S.H.I.P. Aid Board of Directors and Advisory Board: 
All Members of S.H.I.P. Aid work completely on a volunteer basis.  No member of S.H.I.P. Aid is compensated for their efforts.

Board of Directors

Gillian August-Thorp:  Founding Director

Gillian is the founding director of S.H.I.P. Aid.  Having grown up in a low income community in Durban, South Africa, Gillian not only witnessed the devastation of poverty and the oppressive apartheid regime; but she also lived through it.   In 1986, at age 14 Gillian relocated to the United States with her immediate family. Upon arriving in the U.S. Gillian took full advantage of the opportunities that were not available to her in her native land.  After receiving a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Nevada, Gillian went on to receive an M.A. in Counseling from Santa Clara University.  She currently is director of the International Student Services Department at SCU.  Gillian devotes her spare time to philanthropic causes, and works towards improving and strengthening the lives of people living in poverty-stricken communities throughout the world.  Her primary task with S.H.I.P. Aid is to establish international partnerships and programs for the distribution of donated goods.  

Tania Crenshaw: Director

Tania is financial director and as such, is responsible for balancing the books for S.H.I.P. Aid. She manages all processes and forms in accordance with the 501 (c) (3) regulations and guidelines. Tania is also instrumental in the facilitating and packaging of all donated goods. A native of South Africa, Tania has taken part in many volunteer opportunities, and she is always eager to assist in projects that benefit the poverty-stricken people of Southern Africa

Jared Peters: Director
Jared brings over 15 years of sales, marketing and engineering experience to S.H.I.P. Aid.  His primary responsibilities include fundraising and formulating strategic alliances with fellow nonprofit organizations that share our same philosophical ideals towards humanitarian philanthropy.  Jared has taken part in numerous opportunities working with youths to enrich the lives of our future.  He received a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Santa Clara University; Jared is currently Director of OEM Sales at a high-tech corporation in the Silicon Valley.

Susan Peters: Director

Susan is responsible for fundraising for S.H.I.P. Aid.  Her primary task is to develop S.H.I.P. Aid’s funding strategy, as well as to coordinate the fundraising activities with the Board, Advisors, and volunteers.  Susan has been involved in fundraising efforts for several organizations, including serving on the Board of Directors as the Ways & Means Chair for a local non-profit.  Susan also brings her corporate leadership and entrepreneurial experience to S.H.I.P. Aid’s operations.  She received a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Santa Clara University, and has experience working in both large organizations and small start-ups.  After working in product research and development for a major Silicon Valley corporation, Susan co-founded and managed a technology company consisting of 20 engineers and staff.

Advisory Board

Dr. Jeff Peters Ph.D, MD: Medical Advisor
Dr. Peters currently serves as a Clinical Professor of Anesthesiology, Dept. Anesthesiology, University of Utah College of Medicine, Salt Lake City, Utah.  He has been involved for the past six years with medical teams working at the KATH Hospital in Kumasi, Ghana.  His particular interest is in teaching nurse anesthetists and he is currently developing with the International Program at the Univ. of Utah an Educational Exchange Program. The goal of this program is to increase the number and education of nurse anesthetists in Ghana to decrease surgical morbidity and mortality. This is being accomplished by didactics in the classroom and operating room and an annual refresher course which brings over 115 nurse anesthetists each year to the KATH Hospital in Kumasi. In addition, orphanages and district schools in and around Kumasi are being visited to deliver school supplies, toys and health items.

International Volunteers

Nicholas Tucker: South African Operations Manager

Nicholas is the Vice President and co-founder of Contextual Software Consultants, an Information Technology Consulting Firm in Johannesburg, South Africa.   Having successfully launched a small business in South Africa, Nicholas is familiar with the business requirements and regulations in Southern Africa.  His primary responsibility with S.H.I.P. Aid is to ensure that the operations and logistics are effectively managed when the shipment arrives in Southern Africa.  He works with our contacts in Lesotho to ensure that shipments are received and distributed to the intended recipients.