Chapter Staff

Laura Baltz

Executive Director

Debra Smith

Senior Development Director, Indiana

Jenny Raque

Senior Development Manager, Kentucky

Merrill Harper

Senior Development Manager, Signature Events, Indiana

Jessie Stover

Development Manager, Indiana

Breanna Kiser

Development Manager, Community Engagement

Shayna Sanderson

Development Coordinator

Alexia Aung

Development Assistant

Indiana Community Board of Directors

Kelli Ozdemir Board Treasurer

Kelli Ozdemir

Board Treasurer

Kelli Ozdemir has been a Board of Director for Breakthrough T1D for five years and is the current acting Treasurer.  Three of Kelli’s four children have Type 1 Diabetes, so this cause has been close to her heart since their first diagnosis in July 2012.  She is passionate about helping other families manage this diagnosis and ongoing disease and raising money to find a cure in her kids’ lifetime.  For the past 17 years, Kelli has been employed by CREA, LLC, an Indianapolis based investment firm, specializing in affordable housing throughout the country.  She is the Managing Director of Portfolio Management which involves overseeing multiple teams who work with CREA’s developer and investor clients and are responsible for protecting the investment. Kelli works closely with her departments to ensure all of the transactions are viewed as a partnership between our developers and investors, working hard to keep all parties happy with our client service.  Kelli holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Butler University and resides in Fishers, Indiana with her family.  When she’s not busy in the office and volunteering for Breakthrough T1D, she can be seen chauffeuring her four children around the city of Indianapolis to all of their sporting events and practices!

Amanda Zedrick
Andrea Goldyn
Belinda Mulhern
Beth Ruge
Brian Ulmer MD
Fernanda Beraldi

Jayna Cacioppo

Jayna is a Partner at Taft Law Firm where she has practiced commercial litigation and white-collar criminal defense since 2005.  She grew up in Chicago and graduated from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, and Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law.

JJ Nelson
Leah Dunigan
Lucy Dollens
Staci Weaver
Teresa Mastracci
Emily Sims

Kentucky Community Board of Directors

Amy Weisenbarger President

Amy Weisenbarger

President

Amy Weisenbarger joins the Breakthrough T1D Community Board of Directors as the spouse of a type 1 diabetic, Seth, who has been battling T1D for over 30 years. Amy works for Humana in Louisville, KY as a Marketing Director for Humana’s Home Solutions business. She was named the KY Chapter’s Volunteer of the year in 2022. Amy received her undergraduate degree from Miami University and holds a master’s degree in international commerce and diplomacy from the University of Kentucky’s Patterson School. Outside of work and volunteering for Breakthrough T1D and other organizations, Amy enjoys traveling, going to see live music, and staying active with Barre3. Her biggest joy though is her role as Mom to her and Seth’s children, Anna and Clark.

Ashley J. Butler
CJ Fleenor
Clara Passafiume

Greg DeMuth

Senior Vice President, Republic Bank, Louisville, KY

Katie Smith
Max Monahan
Paula Fairchild
Sam Ullrich Board Treasurer

Sam Ullrich

Board Treasurer

Sam Ullrich, CPA, is a native Louisvillian and member of the T1D community since he was diagnosed at 24 years old.  Sam works for Kentucky Fried Chicken (YUM! Brands, Inc.) in Louisville, KY as Director, Financial Planning for all of KFC US and holds degrees in Finance and Accounting from the University of Kentucky.  He enjoys traveling, being outdoors, volunteering in community outreach programs with Breakthrough T1D, and spending family time with his wife (Brittany) and three kids Zach, Quinn, and Blair.

Stephanie Ubelhart

Board of Chancellors

Jeffrey Adams Executive Committee and Nominating Committee

Jeffrey Adams

Executive Committee and Nominating Committee

Jeff has been a very passionate, active leader on the Indiana State Chapter Board since his daughter Jackie’s diagnosis with T1D in 2007. Jeff served six years on the board in various capacities, most notably as Gala Revenue Chair, President Elect and two years as Board President. Jeff’s leadership as president resulted in two very successful years financially for the Indiana State Chapter and a legacy of strong volunteers. He continues to serve on the Indiana State Board of Chancellors.

Professionally Jeff is Co-Founder and Managing Director of The Applied Group, a private investment company focusing on technology-based companies and investments. He brings a strong background of experience in software, computer technology, product development, sales and marketing, and executive management. Prior to The Applied Group Jeff was the co-founder of Support Net, an IBM distributor of midrange computer products and services. He and his partners grew the company from a modest software firm into IBM’s largest distributor within the midrange brand in the United States. Mr. Adams was a music education major at the University of Wisconsin, studied Computer Science at Hennepin Tech in Minnesota and business administration at IUPUI.

Jeff and his wife Wendy have three daughters. The entire family actively volunteers for Breakthrough T1D and the Indiana State Chapter.

Doug Brune Board Member

Doug Brune

Board Member

Doug Brune brings more than 14 years of experience in operations management and information technology integration to Mesh Systems. His expertise lies in the design, implementation, and optimization of highly efficient workflows. He began his career at a financial services company serving OEMs and distributors. He later founded and served as president of a software company that managed loan origination, closing and servicing for financial companies across the US. Most recently, Mr. Brune established and managed all technology and operational aspects for Indiana Business Bank as VP of IT and Operations. He holds an M.B.A. from Butler University and received his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University.

Jay Hancock Ride Committee

Jay Hancock

Ride Committee

PRIMARY PRACTICE
Construction Law, Public Contract Law, Surety Law, Commercial Law, Alternative Dispute Resolution

EXPERIENCE
Mr. Hancock concentrates his practice in representing and advising construction and commercial clients with a wide
range of legal needs. He is also a Registered Civil Mediator and serves as a panel arbitrator for the American Arbitration
Association, focusing on construction disputes.

EDUCATION
Indiana University, B.S., 1979; Indiana
University, J.D., cum laude, 1982

BAR ADMISSION
Indiana, Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Northern Districts of Indiana, U.S.
District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, U.S. Court of Federal Claims, Supreme Court of the United States

MEMBER
Indianapolis, Indiana and American (Public Contract Law Section, Forum Committee on the Construction Industry) Bar
Associations; Panel Arbitrator, National Panel of Construction Arbitrators, American Arbitration Association; American
Arbitration Association Indianapolis Construct Advisory Committee; registered civil mediator, Indiana Commission for
Continuing Legal Education Registry of Approved Court Mediators

SPEAKER AND LECTURER
Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum; National Business Institute; Lorman Business Center, Inc.; Professional
Education Systems, Inc.; Associated General Contractors of Indiana; Mechanical Contractors Association of Indiana,
Inc.; Indiana Constructors, Inc.; Asphalt Pavement Association of Indiana, Inc.; Indiana Mineral Aggregates, Inc.;
Indiana Women in Construction; Construction Specifications Institute (Indiana Chapter); AACE International (Indiana
Section); Glazing Contractors Association (Detroit); Purdue University Superintendents Conference; George S. Olive &
Co. Construction Industry Conference

James Malone, M.D. Medical Advisory Chair and Ride Committee

James Malone, M.D.

Medical Advisory Chair and Ride Committee

I am a diabetes specialist who spent 12 years in clinical practice and 15 years in clinical research, developing diabetes products and delivery devices.

Senior Medical Director
Eli Lilly and Company
March 2004 – Present (11 years 7 months)Indianapolis, Indiana USA
Responsible for clinical development and registration of exenatide outside the United States from 2004 until 2011. Currently responsible for global development of insulin products and insulin delivery devices.

Sr. Clinical Research Physician
Eli Lilly and Company
1997 – 2004 (7 years)Indianapolis, Indiana Area
Responsible for global development and registrations of insulin lispro mixtures, insulin lispro pump use, and insulin injection devices.

Physician
Diabetes & Endocrinology Associates
1987 – 1997 (10 years)Indianapolis, Indiana Area
DE&A was a new group practice when the following doctors combined their individual practices. From senior to junior these were: Paul Boyce, Corbin Roudebush, Phil Ryan, Jim Malone and Jim Meacham. The first office was located at 8902 N. Meridian St. After about 5 years the group invested in their own building at 9240 N. Meridian St.

Diabetes physician
Medical practice
1985 – 1987 (2 years)Indianapolis, Indiana Area
Started a solo practice as a diabetes specialist, sharing office space with Drs. Paul Boyce and John Warvel. Primary hospital for in-patient care was Methodist Hospital of Indiana. Was on the teaching faculty of the Internal Medicine Residency Program.

Chris Melby Board Member

Chris Melby

Board Member

Responsible for selling corporate partnerships for the Indiana Pacers and Indiana Fever. Opportunities include brand integration in Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Pacers & Fever media (radio, pacers.com, feverbasketball.com, bankerslifefieldhouse.com), and hospitality (suites, tickets, VIP experiences)

Specialties:Brand building
Customized media solutions that connect your brand to those that count
Customer loyalty events

Corporate Partnerships Sales Director
Pacers Sports & Entertainment
2006 – Present (9 years)

Local Sales Manager
Comcast Spotlight
May 2002 – November 2006 (4 years 7 months)

Account Executive
WTTV Television
1999 – 2001 (2 years)

Corporate Sales Executive
Executive Sports Management
1997 – 1999 (2 years)

Account Executive
JWG Associates
1994 – 1997 (3 years)

Scott Nahmias

Revenue Committee
Ed Schmidt Board Member

Ed Schmidt

Board Member

President of Silver Creek Partners, LLC, based in Fishers, Indiana. He is a retired partner of the Indianapolis based law firm Krieg DeVault, LLP, a former Executive Vice President of Sallie Mae, Inc., and the former Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of USA Group, Inc. Mr. Schmidt is a member of the American, Indiana, and Indianapolis Bar Associations, where he is a Distinguished Fellow. Mr. Schmidt received a B.S. from Susquehanna University, a J.D. from the University of Notre Dame and is licensed to practice law in the states of Indiana, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.
Mr. Schmidt is a member of the Board of Trustees of USA Funds, Inc., where he serves as Chairman of the Access and Outreach Committee. He is a member of the board of Susquehanna University and the Indiana Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Mr. Schmidt is a former member of several other boards of directors, including Lumina Foundation for Education Inc., Crossroads Rehabilitation Services and the Riverview Hospital Foundation.
In addition to serving as board member for the IHTC, Mr. Schmidt serves as a member of the IHTC Finance Committee and as a member of the IHTC Executive Committee.

Chris Traylor

Board Member
Casey Blake
Keith Gambrel
Mark Kugar
Nancy Lonsinger
Mike Manion

Mark Hollis

I currently lead business development, investment origination and marketing for Centerfield Capital Partners, a private equity firm among the nation’s leading providers of mezzanine financing to lower middle market companies. Centerfield has raised over $340 million in three committed funds and is primarily backed by leading institutional investors. In addition to managing Centerfield’s business development efforts, I assist with investment evaluation and structuring, as well as fundraising and portfolio management.