Mindy Farber

Mindy Farber is a Cofounder of FOACAS. She was previously on the boards of Pet Connect and the Montgomery County Humane Society.
Mindy is a Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude graduate of Johns Hopkins University and a Root Tilden Scholar at New York University School of Law.

Mindy had a notable civil rights career, having national write-ups on her cases overturning  discrimination against epileptics, workers who cannot speak English, transgenders, and employees suffering from a plethora of mental disabilities. She successfully litigated the  first sex  discrimination case in the then new Federal Courthouse in Greenbelt.

She has served on the Montgomery County Human Relations Commission, the Montgomery County Commission for Women, and been VP of the Montgomery County American Civil Liberties Union. She helped draft the legislation to stop the sale of animals in retail stores in Montgomery County, Maryland, and in various parts of Florida, where she had a residence. In 2016 she was inducted into the Montgomery County Human Rights Hall of Fame.

she has written for The Washington Post, The NY Times, Newsday, and a multitude of other periodicals and social media.

She is married to John Camp, and is the mother of two children and proud Mimi of two grandchildren.

John Camp

Mr. Camp, now retired, is a 45-year veteran of the retail commercial real estate industry in the Washington DC area. He has worked for Marriott Corporation, Saul Centers, Inc and Charles E Smith Companies. Over the past 15 years he was a partner in Oxford Chase Development, Inc. a retail development and management company.
In 2020 Mr. Camp and his wife Mindy Farber formed Friends of all Critters at Shelters, Inc, (FOACAS) a 501c3 non-profit organization with the mission of saving dogs and cats from the cruelty of living in a shelter. Today FOACAS is a leader in the Montgomery County and Northern Virginia markets.
Mr. Camp is a graduate of the University of Connecticut with a BS in Economics and a veteran of the US Navy.
Formerly, Mr. Camp was a board member and chaired Non-Profit Village, a 501c3 nonprofit located in Montgomery County, Maryland.

Patricia Repik-Byrne

Patricia (Pat) Repik was born and raised in Stamford, CT and has always loved animals, even though the family did not have any pets. She also had a love of science and graduated from the University of Connecticut with a major in microbiology, and subsequently attended Rutgers University where she obtained her doctorate degree in Microbiology/Molecular Biology. It was there where she met her future husband, Kevin Byrne, who obtained his doctorate degree from Rutgers in Biochemistry. Kevin grew up with a dog and shared a love of animals. The couple eventually relocated to Frederick, MD where Pat conducted R&D on virus vaccines at USAMRIID/Ft. Detrick. They are the proud parents of two girls adopted from Korea. The house they purchased in Frederick included a small barn, and thus began a saga of many animal additions to the household: horses, goats, dogs, cats, rabbits and gerbils.
Pat’s career included an academic position at the Medical College of Pennsylvania and management positions at two biotech companies. Most recently, she was an extramural Program Officer at NIH/NIAID for 18 years where she managed a portfolio of grants and contracts that focused on basic virus research as well as the development of vaccines and biotherapeutics for viruses that cause encephalitis and hemorrhagic fevers (e.g., West Nile, Dengue, Ebola). She retired from NIAID in January 2020, and became involved with FOACAS in January 2021 after Kevin contacted Mindy about donating a dog bed to the Cumberland Animal Shelter. Mindy was enthusiastic about the donation and then asked Kevin if he would be interested in transporting cats from the shelter to Metro Feral in Washington, DC for potential adoption. Kevin was happy to do so and Pat accompanied him on a portion of that trip in December 2020. Their first dog transport occurred in January 2021, when they transported Bear, a chocolate lab tripod, to a foster/adopter in Potomac. With that, they were both hooked and joined the FOACAS transport team. Pat became a member of the FOACAS Executive Committee in November 2021 and also follows up with dog adopters to assess how well the animals and their new humans/family have adjusted to one another. She finds it very rewarding to talk to the adopters and offer tips on care if needed.

Pat is a long-time collector of rocks and minerals and is very active with the local rock and mineral society. She also enjoys doing jigsaw puzzles and volunteers with Rockville Meals on Wheels. She and Kevin reside in Potomac with their rescue Samoyed, Kona.

Alison McWilliams

Alison McWilliams is the Executive Director of the Naomi and Nehemiah Cohen Foundation.  She also serves on the boards of Local Initiatives Support Corporation, Partnership to End Homelessness, and Social Venture Fund for Jewish-Arab Equality and Shared Society. Alison has been working in the nonprofit sector for more than three decades.  She is a graduate of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.  Alison has been a FOACAS foster since April 2023.  She and her husband have three adult daughters and one rescue grand-dog

Thomas Raby

Tom Raby, a CPA, is Principal of Jaden Group LLC in McLean, VA, and formerly Senior Director of Regulatory Oversight and Compliance at Freddie Mac. He has his BA from Virginia Polytech Institute and his MBA from University of Alabama. Tom is married and has two children, and happily  adopted Kayla from FOACAS in 2023.

Jerry Antosh (Always in our thoughts)

Jerry Antosh has been an enthusiastic supporter of FOACAS since its inception, and personally is the proud father of Chance, a rescue dog from Florida. Jerry is a retired executive of Exxon Oil and Southern Maryland Oil. He is a graduate of University of Maryland in economics and enjoys tennis, vintage cars and his three daughters and two grandchildren.

Marlene Schooler

Marlene Schooler has been involved with animal welfare organizations for more than 35 years. As the director of humane education at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington, she created a school curriculum promoting humane attitudes and interactions between pets and people, wrote and edited the quarterly newsletter and represented the League at events throughout the community. In a similar position at the Montgomery County Humane Society, she visited hundreds of classrooms throughout the county to educate students on the services of the Humane Society and the importance of being kind to all animals. Marlene currently serves as chairperson of the Montgomery County Animal Matters Hearing Board, a quasi-judicial volunteer board appointed by the county executive. The Board conducts hearings and issues orders to abate animal nuisances and protect the community from dangerous animals.

Together with her dog Carly, Marlene is a pet therapy volunteer with PAL (People, Animals, Love) and a hospice volunteer with Jewish Social Service Agency. She has been involved with FOACAS since 2021. Marlene is married to Stuart Schooler and they have 5 children, 2 dogs and 3 grandchildren.

Roxana van der Mensbrugghe

Roxana was raised in Iran and France. She completed her studies in Paris, specializing in management. She is fluent in three languages and proficient in two other languages. She worked for major French companies in Tehran as an executive assistant. Subsequently she moved to Washington, D.C. and worked at the International Monetary Fund for 20 years; her work involved extensive travel throughout the world. Now happily retired she decided to help people and animals. She is currently a volunteer for the organization THIS for Diplomats and for several humanitarian groups like KindWorks and assistance for Afghan refugees.

Kathy Hougum

Kathy initiated, developed, and directed the volunteer program at a local PetSmart for Last Chance Animal Rescue,  which resulted in hundreds of cat adoptions annually . She is currently the foster coordinator and fundraiser for the senior dog and cat sanctuary Leashes End. In addition, Kathy volunteers weekly for Community Reach of Montgomery County to connect with  clients in need of support services.

As a retired MCPS reading specialist and classroom teacher for 36 years, Kathy  led group English lessons through the Montgomery County adult literacy program.  Kathy and her husband also travel regularly, enjoy the company of their two rescue cats and dog, and spend time with their two married daughters and four rambunctious grandsons. 

Kathy hails from New York City with a detour to the University of Wisconsin in Madison, where she obtained a graduate degree.

Steve Marshall

A native of Montgomery County, Steve has been helping animals his entire life. Now retired from a 35 year career in real estate brokerage and property management, owning his own firm, Steve now spends his time traveling and being a part of FOACAS. He and his wife Janet, along with their beagle  Cooper, live in Gaithersburg.

Valerica Maican

Valerica Maican has a double PhD in piano and composition. Her musical journey  began in Europe, and in 1991 she established herself in the United States, where she crafted  a successful career as a composer, performer, and dedicated teacher.
Valerica has held prestigious positions, including serving as the former President of the J.S. Bach Piano Competition, Director of the MTNA Composition Competitions Eastern Division, as well as the Washington DC Composition Competitions.  Valerica now dedicates her time to teaching . Her students have secured Grand Prix and first prizes in over 20 international competitions,  including at Carnegie Hall, and in Austria, Holland, Italy, and Russia.