Know the Signs, Fight for Victory

Our Team

Michael Weamer

President & CEO

mweamer@marfan.org

Michael has been President and CEO of The Marfan Foundation since 2015. His involvement with the Foundation dates back to 1999 when he joined the Board of Directors and was an advisor.

Prior to joining the Foundation, Michael served in leadership roles for the American Heart Association for two decades. Previously, he was President of the National Society to Prevent Blindness and Affiliate Executive Director of the National Easter Seal Society. Michael also served on the Board of Directors of the Association of Black Cardiologists and was Chairman of Health Power, a national nonprofit organization committed to minority health.

Michael is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University. He and his wife, Karen, have four children, Mollie, Caitlin, Sean, and Daniel, and five grandchildren, Max, Lukas, Philip, and twins Charlie and Michael.

Our Staff

  • Chief Operating Officer
    Judy Gibaldi
    jgibaldi@marfan.org

  • Chief Science Officer
    Josephine Grima, PhD
    jgrima@marfan.org

  • Chief Philanthropy Officer
    Helaine Baruch
    hbaruch@marfan.org

  • Chief Program Officer
    Eileen Masciale
    emasciale@marfan.org

  • Chief Financial Officer
    Inderjeet Kaur, CPA
    ikaur@marfan.org

  • Director, Loeys-Dietz Syndrome Foundation (Loeys-Dietz Division)
    Angela Crist
    angela.crist@loeysdietz.org

  • Director, The VEDS Movement (Vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome Division)
    Katie Wright
    kwright@thevedsmovement.org

  • Director of Help & Resource Center
    Janice Petrella Lynch, MSN, RN
    jlynch@marfan.org

  • Senior Vice President, Development
    Deborah Goodman
    dgoodman@marfan.org

  • Senior Vice President, Development
    Kimberly Huddleston
    khuddleston@marfan.org

  • Director of Marketing
    Susan Benvenuti
    sbenvenuti@marfan.org

  • Director of Research
    Lauren May, MPH
    lmay@marfan.org

  • Director of Development
    Kara Burke
    kburke@marfan.org

  • Technical Content Manager
    Dominga Noe
    dnoe@marfan.org

  • Social Events Manager
    Alyssa Aiello
    aaiello@marfan.org

  • Client Services Manager
    Andrea Friedman, MSW
    afriedman@marfan.org

  • Manager of Community Programs
    Stephanie Enger-Moreland
    semoreland@marfan.org

  • Manager of Development
    Meredith Mischner
    mmischner@marfan.org

  • Gift Processing and Data Coordinator
    Rhue Ivy
    rivy@marfan.org

  • Administrative Office Manager
    Elva Prohens
    eprohens@marfan.org

  • Accountant
    Sapan Patel
    spatel@marfan.org

  • Constituent Data Coordinator
    Cameron Woodworth
    cwoodworth@marfan.org

Board of Directors

Cory Eaves

Chair

OFFICERS

Immediate Past Chair
Karen Murray, NY

Treasurer
Caryn E. Kauffman, CPA, DC

Secretary
Bert Medina, FL

Members-at-Large
Scott Avitabile, NJ
Heather Bergstrom, MN
Juan Bowen, MD, MN
Alan Braverman, MD, MO
Raymond Chevallier, PA
Alix McLean Jennings, NJ
Gary Kauffman, FL
Jeff LeSage, FL
Jerry Lerman, NY
Sinclair Li, NY
Patricia McCabe, VA
James Prutow, CA
Dawn Reiner, UT
Andrew Toy, CA
Jon R. Tullis, CFRE, CGT, PA
David Warren, GA
Anthony Yasick, MD

Board Advisors
Gil Bashe, NY
Maya Brown-Zimmerman

Chair Emeritus
Priscilla Ciccariello, NY

Professional
Advisory Board

Heidi M. Connolly, MD, FACC

Chair

Heidi M. Connolly, MD, FACC (Chair)
Mayo Clinic

Adam David Bitterman, DO
Zucker School of Medicine
at Hofstra / Northwell

Juan Bowen, MD
Mayo Clinic, Rochester

Alan C. Braverman, MD
Washington University
School of Medicine

Peter H. Byers, MD
University of Washington
School of Medicine

Duke Cameron, MD
Massachusetts General Hospital

Joseph S. Coselli, MD
Baylor College of Medicine and St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital

Jessica G. Davis, MD
New York-Presbyterian Hospital
Weill Cornell Medical Center

Richard B. Devereux, MD
New York-Presbyterian Hospital
Weill Cornell Medical Center

Hal Dietz, MD
Johns Hopkins University
School of Medicine

Sylvia A. Frazier-Bowers, DDS, PhD
Indiana University
School of Dentistry

Leonard N. Girardi, MD
New York-Presbyterian Hospital
Weill Cornell Medical Center

Rachel W. Kuchtey, MD, PhD
Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Ronald V. Lacro, MD
Boston Children’s Hospital

David Liang, MD, PhD
Stanford University
School of Medicine

Mark Lindsay, MD, PhD
Massachusetts General Hospital

Gretchen MacCarrick, MS, CGC
Johns Hopkins Hospital

S. Chris Malaisrie, MD
Northwestern Medicine

Irene H. Maumenee, MD
New York-Presbyterian Hospital Columbia University Medical Center

Dianna Milewicz, MD, PhD
University of Texas Medical School at Houston

D. Craig Miller, MD
Stanford University
School of Medicine

Shaine Morris, MD
Texas Children’s Hospital

Enid R. Neptune, MD
Johns Hopkins University
School of Medicine

Reed E. Pyeritz, MD, PhD
University of Pennsylvania
Perelman School of Medicine

Mary J. Roman, MD
New York-Presbyterian Hospital
Weill Cornell Medical Center

Melissa Russo, MD
Brown University

Lynn Y. Sakai, PhD
Shriners Hospital and
Oregon Health & Science University

Sherene Shalhub, MD, MPH
Oregon Health & Science University

Paul D. Sponseller, MD
Johns Hopkins University
School of Medicine

Xiao Jing (Iris) Wang, MD
Mayo Clinic, Rochester

Luciana Young, MD
Seattle Children’s Hospital

Maya Brown-Zimmerman, MPH
PAB Advisor

Scientific Advisory Board

Craig T. Basson, MD, PhD

Chair

Craig T. Basson, MD, PhD (Chair)
Boston Pharmaceuticals

Suneel Apte, MBBS, DPhil
Cleveland Clinic

Peter H. Byers, MD
University of Washington

David W. Dempster, PhD
Columbia University

Scott A. LeMaire, MD
Baylor College of Medicine

Daniel Rifkin, PhD
NYU

Jil C. Tardiff, MD, PhD
University of Arizona

Jonathan W. Weinsaft, MD
New York-Presbyterian Hospital
Weill Cornell Medical Center

Latest News from the Marfan Foundation

The Marfan Foundation is the primary source for up-to-date and trustworthy information for patients and family members, as well as healthcare providers and researchers. If you or someone you love has Marfan syndrome or a related conditions, we offer easy-to-understand materials to help you on your medical journey.