Trustees & Committees

searching...sharing...caring

A World Where There Is No PMD

Donate by check:

Click here to donate by personal check or money order!

Donate by credit card via SECURE web:

 

Dozens of PMD families are posting info about their kids!  Get a FREE Yahoo ID and join PMDFamilySupport.

 

When you search the web, use the link above and Yahoo will donate a penny per search to the foundation!

This page contains biographies for all trustees and committee participants of The PMD Foundation.

The Board of Trustees provides direction for major areas such as strategic planning, personnel, finance, trustee development and nominations.
The Scientific Advisory Committee represents progressive thinking in the fields of biomedical research, genetics, PMD and leukodystrophies.

You can see which participants serve on which committees by the symbol(s) next to each person's name:

* denotes Board of Trustees

^ denotes Scientific Advisory Committee

Alphabetical listing, by last name:

Cambi, Dr. Franca (M.D., Ph.D.)^
Garbern, Dr. Jim (M.D., Ph.D.)*^
Gasperetti, Rob*
Hobson, Don (M.B.A.)*
Hobson, Dr. Grace (Ph.D.)^
Kamholz, Dr. John (M.D., Ph.D.)^
Leonard, Jeff*
Manley, Dave*
Marks, Dr. Harold (M.D.)^
Mulligan, Deb*
Spear, Laura*

 

Cambi, Dr. Franca (M.D., Ph.D.)

Dr. Franca Cambi is a PMD Foundation incorporating Board member. Dr. Cambi holds an M.D. degree from the University of Florence and a Ph.D. degree in Neuroscience from the University of Rome. Shortly after completing the Ph.D., Dr. Cambi trained in Neurology at Thomas Jefferson University where she was on staff from 1992 to 2003. She joined the Departments of Neurology, Neurobiology and Anatomy at the University of Kentucky in 2004 as Associate Professor. She is also on the Faculty of the Spinal Cord and Brain Injury Center at the University of Kentucky. Her clinical expertise is in the diagnosis and management of neurogenetic disorders and she has established a neurogenetics clinic at the U. of Kentucky. Dr. Cambi has published in the fields of PMD, spastic paraparesis and myelin and has significant clinical and research experience with disorders of myelin. Dr. Cambi is involved in collaborative studies aimed at elucidating the causes, pathogenesis and treatment of X-linked disorders of myelin. In addition, her basic research program is aimed at investigating the regulation of oligodendrocyte (the cells that make myelin in the central nervous system) differentiation. Dr. Cambi has participated in several PMD meetings with families of patients affected by PMD and has been an advocate for patients with PMD.
Back to Top

Garbern, Dr. Jim (M.D., Ph.D.)

Dr. Jim Garbern is an Assistant Professor in Neurology at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI. Dr. Garbern obtained his undergraduate in Biochemistry from Rice University in Houston, TX and his Ph.D. and M.D. from the Baylor College of Medicine also in Houston. Dr. Garbern’s post-graduate work included an internship in Internal Medicine and residency in Neurology at the University of Washington in Seattle as well as a fellowship in Molecular Neuroscience at the National Institute of Health in Bethesda, MD. He also worked as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology and as an Associate Member of the Institute of Neurological Sciences, both at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Dr. Garbern also serves as a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the National Tuberous Sclerosis Association and as Co-Director of the U. S. Pelizaeus-Merzbacher Consortium. Dr. Garbern has published many papers and book chapters in the fields of neurogenetics and, specifically, PMD, and remains one of the leading PMD researchers.
Back to Top

Gasperetti, Rob

Rob Gasperetti is 41 years old and lives in Franklin Square, New York, which is located on Long Island. He has been married for 12 years to Kristen, and has four sons. Brian (9) and Dylan (2) are affected with PMD and Trevor (7) and Andrew (4) are not. They were not diagnosed until 2004, when the same symptoms were noticed with both Brian and Dylan. Brian additionally was born with a cleft palate, which proved to be a red herring, and possibly delayed the proper diagnosis. Rob is currently a Detective with the New York Police Department with 19 years on the force, and a student at Manhattan College.
Back to Top

Hobson, Don (M.B.A.)

Don Hobson is the Board Chair and Treasurer of the PMD Foundation, as well as the husband of Dr. Grace Hobson, a PMD researcher at the duPont Hospital for Children. Don received a BS in Mechanical Engineering from The University of Virginia and an MBA from the Darden Business School, also at The University of Virginia. He has over 40 years experience in the use of Computer Technology for business management in Finance, Manufacturing, Research, Development, Marketing and Sales. Don has 27 years experience working with corporate information and databases for ICI Americas, and has spent the last ten years in similar roles with the Zeneca Pharmaceuticals business. He also has 15 years experience as a non-profit board member and community volunteer and has been Officer and Treasurer of a several non-profit organizations.
Back to Top

Hobson, Dr. Grace (Ph.D.)

Dr. Grace Hobson is Head of the Neurogenetics Research Laboratory and Director of Diagnostics for PMD at the Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, DE. She is also an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, PA. She obtained a B.S. in biology from Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg, VA and a M.Ed. from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA. She was a high school and junior high school science/biology teacher before getting a Ph.D. from the University of Delaware in Newark, DE and embarking on a career in research and molecular diagnostics. Dr. Hobson's research is aimed at discovering molecular mechanisms in PMD that will allow the development of rational treatments and ultimately a cure. She has received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to fund this work. Dr. Hobson's contact with families, genetic counselors and physicians through her molecular diagnostics work has allowed her to refer families to the PMD Foundation for information and support. Dr. Hobson has participated in meetings, symposia, workshops and family conferences on PMD. In addition, she helped to organize both the family meeting in 2000 that launched the PMD Foundation and a symposium at the duPont Hospital for families and researchers in 2003.
Back to Top

Kamholz, Dr. John (M.D., Ph.D.)

Dr. John Kamholz is a member of the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI.   His clinical/research interests include: MS; genetic aspects of neurologic disorders; genetic and molecular biologic aspects of central and peripheral myelin disorders.  He received his training at the University of Pennsylvania and at the National Institute of Health.
Back to Top

Leonard, Jeff

Jeff Leonard is Secretary of the Board and Webmaster of the PMD Foundation, and Associate Director of Project Management for Bristol-Myers Squibb Company.  He is the father and uncle of two PMD-affected children. Jeff received a B.A. in English and a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University, and a programming degree from Chubb Advanced Institute. He has over 10 years of experience in technology and executive management. Prior to working for Bristol-Myers Squibb, Jeff spent many years working on Wall Street in lower Manhattan for J.P. Morgan & Co. investment bank and for Andersen Consulting. He prides himself on understanding the most technical details of PMD (without any formal medical training), and is eager to make a difference in the lives of all PMD-affected individuals.  He loves hearing from new families.
Back to Top

Manley, Dave

Dave Manley is the father of Jaden Manley who was born on 12/5/2001. Jaden, his  first and only child, was diagnosed in September 2003 with PMD. This came as a complete shock as he and his wife, Julie, found that she is a carrier for PMD. However, there was no history of the disease in her family. There were not even any relatives that could have had PMD and been misdiagnosed. After learning of Jaden's condition and gaining knowledge of PMD mostly from the information found on this website, Dave made a commitment to do what he could to help his son and others that are affected by PMD. He made a career change in September 2004 that would enable him to be more involved in Jaden's care as well as enable him to get involved with the PMD Foundation. Dave is committed to working with all those in the PMD Community to raise money for research, family support and education. His philosophy is, if I don’t do something, who will? He looks forward to making a difference for his son and all those touched by PMD.
Back to Top

Marks, Dr. Harold (M.D.)

Dr. Harold Marks graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School. He did his Pediatric and Neurology training at the University of Michigan Medical Center and Temple University Medical Center. He is presently a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at the University of South Florida. Since 1985, he has been involved in the care of children with PMD and X-linked spastic paraplegia. Since 1987 he has given many scientific presentations and has written several articles on these subjects. In 1997, he hosted the first PMD Consortium meetings, which were the very first step towards the creation of this Foundation.
Back to Top

Mulligan, Deb

Deb Mulligan lives in Washington State with her husband and two young children; Connor who was born in 1998 and has PMD and Meagan who was born in 2000. Prior to becoming a wife and mother, Deb worked for many years in the technology industry as a project manager and has since transferred her passion and skill set to raising awareness for PMD.
Back to Top

Spear, Laura

Laura Spear is a registered nurse with a degree from LaSalle University who is also a parent and sibling of a PMD affected child. She has worked at the Voorhees Pediatric facility as a staff nurse and a relief charge nurse. Laura was largely responsible for organizing the first PMD Consortium meeting in October of 1997. Prior to her nursing career, Laura worked as a Procurement Analyst with the Naval Ship Systems Engineering Station and as a Procurement Clerk with the Naval Regional Contracting Center, both at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. She also worked as a staff secretary at the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Philadelphia and as a professional model.
Back to Top

 

The PMD Foundation: 1307 White Horse Road, Suite 603, Voorhees, NJ 08043   Tel. 609-443-9623
For problems or questions regarding this web site, contact the webmaster (also a PMD dad).
Last updated: October 28, 2006.