About Us

John Walsh (Chair)
Mr. Walsh has been Chair of the Board of Directors of Invest in Kids since its inception in 1999. He has been practicing law for 23 years, first as a federal prosecutor, then as a partner at Holland & Hart, and for the last nine years, a partner at Hill & Robbins, P.C. He and his wife, Lisa, and three children live in Denver. Mr. Walsh is active in a broad array of community organizations and causes, but counts Invest in Kids as his greatest community contribution.

Jennifer Atler Fischer
Ms. Atler started as a pro-bono lawyer for Invest in Kids in 1997, joined the board in 1998 and came on as staff in 1999. Ms. Atler currently serves on the Board of Trustees of Rose Community Foundation and chairs their grant-making Committee on Health. She is a graduate of the 2001 Class of Leadership Denver, through the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. Ms. Atler was chosen a Woman of Distinction by the Mile High Girl Scouts in 2003 and one of Denver’s outstanding 40 under 40 by the Denver Business Journal in 2002. She also received the Children’s Health and Welfare Award from the Colorado Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Though Ms. Atler stepped down from the executive director position in July 2009, she continues to be an active member of the Invest in Kids Board of Directors.

Catherine Goodwillie
Ms. Goodwillie has been a volunteer for IIK since 2005. She has devoted much of her time to development (specifically special events) and is the Chair of Invest in Kids' Board Fundraising Committee. Before pursuing a successful career in sales, specializing in startup projects, Ms. Goodwillie earned her graduate degree in counseling psychology and worked as a counselor in Denver.

Robert Hill (Co-founder of Invest in Kids)
Mr. Hill is a co-founder and shareholder of Hill & Robbins, P.C., where his practice emphasizes complex commercial litigation, particularly antitrust, securities, and pension litigation and class actions. Listed in The Best Lawyers in America for “Business Litigation” since 1991, Mr. Hill was was also named to their inaugural listing of “Bet-the-Company” litigators. With just over 100 attorneys named in the entire country, this is the most prestigious list Best Lawyers publishes. Mr. Hill is a founding board member of the Nurse-Family Partnership and has chaired the NFP board since its creation and also currently serves on the Board of International Development Enterprises.

Eric Hilty
Mr. Hilty is Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel for Apartment Investment and Management Company (AIMCO). Prior to working for AIMCO he was a partner with the law firm of Holland & Hart and worked in the commercial litigation group from 1993-2003. Mr. Hilty currently serves on the Trinity University National Alumni Board and is a board member for the Colorado Chapter of the Association for Corporate Counsel. He took a one and a half year leave of absence from his practice at Holland & Hart and was the Associate Director of Invest in Kids (1999-2001), and has been active as a board member since. Eric has been married to his wonderful wife, Sarah, since 2001 and they have two children: Ryan (6) and Rachel (4).

Gregory Kanan
Mr. Kanan is a partner with the law firm of Rothgerber Johnson & Lyons LLP and practices in commercial, securities, and antitrust litigation and health law and has trial experience in all of these areas. Mr. Kanan regularly advises hospitals, physicians, and health care practice associations on antitrust issues, including advice to one of the largest hospital systems in Colorado. He is one of only eight Colorado lawyers listed in Chambers Leading Lawyers for Business as an antitrust expert. Mr. Kanan also has been elected to the American College of Trial Lawyers, the preeminent trial lawyer organization in America. Membership is limited to no more than one percent of the lawyers in any state.

Cathy Lemon
Ms. Lemon is a judge in Denver District Court. She was appointed to the bench by Governor Owens in 2004. Prior to that, she was a partner at the law firm of Faegre & Benson. She has been on the Board of Directors of the Colorado Lawyers Committee since 1991, and chaired its board in 1995-1996. Ms. Lemon received the Colorado Lawyers Committee Individual of the Year Award in 1993, the University of Colorado Alumni Pro Bono Award in 1996 and Faegre & Benson’s John C. Benson Pro Bono Award in 1994.

Adele Phelan
Ms. Phelan is a President Emeritus of The Clayton Foundation. She has worked as a consultant for the Mayor’s Office of Education and Children, and was the Interim Coordinator for The Colorado Health Institute. She serves on the board of Metropolitan State College of Denver, as well as many other nonprofit boards in the Denver Metro Area (for example, Colorado Nonprofit Development Center, Qualistar, Colorado Bright Beginnings).

James Scarboro
An experienced litigator and partner at Arnold & Porter LLP's Denver office, Mr. Scarboro has handled commercial, securities, product liability, antitrust, and Indian litigation before Federal and State courts throughout the West. Mr. Scarboro served as law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Byron R. White from 1971- 1972 and was an associate professor at the University of Colorado School of Law from 1973-1978. He chaired the board of the Colorado Lawyer’s Committee in 1994-95, and remains on their board. He received the Outstanding Sustained Contribution Award in 2000 from the Lawyers Committee, in addition to numerous other prestigious awards from his peers in the legal community.

Sean Waters
Mr. Waters is the President of Cook Street Consulting. He is an Accredited Investment Fiduciary and was one of the first thirteen individuals in the nation to attain this designation. Prior to working at Cook Street Consulting he was an institutional portfolio manager for Scudder Kemper Investments in San Francisco. In addition to sitting on the Invest in Kids board he was the past Chairman of the IIK Finance Committee. Mr. Waters is also a member of the Board of the Ricks Center for Gifted Children at the University of Denver, and is the past President of the Alumni Board of Graland Country Day School.