SOS Advisory Board

The Spirit of St. Louis Women's Fund Advisory Board has been established to provide the current Board an opportunity to review ideas and decisions about the organization's opportunities and direction for the future with our Founding Board Members and Community Partners. This group meets three times per year, and as needed, for this purpose. One of SOS's values is to remain true to its original mission and structure for collective giving. Staying in touch with the people who originated the organization and guided it through its formative years will help us to accomplish this goal.

Pat Cole, M.D.

Pat Cole, M.D. is passionate about both personal and community health. Cole works as an interventional cardiologist at the Heart Health Center and is on staff practicing at Missouri Baptist Medical Center. For the past decade she has also volunteered with the American Diabetes Association. “As one of the founding members of SOS, it is inspiring to see the impact of our collective giving continue to grow.” Cole says. “I take great joy in knowing our work directly benefits deserving people and organizations in the St. Louis community.”

Alison Ferring

For more than 30 years, Alison Ferring has dedicated her time and support to St. Louis’ grass roots organizations, developing deep anchors in a community she calls home. She firmly believes that positive changes are the byproducts of strong relationships among neighbors and passionate involvement in community causes. “SOS is a perfect example of this paradigm, bringing together a diverse group of women united in a philanthropic spirit. Through this collective philanthropy we can truly make a difference in our community,” says Ferring.  She is a painter and a docent, and serves on the St. Louis Public Library Foundation board of trustees.

Norma Fitzwater

Ilene Ordower

A former member of the Missouri House of Representatives, Ilene Ordower has an extensive record of community activism, particularly in the areas of domestic and family violence, reproductive rights and HIV/AIDS. For Ordower, SOS represents the power of a few to impact many in the St. Louis area through collective giving and grant-making. In addition to her work with the energetic and caring women of SOS, Ordower volunteers with MERS Goodwill, The United Negro College Fund Advisory Board, Women of Achievement, National Council of Jewish Women’s Kids Community Closet (co-chair) and St. Louis ArtWorks.

Gayle Palmer

Since moving to St. Louis from Washington, D. C. about 10 years ago, entrepreneur and philanthropist Gayle Palmer has emerged herself in organizations that deepen her connections within her adopted hometown. Palmer is the owner of Palmer Products, importing cashmere products from Mongolia. In addition to SOS, she also volunteers with a number of local charities, including Washington University Women's Society Board, Children's Hospital, COCA and St Luke's Hospital. “SOS has helped me grow my St. Louis community roots and has connected me to women who I am proud to call my friends,” she says.  "I find it wonderful that the older we grow, the more we come to know what we enjoy most.  SOS captures my passion and my life purpose on so many levels!"

Pam Trapp

Pam Trapp is an active community volunteer and an avid supporter of the arts and arts education.  She currently serves as board president of Jazz St. Louis and is a member of the board of trustees of the Saint Louis Art Museum and chair of its Beaux Arts Council, the museum's leadership giving group. Trapp also volunteers with John Burroughs School, The Women’s Exchange, the Greater St. Louis Area Boy Scouts of America and the Saint Louis Zoo. She joined SOS to learn first-hand about underserved needs in the community and to participate in the grant-making process.  "I've enjoyed meeting like-minded SOS members on the Grants Committee and working as a team to fulfill the SOS mission,” she notes. “SOS is making a difference, now more than ever, and it's gratifying to be a part of this unique organization."

Carol Wall

Carol Wall, president of Mitchell Wall Architects, has served on the board of SOS since its inception in 2005. Wall is greatly inspired by the group’s guiding principle. “I believe that a simple, single donation becomes greater through synergy when it becomes part of a whole,” she describes. “Collectively, we can create a unified voice and a presence in the community.” She has been with Mitchell Wall Architects since its inception in 1976, serving as president and CEO since 1999. The firm’s work can be enjoyed in St. Louis and elsewhere in Missouri, Illinois, Florida, Colorado, Arizona and Puerto Rico.