Empire Health Foundation staff is ready to help you and answer any questions you may have. Please go to the Contact Us page to send an email for any of the following members of our team:

Antony Chiang, President

Antony Chiang is the President of Empire Health Foundation (EHF). EHF is a health conversion private foundation, with approximately $125 million in assets under management and stewardship, working to improve the health of communities in Eastern Washington. With approximately $50 million reserved towards philanthropy, it is the largest private health foundation in the region, giving Antony the unique opportunity to build a philanthropic organization from the ground up, design and implement a strategic vision for impact, and establish the Foundation as a catalyst and convener in the region.

Prior to working at EHF, Antony was an executive at a leading philanthropic service provider, designing and managing innovative models of corporate technology philanthropy and streamlining international grant making. In addition, he has served as the chief executive of several social enterprise start-ups and practiced corporate venture capital law. As a Principal Investigator specializing in bioinformatics, Antony was awarded several Phase 1 and Phase 2 SBIR grants from the National Institutes of Health. Antony earned his B.S. in Electrical Engineering /Computer Science from UC Berkeley and his J.D. from Stanford Law School.

Antony was honored with the 2012 Annual Public Health Leader Award by the Washington State Public Health Association.  In addition, he is a member of the Private Foundation Task Force for the Council of Foundations, a mentor in the Council's Career Pathways program, served as a member of the Annual Conference Planning Committee for Philanthropy Northwest, and appointed to the WA Department of Health's Community Transformation Leadership Team.  Antony is a frequent speaker and presenter, including the closing speaker at the EWU Health Care Administration conference, and sessions/webinars for Grantmakers in Health and Council of Foundations.

Kristen West
Vice President, Grant Programs

Kristen West is the foundation's Vice President for Grant Programs, and responsible for designing and stewarding the investment of foundation resources and staff time to create impact.  Kristen brings extensive health related experience as the founder and Executive Director of the CHOICE Regional Health Network, a nonprofit organization that works collaboratively with regional partners to improve the health status of people who live in a five-county region in western Washington State.  She is also a founding member of the national organization, Communities Joined in Action (CJA), an officer of the Washington State coalition, Communities Connect, and a former Board member of the Prescription Drug Assistance Foundation.  Ms. West describes herself as a social justice advocate – working with many partners to challenge the "status quo" health care establishment to improve quality, expand access and reduce costs. She has the opportunity to expand that social justice lens from purely health care access to the foundation's larger health mission.  Ms. West has over 15 years’ experience working on state health care reform, legislative relations, and public health care purchasing. She holds a Master of Public Administration and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Business Administration from The Evergreen State College.  Kristen is also the recipient of the 2004 Distinguished Leader in Thurston County for her efforts in universal access to healthcare in the region.

Dave Luhn
Chief Financial Officer

As CFO of Empire Health Foundation (EHF), Dave is responsible for budgeting for and internal/Board reporting of all aspects of EHF’s financial operations.  In addition, Dave monitors and evaluates the myriad trailing legacies that EHF assumed when it was created from the sale of predecessor nonprofit hospitals, including a multi-million-dollar defined benefit pension plan administered for the benefit of the hospital’s employees. Prior to joining EHF, Dave was CFO for a Spokane, WA life insurance company.  Having joined that company in 1985, Dave was involved throughout his career in various aspects of its financial operations, including tax, budgeting and financial accounting and reporting.  In 2008, Dave was part of the team that successfully constructed the sale of the company to new private interests.  Dave earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration, Accounting from Oregon State University in 1982.

Brian Myers

Senior Program Associate, Capacity Building Program.  

Brian oversees the Capacity Building Program, which aims to increase the capacity for community collaboration in efforts to pursue funding from outside the region. Currently, he is working on efforts to increase grant writing capacity and cross-sector collaboration at both local and state agencies in efforts of federal and national funding opportunities.  Additionally, EHF is the lead on the Health Philanthropy Partnership, a dedicated and growing group of foundations, businesses, state and local organizations interested in health care reform. Brian earned his B.A. from San Francisco State University. He has experience in education and previously was with TechSoup, a nonprofit intermediary donation platform that increases capacity of other nonprofits.  He is an avid ultra-marathon runner, which conveys his passion for healthy lifestyles.

Sarah Lyman
Senior Program Associate, Strategic Grants Program and
Responsive Grants Program.    

Sarah is the Senior Program Associate for Empire Health Foundation's Strategic and Responsive Programs. The Strategic Program aims to create long-term, measurable, sustainable change in the health of Eastern Washington, with current strategic priorities in Obesity Prevention and Mental Health.  The Responsive Program is intended to provide immediate, one-time grants to organizations serving our region through a wide variety of programs touching on access to healthcare, research, health education, wellness, or public policy.  Sarah earned her M.B.A. from Eastern Washington University, and a degree in Business Marketing from Western Washington University.  Prior to joining Empire Health Foundation's team, Sarah worked as an Account Executive for a local marketing and advertising firm. She has experience with strategic planning and board governance for several nonprofit organizations, and has a strong passion for health and wellness, as well as serving basic human needs. Sarah is currently on the Board of Directors and the Development/Operations Committee for Partnering for Progress, a nonprofit that helps provide access to health care, education, sanitation and clean water to residents in developing countries. She also served on the Grants Committee for Inland Northwest Community Foundation, and has been active with other nonprofits including Hamomi Children's Centre, YMCA, the Red Cross, and the Garland Business District.

Courtney Shirk
Office Manager/Executive Assistant

Courtney is the Office Manager for Empire Health Foundation and Executive Assistant to Antony Chiang and Kristen West.  She is responsible for all daily office operations at EHF including Human Resources, IT, facilities, event preparation and general scheduling.  Born in Spokane Washington and raised in Seattle, Courtney moved back to her hometown with her husband and daughter 6 years ago to raise her family.  She has over 20 years of experience in the administrative capacity in the public and private sectors.  Most recently her professional work included working with the low income and developmentally disabled populations to assist them in locating, securing and maintaining unsubsidized employment.  This experience gave her the unique opportunity to understand the importance of developing community relationships not only on the executive level, but also on a personal level with those who are in need.  She spent the summer of 2012 delivering meals to the elderly and home-bound, and currently serves on the board of Meals on Wheels at Mid-City Concerns.  Please contact Courtney with any questions you may have regarding the foundation, events, or scheduling needs.  She can be reached at (509) 315-1323 x 512 or courtney@empirehealthfoundation.org.