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-Founder

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
Co-Founder, Chairman and 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. 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.

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Dr. Harold van Bosse, MD, FACS

Dr. van Bosse is an attending pediatric orthopedic surgeon at the Shriners Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, 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.

Catharine A. Carroll

Ms. Carroll is President and Chief Operating Officer of Pro Equine Group, a leading manufacturer of rodeo and equestrian equipment. Before joining Pro Equine Group, she spent twelve years in the travel industry in variety of finance, marketing and sales roles at United Airlines in Chicago, IL and Sabre Inc. in Southlake, TX. 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.

Barbara S. Iler
Secretary

Ms. Iler 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. Iler 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.

OFFICERS

Gabriella Mueller

Associate Director

A.J. Warco

Field Coordinator

ALTSO ADVISORY BOARD

Tim Evans

Prosthetist, Arimed Orthotics and Prosthetics

Afroz Qadeer

CEO/Co-CIO, Tapestry Asset Management LP

Saleem A. Siddiqi

Founding Partner, Tapestry Asset Management LP

Trustee, ALTSO UK

Imogen Rose-Smith

Staff Writer, Institutional Investor

Lauren Rosato

President, Norwalk Education Foundation

Gabrielle Guttman

President, connext consulting inc.

Edwin W. Laffey Jr

Co-Founder & President, First Money Managers International (retired).

HONORARY AMBASSADORS

Individuals who have demonstrated continued and exemplary support of ALTSO’s mission:

Atul Khanna

Jaideep Khanna

Ashwan Khanna

Chris Heasman

Saleem Siddiqi

Agatha Imiolek

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