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Board Members



Myogen Steve Stücky
Myogen Steve Stücky has been practicing Zen since 1971 with various teachers including Richard Baker, Dainin Katagiri, Robert Aitken, and Tenshin Anderson. He first came to Zen Center in 1972 and lived in residence at City Center, Green Gulch, and Tassajara until 1980 and served as a member of the SFZC Board of Directors from 1988 to 1991. He received Dharma Transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in 1993. He became co-Abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center in February 2007 and in 2010 became Central Abbot as a part of restructuring the abbacy. He founded and continues to serve as guiding teacher of Dharma Eye Zen Center in San Rafael (www.dharmaeye.org). For many years, he was co-leader of the San Quentin Buddhadharma Sangha. He currently is on the faculty of Shogaku Zen Institute in the SPOT training program. From 1983 to 2006, he supported his family designing and building many gardens as a landscape/designer contractor. He has three adult children, four grandchildren, and shares a house with his spouse, Lane Olson, in Sonoma County. Steve has trained as an Internal Family Systems Therapist

Kiku Christina Lehnherr
Kiku Christina Lehnherr, Abiding Abbess of City Center, has a degree in Clinical Psychology and worked as a psychotherapist in Switzerland. She has been a Zen student since 1976 and began residential practice at San Francisco Zen Center in 1988. Ordained as a priest in 1993, she received Dharma Transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 2005. From 2003-2006 she served as Head of Practice (Tanto) at the City Center. She became Abiding Abbess of City Center in February 2012.

Mary Morgan - Board Chair
Mary Morgan has been practicing at San Francisco Zen Center since 1999. In 2003 she received lay ordination from Teah Strozer, with whom she continues to study. Elected to the Zen Center Board in 2007 and reelected in 2010, she is a member of the Diversity Committee and is Chair of the Governance Committee. She is a committed lay practitioner, having participated in Saturday Sangha as well as the first year of Entering the Path of Practice at City Center. She received her B.A. from Smith College in 1967 and her J.D. from New York University School of Law in 1972. Mary lives in San Francisco with her partner Heather, who practices with Gil Fronsdal's sangha in Redwood City. Mary has an adult son, Benjie, who teaches 8th grade humanities in the Oakland Unified School District. She is a Superior Court Judge in San Francisco. She is happiest outside, hiking, scuba diving, traveling, and generally soaking in the beauty of the natural world.

Eijun Linda Ruth Cutts
Eijun Linda Ruth Cutts came to San Francisco Zen Center in 1971, where she practiced with Suzuki Roshi, Zentatsu Baker, and Tenshin Reb Anderson. She was ordained as a priest in 1975 and has lived at Tassajara and City Center. Since 1993 she and her family have lived at Green Gulch Farm. In 1996 Linda received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson and served as Abbess of San Francisco Zen Center from 2000 to 2007. In June 2010, Linda was invited to serve as the Abiding Abbess of Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, as a part of the Abbacy Restructuring. She continues to teach and lead practice periods and retreats at Tassajara, Green Gulch, and elsewhere.

Bruce Fortin
Bruce Fortin was at the San Francisco Zen Center from 1970 to 1984 and lived at all three practice centers. He arrived a year before Suzuki Roshi’s death and was ordained by Richard Baker in 1977. Bruce met and married his wife Chris during this time and their son was born at Green Gulch. In 1995, he founded the Occidental-Laguna Sangha in Sebastopol where he currently serves as the priest and guiding teacher. Bruce received Dharma Transmission from Zoketsu Norman Fischer in 2003. Bruce held a wide range of positions while at the SFZC and served on the Zen Center Board for two terms as an appointed Director. On leaving Zen Center he served as Executive Director of a large Home Health Certified Hospice, returned to graduate school and obtained an MA in counseling. He currently runs a private psychotherapy and mediation practice in Sonoma County. Bruce also has a JD degree in Law. He has served on several non-profit boards including the Sonoma Land Trust and the California State Hospice Aids Task Force.

Helen Degenhardt
I was born, raised and educated in Germany, receiving my engineering degree in architecture from the Technical University at Darmstadt. Since 1990, I have worked as an architect with Zen Center, together designing and completing approximately 10 projects, in Tassajara, Green Gulch and at Greens Restaurant. In addition to working with SFZC, my firm, JSWD Architects, has worked extensively with a number of other spiritual communities: Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Abhayagiri and the Berkeley Society of Friends. Another important focus of our firm’s work is affordable and senior housing. I consider myself very fortunate in having worked with Zen Center for all these years because it has taught me, among other things, how to listen closely, work in a mindful way within a diverse community and be aware of one's own expectations. I also served on the board of the Zen Hospice Project for a number of years.

Mark Lachman
Mark Lachman was elected to the Board in December 2010. He began sitting at City Center in the late 80’s, participated in Establishing the Path of Practice, the Leadership Program, and serves on the Development Committee.

For over 15 years Mark has led the fundraising efforts of several nonprofit organizations. He wants to help Zen Center deepen and widen its relationship with the Sangha. He believes that by meeting each other through practice, we’ll enrich our lives, strengthen the organization and grow our financial resources.


Brian McCaffrey
I completed Establishing the Path of Practice in 2009, which was an experience that not only deepened my practice, but made me want to find a way to be more deeply involved in the sangha. Consequently I enrolled in the one year Leadership Program which I just completed and which gave me the opportunity to begin to understand the structure of our organization and some of the issues that we are currently facing.

My primary non-profit experience consists of five years on the board of a progressive, local, private school, including two years as president of the board. I received my B.A. from Stanford University and a Masters in Teaching degree from Reed College. After a brief career as a high school English teacher, I enrolled in law school and received a J.D. from Hastings College of the Law. I later interrupted my legal career for a three-year sojourn in China from 1979 to 1982, where my wife, Sylvia, and I taught in a Chinese university and traveled extensively throughout the country. I now practice law, primarily in the areas of estate planning and probate litigation.


Dennis McNally
I first encountered Buddhism many years ago while researching a biography of Jack Kerouac, but only established my own practice four years ago, when I began to sit at City Center. Without any particular conscious plan, I became increasingly involved, first in Saturday Sangha, then in the evening zazen doanryo, then as a student of Jordan Thorn. I took the precepts at my jukai in the Fall of 2011. Having served as a volunteer on the Board of Trustees and with the Development Committee (which I currently chair) of the ACLU of Northern California for nearly 20 years , I offered my experience to the Zen Center and became part of this past year’s Leadership Program, which has led to this invitation to serve on the Board. As my practice has deepened, it has become clear to me that service is an essential element, and one I cherish more and more. My background has been in the academic world (a Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts in History) and then - oddly - in the music business, where I went from researching a biography of the Grateful Dead (which was finally published in 2002) to becoming the band’s publicist from 1985 until 2008. I remain a consultant in publicity and promotio

Charlie Pokorny
Charlie Pokorny has dedicated his talents to studying and teaching dharma, and his life as a Zen priest expresses his devotion to the well-being of others. During his time as a resident of San Francisco Zen Center, he has supported the organization by taking on numerous positions of responsibility. He holds a master’s degree from Stanford University in Religious Studies, and he brings a breadth of perspective on the direction that Soto Zen is taking in the world today through his position as director of the Soto Zen Buddhist Association.

Gretchen Rau
I began my practice in 2006 and participated in Establishing the Path of Practice the following year. I have since become a resident practitioner at City Center and was involved in the City Center Visioning Task Force. I look forward to building on the work of those who came before me in expressing our core mission through the offerings at our practice centers. I would like to see increasing connection and understanding between individuals and groups who seek the dharma at our temples. I currently work in the executive office of a global environmental nonprofit organization, and I hope that my knowledge and organizational skills will be an asset to the Board in advancing our collective vision.

Ralph Rogers
Ralph Rogers brings to the Board many years of professional practice in the field of communication. Currently the Director of Communications at Stanford University Graduate School of Business, he was previously with the Asian Art Museum, working to present both institutions' "stories" in an engaging and inspiring perspective. Ralph works extensively with people in group settings and encourages collaboration, questioning, listening and storytelling. His work at Zen Center includes being on the Senior Living Committee, Program Committee, Green Gulch work practice and his teacher is Linda Ruth Cutts.

Mark Schieble
I have practiced law for 30 years; for the past 10 years, specializing in tax matters, at Foley & Lardner LLP. Most of my tax work is in the area of exempt organizations, primarily health care providers, and partnerships. I serve on the Finance Committees of the Boards of Blood Centers of the Pacific and Blood Systems, Inc.

I have assisted Greg McClune (former SF Zen Center Board member) on governance and tax issues that have come up relative to SF Zen Center over the past several years. In the past six months or so, I have also provided service relative to the potential development of a senior living community for SF Zen Center.


Furyu Nancy Schroeder
Furyu Nancy Schroeder, a resident of Zen Center for over 30 years, is currently the Director of Children and Family programs at Green Gulch Farm where she lives with her partner Dr. Grace Dammann and their 18 year old daughter Sabrina. Fu has held most of the monastic positions at the Zen Center and has been an active supporter of programs for children, people of color, the gay and lesbian community, and the interfaith community. In 2008 she was elected to the Marin Women's Hall of Fame and in 2010 she was appointed to the Board of the Marin Community Foundation. She received Dharma Transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999.

Constance de Laveaga Stoops
Constance de Laveaga Stoops (Connie) was reelected to the Board in December 2010. Connie brings nonprofit board and fundraising experience based upon her membership on the board of directors of the National AIDS Memorial Grove for 6 years. She is an architect and designer, and for the last two years has volunteered with Helen Degenhardt to develop additional plans for Tassajara. She is bilingual in English and Spanish.

Susan O'Connell, President (Officer of the Board)
Ze Sho Susan O’Connell currently serves on the Board of Directors as President of San Francisco Zen Center. Before being named president, she served on the board as vice president and before that as an elected member. She participates in the Development Committee and the People Policy Committee and is the chair of the Senior Living Facility Development Committee. She began Zen practice in 1987 and became a resident of Zen Center in 1995. She received priest ordination from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and was head monk (shuso) in 2005. She has lived at all three centers and served in a number of senior training positions.

Tova Green, Vice President (Officer of the Board)
Tova Green currently serves on the Board of Directors as Vice President of San Francisco Zen Center. Before being named vice president, she served as SFZC Director. She received priest ordination from Eijun Linda Cutts in 2003 and was Head Student at Tassajara in Fall, 2004. Tova is a practice leader at San Francisco Zen Center and co-founded Zen Center's Queer Dharma Group. Tova received her MSW from Smith College School for Social Work and completed Smith's certificate program in Contemplative Social Work in 2008. Tova was a social worker at Hospice by the Bay until April 2011.

Jordan Thorn, Chief Financial Officer (Officer of the Board)
Jordan Thorn began practicing at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1973, was ordained as a priest by Richard Baker in 1977, and received Dharma Transmission from Norman Fischer in 2003. He has been a resident student at all three of Zen Center's practice centers, and currently lives at City Center, where he was Head of Practice (Tanto) until fall 2010 when he became the SF Zen Center Treasurer/Chief Financial Officer. Previous to being Tanto he served as Treasurer and also Vice-President/Development Director of Zen Center. Jordan has been on the board for the past three years, and is a member of the Finance and Governance Committees.