Founders of the EPDLibrary

 

Adrian Stewart MBA, BA(Hons), DipM, FCIM

Adrian moved to Oregon with his wife Jo and their three children in the summer of 2004. They had been breeding alpacas in England for a number of years. Together they now own and operate Mulberry Alpacas based in Ashland, Oregon.  Adrian is President of SOJAA an AOBA affiliate and editor of The Ideal Alpaca Community Journal.  Adrian was a founding member of the Affiliate Congress and is a regular contributor to magazines on the topic of alpacas, alpaca ownership and EPDs. He also writes a regular column called Letter from America for the UK Alpaca magazine.  You can contact him directly at adrian@mulberryalpacas.com

 

Sara Via, Ph.D.

Dr. Via received a B.A. from Duke University, a M.Sc. from the Australian National University, and a Ph.D. from Duke University (Evolutionary Genetics, minor in Statistics).  She received a National Research Service Award from the National Institutes of Health for postdoctoral work at the University of Chicago, where she developed mathematical models applying the statistical theory of quantitative genetics to adaptation in natural populations.  Her research since that time has involved experimental analysis of the genetics of adaptation.  Dr. Via has received numerous grants from the National Science Foundation and the USDA to support this research, and is the recipient of a prestigious Searle Scholars Award (Chicago Community Trust) and a Distinguished Scholar-Teacher Award (University of Maryland).  She served on the faculty of the University of Iowa and Cornell University before taking her current position as Professor of Biology at the University of Maryland.  Dr. Via has given over 100 invited seminar presentations at meetings and universities in North America and Europe.  She is the author of 42 scientific papers, which have collectively been cited over 3800 times by other scientists in their published work.  Dr. Via owns Meadowlark Alpacas, Ellicott City, MD, and is a member of the Ideal Alpaca Community.

 

Gwen Wolff, B.S., M.L.S.
Gwen Wolff and her husband Steven own Alpaca Kingdom in Spring Hill, KS, just outside Kansas City. She is an active member of AOBA, and has served on the Education Committee, Fiber to Fashion Student Design Committee, and the Affiliate Congress. Gwen is also active in her regional affiliate, MOPACA, and serves on the Education Committee. Gwen's career in academic medical education and corporate training took her around the country for business and speaking engagements. During a stay in Maryland, Gwen experienced alpaca fiber. A fiber research project led to purchase of the Wolff's first alpacas, while living in a townhouse in Tampa, FL. Now the native Midwesterners care for their own herd, and Gwen enjoys full-time ranching and educating others about alpacas and their fiber.