Our Team
Get to Know Our Committee
San Francisco Aid for Animals has a volunteer-run board that manages its daily operations and growth.
Dr. Alan Stewart
Alan could not afford surgery on his two year old guinea pig when he was a child and that made a lasting impact on him throughout his education and veterinary career He knew there will always be people like him. Alan graduated from the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois, school Veterinary Medicine, an internship in small animal medicine and surgery at Angell Memorial Animal Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts and a residency in small animal medicine at the University of California at Davis, where he received awards for his research and teaching. Dr. Stewart has also lectured around the world on various topics of internal medicine. He has been an internist in the Bay Area for 30 years. He is the founder of San Francisco Veterinary Specialists and a co-founder of Bay Area Veterinary Specialists. He currently does locums around the country when specialty hospitals are in need of experienced internists. He spends the majority of his time as a play wright. He was a semifinalist in the Bay Area Playwrights Festival in 2018. He is also on the board of the Magic Theatre. He also scuba dives and supports wildlife causes.
Dr. Anne Marie Benfatto
Anne Marie grew up in Massachusetts and received her bachelor of science degree in
Marine Ecology from Simmons College. She attended the Veterinary School at the
University of California, Davis and graduated with her DVM degree. Since the early 1990s,
she has worked as a feline-exclusive veterinarian in the San Francisco Bay Area. She
served as the treasurer for the San Francisco Veterinary Medical Association for 10 years.
She is one of the founding members of SFAfA. When not working with SF Aid for Animals,
some of her many interests include supporting human and animal welfare programs,
spending time with her two-legged and four-legged family, reading, honing her baking skills
and extensive travel and cultural exchange.
Kathy Hajopoulos
Kathy has many years of public health policy, program development, and management experience in the health care field. She has held senior level positions in the insurance industry, and was part of the leadership team in developing and implementing an innovative statewide breast cancer program at the University Of California, San Francisco. Kathy received her Master of Public Health degree from San Diego State University and her Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. She is an advocate for access to quality, affordable health care for humans, and has also been an avid supporter of animal welfare issues for many years.
Ally Smith
Ally is a San Francisco Bay Area native with years of experience in event planning, investor and client relations, and administration. Ally holds a BS in Environmental Science from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, and is incredibly passionate about the welfare of both domestic animals and wildlife. In addition to her involvement with San Francisco Aid for Animals, she also enjoys volunteering at the California Academy of Sciences as a Special Events Volunteer. In her free time, Ally enjoys traveling, cheering on Bay Area sports teams, cuddling with her cat, and exploring coastal trails on the back of her horse.
Bethany Curd
Bethany is a Bay Area local who’s spent a number of years living in various cities around the world before settling back in San Francisco in 2016. Bethany holds a BSBA & BA from Washington University in St. Louis, and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Throughout her career, she’s held a variety of business roles within the financial services and technology sectors, and currently works as a Business Strategist for Adobe. Animals have always been a big part of Bethany’s life, so San Francisco Aid for Animals’ mission presented a unique opportunity to give back to the animals who give so much to us. In her free time, Bethany enjoys traveling the world, smothering her cat Mallomar (pictured), and generally exploring the beautiful outdoors.
Hanna Lee
Hanna is a real estate technology professional with a BBA degree from University of Toronto and an MBA degree from the Schulich School of Business at York University. After years of working in real estate investment management in Toronto and New York, Hanna has settled in San Francisco where she brings her expertise to technology products contributing to the real estate industry. Hanna is passionate about animal advocacy and the mission of SFAfA in supporting families struggling with healthcare costs for their pets. Hanna enjoys her free time traveling, hiking, decor shopping, and playing sidekick to her white havanese, Zoey (@accordingtozoey).
Priya Gangolly
Priya is a healthcare and technology professional with over a decade of experience in startups, marketing, operations, and partnerships. She holds a Bachelors in Cognitive Psychology/Healthcare Social Issues and a Masters in Public Health. Her rescue dog, Lucy Ricardo, is a cancer survivor which inspired Priya to spend more time volunteering with animal welfare organizations in California, Hawaii, Taiwan, and India. She is an advocate of health and wellbeing for humans and animals alike, and is excited to support SFAfA’s mission of keeping animals and their families together.
Linda Huang
Linda has been an avid animal lover ever since she was a kid growing up in Michigan with numerous pets. She has a BSE from the University of Michgian and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She would have preferred to become a veternarian, but was stymed early in her quest by Biology 101. Lucikly, the ability to support the animals and their families through SFAFA fullfills the desire to help families that are forced to make the impossible choice between unexpected fur baby medical expenses and financial stability. By day, she is a Product Manager for Lyft, and by night, she and her dog Oso (@osoclumsy) can be found strolling around SF at various dog parks, beaches, and all the new outdoor dining options.
Nick Motwani
Nick is a Senior Director of Finance at Sesame Workshop, the non profit behind the iconic Sesame Street television show. Since 2006, Nick has worked in Finance working exclusively with non profits, and consulted with some of the largest labor unions, community health centers, Universities and other global charitable organizations. From 2012 - 2014, Nick took a break from his professional goals and joined the United States Peace Corps and served in Eastern Europe. It was there where he adopted his tortishell cat, Megatron.