Board & Staff

A 1974 UT Austin alum, Kathy Loden is a dedicated Texas Longhorn who truly bleeds orange—holding season passes for UT football, volleyball, and softball, along with her own tailgating space. She taught fourth grade for two years, high school for nine, and spent twenty-nine years as a Delta Airlines flight attendant before retiring in 2014.

Kathy is deeply passionate about helping children move forward from trauma to lead happy, productive lives. She was part of the inaugural Friends of Christopher Class in 1998 and has remained an active member since. Kathy has served two terms as Guild President, more than ten years on the Guild Leadership Team, and volunteers annually to help set up the PlayBingo fundraising event. Her dedication was recognized in 2019 when she was named the Center’s Volunteer of the Year.

Kathy’s greatest joy comes from her weekly volunteer service in the Center’s family waiting area, where she works alongside Family Support Specialists to help children feel comfortable, safe, and welcome during their visits. She loves supporting these kiddos and being part of their healing journey. Kathy also volunteers annually for the Texas Heritage Songwriter Award weekend and was recently appointed to the UT Hall of Honor Selection Committee.

We are excited to welcome her as the Center for Child Protection’s new Board President.

For the last six years, Ann Kasper has been a dedicated member of the Center for Child Protection’s Board of Directors. She was introduced to the Center through a fundraising event, where the mission resonated with her on a personal level. Since then, Ann has been an active supporter of the Center through the Friends of Christopher Guild and Guardian Angel Society. She has also served on various committees including but not limited to Executive, Board Development, Donor Relations, CPT Relations, Marketing, and Strategic Planning in addition to serving as the board chair for DoubleTake Austin.

A veteran executive of the fashion industry, Ann now coaches and mentors in both corporate and entrepreneurial settings helping individuals and companies build their brands. She also sits on the Austin Community College Fashion Incubator Advisory Board.

Ann’s philanthropic reach extends to committee work with Impact Austin, a women’s collective giving organization, and the League of Women Voters development committee. Ann is the proud “Momma” of Esther, a black pug.

With over two decades as a tech CFO, David Nelson brings financial expertise and leadership to his community work. Since 2020, he has served on the Board of Directors for the Center and is involved in several committees, including Finance and Compliance, Strategic Planning, and Donor Relations.

In 2025, David joined the Board of Directors for the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Texas (CACTX). His additional philanthropic work has also included volunteering at the Ronald McDonald House, Leadership Austin, and serving on the Board of The Austonian.

David and his wife of 40 years are proud to have raised two successful professionals: a son working in real estate finance in Austin, TX, and a daughter in software product marketing in Denver, CO.

Abby Sprio is a lifelong Austinite whose ties to the Center for Child Protection go back three generations. Following in the footsteps of her grandmother, Maxine Roberts, one of the Center’s original founding members, Abby has proudly supported the Center for over 15 years while actively serving on various committees, including the Board of Directors.

Professionally, Abby is a licensed Realtor with Sprio Homes. With over six years of experience in the industry, she is passionate about supporting all clientele, ranging from first-time homebuyers to seasoned investors and luxury homeowners. Abby specializes in collaborating with buyers and sellers interested in remodeling, whether enhancing comfort in an existing home or maximizing return on investment. Her approach blends real estate expertise with extensive construction knowledge, allowing her to offer tailored design services that fit each client’s unique lifestyle.

Beyond her professional and philanthropic work, Abby enjoys spending quality time with her husband and dogs, traveling when possible, and working on arts and crafts projects.

Shonnery Pettit is the Immediate Past President of the Board of Directors for the Center for Child Protection. She has been involved with the Center for 8 years and served as a Board member for 6 years.

Her service to the Center has been unprecedented in the amount of time and energy she has devoted to leading various committees that support the Center’s mission. Shonnery is first and foremost purpose driven.  Every decision she makes is based on the question: “What is in the best interest of the children we serve?”

In her most recent role as the Chair of the Education, Diversity & Outreach Committee, she helped expand the scope of the Center’s prevention efforts.  This group is focused on providing free prevention trainings to the community, ensuring diversity & inclusion within the Center, and partnering with other charitable organizations to serve our community in a more impactful manner.  Her work as the Chair of the Center’s Luxury Car Raffle Fundraiser led to a different selling strategy which resulted in selling out in a record-breaking time.  Further, as part of the strategic planning committee, she helped to develop a comprehensive strategic plan.  She is a collaborative leader who looks for the best ideas and finds ways to implement them.

Shonnery is also a passionate public speaker and has done the fundraising ‘ask’ at many Center events including PlayBingo Ladies Luncheon and Guardian Angel receptions.  She was a 2015 Celebrity Dancer at our biggest fundraising event, Dancing with the Stars Austin.  Knowing that these funds help to serve our children in a more impactful way, Shonnery devotes a lot of time and attention to making the Center’s fundraising efforts a complete success.

Before being named the Center’s Board President, Shonnery was a founder of Ignite Running Club, a nonprofit organization in Dallas that served children living in a homeless shelter.  This organization encouraged kids to use running not only as an empowerment tool of setting & accomplishing goals, but also as a healthy outlet to deal with stress.  On her own initiative, Shonnery started a grassroots fundraising campaign which provided each child with new running gear and a free entry into a local 5K race.

She has also been involved in other philanthropic efforts in Austin.  She currently serves on the Board of Directors for DoubleTake.  She previously served on the Texas Advocacy Project Board for multiple years.  She also supports the Boys and Girls Club of Austin, St. David’s “Toast of the Town”, United Way, CureDuchenne, and is a Mack Jack & McConaughey sponsor and fashion show host.

Shonnery has her MBA from Texas Tech University.  She enjoys kickboxing and has been studying French for the past two years.  She has been married to Tom Pettit for 24 years and has two grown sons.  Blake will be graduating this year from the University of Arizona.  Brett, her youngest, is attending Vanderbilt University in Nashville.