Staff and Board of Directors : Berkeley Humane %

Leadership Team

Jeffrey Zerwekh

Executive Director

Berkeley-East Bay Humane Society is one of the oldest and most trusted animal welfare organizations in the country. As Executive Director, Jeffrey works tirelessly to continue and grow this legacy. In a short amount of time, he has assembled a talented and dedicated team of volunteers and employees who focus their energy on providing outstanding care to the people and pets. Together, with our Leadership Team and Board of Directors, we are making a significant and meaningful impact on the dogs and cats throughout the East Bay. Before joining Berkeley Humane, Jeffrey served for many years as the Chief Operating Officer for the American Red Cross Bay Area, which encompassed emergency, programmatic and fundraising operations in a 6 county jurisdiction. In addition to his work at the American Red Cross, Jeffrey’s background includes board development, volunteer recruitment, community organizing, and fundraising for the March of Dimes, and the American Heart Association. Jeffrey also currently serves as a member of the Berkeley Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. Jeffrey likes to say that he now has the best job in the world—and we agree with him!

Want to reach Jeffrey with your feedback? Send him a message.

Kristen Loomer

Director of Operations

Kristen joined Berkeley Humane as the Director of Operations in 2015. She has over 20 years of experience in animal welfare and a strong commitment to the Bay Area community, where she has lived her entire life. Prior to joining Berkeley Humane, she spent four years as the Division Manager of the animal shelter for the County of Napa and nearly 10 years at the Marin Humane Society in a variety of roles with increasing responsibility. Kristen has a strong focus on leadership, customer service, and dedication to animals and humane ethics. Kristen enjoys all the wonderful amenities the Bay Area has to offer — from the coast to the mountains — and she currently resides in wine country with her wife Sam, canine companion Dory, and feline friend Bunchy.

Emily Murphy

Director of development & communications

Emily Murphy began her work with Berkeley Humane in 2014 as a volunteer on Leadership Committee for Bark (& Meow) Around the Block and is now the Development and Communications Director. Prior to joining Berkeley Humane, Emily retired from the Berkeley Police Department after twenty-two years of service. Emily has always been committed to public service and the Berkeley community at large. Her role at Berkeley Humane combines two things that she is most enthusiastic about: saving the lives of shelter animals and finding new ways to engage and partner with the animal-loving community. She holds a Master in Fine Arts from San Francisco State University, a Bachelor of Arts and Humanities from Santa Clara University, and is a Sherman Block Supervisory Leadership Institute Course Graduate. Emily and her two cats, Alex & June, are currently on the prowl for a new canine companion.

Latonya Thompson

Director of Finance and Human Resources

Latonya has worked in non-profit organizations for over 20 years. Her professional journey from private to non-profit accounting reflects her unwavering commitment to aligning her career with her core values. She has always had a passion for making a positive impact and is thrilled to be part of an organization that cares deeply for pets and the people who love them. Latonya’s pursuit of excellence extends beyond her professional achievements. She holds a BBA in accounting from Howard University and is the proud Mom of a cat named Sincere and Bell, a loveable pooch.

Board of Directors

Daniel Lang - President

Daniel is a business executive/entrepreneur in the areas of Human Capital Management (HCM), Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), Human Resources Outsourcing (HRO) and risk management. He currently serves as the CEO of Centricity Solutions, Inc., an HRO firm he co-founded in 2007. Centricity helps small and mid-sized companies (from pre-revenue to +$500M) control costs, minimize risk and relieve administrative burden by expertly managing each key aspect of the human resources lifecycle – including hiring, payroll, benefits, compliance and termination – through customized enterprise-level technologies and a high-touch service model. Daniel obtained his Bachelors of Arts in Political Science from The University of Iowa. He is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP), as well as a multi-state licensed insurance broker. Daniel lives in Moraga, California with his partner Jennifer, sons Evan & Jack, and their four-legged family members – including puppy Riley and feline sisters Cali & Lulubelle.

Alan G. Shriro, DVM - Vice President

Alan has been on Berkeley Humane’s Board of Directors since 1997, and served as president for most of his tenure. He believes in serving our community’s animals and helping to save lives. Alan has co-owned Berkeley Dog and Cat Hospital for 42 years. He served as President and as the Peer Review and Ethics Chairman of the Alameda County Veterinary Medical Association. Dr. Shriro currently chairs the City of Berkeley Animal Care Commission. When not working at the Berkeley Dog and Cat Hospital, Alan loves to scuba dive and travel the world. He is an award-winning photographer and is the proud guardian of two dogs and two cats.

Romy Harness - Secretary

Romy has been a volunteer and Board Member of Berkeley Humane for more than a decade. After 20 years in the tech industry she is now the Director of Access to Care Initiatives at Maddie’s Fund. A lifelong animal lover, Romy has lived with cats, dogs, fish, birds, reptiles and guinea pigs. She currently shares her home with Rocky, a very cuddly tuxedo cat.

Erin Cahill

Erin is a Partner in the Deals practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers. She has spent over 20 years advising companies on their capital markets and other transformative events. Throughout the life cycle of their transaction, Erin builds deep trusting relationships and advises her clients on the organizational impacts of their deal and how to get to completion. While Erin grew up in Florida and obtained her B.S. and Master’s in Accounting from the University of Florida, she considers her home to be the Bay Area where she has lived for the past 15 years. In her spare time, you can find Erin travelling, hiking, tasting wine or beer, at a playground or kids’ sports activity in her other role as a wife and mom. She is a mom to two human kids (ages 5 and 3) and three fur babies: two rescue bonded orange tabbies and one puppy – a German Shepherd Husky mix – adopted from Berkeley Humane!

Trisha Colton

Trisha is a senior leader at Adobe Systems, with over twenty years of experience including retained and internal executive search, executive coaching, corporate recruiting, and professional services. She is currently responsible for leading the Global Executive Search function, and Talent Acquisition for Adobe’s Digital Experience and Worldwide Field Operations (sales) business units. Trisha is a results-oriented leader with a track record of delivering an exceptional client experience and developing talent. Trisha graduated from Northwestern University, and also is a Certified Executive Coach through the University of California, Berkeley. Since her early days as child, she has been a lifelong animal lover.

Karen Dixon

Karen Dixon has spent her career working in a variety of recruiting roles. She previously was with Korn Ferry where she worked in executive search for over seven years and ultimately was the Professional Search HR Practice Leader for North America. Currently, she is Director of Executive Search for the Digital Media business at Adobe. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. In her free time, Karen enjoys spending time with her husband, two teenagers and many pets (three adopted cats and a goofy two-year-old dog named Ziggy).

Haley Heslip

Haley is a Director on the Enterprise Credit team at Bank of America. She has spent over a decade in finance evaluating debt solutions for clients. She’s worked with an array of credit products, treasury solutions and derivative needs for companies spanning from private early-stage to public Investment Grade. Haley grew up in Colorado and obtained her B.S.B.A in Finance and International Business and an MBA with a focus in Healthcare Administration from the University of Denver. She moved to San Francisco in 2018 where she put down roots and now has a 4 year old boy and 2 year old girl. At home with some free time, you’ll find Haley out on a run or cooking a vegetarian meal. She also enjoys traveling with the family and you’ll often find them in the mountains for any seasonal fun. Haley grew up with cats, dogs, horses and many other animals and continues to have a strong love and affection for every kind.

Shawna Kovacs

Shawna has two great passions; children and pets. She has been a long-time animal advocate. Shawna is the Global Head of Talent Development at 2K. Shas spent 25 years in the technology industry in talent/organizational development and sales management. Shawna also serves on the board of George Mark Children’s House and is passionately involved in their mission to provide life-affirming Palliative care and comfort for children and their families. She lives in Piedmont with her dog Sasha.

Jai Koolwal

Jai Koolwal is an experienced engineer and leader with a diverse background in technology and a passion for problem-solving. He has a proven track record at LinkedIn, Google, Salesforce, and Cisco where he has contributed to the development of key technical infrastructure components. In his downtime, Jai enjoys woodworking and music. At the early age of 9, Jai and his friends rescued a pup from the streets of his hometown that began the journey of his love for animals. Ever since, he has been volunteering with various rescue organizations to help animals in need.

Annie Matusewicz

Annie Matusewicz is the Co-Head of ESG & Impact Strategy at Reporting 21, driving the go-to-market strategy for North America and helping private markets investors integrate sustainability considerations across the investment lifecycle. Annie began her career in the investment management industry in 2012 and transitioned to responsible investing in 2013. She has held a variety of investment strategist and business development roles at BlackRock, Calvert Research and Management, Fidelity and Boston Trust Walden. Annie earned a B.A. in architectural studies and economics from Brown University and M.B.A from Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. On the weekends you can find her hiking Las Trampas with her partner and their Shepherd mix.

Mareijke Weidemann

Mareijke is a professional Realtor in the Greater East Bay region. Mareijke is a former Global Controller for Method Products, a B-Corp, and Del Monte Foods and a CPA by training. Prior to entering the real estate industry, she spent two decades in Finance and Accounting, working across multiple industries and company growth stages, where developed a proven track record for driving efficiencies in the areas of accounting, financing, planning, internal controls process implementation, compliance, business acquisitions, change management initiatives, and technology implementations.

Mareijke is passionate about serving the needs of her clients, and is known for collaboration across all organizational levels and various interests. She brings a high level of energy toward solving challenges together, by applying analytical approaches and exercising a seasoned business understanding. She is married to her husband Craig, and loves her dog, Shadow, a sassy little black miniature poodle. She enjoys skiing, mountain biking and volunteering at her church in her spare time.