HEATHER SMITH
CEO, PRESIDENT & CO-FOUNDER
Heather Smith is CEO, President, and Co-Founder of SCID Angels For Life Foundation. She and her husband have lived in Lakeland, FL for over 18 years. Having had two children born with the Rare Disease, Severe Combined Immune Deficiency, and empowered to change the outcome for SCID babies around the world, Heather and John started the nonprofit foundation in 2008, SCID Angels for Life. During the +10-year battle to get SCID newborn screening added to the Universal Newborn Screening Panel (RUSP) and implemented in all 50 states, Heather played an instrumental role in this major achievement. Now, every baby born in the United States is screened at birth for this deadly disease.
Heather is currently the Patient Representative for a CIRM Clinical Advisory Panel and she previously chaired both the Steering Committee and Parent Advisory Board for the SCID Compass Program. For 8 years Heather sat on the Florida Genetics and Newborn Screening Advisory Council where shared the voice of the rare disease community.
Heather has a bachelor’s degree in child development from Central Michigan University.
JOHN SMITH
TREASURER & CO-FOUNDER
John Smith is the co-founder and treasurer of SCID Angels for Life Foundation. John is a senior software engineer for SAIC, involved in software development for the Veterans Affairs Administration’s hospital Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). John is a former member of the board of trustees (13 years) for the Immune Deficiency Foundation. John has 39 years of software development experience in the Healthcare, Finance, and Security industries, including founder and Vice President of Perennial Software. John’s stepson has X-linked Severe Combined Immune Deficiency (SCID).
CHRIS ROSE
SECRETARY
Chris recently retired from Procter & Gamble, where he had a +27-year career in Finance & Accounting. Chris was the Senior Vice President of Global Business Development, where he led the global organization on all partnering and external transactions, including Mergers & Acquisitions. During his more than 20 years specializing in this work, Chris became the company’s expert in all Health Care related transactions and partnering efforts. Currently, Chris runs a consulting company, sits on the Board of Columbia Sussex Corp., and leads the business development efforts for an ag-tech start-up, CH4 Global.
Chris is married with two adult children – one a NICU nurse and the other a consultant focusing on the health care industry. He has an MBA from Northwestern University Kellogg Graduate School of Management and a BA in Accounting from Michigan State University.
GAIL MOORE
BOARD MEMBER
Gail has been working with rare disease patient communities for over 25 years as a volunteer within the primary immune deficiency community and representing patients within the pharmaceutical industry, helping them to understand the needs of those affected by a rare condition. The dedication she brings to this role comes from a very personal place. She has faced living with a rare disease and has successfully raised two children living with the same condition.
In her most recent role as Executive Director of Global Patient Advocacy, Gail coordinated numerous interactions and collaborations with US and International patient advocacy organizations in rare diseases.
She was recognized for her tireless efforts on behalf of the communities she served. In 2018, she was one of the 100 most inspiring industry professionals by PharmaVoice and a Global Genes Champion of Hope.
Gail has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from St. Leo University, FL. She lives in Lakeland, FL. She is the proud mother of two children and four fur babies.