Board of Directors, AHPPA Costa Rica

Our Board of Directors

AHPPA is honored to have such a pro-active group of animal lovers serving as our board of directors.  The AHPPA Animal Shelter is located in San Rafael de Heredia, Costa Rica. Our board is made up of full and part time residents of Costa Rica.

We thought you might be interested to learn a little about the AHPPA Board of Directors; how and why they came to donate their time to assist the animals of Costa Rica along with the AHPPA Animal Shelter.

Lilian Schnog, AHPPA President & Director

Lilian came to Costa Rica in 1986 with her attorney husband and son and purchased a property close to the animal shelter in San Rafael de Heredia, not knowing of its existence at that time.

The move to a foreign country presented challenges and for some time Lilian thought Costa Rica was a terrible place.  “It was difficult for me to adapt; I didn’t have the skill of speaking Spanish and my home country was an island (Dutch Antilles).”

When Lilian learned about the nearby animal shelter she began helping out as a volunteer.  An avid, life-long animal lover, as a child she was always bringing home strays.  Five years into her new life in Costa Rica, continuing with work at the shelter, things began to change.

With the support of her family, Lilian paid off an existing debt of the ram-shackled shelter, formed an association and took charge to raise funds to renovate the facility.  Her vision was to  implement and spearhead new programs that would improve the fate of Costa Rica’s animals.

Lilian recalls,  “That began twenty years ago. With the help of board members, our staff, volunteers and supporters we have continued to be here for the animals of Costa Rica.”

Leigh Monahan-Fullbrook, AHPPA Vice-President

Leigh moved to Costa Rica from Denver, Colorado in 1993 to escape corporate America and to start a hiking tour business with her husband, John Fullbrook. They brought their German Shepherd, 2 English Sheepdogs and a big cat named Mouse and settled in the hills of Santa Barbara de Heredia.

While touring around the country Leigh remembers, “I was constantly picking up starving, stray dogs and delivering them to the Refugio, which back then only had a tiny little building used for the operating room and some pet carriers used to house the dogs that were up for adoption.”

Over the years upon helping Lilian with (snail mail) newsletters and other projects, Leigh was voted to serve as Vice President on the board of directors; her primary job with AHPPA is fund-raising, to help keep the Spay and Neuter Program going.  She also produces the AHPPA Animal Newsletter, sent nowadays via email, and organizes the shelter’s annual fundraiser event, The Mutt’s Party.

Mena Oelrich, Secretary

Laura Chandler, Treasurer

Daphne Belink, Vocal

Maria Laporte, Vocal

Penny Santomenno, Vocal

Diana Fernandez, Vocal