Strategic initiatives that foster community engagement on behalf of families and children in the places we live and work—San Antonio, Kerrville, and Real County.
Vice President of Community Engagement
Perri joined the H. E. Butt Foundation in 2004 as Director of Development to increase public support of capital projects and program scholarships. Since then, she has also been instrumental in revamping our guest care services, spearheading a major rebranding effort, and most recently, integrating several initiatives and strategies into the Foundation’s new Community Engagement program.
In that role, Perri runs a multi-year capacity-building incubator for leaders of like-minded youth and family serving nonprofits in San Antonio. Her program also conducts research and pilots initiatives supporting mental health and invests in media and storytelling that lets us better understand the lives of our neighbors.
Before working for the Foundation, Perri served as Vice President of Development for San Antonio’s SAMMinistries. She also served as Associate Director of Development for the Medical College of Wisconsin. Perri graduated from Texas Tech University Human Development and Family Studies, and received her performance measurement certificate from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Executive Education in 2016. Perri lives in Boerne with her family.
Executive Director of Storytelling and Communications
As Executive Director of Storytelling and Communications, Patton is charged with leading the Foundation’s strategic messaging and cultivating the Foundation’s narrative voice and brand expression across its six programs and myriad channels. He leads our engagement to drive narrative change around the plight of vulnerable families and children, using storytelling to help us better understand the lives of our neighbors.
Patton brings 20 years of experience in media, publishing, and communications to the Foundation. He has served as editor of multiple national publications and has been widely published in the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Newsweek, TheAtlantic.com, CNN.com, and Christianity Today among others. Previously an instructor at the United States Air Force Academy, Patton has taught courses in composition, literature, and film studies. He holds a doctorate in religion and literature from Boston University. His most recent book is The Prayer Wheel: A Daily Guide to Renewing Your Faith with a Rediscovered Spiritual Practice (Convergent). Patton lives in San Antonio with his family.
Director of Storytelling
Elizabeth Le’anani Coffee has lived in San Antonio her whole life and loves it like a sibling. She often says: “my story is wrapped up in its story.” While her formal training is in advertising and public relations, her work experience reflects a decade working alongside religious non-profits and leaders through community engagement predominately in San Antonio and South Texas. She holds a Master of Arts in Philanthropic Studies from Indiana University through the Lilly School of Philanthropy. She previously worked as a research associate for the Lake Institute on Faith and Giving engaging with American patterns of giving and gathering for religious causes. She also serves on the Advisory Council of Leadership Education at Duke Divinity School and as the Vice Chair of the board of The Impact Guild.
Capacity Building Program Director
Meg Loomis has spent her 25-year career in the philanthropic and social impact field, most recently serving as Director of Strategic Initiatives at The Holdsworth Center, an Austin-based education leadership development center focused on improving public schools. The Holdsworth Center was founded by Charles Butt and is named for his mother, Mary Holdsworth Butt.
Previously, Meg served as Capacity Building Officer on a special multi-funder initiative at Methodist Healthcare Ministries, working closely with healthcare organizations across the Rio Grande Valley to advance their impact and sustainability. Before returning home to Texas, Meg lived ten years in Anchorage, Alaska, and worked as the Executive Director of the National Association of Social Workers. She was also a Senior Consultant for Agnew::Beck, a public health and community development consulting firm serving rural Alaska Native communities.
Meg holds a bachelor’s degree from Wesleyan University, a master’s degree in social work from the University of Alaska (where she was also an adjunct faculty member), and a master’s in business administration from St. Mary’s University. She lives in the Dignowity Hill neighborhood of San Antonio with her two young children and currently serves as Board President of MindShiftEd, a start-up nonprofit helping amplify parent voice in San Antonio public school districts.
