A woman with a shaved head is smiling and holding a brown and white baby goat with long floppy ears. — Chris and Fergus

Chris Kreutz

Chris is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Chubby Goat Acres. She has always been a passionate advocate for animals. Before founding CGA, Chris was involved in rehabbing, transporting, and helping animals in coordination with other organizations. When she’s not hauling manure or trimming hooves, Chris can usually be found snuggling with the goats, pigs, or her dogs.

A man wearing a work jacket and ski cap is smiling with a brown and white cat on his shoulder and holding a black and white duck. — Dave, with Baloo and Idgy

DAve kreutz

Dave is the Co-Founder and Treasurer of Chubby Goat Acres. Ten years ago, Dave lived downtown Chicago with two kids and a mellow cat. He had no idea that he would end up co-founding a farm sanctuary in the middle of the woods in Michigan! Dave is the man who makes it all work here at CGA. Building stalls and barns, mending fencing, pouring concrete, hauling supplies, and managing most of the office work: Dave is the man behind the scenes keeping it going! Dave best friend here at CGA is Idgy, our gossipy little Muscovy duck. When he’s not elbow deep in his latest project here, Dave enjoys listening to his favorite music and podcasts and spending time with family and friends.

A woman with a winter coat, hat, and gloves is smiling while standing to a big farm pig who is standing up on the side of a stall with her mouth open. — Jeanne and Daisy

Jeanne carter

Jeanne is the Co-Founder, Barn manager, and Vice President of CGA. Jeanne has always shared her life with a variety of animals, and has a special place in her heart for pigs. Here at CGA, Jeanne ensures that operations run smoothly and that every animal is safe and happy. When she’s not out in the barn, Jeanne enjoys watching old black and white movies with her dogs Bailey and Pancho, her potbelly pig Chunhua, and her two cats Joplin and Tiger Lilly.

A woman with brown hair and glasses is smiling while hugging her black lab. — Donna and her dog Rosie

Donna Schonveld

Donna has been Board President since 2022 and is a regular volunteer at CGA. She was employed as an elementary teacher for 32 years. Upon retirement in 2004, she has devoted her time to family and volunteer work. She is an active member of First Presbyterian Church in downtown Kalamazoo. Social justice issues are very important to her, and she is currently involved in jail ministry. She is physically active and loves to travel. Reading and sewing are passions of hers. She has been a steady volunteer at Chubby Goat Acres since 2018.

A woman has blond hair pulled back into a ponytail and is wearing glasses. She is sitting on the floor with a black potbelly pig and smiling. — Anna and her rescued pig Darrell

Anna Bruty

Anna is a founding Board Member of Chubby Goat Acres and the Board Secretary. She met Chris and Dave Kreutz through the rescue of one of CGA’s spunkiest residents- Dorie the pony. Anna was looking for a way to help farm animals have lives of quality and filled with love and CGA has been the perfect place for that. Anna is an attorney and loves using her legal and administrative experience to help keep the Board organized and running smoothly. In her free time she loves to hang out with her family and her companion potbelly pig Darrell, who was rescued through CGA.

Briana meeker

Ever since I can remember, I have always had a passion for animals. My family even called me a dog whisperer...little did they know the effect worked on more than just dogs!

A few years back, after watching Cowspiracy and beginning my studies in Sustainable Business, I knew that I had to make some changes in my life. With knowledge comes responsibility… and that has summed up the past few years of my journey.

I heard about an animal sanctuary- Chubby Goat Acres and began visiting as often as I could. It was a simple drive, just a few blocks away. Saving up our food scraps was the perfect excuse to stop by for a visit. Each encounter with the sanctuary residents offered an educational experience. The founder Chris would share each resident's story with so much passion and every story came with more uncovering of the secrets behind animal agriculture. Although I try not to pick favorites at the sanctuary, I do have a few… and the list grows after each visit!

Along with my journey on exploring a compassionate plate at the table, I am deeply invested in the environmental side of animal agriculture and our daily lives. I spend my days as a Sustainability Consultant, educating at large on best practices for waste reduction and carbon impact.

A woman is smiling and standing in a field with a palomino pony and a gray Arabian horse. — Michelle with Dorie and Gus

Michelle Bruty

Michelle is one of Chubby Goat Acres newest board members, joining in 2022. Michelle is compassionate about providing all animals with a loving life free from fear or cruelty. She was introduced to CGA through the rescue of CGA's resident Dorie the pony. She is currently finishing her last year as a middle school counselor after over 30 years of dedicating her life to children. Michelle has strong writing skills as an English major and plans to utilize those during her retirement to help CGA with grant writing and other events. Michelle loves to read and hang with her two small rescue dogs.

A woman wearing a red and black jacket is smiling and petting a sheep happily. — Melissa with Sweet Hannah B

Melissa Pena

Melissa joined the Board of Chubby Goat Acres in 2022.