Meet Our Staff
Northwest Lions Foundation for Sight & Hearing
Monty Montoya
President and CEO
Lion Monty Montoya pursues leadership with a passion, continuously reaching for the highest standards and practices that will bring about major progress for humanitarian issues. After helping build the Donor Network of Arizona's Ocular Services Department into one of the country's leading eye banks, Monty was recruited to turn around SightLife in 1997. In just three years, he led SightLife from nearly being absorbed by the local tissue bank to becoming the number one provider of corneas for transplant in the U.S. SightLife is now recognized as a leading social enterprise, committed to multiplying its success globally through education and consulting. As a result, Monty was promoted to President and CEO of the Northwest Lions Foundation for Sight & Hearing in January 2003.
Leveraging and sharing resources is a top priority for Monty. To this end, he serves with several professional associations, including the Eye Bank Association of America, Vision Share, and Eye Sight International.
Transforming opportunities for the hearing-impaired is next on his agenda. The Foundation's AUDIENT program aims to greatly increase access to quality hearing health care for persons currently without adequate financial resources. In the process, the program will provide operating models that can benefit businesses and non-profits alike.
His drive is best reflected in a quote from Bill Drayton, founder of several non-profit groups: "Social entrepreneurs are not content just to give a fish, or teach how to fish. They will not rest until they have revolutionized the fishing industry."
Monty has a bachelor of science degree in zoology from Arizona State University and an MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business. At Duke, he was honored to represent his class as the student commencement speaker. His personal interests include golf, mentoring and international cultures. He and his wife Tiffany have three children.