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LEADERSHIP
ALTSO is led by an enthusiastic, diverse and dedicated team which oversees the organization's operations and evolution. Its members include:
THE FOUNDERS
Dr. Dinesh G. Patel, MD, FACS
Co-Chairman
Dr. Patel is a recognized pioneer in arthroscopic surgery, who trained in Orthopedic Surgery at Harvard. He currently serves as Chief of Arthroscopic Surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital and is an Associate Clinical Professor at Harvard Medical School. He has lectured extensively around the world, in India, the US, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Spain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, Egypt and Japan, and is the recipient of numerous awards and honors for service and professional excellence. He was born, raised and educated in Nadiad, Gujarat, India.
C. Mead Welles
Treasurer
Mr. Welles is a financial services professional, the founder and CEO of Octagon Asset Management LLC, Octagon Financial Services International LLC and CommodityFinance LLC (a joint venture with Rabobank International). All of these ventures specialize in financial services for global emerging markets. He has a background in trade and commodity finance, as well as in structured financing for emerging markets. Before Octagon, Mr. Welles worked at Cargill Financial Services International, the emerging market investment arm of Cargill Inc. He holds a BA in Economics from Bates College.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Meera Rao
Ms. Rao started her career in India, in an experimental project that used documentary films to accelerate social change. Since relocating to the US, she has worked to help marginalized children through county, state, national and international non profit agencies, as well as at a number of charitable organizations. Her assignments have involved community development, program planning, marketing, grant writing, volunteer management and resource generation, and she has experience in all aspects of non-profit operations. Ms. Rao also sits on the Advisory Boards of several non-profits serving children in India.
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Dr. Harold van Bosse, MD, FACS
Dr. van Bosse is an attending pediatric orthopedic surgeon at the NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases, and his areas of specialty include spinal deformity, upper and lower limb deformities, hip problems and neuromuscular diseases. He has been deeply involved in popularizing the Ponseti technique for treating clubfoot as a low cost alternative for developing countries. Dr. van Bosse trained at the University of Illinois for his general orthopedic residency, followed by a fellowship at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Ontario. He is also an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at the New York University School of Medicine.
Catharine A. Carroll
Ms. Carroll is a Director of Strategic Accounts for United Airlines, responsible for its large travel agency relationships. Before joining United Airlines she was a Director of Product Marketing at Sabre Holdings in Southlake Texas. Her work experience also includes six years as an actuary at Hewitt Associates in Illinois. Ms. Carroll holds an MBA in Finance and Organizational Behavior from the University of Chicago, and earned her Associate in the Society of Actuaries prior to attending graduate school. She has always been active in her community, mentoring at-risk teens through the I Have A Dream program and working with teen mothers who were DCFS wards of the state.
Kersen de Jong
Mr. de Jong is Founder and President of the Netherlands American Community Trust, which brings Dutch companies together with US communities to provide outreach, education and community improvement programs. Previously, he was Managing Director of the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce in the US, and has also worked for Associated Dry Goods. Mr. de Jong lost both legs in an accident in 1976, and has long been a spokesman for the disabled. He has served in this capacity for the Netherlands, for the UN, and through ALTSO. He is also on the Board of Governors of the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute.
Reinier Mesritz
Co-Chairman
Mr. Mesritz has more than 30 years' experience in international banking, investment and risk management. As head of North and South American operations for Rabobank International, he is credited with improving customer service while achieving outstanding profitability growth. Mr. Mesritz also managed Nedship Bank, and held various positions for ABN Amro, including some pioneering work in derivatives. He is a graduate of the Netherlands School of Business, with an MBA and BBA from American institutions. After college, Mr. Mesritz also served in the Dutch military, as a Second Lieutenant in the Green Berets.
Barbara S. Welles
Secretary
Ms. Welles is the founder and Executive Director of ANCHOR, Inc., an innovative non profit that develops boarding-school environments where at-risk youth can thrive. Two ANCHOR programs are now underway in partnership with high schools in Brooklyn, New York. Before starting ANCHOR, she spent three years in fund raising for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in San Francisco. In addition to her service on ALTSO's board, Ms. Welles participates in a number of other groups that are dedicated to providing services and educational opportunities for New York City's most underserved youth.
James Zengierski
Mr. Zengierski is Senior Documentation Manager at Barclays Capital, a global commodities trading and investment company. Previously, he was a VP in Citigroup's Office of the General Counsel, where he worked to establish a Citigroup Network for Disabled Employees. Given his own congenital limb deformity, Mr. Zengierski has been able to use his notable career success to encourage disabled children to focus on their unique skills, instead of on what others see as their disability. He holds a degree in Law and Economics from the University of Buffalo, and is a Trustee for the International Center for the Disabled.
ALTSO ADVISORY BOARD
Tim Evans
Prosthetist, Arimed Orthotics and Prosthetics
Afroz Qadeer
CEO/Co-CIO, Tapestry Asset Management LP
Amy Rosenberg
Media Director, FD International
Jessica Sanchez
Prosthetist, Arimed Orthotics and Prosthetics
Saleem A. Siddiqi
Founding Partner, Tapestry Asset Management LP
Trustee, ALTSO UK
* International Disability and Development Consortium, 1999
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