Board of Directors
Sarah Holmes Bookbinder, CWR
President
Sarah is our Executive Director and the driving force and vision behind Gordon Wildlife. She oversees all animal care, coordinates volunteers, instructs interns, and tends to most of the administrative and daily tasks at Gordon Wildlife.
Sarah graduated from Hampshire College in 1995 and is a Class II RVS licensed wildlife rehabilitator and a CWR specializing in the rehabilitation of raccoons. She works tirelessly at state and local levels to address shortcomings in rehabilitation regulations and to assist those interested in becoming licensed RVS wildlife rehabilitators. At certain times of year Sarah is available for public speaking engagements and she has led raccoon rehabilitation workshops for rehabilitators around the country.
Sarah and Paul are co-authors of Gordon Wildlife Raccoon Rehabilitation Protocols, a 200+ page guide which has been purchased by wildlife professionals in over 40 states and 12 countries.
In 2022 Sarah was elected to the Board of Directors of the New York State Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (www.NYSWRC.org), where she currently serves as Vice President and Chair of the RVS Committee.
Paul F. Bookbinder, DVM, DACVS
Vice President
A boarded veterinary surgeon with a small animal referral practice, Paul graduated valedictorian of the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine in 1986. More than for his resume, however, he is known for his kind, gentle and generous spirit. And his dry sense of humor.
Paul’s love of raccoons began early in life during family camping trips to Letchworth State park and has escalated exponentially the more he has come to know them. “Anything for the Raccoons” is now something of a mantra in the Bookbinder household.
Paul oversees all medical procedures requiring veterinary expertise.
Rosalyn Bandy
Board Member. Chair, sustainability
Rosalyn is the VP of Sustainability for the Tag and Label Manufacturers Institute. With dual master degrees in environmental science from SUNY ESF, and public administration from Syracuse University’s Maxwell School, Rosalyn has spent her career helping national and international brands and retailers improve their packaging, develop corporate policies around justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion, and create energy-efficient methods of production.
On a smaller scale Rosalyn has a lifelong history of rescuing countless injured and orphaned birds and mammals, and became an official licensed wildlife rehabilitator in 2021, inspired in part by her volunteer work at Gordon Wildlife.
Kelly Ernst
Board Member
Kelly Ernst, MPH is the SVP, Chief Revenue & Impact Officer at March of Dimes, Inc. where she leads a multifunctional team of 250+ national and local fundraisers and public health experts to secure $75m+ in annual revenue. Kelly also develops and supports partnerships with external organizations to enhance, improve and extend innovative and proven maternal and child health programming. Kelly joined March of Dimes in September 2011 after spending more than 15 years working overseas developing expertise in international health, public health programming, project and donor management, and health financing.
A native of Geneva NY, Kelly moved back home in August 2016 and has two children with her husband, Brian; Annabel who lives and works in Dubai and Michael who is a sophomore in college. Kelly’s concern for the wellbeing of animals prompted her engagement with Gordon Wildlife and also the Humane Society of Yates County -Shelter of Hope, where she has been volunteering weekly for the past 5 years.
Lee Heller
Board Member. Chair, fundraising
Lee Heller holds a Ph.D. in English and American Literature as well as a J.D. She taught at the university level for several years, then moved to California and ultimately became a full-time volunteer and activist, with a primary focus on animal welfare and environmental protection.
Lee has served on the Boards of Directors of Santa Barbara County Action Network; Get Oil Out!; the Environmental Defense Center; the Dog Political Action Committee; and the Animal Shelter Assistance Program. She served for 18 months on the California Veterinary Medical Board (the regulatory body overseeing veterinarians and RVTs in California) and currently sits on both the City of Santa Barbara Creeks Committee and the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District Citizens Advisory Committee.
Lee’s areas of competency include: fundraising (especially events and grant writing); communication; legislative advocacy; and policy development.
Nancy Ries
Board Member. Secretary. Chair, community outreach
Nancy is Professor of Anthropology and Peace and Conflict Studies at Colgate University. With a PhD from Cornell, she has lived, studied, and worked in Central New York since the 1980s, and been active in anti-war, environmental, and social justice causes. Nancy has a longstanding academic interest in and commitment to wildlife and animal welfare, ecosystem preservation and restoration, and human-animal studies. She is currently writing about the decimation of elephant populations and the active measures to protect elephants in East Africa. Closer to home, she serves on the Board of Directors for the Lake Moraine Association and has a history of raccoon friendships stemming from childhood summers at her grandparents’ lake cottage in Wisconsin.
Nancy brings administrative experience, writing skills, and community engagement to her role on the board at Gordon Wildlife. She serves as Student Coordinator and Liaison, overseeing the Gordon Wildlife fellowship students from Colgate University's Upstate Institute and similar higher education institutions.
Quinn Shamlian
Board Member, Treasurer
As a native of central New York, Quinn Shamlian works as the SVP of investments for a wealth management company where she has held the position of financial advisor for almost 14 years.
Quinn is an avid supporter of numerous animal welfare organizations that focus on bully breeds – inspired by her own pit-bull mix companion, Maxi, who goes to work with her every day and greets her clients.
Quinn’s appreciation for raccoons has grown over the years as she and her husband enjoy watching mothers and babies each summer on their rural, 27 wooded acres.
Quinn oversees the cash flow and financial reporting at Gordon Wildlife.
Karen Storne
Board Member
Karen is a Technical Associate at Ramboll (formerly O’Brien & Gere Engineers), consulting on environmental projects for over 25 years. She has a degree in Chemistry from Syracuse University, but her true passion has always involved working with animal welfare organizations. She served as Chairperson of the Bone Appétit event for the Wanderers’ Rest Humane Association and joined the Board of Directors at Spay and Neuter Syracuse (SANS) in 2011 where she currently serves as Vice President, writing grants and managing fundraising. Karen believes in giving back to the community through the promotion of animal welfare and her special interest is addressing mental and physical suffering of abandoned companion and wild animals.
Karen finds that the passion and energy at Gordon Wildlife for raccoon rescue is contagious! She believes that this is just the kind of organization that the community needs, especially in today’s crazy world, and she is delighted to bring her fundraising and grant writing abilities to the team.