Hans ten Cate

President

Hans ten Cate currently serves as President of the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. He was the Chief Operating Officer of and is now advisor to Tilt Five, an augmented reality technology company that aims to bring holographic experiences into homes. Hans has been an executive in the video game industry for over 20 years, serving in multiple creative and business roles at Electronic Arts and Sony PlayStation. His daughter, Tabitha, was diagnosed with T1D at age 8. He quickly became involved with JDRF and helped initiate the launch of JDRF Game2Give in 2019. His goal as Vice Chair of JDRF’s G2G Advisory Council is to connect gamers, gamer makers, and entertainment to work toward a cure for T1D.

Erin Durfee

Vice President

Erin Durfee currently serves as Vice President on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. She grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and attended UC Berkeley where she earned a B.S. in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research. She began her career consulting for Accenture in the US, Europe, and Asia. She then returned to San Francisco and joined two early-stage Software-as-a-Service companies managing customer and partner success. At Salesforce she was a Customer Success leader and also developed an engaged global T1D employee community. She later took the role of VP Customer Success at Intellimize leading Success, Support, and Professional Services. Today, Erin is VP Product Success at SAP.

Erin was diagnosed with T1D in 2010 and became involved with JDRF shortly thereafter. Erin lives in San Francisco and is an avid runner, cyclist, skier, equestrian, and world explorer.

Dr. Marina Basina

Member

Dr. Marina Basina serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. She is a Clinical Professor at Stanford University Medical Center, Division of Endocrinology, Gerontology, and Metabolism with a special clinical and research interest in type 1 diabetes, diabetes technology, and diabetes in pregnancy. She has a busy clinical practice at Stanford Hospital and Clinics seeing patients in both inpatient and outpatient settings. She serves as medical director of inpatient diabetes service at Stanford. Dr Basina received numerous teaching awards and a Stanford Hospital award for excellence in patient care, as well as a Master teacher award. She is an active member of medical advisory board for several community type 1 diabetes organizations, gives educational talks for patients on a regular basis, Data Science Committee chair of Type 1 Diabetes Exchange, and JDRF Physician Council Chair.

Debra Dommen

Member

Debra Dommen serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. She and her husband Mark Dommen – Executive Chef & Partner at One Market – have been involved with JDRF since their daughter Riley was diagnosed with T1D as a young girl in 2019. The whole family gets involved with the prestigious HALL Cabernet Cookoff in St. Helena and chooses JDRF as their charity to benefit from prize winnings, including first place in 2023. Debra is a passionate JDRF volunteer, serving on the Hope Gala committee and as a JDRF Advocate. They regularly donate items to the NorCal chapter live auction events.

Debra is Vice President, Government and Industry Affairs for Treasury Wine Estates and was previously Executive Director at Winegrowers of Napa County. 

Kim Fisher

Chair of Research

Kim Fisher currently serves as Chair of Research on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. She is also a volunteer clinical trial educator for JDRF where she works to ensure patients and families have the opportunity to learn about important clinical trials for T1D. She became involved with JDRF when her daughter Nina was diagnosed with T1D in 2019.

Professionally, Kim is the Director of Programs at the UC Davis Innovation Institute for Food and Health, working to connect food science research with industry to enable people to have healthier, happier, and longer lives. She also runs executive education programs in Product Management at UC Berkeley. Prior to this, she served as Executive Director of The Women’s Technology Cluster (WTC), a San Francisco business incubator, where she helped over 50 companies raise over $350 Million in Venture Capital and grow significant revenue. She also raised over $25 Million to build a 60- person company and one of the first “podcasting” businesses. Kim has a BS from Wharton and an MBA from UC Berkeley. As a leading female CEO, she has been featured in five books and has appeared on the cover of US News & World Report. In addition to the JDRF Northern California Community board, Kim has also served on many Advisory Boards including the Haas School of Business and Nokia Innovent.

For fun, Kim does yoga, Sprint and Olympic distance triathlons, and enjoys multi-country bike rides with her husband John and with her daughters Nina and Lila.

Jim Horalek

Chair of Board Development & Nominating

Jim Horalek currently serves as Chair of Board Development & Nominating on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. He has been involved with JDRF for over two decades, ever since his daughter Kendall was diagnosed with T1D at the age of two. He brings more than 25 years of practical business experience in numerous leadership roles, primarily in sales and marketing. Jim has recently retired from his role as Director Public Sector Sales at Citrix. Former responsibilities were the Director of Government Sales with Jive Communications after eight years at Cisco Systems as the Director of the California Public Sector Sales Operation. Before that he worked for Nortel Networks in various roles ranging from Managing Director of the Western Regions to operations, customer service, marketing and sales leadership. He attended California State University Long Beach where he earned a degree in Psychology and Business Management.

Jim has been passionately active with JDRF in various roles including Chair of Board Development, Chair of Fundraising, Chair of Corporate Development, Chair of Strategy, Chair of Board Development, President of the East Bay Branch Board, and twice serving as President of the Greater Bay Area Chapter Executive Board. He currently serves as a member of the Northern California Community Board. Jim also works with the Diabetic Youth Foundation, providing education and camp experiences to young people with T1D.

Jim and his wife, Deneka, live in Danville, California.

Hale Johnston

Member

Hale Johnston serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. He was diagnosed with T1D as an adult in 1987. He is Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer at Berkley Enterprise Risk Solutions (a Berkley Company), a boutique provider of personalized insurance and risk management solutions for large employers.

Hale has over 30 years of leadership experience in the commercial insurance industry. He came to the Bay Area from Kansas City where he served that Chapter Board until 2000. Hale now lives in the East Bay.

Karen Jordan

Member

Karen Jordan became involved with JDRF when her daughter Ali was diagnosed with T1D in 2008.  She is a member of the International Board of Directors and Chair of the Funding Committee.  She serves on JDRF’s T1D Fund Board and the Northern California Chapter Board.  She is also a member of the Joint Steering Committee for the JDRF Northern California Center of Excellence at Stanford and UCSF.  She is the inaugural recipient of JDRF’s John Brady Award for Innovation.

Karen is Chair of the Stanford Medicine Community Council, serves on the Stanford Healthcare Board and is the recipient of the Stanford University Governors’ Award.  She is also a board member of Stroke Onward.  Her previous non-profit work includes service on different boards including, among others, Starlight Children’s Foundation, Stanford GSB Alumni Association and the Portola Valley School District.  She was a member of the group who founded Summit Prep, a charter school profiled in Waiting for Superman.

Karen earned her B.A. in Economics-Business from UCLA, her MBA from the Stanford University GSB,  and a certificate from Stanford’s Genomics and Genetics Program.  She has worked as an investment banker and with the Mayor’s Office in Los Angeles.

Carlton McMillan

Member

Carlton McMillan currently serves on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board, where he’s in his 5^th year of service. He became involved with JDRF through his wife Ansley, who was diagnosed with T1D at age five. In 2016, Carlton spearheaded a partnership between Airbnb and JDRF, and served as Team Captain of their Corporate Walk team. In addition, he and Ansley served as co-chairs of the San Francisco Walk committee in 2016 and 2017. Carlton also serves on the JDRF International Board of Directors.

Carlton is currently Head of Finance at Watershed, an early stage, high growth technology company focused on tackling climate change by reducing the carbon footprint of large global enterprises. Prior to Watershed Carlton spent 10 years at Airbnb, where he was one of the first members of the finance organization. He spent his first chapter as the Controller for the Airbnb platform, leading teams across several functional areas including revenue operations, payments, and internal systems. After five years Carlton pivoted to help build and launch Airbnb.org, serving as Director of Finance & Operations. Airbnb.org is focused on housing vulnerable populations, most notably refugees & asylum seekers, disaster victims and medical patients. As of 2023 Airbnb.org has housed over 250,000 people in more than 115 countries.

Prior to joining Airbnb Carlton worked at Frazier & Deeter, LLC, a public accounting and financial advisory firm based in Atlanta, serving public and private clients in various industries. Carlton received a B.S. in Business Management from Georgia Tech.

Carlton lives with his family in San Francisco.

Nick Mitchell

Member

Nick Mitchell serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. He lives with T1D and participates in the JDRF One Walk each year. He is Chief Financial Officer at Baco Properties, a privately held real estate investment and management company headquartered in San Francisco. He is an experienced Chief Financial Officer with a demonstrated history of working in the real estate industry. He holds a BA focused in Accounting from University of Southern California.

Nick is involved in JDRF community building, engaging adults with T1D, and helping to grow our Hope Gala.

Steve Park

Member

Steve Park serves on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. Steve is a Senior Vice President of TRI Commercial, a commercial real estate agency specializing in the sale and leasing properties. Steve has been involved with JDRF since 2008. His wife Jennie has T1D, giving him a personal connection to JDRF’s efforts to find a cure. For the past several years, Steve has been actively involved in JDRF’s events including One Walk, Greg Vaughn Celebrity Golf Tournament, especially the One-Party Gala, where he served as the Chair three years in a row and currently co-hosts with his wife the annual Wine About Diabetes-Driving Fore A Cure Golf Tournament. Steve previously served on the JDRF Northern California Inland Chapter Board, as past President and Chair of Nominating & Board Development. Previously as the Chapter’s Nominating Chair, Steve led the efforts on post re-org of the JDRF Northern California Community Board consolidation process.

Missy Reller

Chair of Advocacy

Missy Reller serves as Chair of Advocacy on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. In August 2014, her daughter Avery was diagnosed with T1D and she and her family have been advocating on behalf of JDRF ever since. Her family has participated in the Silicon Valley One Walk and Avery attended JDRF’s Children’s Congress in Washington DC in July 2017. Missy also served on the committee for the 2018 Hope Gala.

Missy is an active community volunteer in her hometown of Palo Alto, where she resides with her husband and three children. She currently serves on the Executive Committee for the Palo Alto Community Fund. She spent six years serving Palo Alto Partners in Education in multiple roles including Executive Vice President and as Chair of multiple committees.

Her professional experience includes therapeutic work with both emotionally disturbed children and individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Missy obtained a M.A. in psychology from the University of San Francisco and received her B.A. from the University of Denver.

John Salter

Member

John Salter serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. He also serves on the JDRF Game2Give Advisory Council. John is a Co-Founder and Partner of Raine. John is responsible for Raine’s digital media and gaming practice. Prior to Raine, John was Global Head of Digital Media at UBS Investment Bank where he had worked for over eight years in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications Group in San Francisco. Prior to UBS, John worked in the Internet and New Media group at Volpe, Brown, Whelan & Co. in San Francisco.

While at Raine, John has worked on a variety of advisory assignments, including Epic Games’ $1.25B capital raise, the sale of Playtika (a unit of Caesars Interactive) to a consortium led by Shanghai Giant Network Technology, SoftBank’s sale of its majority stake in Supercell to Tencent, the sale of Double Down Interactive (a unit of International Game Technology) to an affiliate of DoubleU Games, Legendary Entertainment’s sale to Wanda and SoftBank’s investments in Legendary Entertainment and Supercell, among other transactions. John is on the board of directors of DraftKings, Zumba Fitness, Huuuge, and Beachbody, all Raine portfolio companies.

Anu Sharma

Member

Anu Sharma serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board, previously serving as Vice President and Co-Chair of Corporate Development. She is a healthcare strategist and innovator with 16 years of operating & management consulting experience. She has scaled concepts from startup through commercialization and has worked directly with several top healthcare industry players on significant strategy and operations issues. Across these roles, she has engaged extensively with CXOs and Boards at both public and private companies. She has a proven record of achieving exceptional results in ambiguous, fast-paced environments with complex stakeholder dynamics.

Currently, Anu is a founding executive team member at Burd Health, an enterprise-focused healthcare startup founded by Steve Burd who became nationally recognized for bending the company’s healthcare cost curve through pioneering programs in cost transparency, wellness, and incentive-based plan designs.

Prior to Burd Health, as Principal at Booz & Company, Anu led complex engagements with major health plans and health systems (e.g. Aetna, United Healthcare, Kaiser, and Catholic Health Initiatives) on corporate strategy, M&A, and enterprise-wide cost reduction. Aside from her professional work, Anu advises leading VCs on healthcare investments and startups on go-to-market issues. She also works with health-focused non-profits on strategy, organization design, and fundraising issues.

Anu lives in San Francisco with her husband and two beloved dogs.

Jason Skeoch

Chair of Corporate Development

Jason Skeoch currently serves as Chair of Corporate Development on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. He previously served on the JDRF Bay Area Chapter Board as Chair of Finance. Jason became involved with JDRF when he and several Chico State buddies formed Active Charity in 2005. They created the East Bay golf fundraiser Summer Classic to benefit JDRF every year through 2021raising more than $4 million dollars. Fifteen years after Jason was introduced to JDRF, his own son was diagnosed with T1D.

Jason was the Co-Founder and CEO of All Systems Broadband, a company that manufactures fiber optic solutions for broadband companies.  In 2018, after the sale of All Systems Broadband, Jason entered the Real Estate industry.  As a member of Arrive Real Estate Group, Jason puts his years of running a tech company into helping his clients with their Real Estate needs.

Chris Tapio

Member

Chris Tapio currently serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board and as an Advocacy Team Chair for the Chapter. He previously served as member of the JDRF Northern California Inland Chapter Board. Chris became involved with JDRF when his son was diagnosed with T1D in 2017. With a background in legislation, strategy, and public affairs he quickly became a District Champion for JDRF’s Advocacy efforts. He is currently President of I Street Public Affairs in Sacramento and formerly worked in the California State Assembly. As an Advocacy Team Chair, Chris helps secure T1D research funded by the Federal government and builds grassroots support for health and regularity policies that benefit the T1D community.

Francine Vorhees

Member

Francine Vorhees serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. She is the founder of Vorhees Consulting, and a retired partner of Moss Adams, where she was the leader of the Trust & Estate Group and co-leader of the firm’s Estate Planning Group. Her sister and two nephews who were born with T1D, along with cousins diagnosed with T1D late in life, gave her the passion to actively support JDRF many years ago. In 2016, she was honored at the Northern California Inland Chapter Annual One-Party Gala. She has served on the Northern California Inland Chapter Board since 2010 and was the President for two years. As Board President, Francine led the efforts on post re-org of the JDRF Northern California Community Board consolidation process.

Jenny Williams

Chair of Leadership Giving

Jenny Williams serves as Chair of Leadership Giving on the JDRF Northern California Community Board. She previously served as Chair of JDRF One Walk and has been involved with the Chapter’s Tee to Table and Hope Gala events.  Her family attended their first Walk in 2007, after their daughter was diagnosed at age 7. On a local  level, Jenny served on the Silicon Valley Branch Board, and participated in various roles such as outreach and research volunteer.

Community service is a priority for Jenny. She was a member of Stanford Hospital’s Ethics Committee for several years, and served on the PTA Board and held other leadership positions within her community of Los Altos.

Jenny has held principal roles in the finance industry, lastly as Director of Finance at B Braun, Inc., until 1998 focused on the pharmaceutical and medical device industry.

Dan Wright

Member

Dan Wright serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. He is CEO of DataRobot, where he sets the strategic direction and manages the company’s fast-growing business operations around the world. DataRobot is the leader in enterprise AI, with the vision of enabling all organizations to use AI to solve their hardest challenges. Prior to joining DataRobot, Dan served as Chief Operating Officer at AppDynamics, the leader in application performance management (APM). In 2018, he was the Corporate Chair of the San Francisco JDRF One Walk.

Dr. Dessi Zaharieva

Member

Dr. Dessi  Zaharieva serves as a member on the JDRF Northern California Chapter Community Board. She lives with T1D and is an Instructor at Stanford, working with Dr. David Maahs. She completed her PhD at York University in Toronto, Canada. Her PhD research was focused on strategies to reduce hypoglycemia around exercise in adults with T1D. She holds many honors and awards, including: ISPAD-JDRF Research Fellowship, International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD) (Dec 2020), and Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship, CIHR (2015-2018).

Kellee Hearn

Executive Director

Kellee Hearn is the Executive Director of the JDRF Northern California Chapter. She joined the chapter as Development Director, Community, in 2015, and served as Associate Executive Director from 2019 through 2021. Her nonprofit career began at JDRF in 1998 as a Walk Coordinator for the East Bay Walk and Inaugural Monterey Walk. Initially, she was introduced to JDRF as a participant of a corporate Walk team. “The organization resonated with me as my mom was diagnosed with T1D when I was a child,” she says. In 2001, she became the Branch Manager for JDRF’s Silicon Valley office. What inspired her to come back to JDRF? “The passionate and collaborative JDRF community, whether it be volunteers or staff,” she says.

While Kellee was away from JDRF, she worked with various nonprofits in roles of development, communications and program expansion. Most recently, she was the Development and Communications Director at Girls Inc. of the Island City, successfully increasing both outreach and visibility in the community, as well as income for the organization through various fundraising strategies. She was lead staff on several committees and was heavily involved in volunteer engagement and board development. Previous to that, she was Development Director at the Northern California National MS Society, leading the development team with a focus on staff development and an emphasis on peer to peer fundraising. Kellee holds a B.S.in Business Administration from San Francisco State University.

Dana Baker

Sr. Development Coordinator - Golf and Gala

Dana Baker is a Sr. Development Coordinator for the JDRF Northern California Chapter. She joined the staff in 2021 after working for the Inland Chapter in Sacramento since 2019. She has also served in several volunteer positions with JDRF, including as Chapter Board Member, Gala Committee Member, and Fund A Cure Chair. In her current role, Dana organizes and implements the event activities for the Hope Gala and Tee to Table events. Prior to joining JDRF, Dana was Director of Sales at UpSpring Baby – a startup company creating innovative products with clinical support for new mothers – and was a sales and management executive at TAP Pharmaceuticals. She holds a B.A. in Business Administration and Management from Whittier College.

Dana says, “My daughter Madeline was diagnosed in 2014 at the age of 11. In my role at JDRF, I want to have a positive impact on those whose lives have been impacted by T1D.”

Outside of work, Dana enjoys spending time with family and traveling.

Frank Bitonte

Development Director - Golf and Gala

Frank Bitonte joined the JDRF Northern California Chapter in 2009 after a friend introduced him to the organization. He was very impressed with the commitment of the staff, volunteers and donors, and so the decision to accept the position of Development Director overseeing social events was easy. Before joining JDRF, Frank’s career was spent designing jewelry and tabletop accessories, which have been featured in retail stores, galleries, and museum stores around the country. He also volunteered extensively for The Community Health Project, now Called Lorde Community Health Center, in New York, which sparked his interest in non-profit work. He has a B.F.A. in Jewelry Design from SUNY, New Paltz, and an M.F.A in Painting from Bard College.

Frank is inspired by his friends who have T1D, one of whom has been living with the disease for 37 years. “I also thoroughly enjoy working with the volunteers who are very active within the chapter. I tend to be very goal oriented so raising as much money for research as possible is the bottom line,” he says.

As an artist, Frank finds himself immersed in creative projects during his free time. He tries to get to the studio as often as possible and is always searching for the perfect design piece at local flea markets.

Kelly Hautau

Sr. Development Manager - Hope Gala and Tee to Table

Kelly Hautau is a Senior Development Manager, overseeing the Hope Gala and Tee to Table events for the JDRF Northern California Chapter. Kelly has worked for JDRF on and off for over 10 years. She was the Development Director for Pixar, Summer Classic, and Spring Fling before it became Tee to Table, as well as the JDRF Walk program. Kelly has a wealth of knowledge and experience with the organization and our supporters. She holds a B.A. from University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication.

“To be a part of an organization that is changing the lives of those living with T1D is truly inspiring. I am motivated daily by the JDRF community and all that is accomplished by the dedicated volunteers, staff, researchers and beyond.”

Kelly, a mother of 3, enjoys spending her free time with her family. When she’s not on the sidelines of her children’s sporting events, Kelly enjoys hiking, travelling, and catching up with friends.

Shelly Jensen

Manager - Marketing & Communications, Advocacy

Shelly Jensen has been working with the JDRF Northern California Chapter for more than ten years, first as a volunteer and now as Marketing & Communications and Advocacy Manager. She has over twenty years of experience in marketing and communications. Over the course of her career she has directed marketing efforts and led teams for high profile architecture and design firms, art dealers and galleries. She graduated from the University of Dayton with a B.A. in Philosophy and then from Kent State University with an M.A. in Art History.

“I have T1D and so it has felt very empowering to work with this great organization,” says Shelly. “I know that JDRF will lead us to cures.”

Shelly has two children and is very active with their school. She is a member of the choral group, Singers Marin, and enjoys family beach outings, hikes and picnics on the weekends.

Laurie Jimenez

Development Manager - Walk

Laurie Jimenez joined the JDRF Northern California Chapter in 2023 as a Development Manager, co-leading the JDRF One Walk. Previously, Laurie was a Campaign Development Specialist with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the largest nonprofit funder of blood cancer research, where she worked on their peer to peer fundraising events as a Campaign Development Specialist. She has lived with T1D since she was 9 years old and feels very passionate about JDRF’s mission, supporting the T1D community, and fundraising for cures.

Kimberly Meininger​

Development Manager

Kimberly Meininger joined the JDRF Northern California Chapter as a Development Manager, Mid-Level Gifts, in 2022. Kim comes to us with extensive experience in nonprofit fund development, project management and volunteer management. Most recently, Kim served as Marketing, Communications, and Fund Development Associate at Parisi House on the Hill in San Jose. Before that, she was a Fund Development Associate at Chamberlain’s Children Center, Inc. and Resource Development Assistant at Asian Americans for Community Involvement. Kim holds a B.A. in English and Comparative Literature with a Minor in Child Development from San Jose State University.

Kim has been involved in database management, donation processing, tracking, reporting, managing campaigns and appeals, planning events, and all manners of donor and entire audience communication and grants management. She says, “I am excited about working more directly with donors and our T1D community. Getting to meet other parents during my time here has been especially rewarding.”

Kim’s son Derek was diagnosed with T1D in 2018. She says, “Never in my wildest dreams did I anticipate working for a nonprofit whose mission has so personally impacted my own family. As part of the JDRF team, I am blown away to learn that JDRF has played a role in every advancement that made the treatments my son uses to manage his diabetes possible. JDRF won’t stop until a cure is found, and I am thrilled that I get to contribute to a cause so closely aligned with the passion in my heart.”

Outside of work Kim enjoys spending time with her family in Morgan Hill. She is a Rotarian in the Rotary Club of Morgan Hill and is involved in her kids’ school and sports activities. “I am also a total beach bum, love trying new foods, and traveling, hiking, or otherwise adventuring,” she says.

Judy Parra

Sr. Development Manager - Walk, Ride and Third Party Fundraisers

Judy Parra is a Sr. Development Manager at the JDRF Northern California Chapter. In this role, Judy works with the Peer to Peer team on Walk, Ride, and Third Party Events, as well as supporting chapter operations.

Judy has a very strong knowledge base and understanding of JDRF’s mission, goals, systems, our T1D community. Before assisting our chapter as a temp, Judy was the Office Manager for the JDRF LA Chapter for over five years. Community building and development come naturally to Judy; she brings new skills to the role that help increase engagement with our Peer to Peer programs and achieve our Chapter’s goals.

Judy says, “I love meeting new people and helping them along their JDRF journey, whether it’s connecting them with another T1D family, introducing them to a new program or helping them reach their fundraising goal. At the end of the day we all have the same goal and that’s to create a world without T1D.”

Outside of work Judy likes to craft, travel and spend time with her family, especially her five nieces and nephew.

Jennifer Pliner

Outreach Manager

Paola Reynoso

Development Assistant

Paola Reynoso joined the JDRF Northern California Chapter as a Development Assistant in 2023. Previously, she served as Chair of Outreach on the Chapter Community Board. She has been involved with JDRF since her son Damian was diagnosed with T1D at the age of three in 2016.  Her family participates in the JDRF One Walk each year as “Ant1dote Team Damian” and Damian has served as Fund A Cure speaker for our 2021 Summer Classic and 2022 Tee to Table events.

Paola is a passionate and tireless volunteer and has partnered with JDRF National to develop a new Spanish Bag of Hope and additional Spanish resources. She also hosts our monthly Spanish E-meet & Greet Zoom gatherings.

Emily Riley

Director of Donor Relations

Emily Riley joined the JDRF Northern California Chapter in 2015 and is currently Director of Donor Relations. In this role, Emily works closely with our Chapter’s executive team and volunteer leadership to strengthen stewardship and engage and grow our pipeline of major gifts. Prior to this role, Emily was a Development Director, overseeing Peer to Peer fundraising and JDRF One Walk corporate sponsorship. Prior to joining JDRF, Emily was Intern Program Manager at LifeMoves (formerly InnVision Shelter Network). She earned her B.A. in Sociology from University of San Diego, where she was Vice President of Philanthropy for Alpha Chi Omega, Kappa Lambda Chapter. Emily received the Certified Nonprofit Professional (CNP) credential from Nonprofit Leadership Alliance.

Emily’s husband Alex lives with T1D and she is touched by the impact that the disease has on people’s lives. “I’ve learned how consuming T1D can be. The better people understand what it is like to live with T1D, the more we can rally folks around the cause. I am incredibly excited to be part of this organization,” she says.

When Emily is not working, she enjoys reading, traveling and spending time with loved ones.

Hannah Schuchart

Development Coordinator

Hannah Schuchart joined the JDRF Northern California Chapter in 2022 as a Development Coordinator. In this position she works closely with the chapter executive team, supporting our chapter board and donors. She came to us from Rafael House of San Francisco where she assisted low-income families and families experiencing homelessness. She is skilled in CRM/database and is passionate about non-profit work and supporting our community. Hannah holds a B.A. in Sociology and Minor in Criminal Justice from Saint Joseph’s University.

Hannah says, “My passion for devoting myself to others is fueled by the amazing team and community that I am surrounded by here at JDRF. Having such inspiring coworkers who tirelessly commit to the service of our T1D community motivates me. I am so grateful to be apart of such an amazing mission.”

Outside of work, you can find Hannah doing yoga, training for marathons and adventuring with her friends.

Noelle Tuominen

Development Manager - Walk

Noelle Tuominen joined the JDRF Northern California Chapter in 2022 as a Development Manager, co-leading the JDRF One Walk, NorCal. She aspires to make an impact on the community that welcomed her so warmly when her two children were diagnosed with T1D. She says, “Our one-year-old held on tight to that Rufus bear in ICU and I was so lucky to be introduced to the JDRF NorCal team when we were first navigating life with T1D and a toddler. I hope to be that bright light for other families and show them how much of an impact JDRF can make on their T1D experience.”

Prior to joining our team, she was a Brand Manager at KidLinks, a music nonprofit bringing music therapy to children. She was also the Social Media Lead for California’s Insulin4All Chapter at T1International, a Senior Stylist at Stitch Fix, and the Marketing & Communications Director at the Junior League of Oakland-East Bay, Inc. Noelle studied social media marketing at California State University – East Bay.

Noelle’s young son and daughter both live with type 1 diabetes (T1D). She chronicles her experiences and everyday life with T1D through her website Type 1 Kid Type A Mom Navigating Motherhood with 2 T1D Toddlers.

Stephanie Vidulich

Associate Executive Director

Stephanie Vidulich is the Associate Executive Director of the JDRF Northern California Chapter. She joined the staff in 2014 as a Development Coordinator and has held the roles of Outreach Manager as well as Sr. Director of Operations. She brings with her a spirit of collaboration and proactivity. Prior to working for JDRF, Stephanie was a physical therapy aide at ValleyCare Health System in Pleasanton, CA. She graduated from University of Arizona with a Bachelors of Science in microbiology and chemistry.

Stephanie has been living with type 1 diabetes (T1D) since she was eight years old. Her endocrinologist suggested she connect with JDRF. “From the moment I attended my first Walk I was hooked!” she says. As a result, Stephanie has been attending events and fundraising for JDRF for over 24 years. “As I grew up, I became a Youth Ambassador as well as a volunteer. I feel so honored to be part of the JDRF staff now. I have found my perfect career, where I am making a difference in the lives of many who go through the daily struggles of T1D and working toward a day when we can say there is a cure,” she says.

Outside of work, Stephanie enjoys spending time with her family. She also likes to do home improvement projects, travel, and experience new cuisines.

Marcus Wonacott

Development Manager - Hope Gala

Marcus Wonacott is a Development Manager overseeing the Hope Gala at the JDRF Northern California Chapter. In this role, Marcus partners with volunteer leadership, donors, committee members, and constituents in fundraising efforts for this flagship event.

Marcus has been involved with JDRF for over ten years, serving as a Development Manager, delivering strategic communication solutions across multiple platforms for the Chapter, from 2011 to 2015. He then worked as Assistant Manager at the Intercounty Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) in San Francisco. During this time, Marcus continued to collaborate with JDRF on special projects, including graphic design and screen presentations, as well as overseeing volunteer management for the Hope Gala and Tee to Table events.

Marcus says, “I am so grateful to be back with JDRF. The foundation of my career path has been and continues to be of service. I am keenly aware of the challenges that type 1 diabetes (T1D) brings to one’s life, and I deeply care about contributing to raising awareness, engagement, and funds for research and development, as well as providing practical care for those dealing with the disease.”

Outside of work, Marcus is committed to helping others through 12-step programs. He says, “Supporting those in need warms my heart and soul.” He is also a dedicated believer in daily meditation.

Qiana Wylie

Development Director - Peer-to-Peer Programs

Qiana Wylie joined the JDRF Northern California Chapter in 2020, shortly after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes as an adult. She is currently a Development Director, leading the strategy for the chapter’s Peer-to-Peer fundraising programs including the JDRF One Walk, the JDRF Northern California Ride Team, Team JDRF challenge events, JDRF Your Way third party fundraisers, and the JDRF NorCal Young Leadership Committee (YLC). Qiana has many years of experience in nonprofit, community outreach, and fundraising. Before JDRF, she was the Institutional Giving Manager at The Marine Mammal Center, working with corporations and foundations and stewarding strong partnerships that supported the organization. Prior, she was the Corporate & Community Engagement Specialist at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. Qiana holds a B.A. in Sociology – Comparative Studies and World Development from the University of California, Davis.

Qiana says, “I feel incredibly honored to grow my career at JDRF and use my experience to help create a world without type 1 diabetes. I’m thrilled to be part of a team that continues the great legacy of JDRF programs while expanding their impact across Northern California.”

Qiana was diagnosed with T1D in July 2019 and knew very little about the disease at the time. She says, “When I got the call from my doctor, I thought this diagnosis meant that I would be limited and unable to do many of the things I enjoy – camping, traveling, snowboarding, eating pizza – all of which I’ve done since!” Seeking community and support, she reached out to JDRF, learned about the organization’s important work, joined the Young Leadership Committee, and participated in the 2019 San Francisco One Walk. She says, “Within a few weeks, I knew that I wanted to be more involved.”

Outside of work, Qiana enjoys exploring San Francisco by foot, visiting national parks, hiking to a good view, finding the best gluten-free food around (she also has Celiac!), and spending quality time with friends and family.