Literary Society of the Southwest

Ellen Brown
President

Ellen has been a member of the LSSW since 2008, and a Board member since 2020. She has almost two decades of non-profit Board experience, managing large, multi-million dollar construction projects for Scripps College and maintaining a fiscally sustainable College organization.

Laura Huser

Immediate Past President

Chair, Governance Committee

Laura has been a member of the LSSW since 2016. She was President in 2020 when the organization transitioned to an all-volunteer Board, and served until 2023. She is a Board-Certified Psychologist in private practice for more than 20 years. She is a sustaining member of the Junior League of Phoenix.

Jane McCart
Secretary

Jane McCart has been a member of the LSSW since 2022, and a Board member since 2024. She was Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager in the Asset Management Division of the Northern Trust. She currently serves as Chair of the City of Scottsdale Citizen’s Bond Oversight Committee.

Lorelei Gonzales
Treasurer

Chair, Finance Committee

Lorelei has been a member of the LSSW since 2021, a Board member since 2022 and Treasurer since 2023. She is a Certified Public Accountant. She has served on a number of Boards including Free Arts of Arizona, National Charity League, Cactus League and Boys Team Charity.

Chris Chavez

Chris Chavez has been a member of the LSSW since 2022, and a Board member since 2024. Chris is a Professional Chef and a member of the American Culinary Federation, and International Association of Culinary Professionals. Prior to entering the culinary arts profession Chris spent 20 years as an award-winning international television journalist, working for UPI, CNN, NBC News, and CBS News.

Mary Beth Herbert

Mary Beth has been a member of the LSSW since 2018, and is a past Treasurer. She owned Mary Beth Herbert & Associates, a financial consulting practice. She has worked with the Phoenix Art Museum for 29 years, most recently with its 21st Century Society to fund the Museum’s endowment.

Anne Johnson

Chair, Communications Committee

Anne has been a member of the LSSW since 2022, and a Board member since 2024. She has held executive roles in both non-profit and city libraries, including Desert Foothills Library and the Austin Public Library. Currently, Anne is the owner of Jet Set Edits, a premier website for immersive travel research that offers curated cultural guides alongside fashion and packing tips.

Jean Nelson
Chair, Membership & Events Committee

Jean has been a member of the LSSW since 2020, and a Board member since 2023. She was an Insurance Industry executive for several decades. She has been a volunteer mediator with the Maricopa County Justice Court and has served on the Boards of Greer Library Friends and Greer Community Center.

Carrie Ostroski

Chair, Development Committee

Carrie has been a member of the LSSW since 2020, and a board member since 2021. She is the Executive Director of The Dorrance Family Foundation. Carrie served as a board member of Soldier’s Best Friend for seven years and is currently an advisory board member for the MISS Foundation and ASU’s Global Institute of Sustainability.

Elizabeth Saba

Chair, Grants Committee

Elizabeth has been a member of the LSSW since 2012, and a board member since 2022. She previously was a Systems Consulting Manager with Accenture. She serves on the Junior League of Phoenix Board and is active with ARCS Foundation and Brophy College Prep.

Ann Stanton

Ann has been a member of the LSSW since 2020, and a board member since that time. She is Professor Emerita at Arizona State University’s College of Law. She serves as a trustee for the Desert Botanical Garden and is a member of its executive committee . She is past president of the Phoenix Chamber Music Society Board of Directors and a member of Childsplay’s Board of Trustees.

Passion and purpose for literary enlightenment in Arizona

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