Board of Directors
Meet the MitoAction Board of Directors – People committed to improving the everyday lives of those affected by Mito
Cristy Balcells RN MSN, Executive Director
Cristy Balcells RN MSN is a mom of three, including Eva, her youngest child who has Leigh's disease, a serious form of mitochondrial disease. Cristy earned a Master's in Community and Public Health Nursing from the University of Virginia in 2002 and subsequently created a community-based education program for new parents and their babies. This program, "BabySense", has won a national nursing program award and has been implemented in several community hospitals in the Southeast. As her professional interests evolved into serving pediatric special needs populations and their families, Cristy began to develop program proposals for groups such as the Mitochondrial Disease Action Committee (MitoAction) as a way to reach and serve this under-recognized medical population. Cristy then accepted the Executive Director position with MitoAction in November of 2006, and believes that through education, awareness and advocacy, this growing non-profit organization can have a tremendous impact on the quality of life for patients and families living with mitochondrial disease.
Executive Committee
Kim Lorimier, President
Kimberly Lorimier has been teaching the flute and actively performing in Western Massachusetts for the past 16 years. She holds degrees from the University of Michigan in flute performance as well as a graduation certificate from the Talent Education Institute in Matsumoto, Japan, She is one of 7 North American Suzuki Flute Teacher Trainers and enjoys working with teachers from across the country every summer. Kim has two daughters, ages 7 and 4. The younger one is profoundly affected by Mitochondrial disease.
Margaret Klehm, Secretary, Medical Advisory Board Member
Margaret R. Klehm, R.N., M.P.H., M.S.N., C.P.N.P. is a nurse practitioner in the metabolic progam at Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston, MA. She has worked with patients with metabolic and mitochondrial disease since 1991 at both Children's Hospital and Tufts-New England Medical Center. Prior to that she was a nurse manager on the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit at the Brigham and Women's Hospital. She has also worked as a staff nurse on the oncology and bone marrow transplant unit at Children's Hospital in Boston. Ms. Klehm graduated from New England Deaconess School of Nursing and the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. In addition she has a Masters in Public Health from Boston University and a Masters of Science in Nursing from Simmons College.
Cynthia L. Sabbag, Treasurer
I am and have been primary caregiver for my daughter, Bethany Sabbag, for the past 22 years. Bethany requires hospital level home care due to Complex III Mitochondrial Disease with severe Pseudo-obstruction, learning disabilities, developmental delay and visual impairment. In addition to caring for Bethany, I work part time as a consultant for the Medford Family Network. I have been involved with Girl Scouts for 30 years as troop leader and treasurer for the Medford Service Unit. Recently, I accepted a position on the Board of Directors for Tri-CAP. My degree in Early Childhood Education has been profoundly interrupted by Bethany's illness.
Theresa Couture, Chairperson Emerita
I reside in Springfield, Massachusetts and have lived there for 18 years. Recently I turned 40 years old. I hold a Bachelors Degree in Science and am a nurse. I have been married for 20 years this year to Paul Couture and we have two children (Brett and Brianna) both with Mitochondrial Disease and I was diagnosed with the disease 4 years ago. I have been involved for fourteen years in numerous discussion groups, research projects, and presentations about special needs in general, genetics, and advocacy always with a focus on mitochondrial disease. I was asked and provided testimony on health care reform to Hilary Clinton and again to Senator Kennedy. Most recently, myself along with personnel from Tufts presented at the Early Intervention Consortium in Marlboro, Ma. The vision for MDAC resulted from an ongoing discussion with our son Brett about what could be done to improve the lives of patients with mitochondrial disease. Convinced it could be different, that it had to be different, we opened a dialogue which in turn became a gathering of interested parties which has grown and become more than I could have hoped for, the MDAC.
Board Members
Dr. Irina M. Anselm, MD, Medical Advisory Board Member
Department/Division of Neurology
Specialties in General Neurology and Mitochondrial Disorders
Assistant in Neurology, Mitochondrial Program
Instructor, Harvard Medical School
Board Certification in Pediatrics, ABPN (Child Neurology)
Medical School, Leingrad Pediatric Medical School, RUSSIA (1984)
Internship Leningrad Pediatric Medical Inst., RUSSIA (07/84 to 06/85)
Residency University of Massachusetts Medical Center, Worcester, MA (1993 to 1995)
Fellowship New England Medical Center, Boston, MA (1995 to 1998)
Brian Costello, Board Member, Corporate Fundraising Chair
Brian Costello is a co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Carespace, Inc. Carespace.com is an on-line community and resource provider for family caregivers. Brian has been a high tech executive for the past 15 years. He co-founded and launched his first company at the age of 28. Before Carespace, Brian served as a Vice President at VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSN.) Prior to VeriSign, Brian was an executive at Guardent, Inc. and was a member of the management team that successfully sold the company to VeriSign, Inc. Brian is currently a member of the board of directors of Ayalogic and also serves on the board of advisors of Mazu Networks. Brian and his wife Kim reside in Weston, MA with their three children and are active in a number of charitable organizations. Brian’s middle daughter Meghan has mitochondrial disease.
Jeff DiModica, Board Member, past-President
Jeff DiModica is a managing director, responsible for the Boston Office of RBS Greenwich Capital, which he joined in 2001. RBS is the 5th largest bank in the world, and Greenwich is their capital markets distribution platform. Prior to RBSGCM, Jeff was a Director at Merrill Lynch for 9 years. Jeff has a BSBA from Boston University, an MBA from the Tuck School at Dartmouth College, and received his Chartered Financial Analyst designation (CFA) in 1995. Jeff is on the board of Children's Hospital's "Champions for Childrens" for the last 4 years, which raised over $2 million dollars in 2004. Jeff lives in Cohasset, MA, with his wife Christine and four children, three of which have been diagnosed with Mitochondrial Disease.
Isabel Reichardt-Dische, Board Member, Member Fundraising Chair
Isabel Dische is a corporate associate in the New York office of Ropes & Gray LLP, focusing on investment management and financial products / derivatives. Prior to law school, she worked as an associate on the life science team at Atlas Venture in Boston and London. She received her J.D. from Yale Law School, and her A.B. summa cum laude and A.M. in Chemistry from Harvard University.
Dr. David Holtzman, MD, PhD, Medical Advisory Board Member
Department, Pediatric Nuerology
Assistant in Pediatrics, Assistant in Neurology, MGH
Associate Professor in Neurology, HMS
Board Certification in Pediatrics and Pediatric Neurology
Medical School, University of Chicago (1968)
Residency, Bronx Municipal Hospital Center, NY, Pediatrics (1970)
Albert Einstein College of Medicine, NY, Neurology (1973)
Dr. Mark Korson, MD, Medical Advisory Board Member
Dr. Korson received his medical degree from the University of Toronto, graduating in 1982. He completed his pediatric training at The Hospital for Sick Children in 1986; this was followed by a genetics and metabolism fellowship at Children's Hospital, Boston (1986-1990). He served as Director of the Inborn Errors of Metabolism Service at Boston Children's Hospital from 1990-2000, and is currently Chief of the Metabolic Service at Boston's Tufts-New England Medical Center. He ia also associate professor of pediatrics at Tufts University School of Medicine.
Dr. Korson's clinical interests include the management of inherited metabolic disorders (incl. enzyme replacement and transplantation), the development of teaching methods for training physicians, residents, medical students and community professionals about genetic metabolic diseases, and the development of mechanisms for the long distance management of patients with these disorders.
Mary McQueen, RN, MN, APRN-BC Board Member
Adult Nurse Practitioner
Mary has been in Neurogenetics at MGH for 4 years, working with mitochondrial patients for the last 3 years. She graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1996 with BA in psychology; Regis University in Denver in 1998 with BS in Nursing; University of Washington in Seattle in 2001 with Master of Nursing in Advanced Practice Genetics Nursing. She received a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Adult Primary Care (Adult Nurse Practitioner) in 2004 from Northeastern University, Boston. Prior to neurogenetics, she worked as an oncology nurse in Seattle, WA. She is formerly from Northern California and Colorado. She is married, has a dog, a son, Ian, and a baby on the way. Mary lives in Boulder, Colorado.
Kristin Murray, Board Member, Events Committee Chair
Kristin is a mom of two boys, Jack and Matthew. Jack is a busy preschooler who is affected by mitochondrial disease. Kristin enjoys teaching swim lessons, and has been an active leader of the annual Mito Family Fun Walk held each year in Boston. Originally from New York, Kristin lives in Danvers, MA.
Margaret Orr, RN MSN EdM, Nurse Coordinator, Medical Advisory Board Member
Maggie Orr is the nurse coordinator in the Metabolism Service at the Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts-New England Medical Center. She trained as a Family Nurse Practitioner at Yale School of Nursing and did primary care before staying home to care for her daughter, Mamie Rose, who died of mitochondrial disease (Complex I defect) in 2003. She has undergraduate degrees in Spanish and Early Childhood Education from Arizona State University, and a master's in education from Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Anne E. Reckling, Board Member, Publications Committee Chair
Anne E. Reckling, PsyD is a clinical psychologist specializing in the assessment and treatment of children and families. She received her graduate degree from the University of Denver and completed her pre-doctoral internship at The Children’s Hospital in Denver, Colorado. Dr. Reckling is licensed as a psychologist in both Florida and Ohio. Prior to her son’s diagnosis of mitochondrial disease, she was in private practice and had published professionally in the field of childhood trauma and abuse. Currently, Dr. Reckling is turning her professional focus to helping children and families living with mitochondrial disease. Her book “When Jeremy Jones’ Stomach Stopped Working: A Story for Children with G-Tubes” is scheduled to be published by MitoAction in March, 2007. Dr. Reckling is also working on another book for teenagers living with mitochondrial disease and is developing a study to measure the psychological effects of parenting children with mitochondrial disease.
Dr. Katherine B. Sims, MD, Medical Advisory Board Member
Medical School; Columbia University College & Physicians
Certification in; Child Neurology
Associate Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School
Current Hospital Appointments: Associate Neurologist, Massachusetts General Hospital;
Child Neurology Residency Director, Partners;
Medical Director, Child Neurology, MGH
Director, Developmental Neurogenetics Clinic, MGH
Director, Neurogenetics DNA Diagnostic Lab, MGH
Fellowship/post-graduate training (type & location): Developmental Neuropathology Fellowship, MGH/Shriver Center
Rodney Thorell, Board Member , Awareness and Advocacy Committee Chair
Rodney Thorell is a consultant to the pharmaceutical industry on regulated computer systems. Prior to that, he had worked for 15 years in pharmaceutical companies with positions involving computer programming and support. Outside of work, he has been active in the local Boy Scouts and First Baptist Church of North Middleboro. Mr. and Mrs. Thorell have received a 'Many Voices, Many Choices' Award from the Association of Retarded Citizens and Department of Mental Retardation as well as recognition from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for support and advocacy of their disabled children. Mrs. Thorell and the five children are all affected to varying degrees with Mitochondrial Disorder. The Thorell family currently resides in Carver, Massachusetts.
Dr. Jacob Venter, MD, Medical Advisory Board Member