President

Mark has been a resident of Surprise for over 15 years, with an interest and involvement in the development and planning of the area as it grows from bedroom community to full-fledged city.

He has served with the foundation since its original founding/planning committee as a youth club in the early 2010's.

As a local professional and business owner, he donates his time and enthusiasm to the cause as an investment in improving outcomes for all its citizens.

Treasurer

Lisa Gill moved to Arizona in December 2004 with her family from Pennsylvania.

As of 2025, Lisa has been married to her husband Joe for 35 years. Lisa has 2 girls, Alicia, 33 and Kristina, 30. Both married. Lisa is proud to be a grandmother to Scarlett who is 4 and Brantley 20 months.

 Lisa has been in banking since 1985 and will celebrate 40 years in April 2025. Lisa believes in being a relationship banker who provides concierge service to her clients. She works with consumer and business customers. Lisa loves to be a resource to her clients and the community.

 Lisa gives back by sitting on 3 Boards. Eve’s Place Board Chair, Surprise Youth Foundation Treasurer, and Sun City West Alliance of Business And Community Board President.

 Lisa enjoys photography, reading, & hanging out with her family.

Secretary

​Annie Ansell is a dedicated non-profit leader with a profound commitment to serving children and families in the West Valley. As the Chief Executive Officer of the Dysart Community Center, a leadership position she has held since 2016, she guides one of the region's oldest and most vital non-profits. Under her direction, the center provides empowering developmental programs—including after-school care, teen programs, and summer camps—that equip low-income youth and their families with the tools and skills necessary to build self-sufficiency.

​Annie’s career is distinguished by her long-standing passion for youth advocacy. Before joining the Dysart Community Center, she served as the CEO for Kids Count and spent over six years at Arizonans for Children, Inc., where she directed the Tutor/Mentor Program for foster youth. This extensive experience is centered on creating safe and nurturing environments that foster academic success and personal growth for children and teens facing significant challenges.

​Beyond her primary role, Annie extends her expertise across the community. She has served as a board member for the Surprise Youth Foundation since 2020 and also sits on the Microsoft Data Center Community Advisory Board, where she helps evaluate grant requests for local non-profits. Annie is driven by a philosophy of empowerment, believing in helping community members rise out of poverty and then reach back to lift others, strengthening our community for generations to come.

​Kevin Perry brings a wealth of executive leadership to the board, with a strong background in business development and marketing from a distinguished career in the high-tech industry. Before retiring in 2020, he held senior management positions at major corporations, including Seagate Technology and Western Digital. After relocating to Surprise in 2021, Kevin immediately dedicated his time and expertise to becoming an active leader in community service.

​His deep commitment to the Surprise community is evident in his extensive volunteer work. Kevin serves as Vice President of the West Valley Symphony and is a board member for the WHAM Community Art Center. He also contributes his business acumen as a Board Advisor to the Surprise Spark Business Development Hub and as a volunteer tax preparer with the VITA program. Furthermore, he serves the city directly as a Commissioner on the Surprise Planning and Zoning Board.

​Kevin is honored to be a member of the Surprise Youth Foundation board, where he applies his decades of professional experience and his passion for community building. He is focused on using his skills to help support and empower the youth of Surprise, ensuring the foundation can continue to grow its impact and achieve its mission.

Skip Hall was elected to serve as Mayor from August 2020 to December 31, 2024.

Hall was first elected to the City Council with a special election for District 6 (Palo Verde) in April 2008 and re-elected to office in 2009 to a full term. Redistricting placed him in the newly-configured District 5, and on August 27, 2013, he was elected to the District 5 seat. He was re-elected to that seat in the August 2017 Primary Election. He also served as Vice Mayor in 2011 and 2014. Hall was selected to serve as Mayor by the City Council in November 2018 to fill a vacancy.

Prior to serving on City Council, Hall served three years on the City of Surprise Planning and Zoning Commission. He also spent several decades working in various capacities in the hospitality and real estate industries. For three years, he served as the Vice President for a new homebuilder in California, and prior to that, he served 10 years as the Senior Vice President of a hospitality company based in Japan. Most of his professional career was spent opening and operating several restaurants and hotels along the west coast.

Hall has been part of the City Council's united effort that helped bring Surprise back to fiscal health during the recession, generating a budget surplus, placing the City's fiscal house in order and improving our City's bond ratings. Mayor Hall also played a proactive supporting role in initiating a Surprise youth initiative and the annual Surprise Literacy Challenge with former Councilman John Williams. Hall oversees a growing economy that has added many new businesses and thousands of jobs to Surprise, as well as a new capital investment and employers like Amazon, IRIS USA, QUAY and many more. He brings a renewed focus and attention to Surprise downtown area and a creative economy with new restaurant and entertainment options to the Prasada area.

During his time on Council, Hall has served on numerous City Council Sub-Committees, including as current chair of Public Safety Retirement Commission. He has also served on WESTMARC's Water and Energy Committee and the Valley Metro RPTA Board. Hall's regional service currently includes a position on the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) Regional Council, MAG Transportation Policy Committee, and Luke West Valley Council. Hall is active with the city's AZTechCelerator to promote business growth, and he is the chair of the Mayor's Veterans Roundtable.

Hall's goals for the City include maintaining strong public safety for residents amidst continued growth; continuing to expand upon the City's long-term, sustainable water master plan; working with federal, state and county partners to increase funding opportunities and maintain focus on transportation infrastructure needs. Mayor Hall continues to seek opportunities to bring healthy and active outdoor spaces to our community that will help meet the demands of our recreational and sports programs and increase youth involvement within the community.

He continues to look for ways to serve the residents of Surprise with an emphasis on public safety, financial health, water resources, streets, solid waste, recycling, youth, veterans and keeping the friendly, small-town feel of Surprise as the City grows.

Hall has been a lifelong advocate for the military and veterans, and he continues to seek opportunities to provide additional resources and support for those who serve and have served.

Hall is a Vietnam War Veteran and was awarded the Bronze Star for his outstanding service 1969-1970.

He grew up in Idaho and received a business degree from Seattle University.

Karen Henriksen brings her decade-and-a-half banking experience in Sun City West as well as her enthusiasm for supporting her community in Surprise to the board.

been an Arizona resident since 2002. She earned her law degree from the University of Miami School of Law and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Florida International University. Judge Gaudreau is pleased to serve on the Board of the Surprise Youth Foundation and hopes her personal background and professional experience will provide a helpful perspective in pursuing the organization’s goals.

​Judge Gaudreau’s commitment to service extends throughout the Arizona legal community. She is a member of the Arizona Supreme Court’s Committee on the Impact of Domestic Violence and the Courts and serves as faculty for statewide judicial training on various legal topics. Prior to her appointment, her diverse legal career included roles as an assistant city prosecutor and a civil litigation associate. She also helps educate the public about the justice system by writing articles for local and statewide legal publications.

​Judge Gaudreau is passionate about the causes of justice, fairness, innovation, and education. She endeavors every day to serve the Surprise community and the greater Arizona judiciary with integrity, knowledge, compassion, and enthusiasm, values she is eager to apply to her work with the foundation.

School Resource Officer for Asante Elementary, Grayling joined our board in the summer of 2025.