Board of Directors

A Letter from our Founder

I first came to Ecuador in 1997. I had been studying Spanish and wanted to live in a South American country for several months. I learned about Baños through friends and arrived there in early March. I stayed for two months, first living in a boarding house operated by a former Peace Corps Volunteer and later--after my allergies to her cats became unbearable--in an apartment in the center of town.

During my first week in Baños I was introduced to Kim, an American physical therapist who was also living at the boarding house. She was doing volunteer work with some disabled people and asked if I would be interested in meeting them and working with her. That's how I came to know the people of FUVIRESE and meet Alfonso Morales.

I worked most afternoons in the one-room shack which Kim was using for her therapy for kids. I spent hours with Alfonso, hearing his story, going around town to see the handicapped ramps which he had badgered the town into constructing, and learning of his dreams for an organization, and his ultimate hope to have a national spinal cord rehabilitation center in Baños some day.

After a couple of months of working and listening and learning how far a dollar's worth of help would go in this poor country, I knew I had to do something to help.

In June of 1997, my wife Annie and I incorporated FUVIRESE USA, Inc. as a charitable foundation with the sole purpose of supporting the work of FUVIRESE in Baños and we began sending funds. In November, the IRS gave us our "Determination Letter" which meant contributions to FUVIRESE USA, Inc. would be tax-deductible to the donors.

The progress since then has been amazing and gratifying. Our base of donors has grown significantly, and I am hoping to interest others in helping us with our work. The number of members of FUVIRESE has grown, as have the programs. The more we do, the more people around Baños learn about FUVIRESE, and the more people come in for help. The politicians of the town of Baños, who once shunned Alfonso as a nuisance, have helped to make a newer, larger building available to house the rehabilitation center, and have made other donations to support FUVIRESE.

A year ago I approached a friend to ask for her help. She replied that she feels that there is so much need here in the United States that she couldn't understand the point of sending financial help to people so far away. My answer was pretty straightforward: While it's undeniable that we have major domestic problems that need to be addressed, there are many organizations, both private and public, that are working on those issues. In Ecuador and in Baños, nobody outside of FUVIRESE is doing anything, and FUVIRESE can only help if we provide the economic support that is literally the lifeblood of the services that are so desperately needed by our fellow humans.

I hope you’ll consider making a donation to this good work.

Richard Egan

Board of Directors FUVIRESE USA
Richard D. Egan is the President and founder of FUVIRESE USA, Inc. He is retired Chairman of the Board of Little Rapids Corporation, Green Bay Wisconsin. He is a graduate of Yale University and The Harvard Business School. He has 30 years of business management experience and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Wisconsin Public Radio Association, HELP of Door County (WI) (Social Services Agency) and the Door County (WI) YMCA.	Robert H. Boyer is a Professor emeritus of English at St. Norbert College, DePere, Wisconsin. He is a graduate of LaSalle University, Philadelphia and holds M.A. and Ph.D. Degrees in English from Marquette University. Dr. Boyer has over 35 years of experience in teaching at the high school and college level in the United States, Spain and the Philippines.
Hugh M. Eaton is a retired Vice President of The Weather Channel, Atlanta, Georgia where he was the first General Manager of that enterprise. He is a graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and the Harvard Business School. Mr. Eaton is a Certified Public Accountant. He has over 40 years of experience as a financial manager and personnel director. He is a member of the Board of Directors of M.O.P.S. (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) a not-for-profit national organization based in Denver, Colorado and a member of the Palmer Lake (CO) School Board.	Anne W. Egan is the wife of Richard Egan and a retired Executive Director of the Ministry and Life Center of St. Norbert Abbey, De Pere, Wisconsin. She is a graduate of St. Norbert College and holds an M.S. Degree in Guidance and Counseling from The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and a Doctor of Ministry Degree from St. Mary's University, Baltimore, Maryland. Ms. Egan has over 20 years of experience in working with individuals and organizations as a counselor and administrator.
Mary M. McGlone, CSJ is a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, St. Louis, Missouri, a religious order of the Catholic Church. She is a graduate of Marquette University and has M.A. in Theology from The University of San Francisco and a Ph.D. degree in Theology from St. Louis University. Sr. McGlone is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and has over 25 years of experience as a theologian, teacher and missionary. She is fluent in Spanish and spent a number of years working with her religious congregation among the poor of Peru. Sister Mary is the Executive Director of FUVIRESE USA.	Ronald P. McKenzie is a retired marketing executive with the Green Bay Press-Gazette, Green Bay Wisconsin. He is a graduate of the University of Minnesota and has an MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Mr. McKenzie has over 45 years of business marketing experience and is the father of a deceased son who was a quadriplegic. He is a founder and Director Emeritus of the Boys and Girls Club of Green Bay, Wisconsin and a member of the Board of Directors of Scholarships, Inc.
Leo Loeb owns Leo Loeb Consulting, a business consulting service, which supports manufacturer's promotional, category management and custom database development needs. Mr. Loeb has over 20 years of business experience and is a graduate of the University of Florida with both an M.B.A. degree. He is also the Marketing Director for FUVIRESE, USA.

None of the Directors of FUVIRESE USA, Inc. are related to any founder or member of the Board of Directors of FUVIRESE in Ecuador. No director receives remuneration from either FUVIRESE USA, Inc. or FUVIRESE in Ecuador for his or her services.