Who We Are

Terri has been on the leadership team of Windrider Film Forum, Bay Area since its inception. She’s passionate about the arts as a powerful and creative vehicle to engage the community in thought-provoking issues. She’s been an active volunteer for UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, for the Parents of Alumni Committee for Menlo School, has served on the board of the Menlo Park Atherton Education Foundation and sponsored Music@Menlo, an internationally acclaimed Chamber Music Festival, since it began in 2003. Previously, she worked for twenty years in wholesale banking and finance for Wells Fargo Bank and Chase Manhattan Bank and in investment advising for The Savant Investment Group. She presently serves on the Board of Directors for Music@Menlo and the Advisory Boards of The Savant Investment Group and the Brehm Center for the Arts of Fuller Seminary. Terri has a BA in English from the University of the Pacific, an MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management and is a Certified and Licensed Financial Planner.

Will has been the Director of Fuller Theological Seminary’s regional campus in Colorado Springs since 1995 when the local program was launched. He is also one of the co-founders of the Windrider Film Forum (along with John and Ed Priddy and Dr. Craig Detweiler). In 2004, the four co-founders visited the Sundance Film Festival and launched Windrider with a one-of-a-kind immersive educational experience that is offered each year at Sundance. The Forum includes engaging, creative workshops and discussions with filmmakers from the year’s top indie film projects. In its 15th year, this annual event has grown to become the largest student group at Sundance with 200+ students, faculty and staff from over 15 graduate and undergraduate programs. Will serves as the Executive Director of the Windrider Forum overseeing the course each year at Sundance and collaborating on local film forums like this one in the Bay Area. In the year ahead Will’s focus will be on expanding the ways to participate in this unique opportunity at Sundance and other cultural immersion experiences hosted by Fuller Seminary including South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, TX, and courses in New York City and Orvieto, Italy.

A successful entrepreneur, Peabody award winning and Emmy nominated film producer, John Priddy is a leader in the creation and expansion of entrepreneurial companies and development of private and non-profit enterprises. He is the CEO and co-founder of Windrider Institute and is a Member of the U.S. Department of State’s International Council on Business Leadership Subcommittee on Access to Markets, serves on the Advisory Board for the Fuller Brehm Center, the John Templeton Foundation Communications and Public Engagement department and the Christian Media Corporation. He is also the co-founder of Full Circle Exchange, an innovative social enterprise dedicated to empowering women by focusing on poverty reduction through job creation. John lives in Boise, Idaho with his wife Terri, and the couple has four grown children. John has a MA in Leadership from Fuller Theological Seminary where he was awarded the Brehm Center Distinguished Alumni Award in 2012 and has a BS in Business Administration from the University of Colorado.

Meritt Sawyer was dedicated to medical and economic development in the Congo (DRC) as Executive Director for the Paul Carlson Partnership affiliated with the Evangelical Covenant Church. She has given executive leadership to non-profit organizations for over thirty years as the International Program Director for Langham Partnership International (London), Vice President of John Stott Ministries and co-founder of FACT (global leadership), and has been personally active in a far-reaching series of local and global endeavors including the boards of Fuller Theological Seminary, Able Works, Oasis USA and is Emeritus Producer of Windrider Bay Area Film Forum. She holds a B.A. in music, a M.A. in Education and a M.A. in theology. She and her husband, Steve, have three grown children (and a brand new son-in-law!).

The Bay Area Windrider Film Forum committee came together under the leadership of Dr. Curt Longacre, who had the vision of transplanting the already successful Windrider Film Forum to the San Francisco Bay Area. Curt envisioned bringing together the diverse cultures of the Bay Area to engage in dialog surrounding film, culture and faith. Dr. Longacre served as the Regional Director of Fuller Seminary Northern California (FSNC) for 14 years. Under his leadership, FSNC has become the largest and one of the most successful regional campuses of Fuller Theological Seminary. Prior to Fuller Seminary, Curt had a successful career in business. He worked as a CPA and audit manager for KPMG Peat Marwick, LLP, a Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer for a division of Wells Fargo Bank, and as a Vice-President for Charles Schwab & Co.

Since graduating with a B.A. in Broadcasting from San Francisco State University, Dan has worked in many roles in media production over the last 25 years ranging from audio to live multi-camera direction. With considerable experience in broadcast, corporate, ministry, academic, and live event venues, Dan cherishes the opportunity to live in the intersection of the creative and technical. Regardless of the setting, he enjoys being on a team that uses media to magnify a great message. He now works for Apple, Inc. as a Broadcast and Video Conference Engineer specializing in broadcast event streaming and system design. He has been involved with Windrider since 2012 serving as Technical Director and consultant.

After retiring as a high school chemistry teacher and attending Windrider Film Forum for several years, Jo joined the volunteer team to initiate the outreach program for high school students and teachers. Previous to her years in the teaching profession, Jo was actively involved in her local community through volunteering and taking board positions for PTO’s, School Foundations, Scouting, youth sports organizations and city events. Prior to the community work, she worked in the field of finance, following her MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management. She has a BS in Food and Nutrition from Iowa State University that led to her first career as a registered dietitian. She and her husband, Bob, have three grown children who all, thankfully, live in the Bay area. She is an avid reader, hiker, and now traveler.

After several years of attending the Windrider Bay Area Film Festival, Christina is excited to volunteer with Windrider’s marketing efforts. A Bay Area native, Christina brings a unique background in marketing, design and project management to the team. Christina holds a double bachelor’s degree in design and art history from UC Davis, as well as a masters in marketing degree from Hult International Business School. Christina is passionate for the arts and enjoys sharing her creative talents with the community.

Lucy L. Calder is in Community Relations with Windrider and enjoys bringing uplifting, message driven independent films to Silicon Valley. She graduated from Wake Forest University with a B.A. in English and went on to obtain an internship at "Good Morning America" where she was solely responsible for the production of New Products Spots. Following her time at GMA, she developed the international traveller's assistance program, MasterAssist, for MasterCard International. She left MasterCard to join Harry and David's Corporate Sales Division where she had the largest territory consisting of Manhattan (below 41st Street), Westchester, Fairfield and Rockland Counties. After a nearly ten year tenure at Harry and David, she pursued charitable work with the Junior League and her church. In recent years, she has been a full time mom while maintaining an active presence in the community with multiple volunteer positions.

Wendy attended the first Windrider Film Forum and was so impressed by the event that she joined the Windrider Bay Area team immediately thereafter. She finds getting to know filmmakers and listening to what has inspired them and how they created their films to be a unique and fascinating experience. Wendy has loved literature and film since she majored in English in Washington State. She worked as a copywriter in a Seattle Advertising Agency and as a paralegal for patent law firms in San Francisco and Palo Alto. After 'retiring' to raise a family, Wendy has played an active role as a volunteer in her son and daughter's schools and sports teams. She currently shares her love of reading with East Palo Alto first graders as a reading aide. She's an avid tennis player, loves hiking and traveling with her family and is proud to be a member of the Windrider Team.

Shannon Fischer is a fan for the independent film world. Her stars aligned with Windrider at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival where she met the Windrider Bay Area inaugural team. She has been with Windrider Bay Area since the beginning and has helped on many fronts primarily with press and marketing. She has helped secure star talent Josh Lucas and supported the film curation as well.

Shannon is a Business Development Manager, bootcamp fanatic and huge Indie film fan. She has volunteered at Sundance and helped put on the City Shorts film festival at City College of San Francisco. She also was an Executive Producer for THE OTHER SIDE, a film by Israeli Filmmaker (and Windrider Alumnae) Khen Shalem. THE OTHER SIDE won the Chicago Children's Film Festival and qualified for the 2013 Oscars and on the short list for the 2013 BAFTA. Shannon enjoys seeing familiar faces each year at Windrider and many new ones too.

Dr. Jonathan Fung is an interdisciplinary artist, filmmaker and social activist. He has created site-specific installations and public art that explore the human condition, cultural and social issues, especially the human injustice of modern slavery. Jonathan’s work has been a platform to expose the darkness of human trafficking and to create a call to action to end modern slavery. Jonathan’s award-winning short film Hark was screened at many film festivals, including Windrider Bay Area 2013 and the Cannes Film Festival Court Metrage. Jonathan’s public art installation PEEP was exhibited in the 5×5 Project in Washington DC and later throughout the San Francisco Bay Area as part of Super Bowl 50. His site-specific art installation Coolie exposed the forced labor of Chinese immigrants during the California Gold Rush era. Jonathan teaches photography at San Jose State University through a social justice and narrative lens. He is also a pastor and leads the youth ministry at Santa Clara First Baptist Church. Jonathan is committed to making a difference through faith, arts and justice.

Tony is a graduate of Fuller Seminary, serves as a pastor to the Bay Area and coaches and partners with creatives of all kinds through his non-profit Brave Marker (bravemaker.com). He's a SAG-AFTRA actor and loves being behind the camera writing, directing and producing. He has short films on Amazon and he's currently working on producing, writing and directing feature films. Tony is passionate about creativity and collaboration so he leads a monthly meet-up to encourage filmmakers and artists in the Bay Area to inspire, collaborate and launch their work. He and his wife, Wendy, keep inspired (and exhausted) with their three girls.

Maureen has been involved with Windrider for three years and has helped with Volunteer Coordination and Corporate Solicitations in the past. She loves the format of Windrider—great, thought-provoking films with stimulating conversation afterward. When not involved with Windrider, Maureen is the Development Director for Peninsula Bridge a nonprofit which supports highly motivated, low income middle school, high school and college students (from Mountain View to San Mateo) in a comprehensive 12-year program (5th grade through college graduation) with year-round academic and social-emotional support. Maureen and her husband Bill, an attorney in Palo Alto, have three children and live in San Carlos.

Amy is an enthusiastic new addition to the Windrider Film Forum volunteer team, building on her lifelong passion for film and her desire to foster greater community engagement around critical topics facing society today. Amy has spent the past 25 years working as a technology marketer and strategist for a variety of large and start-up companies, and she’s looking forward to applying her skills with Windrider. Amy has been a past volunteer on fundraising activities at her children’s school. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family and dogs, as well as exercising, cooking, and enjoying the outdoors.

A former high-tech executive, Dana leads a Menlo Park-based, national nonprofit that helps the families of severely disabled veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan transition to civilian life. He also advises new business and nonprofit teams, actively participates in community programs and enjoys riding his bike wherever it will take him. Dana is a volunteer driver for the Avenidas senior ride service and is the editor and publisher of the Re-Imagine Menlo Park website. This year Dana is managing our new Windrider Soiree program. His wife Lisa and he love the Windrider films and conversations and enjoy hosting participating actors and directors. Great people. Each year friends join us for dinner and then we share an unforgettable Windrider experience. It’s a Kick!

Judy Hyrne discovered The Windrider Film Forum during its inaugural year in the Bay Area. She fell in love with the intimate setting that gave the audience a chance to view thought provoking, independent films, as well as, the opportunity to engage in conversation with the filmmakers, themselves. Judy is the Director of Operations at Atrium Capital and has been an active volunteer in her son's schools, including a board member of the Menlo Park Atherton Education Foundation. She is an ardent hiker and finds many opportunities to explore the trails that abound our beautiful hills and beyond. She is thrilled to be part of the Bay Area Windrider Team!

Chris has previously attended Windrider Bay Area Film Festivals and is excited to be part of the volunteer team. Building community is at the core of her interests and what drew her to Windrider. Chris was a co-owner of a local bakery and formerly an executive recruiter. As an active volunteer for her two children, she has served on the Menlo Park Atherton Education Foundation as well as the M-A board in fund-raising activities. Aside from her passionate interest in film, she enjoys yoga, reading and travel.

Scott has been on the Windrider Bay Area team since 2012. He graduated from the University of Colorado in Boulder with a degree in marketing. Scott currently runs a creative media company in Colorado that specializes in video production, graphic design, and web development. He is a lover of film and music, and spends his down time traveling the world. Most recently, Scott traveled to Costa Rica to for his new brother-in-law's wedding.

Kayla came to the Windrider Bay Area’s first Film Forum as part of the viewing audience and, because of a happy coincidence, became part of the volunteer team. A long-time resident of the Bay Area, Kayla has served on PTO Boards, the Menlo Park Atherton Education Foundation, co-Chair of the Menlo-Atherton High School Athletic Boosters, founding Board of the Redwood Chapter of the National Junior Basketball League, and a CASA (court appointed special advocate to a child in the foster care system). She worked for many years as a pediatric nurse at Lucille Salter Packard’s Children Hospital. She is an avid basketball fan, in particular, the Golden State Warriors – go Dubs!

Regina is excited to join the Windrider Film Forum team and is inspired to be part of a thought-provoking community event that will engage and motivate others. Regina is a private banking professional with more than 20 years of relationship management experience. She is currently responsible for working with a team of experts to deliver a full range of financial solutions and expertise to high net worth individuals and families. Regina and her husband Steve, a Menlo Park Fire Captain, live in Belmont with their daughter and son. She has been an active volunteer with her children's schools and sports teams. In addition to spending time with her family, Regina enjoys entertaining friends, running, hiking, cooking, and reading.

Excited to join the Windrider team this year, Karen is returning to the business world after spending the last several years at home as the domestic COO to raise their three children, and volunteering at various school, athletic and extracurricular activities, including being the Eichler Swim Team Communications Lead. Karen's corporate experience include the audit practice at Price Waterhouse and Corporate Finance at Sun Microsystems and Hewlett-Packard. Karen is a CPA, and graduated with a BS and MBA with emphases in accounting and finance from UC Berkeley. Karen is looking forward to the transition from watching animated and kid-orientated movies to enjoying films in different genres, especially independent films.