Maggie Eisenberger has a Master’s Degree in Tropical Ecology from the Whitney R Harris World Ecology Center at the University of Missouri-St. Louis (Her research was on the biotic and abiotic effects of opening a hiking trail in the rainforest. She spent 4 months in the Darien Region of Panama and managed the field research station at Cana.) She is a wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm and looks forward to hiking, bird-spotting, and adventuring with fellow travelers. She has given dozens of talks on rainforests to a wide range of groups, including public and private schools (pre-K-12), senior citizen groups, church youth groups, the St. Louis Audubon Society, and many conferences. She served 6 years on the board of directors of Save The Rainforest and served 18 years on the steering committee of St. Louis Rainforest Advocates. She has 30 years of teaching experience (pre-K – 12th) and is retired teacher of high school science and math. She has received several teaching awards, including the St. Louis Zoo’s Teacher of the Year Award.

Jennifer Savage, a former teacher with a deep-rooted passion for nature, has joined Friends of the Rainforest. Her educational journey took a wild turn when she worked with Saint Louis Zoo's Education Department, igniting a love for wildlife in many young explorers. Her safari in Tanzania was a defining moment, where the vast savannahs and their inhabitants left an indelible mark on her heart. Now, she leverages her experiences to rainforest conservation, blending education with adventure to inspire community action.

Marilyn Chandler has had a lifelong love of books and travel, and she has travelled extensively throughout the world. Due to her love of travel, she became a travel agent for Best Way Travel. She met Maggie in the Amazon Rainforest and has since travelled with her to Cuba and South Korea. She graduated summa cum laude with a history degree (minor in Psychology) from Maryville University. She has established several businesses including APR Advertising, Epic Video, Midwest 4 Wheel Drive and BIGFOOT 4x4 INC - which has been in business since 1975. She is excited to be a part of Friends of the Rainforest and is dedicated to preserving our beautiful world.

Emily Crites is a dedicated Sustainability Strategist with over 20 years of experience helping organizations embrace sustainability and drive meaningful change. Her work spans industries such as consumer goods, manufacturing, energy, and chemicals, building on her background in chemical engineering. Emily specializes in climate change, decarbonization, ESG reporting, and circular economy strategies, focusing on integrating sustainability into core business practices.

In her current role at Accenture, Emily works with global industry leaders to develop strategic sustainability plans, mitigate risks, engage stakeholders, and implement impactful programs. She has supported major organizations in advancing supply chain traceability, improving sustainability reporting, and crafting long-term strategies to align with global standards.

Sandy Laurie's concern for the environment began years ago when she learned that everything on the planet is connected and everything we do daily matters. In 2006, she was introduced to Rachel Crandell and toured her classroom - in awe of the Rainforest created within the school walls. In 2008, she was privileged to join Rachel on a rainforest trip - assisted by Maggie Eisenberger. It was life-changing to learn about the rainforest through immersion, which included some community service projects. She deeply appreciates Friends of the Rainforest’s continued direct support of the rainforest through patrols, protection, expansion, and education. A recent trip to Costa Rica included hiking in the Children's Eternal Rainforest (El Bosque Eterno de los Niños), confirming the importance of protecting it for future generations.

Cheryl Reinhold joined the board of The Friends of the Rainforest in May 2024 to assist in their fundraising and education events. Concerned about rainforest loss around the world, she believes that educating future generations in importance of rainforest conservation will help slow down climate change. Children should be shown that rainforest’s role in health and preservation of our planet is more important than profits of corporations that destroy them. Children can be encouraged to do their own part to help our planet’s future, through recycling, planting trees, growing vegetables and flowers, reducing plastic usage, advocating climate issues to government officials. Cheryl has a Bachelor of Administration-Accounting degree from St. Louis University. She was employed in the accounting profession for over 40 years. She is retired and enjoys spending time volunteering.

David Robnak joined the board in 2012. He has previously gone on ecotours with his family to the rainforest in Belize, Ecuador, and the Galapagos Islands. He strongly feels that all rainforests need to be protected, and was glad to join the board to help the Rainforest. David received a Bachelor's degree from Indiana University in Business, with a minor in small business and entrepreneurship. He is president and owner of Central Paper Stock, a paper and plastics recycling company. Last year, Central Paper Stock recycled enough paper to save 1,263,000 trees and recycled over 3,000,000 pounds of scrap plastic. David lives in St. Louis with his family.

Emily Wonnacott-Stanley is the Community Engagement Coordinator for the Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville STEM Center. She is a career nonformal educator and an advocate for quality accessible STEM Education in out of school time environments. She has over 15 years of experience working with populations that are traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields. Currently she is part of the Engineering Plus STEM Peers Academy and focusing on her implementation project, “Bright Futures for Girls”. This is a program to encourage BIPOC girls to attend college to earn their degrees in Engineering and increase the number of girls entering engineering fields. She has served as an instructor for SIUE First Semester Transition courses to help incoming students settle into university life. In addition to a Masters of Science in Zoology, Emily is currently pursuing a Masters of Science in Diversity and Equity in Education.