Driving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and Members

The American Heart Association (AHA) Greater Washington Region is powered by volunteers who drive the mission of the organization across all communities. The AHA thanks members who have completed their board terms, has named a new president and chair-elect and welcomes four new members to its board of directors. Together they serve as a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives and drive our impact in the Greater Washington Region!

Driving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and MembersThe AHA thanks, Erich Sanchack, Chief Operating Officer for Digital Realty for his tireless service during his 6-year board term and long-time role as a volunteer leader. His efforts have helped to raise millions of dollars in support of the mission, including a record-breaking year for the Heart Walk in 2017 when he was chair. He has also been involved with Heart’s Delight Wine Tasting & Auction and the Heart Ball. Sanchack will continue to be engaged in the Greater Washington Region and serve in other capacities.

Dr. Asch

A heart-felt thank you goes to Federico Asch, M.D. on completing his two-year term as president of the board. During his tenure, he helped to propel numerous advocacy wins around healthy kids meals in Maryland and was instrumental in the passing of historic legislation that ended the sale of flavored tobacco products in DC. Asch will continue to serve on the board.

Driving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and Members

“It is an honor to work alongside people who have demonstrated such dedication to the AHA’s mission and have advanced so many priorities that will save and improve lives for generations to come,” said Owen Billman, chair of the Greater Washington Region Board of Directors and president of Blake Real Estate. “We will truly miss Erich as part of our Greater Washington Region board but look forward to all that he will accomplish as he continues to lead through volunteerism throughout the organization! We thank Federico for his leadership and his continued work on the AHA on the board,”

Kelly Epps-Anderson, M.D., an interventional cardiologist at Inova Heart & Vascular Institute, has been named as theDriving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and Members president of the board and will serve in this role for two years. Epps-Anderson has a special interest in women’s cardiovascular health. She is passionate about educating women about their cardiovascular disease risk and is the Director of the Inova Women’s Cardiovascular Health Center and co-founded Inova’s cardio-oncology program.

Driving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and MembersAmry Junaideen, Principal at Deloitte & Touche LLP has been named as chair-elect of the board. He will assume his two-year term as chair on July 1, 2023. Junaideen has nearly 30 years of experience including 26 years with Deloitte. His portfolio is diversified, global, and multi-industry and spans a blend of experiences that includes extensive client service, firm management, operations, talent, and governance.

The Association welcomes new members:

Driving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and Members

John Harrity, Partner, Harrity & Harrity LLP
John Harrity has been involved in the patent field for 20 years. Since 2020, he has served as Co-Chair of the American Heart Association’s Lawyers Have Heart 10K, 5K and Fun Walk. He seized the opportunity during the two virtual event years (2020 and 2021) to broaden participation internationally. This year, with the return to the in-person race, Harrity helped to shatter fundraising records for the event, raising over $1.25M.

Driving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and MembersErin Henderson Moore, Executive Director Washington, DC & Maryland, UnitedHealthcare Community & State
Erin Henderson Moore is the Executive Director for the Maryland and Washington, DC Medicare Advantage Dual Special Needs Plans (DSNPs) at UnitedHealthcare Community & State. In this role, she provides executive oversight and leadership for UnitedHealthcare’s DSNPs in Maryland and Washington, DC, which serve over 13,000 dually eligible individuals. Henderson Moore previously served as the Director of Policy & Strategic Engagement at UnitedHealthcare Community & State.

Driving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and MembersMonique Sanfuentes, Administrative Director, Community Affairs and Population Health, Suburban Hospital / Johns Hopkins Medicine
Sanfuentes leads Suburban Hospital’s health transformation and improvement commitment to the community, which aims to improve the quality of life and reduce hospitalizations. Aligning hospital and community assets as well as focusing on unaddressed identified needs, she links health partnerships, community initiatives, strategic affiliations and collaboration with health coalitions, outreach activities, wellness programs and corporate projects to address established health barriers, disparities, and inequities.

Driving Change: The American Heart Association Salutes Volunteer Leaders for Serving on the Board and Announces New Leadership and Members

Vishal Tulsian, Senior Vice President of Operations, SAIC
Vishal Tulsian is senior vice president of operations for SAIC’s state/local, healthcare, and federal financial customers. In this role, he is responsible for account management, client satisfaction, sales, and quality standards associated with all services provided by SAIC within this portfolio. In 2021, Tulsian joined the Heart Walk Executive Leadership Team and led the Executives with Heart campaign that raised $500K. He then agreed to chair the 2022 Heart Ball, which raised over $1M. In 2023 he will continue to serve as Heart Ball Co-Chair.

“As champions for health equity, the American Heart Association believes that everyone everywhere deserves the opportunity to live a full and healthy life,” said Billman.  “Together, this board will work hard to advance the Association’s work so that every single person across our community has access to the resources they need to be healthy.”

Incoming board members will work alongside Epps, Billman, Junaideen, Asch and other volunteer leaders to advance mission and fundraising priorities for the AHA. The board oversees opportunities for investment in the Greater Washington Region to improve health and well-being and will build on existing efforts around health care access and quality, addressing issues of nutrition and food security, hypertension reduction, CPR awareness and more.

Additional members are:

Roquell E. Wyche, M.D. FACC (Leadership Development Chair)

Cardiologist
Chesapeake and Washington Heart Care

Bryan O. Buckley, DrPH, MPH
Director of Health Equity Initiatives
The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA)

Mac Curtis
Chairman of the Board
Cubic Corporation

Yolandra Hancock, M.D. MPH
Professor
Milken Institute of Public Health, George Washington University

Ameya Kulkarni, M.D. FSCAI
Chief of Cardiology
Kaiser Permanente, NOVA Service Area

Sander Mueller
Chief Strategy Officer
Anybill

Carmen C. Ramirez, Ph.D., RN
Vice President & Chief Operations Officer
Community Capital Corporation

Lauren Silvis
Senior Vice President of External Affairs
Tempus

Caroline Whittington
M&A Tax Partner, International Tax
KPMG

To learn more about the work of the board, the impact of the organization and how to get involved, visit www.heart.org/dc.

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About the American Heart Association

The American Heart Association is a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives. We are dedicated to ensuring equitable health in all communities. Through collaboration with numerous organizations, and powered by millions of volunteers, we fund innovative research, advocate for the public’s health, and share lifesaving resources. The Dallas-based organization has been a leading source of health information for nearly a century. Connect with us on heart.org, Facebook, Twitter or by calling 1-800-AHA-USA1.