Foundation Officers and Board Members

Yanus Nelson, Chair
Yanus Nelson is currently serving as Care Pastor at Grace Church Reno. As Care Pastor he oversees several support group and outreach ministries which includes a group of over 200 volunteers who support the ministry efforts. In addition, he provides one on one counseling support for those in need. In May 2021 Nelson ended his 28-year career in banking including 21 years with Wells Fargo Bank where he last served as senior vice president and Nevada Northern region bank president. In this role, he led a team of up to 500 branch team members in 39 branches throughout Northern Nevada. He is also actively involved in the community serving on the Nevada Military Support Alliance Board as well as the Truckee Meadows Community Foundation Board. Previously, he also served on the Reno-Sparks Chamber of Commerce board for over 4 years. Nelson holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from Colorado Christian University and a Master of Business Administration degree in Finance from Pepperdine University.

Matt Thornton, Vice Chair
Matt Thornton is a Regional Manager for U.S. Bank Wealth Management. He has worked in financial services since 2005 and has been employed with U.S. Bank since 2015. In his time at U.S. Bank, he has achieved their highest honor of Legends of Possible in 2017 and 2019. He is a past community college student and graduate of Colorado State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resource Management. Matt and his wife Amanda are the proud parents of three children, with two currently enrolled at TMCC High School. As an active member of Reno South Rotary and current board member of the Community Health Alliance, Matt participates in many projects that serve the overall Northern Nevada community.

Ryan Costella, Treasurer
Ryan Costella is the Vice President of Strategy & Organizational Development at Click Bond, Inc., a privately held, family-owned business headquartered in Carson City, NV, that designs and manufactures advanced fastening and assembly solutions for aircraft, ships, satellites, space vehicles, and other high-performance platforms. He has been with the company since 2009. Prior to his tenure at Click Bond, Ryan worked as a special assistant in the United States Senate. He holds a Master of Philosophy degree in Modern Chinese Studies from the University of Cambridge and Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and Political Science from Villanova University.

Mindy Lokshin, MD, MSPH, Past Chair
Dr. Lokshin is a former family physician with over 30 years of experience in medicine and education advocacy. She received her BA from Johns Hopkins University, her MD from the University of Arizona and her MSPH from the University of Missouri. She left her private practice in family medicine to raise her two sons and has since been very active in the Reno community, serving on the boards of the Reno Philharmonic, the Gifted and Talented Advisory Council to WCSD, and the Education Alliance. She was a founding member for the GT Parent Connection, Alliance for Philharmonic Youth and Parent Leaders for Education. Dr. Lokshin is now also serving as the founding chair of the Parkinson Support Center of Northern Nevada.

Fred Altmann
Fred is President of Altmann Builders, a custom home building company that is a leader in the sustainable Green building in northern Nevada. In 1985, Fred put his teaching duties on hold and moved from Los Gatos, CA to become the first full-time custom home builder in the newly developed Caughlin Ranch in western Reno. By the mid-90s, Fred had solidified his status in the custom home industry and began branching into the production home business, spending the next twenty years developing some of northern Nevada's most recognizable neighborhoods. Altmann Builders has received awards including, Builder of the year by the Builders Association of Northern Nevada several times, Green Home of the year, and custom home of the year. Fred has been involved with education and philanthropy for many years, including being a founding member of the K-12 Education Foundation and serving on the board of the Education Alliance along with other organizations. Fred graduated from Utah State University with a History and Political Science degree, and master’s degree in History. He continued his graduate studies at UC Berkeley and the University of Santa Clara. Fred and his wife of 51 years, Jill, have two children Nicole and Peter.

Gigi Chisel
Gigi Chisel is a Reno native and received both a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and a Master's in Public Administration from the University of Nevada, Reno. Gigi also received the CCIM designation, conferred upon professionals in the commercial real estate field after completion of advanced coursework. CCIM designees are recognized as leading experts in commercial real estate. In addition to her membership in the Northern Nevada Chapter of CCIM, Gigi served for many years on the board of directors for CREW of Northern Nevada. CREW Network is dedicated to transforming the commercial real estate industry by advancing women globally. Employed by the Lewis Group of Companies for over 30 years, in her capacity as Vice President, Gigi oversees various aspects of the company’s commercial development activities. Gigi is the company’s representative for the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada (EDAWN). She lives in southwest Reno with her husband Robert.

Jeff Frame, AIA, NCARB
Jeff Frame is the owner and founder of Frame Architecture, Inc. Jeff is responsible for the company's sales, marketing, and branding efforts. As a designer he strives to personalize every project around the client's uniqueness, and he feels that architecture becomes an extension of a company's corporate brand while being environmentally responsive. Recent projects have included the Reno Public Market (formerly Shopper's Square) Reno Rodeo Master Plan and Frame Architecture's own office which will break ground in 2023. Jeff likes to give back to the Reno community by participating in multiple fundraisers each year, such as The Children’s Cabinet, The Reno Rodeo Foundation, and the Reno Philharmonic to name a few. He has garnered great relationships within the community.

Cheryl Lewis
Cheryl is Founder and CEO of Centerline Structural Innovations Inc. doing business as NVO Construction in Reno, Nevada. The company was formed in late 2020 to provide offsite framing solutions to Reno and the surrounding areas, including Northern California, Utah and Idaho, constituting some of the fastest growing residential construction markets in the country. A visionary leader with the knowledge and ability to turn that vision into reality through sound strategic planning, collaboration and inspiration, Cheryl intuitively sees the threads of opportunity that wind through an organization, bringing them together into a coherent whole that drives material business advantage. Cheryl received her J.D. with honors from Washington & Lee University School of Law and her B.S. in Accounting, magna cum laude, from Salem College. She completed executive certification in Global Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability from Thunderbird School of Global Management. Cheryl and her husband, John, reside in Reno, Nevada. Together, they have five children and four grandchildren.

Dan Lofrese
Dan Lofrese moved to Reno from Rye, New York in June 2015. He has been working for GAMCO Asset Management since 1998 and spent the first 17 years coordinating the efforts of their Reno, NV and Palm Beach, FL offices. Dan was then asked to "move west young man" and now calls Reno home. He is a member of the College of Liberal Arts Advisory Board at the University of Nevada, Reno and belongs to the Rotary Club of Reno. Dan graduated from Fordham University and is currently pursuing an Executive MBA at UNR.

Katy Simon Holland, M.A.
Ms. Simon Holland currently serves as the Board President of the Washoe K-12 Education Foundation, which provides funding and advocacy to support student success in Washoe County. Prior to serving in that capacity, Ms. Simon Holland most recently was the Senior Strategic Advisor to the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada (EDAWN), working to advance the PreK-12 education system in preparing our youth for the 21st century. Before her work at EDAWN, Simon Holland served as an elected School Board Trustee and Board President for the Washoe County School District. Prior to being elected, she was privileged to serve as the Washoe County Manager for 15 years. She has chaired or served as a member of the Board for more than 15 non-profits, including the United Way, the Girl Scouts of the Sierra, the Truckee Meadows Community College Foundation, the Children’s Cabinet, the Nevada Land Trust, PBS Reno, the Tahoe Fund, and others. Ms. Simon Holland lives in Reno, Nevada where she and her husband enjoy spending time with their family and traveling, kayaking, hiking and exploring the world.

Zeina Randall
Zeina Randall was born in the Canary Islands, Spain, where she grew up and attended college. She first arrived in Reno in 1997 as a foreign exchange student at the University of Nevada, Reno, after she transferred her college credits earned in Spain. At UNR she completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering in 2000 and 2002 respectively. In 2005 she became a licensed professional engineer in the state of California. Zeina returned to UNR in 2007 and earned her Master’s in Business Administration in 2010 specializing in business management. She has been working at NV Energy (formerly Sierra Pacific Power Company) since she was a student intern and has held numerous positions on the electric side of the business both as an engineer and as a leader. In 2022 she accepted the position of Vice President of Gas Delivery. Zeina loves the outdoors and spending time with her husband and children who are avid skiers. They enjoy traveling the world as a family and experiencing new adventures.