxham - Monbulk, Victoria, Australia

Jenny Moxham is married, with four children, and has been a vegetarian since 1977 and a vegan since 1979. She became 'converted' to vegetarianism after being saddened to see a truck load of cattle bound for slaughter and shortly afterwards, discovering that meat wasn't required for a healthy diet.

Jenny is a prolific letter writer, several of which are on our web site, and a poet.  See: Poetry by Jenny Moxham

Read more about Jenny Moxham
Andrew Pell

Andrew Pell - Maroubra, New South Wales, Australia

"To be kind is to be courageous
To be great is to be compassionate
To have love and reverence for all life including animals wild and domestic is to fully understand the purpose and divine nature of God"

Andrew Pell contributes his inspiring poetry to our web site. Poetry by Andrew Pell

Read more about Andrew Pell
Arthur Poletti

Arthur Poletti - Western Springs, Illinois

I am a retired salesman that was persuaded by my daughter Nicole to stop eating meat in 1990. (That's Heidi and me in the photo.)

Since that time I have written numerous articles about the importance of animal welfare and specifically the mind boggling benefits that could be realized by the entire world if animal factory farms and slaughterhouses were all closed and animal flesh was removed from the food chain. A number of my articles and my book God Does Not Eat Meat have been published on the all creatures web site. *God Does Not Eat Meat* can be read for free online at: God Does Not Eat Meat
Read more about Arthur Poletti
David Prather

David Prather – Titusville, Pennsylvania, USA

David Prather resides in rural Titusville, PA, birthplace of the oil industry. He is a writer, teacher, film-maker, lecturer, and minister of the good news of the Kingdom. Along with his blessed wife Yvonne, they operate the Esme Noel King Wildlife Sanctuary, are restoring the ecological preserve: The Falls at Surprise Canyon, and preparing to train and develop teams of young and older Christians to create True Wildlife Sanctuaries around the world.

More info below and at http://www.creationscry.com. 

Read more about David Prather
Alexandra Raen

Alexandra Raen - Leicester, UK

Even though born into a vegetarian Christian family, it was a real shock for me at the age of 16 when my whole family turned into meat-eaters on the "health" advice and insistence of our family’s GP. I wanted to refrain from meat-eating for the sake of compassion towards animals. It was very confusing and frustrating. My desperate cry to the Lord was answered. I became a member of Kindness Unlimited at the age of 36 and through them I was introduced to Frank and Mary’s website. My son, Roy, and I have been vegan now since the end of 2003, and neither of us have been sick a single day since, which is an added bonus.

Read more about Alexandra Raen
M. Linda Steffey

M. Linda Steffey - Virginia, USA

ALL LIFE is Sacred to me. Life is a precious gift from our Creator, and if we didn't create it, we have no right to take it! We do not have the right to say what Life should live or die. All Life has a right to Be, and we can always learn something from all Life every day we ourselves live. God Bless all!  See: Poetry by M. Linda Steffey

Read More about M. Linda Steffey
Denise E. Stephens

Denise E. Stephens - Grainau, Germany

God gave me a gift.  He does not want me to just breathe air in and out. I am driven to use this gift of art.

There is no doubt in my mind what He wants me to do. To use my art to help all creatures. Animals, people, young and old, in the US and in other countries.

And I am finding my way there.

Thanks to Frank and Mary, a step in the right direction! See: Cartoons

Read more about Denise E. Stephens
Debra Stitt

Debra Stitt - North Olmsted, Ohio USA

What a privilege it is to be an active participant in Frank's and Mary's group! I know that they would agree with me when I say this is "your" group!

Debra Stitt has been a continual contributor of commentary, and stories since we began our web site ministry.

Read more about Debra Stitt
Veda Stram

Veda Stram - Camano Island, Washington, USA

In the spring of 1988 when she was 42, Veda saw a brochure about animals abused in drug addiction experiments. She went to a Last Chance for Animals meeting that night and has been an activist ever since. She went vegetarian within days and was vegan within months. She has volunteered with many animal rights grassroots organizations, worked for AnimalsVoice.com for many years and has been employed by all-creature.org since July 2008. She lives on stunningly gorgeous Camano Island, Washington with three perfect feline roommates.
Read more about Veda Stram
Yukari Sugisaka

Yukari Sugisaka - Japan

I was just an animal lover till I knew about the reality that animals are suffering for animal-testing, fur, food, etc in 1998.  I could not believe what human are doing to the animals when I saw the photos. I became vegetarian soon after when I knew about what was happening behind the scenes of the slaughterhouse, and I am now vegan. I launched my web site "Help Animals" and started transmitting the information about the animals suffering. My web site: http://www.helpanimals-japan.org

Read more about Yukari Sugisaka
James Thompson

James Thompson - Holywell, Flintshire, UK

In 1994 James Officially retired from a turbulent ministry within the church and, since then, gave himself wholeheartedly to The Cause. He has conducted retreats and conferences, protested at demos, held vigils, denounced bull fights, blest sanctuaries as far away as Assisi, Spain and Ireland and – not least – conducted funerals in remembrance of pets.  His web site is: Animal Padre's Christians Against All Animal Abuse

Read More about James Thompson
Tabitha Visco

Tabitha Visco - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania USA

My name is Tabitha Visco of Pittsburgh, Pa. I am deaf and was born in 1970. I grew up loving animals. I have a beautiful daughter named Camy Mae. We have 3 Jack Russell terriers. Flo, Cop and Lola.

When I got pregnant with Camy, I started to wonder why we have to eat animals, and looked at my dogs as they are my passion and my life. My life turned around because of them. They were my missing piece, because I was always confused about life, and I did not like the way people eat animals.

Read more about Tabitha Visco

Return to: The Mary T. and Frank L. Hoffman Family Foundation