Chair: Melanie Melcher
Former Chief Financial Officer
Colorado State Land Board
melaniemelcher@msn.com
Vice-Chair: Amy Simper
Ameriprise Financial Services
Treasurer: Linda Oberg
Former Chief Financial Officer
Colorado State Parks
Secretary: David Berman MD
Kaiser Permanente
At-Large: Leslie Swid
Effective Communications
Mark Mathews
Shareholder
Brownstein, Hyatt, Farber and Schreck
Andrew Holecek DDS
Dental Director
Project Director: Laurie Mathews
info@globaldentalrelief.org
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Our Trip Leaders |
Each Global Dental Relief project is led by a two-member team responsible for managing the the dental clinic and overseeing in-country tours. Meet our directors and volunteer staff below:
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Laurie Mathews, Project Director. Laurie co-founded Global Dental, formerly Himalayan Dental Relief, in 2001. She loves the time spent with children overseas and currently co-leads
4-5 trips a year. Laurie founded GDR after a career working in public policy. From 1990-2001, she was the Director of Colorado State Parks. |
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Kim Troggio, Director, Global Dental Expeditions. Kim founded GDE, then Global Humanitarian Expeditions, in 2002. Kim specializes in volunteer placement and logistics, and works to ensure each volunteer has the best possible experience. Kim currently leads 4-5 trips a year to Vietnam and Guatemala. Kim's prior experience is in social work and the adventure travel industry. |
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Mark Lisagor, DDS, Trip Leader. Mark is a "cross over" Trip Leader since he is also a dentist and began working with us as a dental volunteer on trips to India and Nepal. His love of children (he is a pediatric dentist) and sense of fun are infectious, and in 2006 he agreed to "cross over" and lead GDR project trips in Nepal and India. |
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Wes Takahashi, Trip Leader. Wes joined the project in 2005 as a volunteer in Vietnam. He quickly responded to the adventure and immersion in local cultures and in 2006 signed on as a Trip Leader. He has worked in all Country locations. Wes works as a salmon fishing guide in British Columbia, Canada and is an avid musician and world traveler. |
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Michael Maher, Trip Leader. Michael was a non-medical volunteer in Ladakh, India, in 2005 and then in Vietnam in 2007. These "giving back" experiences captivated Michael and, wanting to do more, he has served as a tour leader in India and Nepal. Outside of GDR, Michael is employed as a senior marketing executive with a software development company. |
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Garth Schaefer, Trip Leader. Garth came to Nepal to volunteer in 2006 and decided to create a new chapter in his life that involved trip leading and travel. Garth has a busy year planned co-leading eight trips in three countries! Garth comes from a volunteer background, having worked with the Peace Corps in Guatemala and Americorp in the US. |
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