CaringBridge Names New Members to Board of Directors

Eagan, Minn. (August 19, 2019) – The Vision of CaringBridge, the global nonprofit social network now in its 22nd year, is to create a world where no one goes through a health journey alone. We are excited to welcome four new directors to our 21-member board, whose deep experience and expertise in the fields of healthcare, technology and financial services, will help advance goals including:

  • Ensuring that patients and caregivers everywhere will know about CaringBridge, and all the ways it can help, after diagnosis, illness, injury, premature birth and through such chronic conditions as Alzheimer’s.
  • Keeping pace with technology so that CaringBridge remains safe, secure and easy to use for family and friends to connect and help on mobile devices, as well as desktop computers.
  • Showing everyone who needs CaringBridge that healing is possible, and valuable, even when a “cure” may be elusive.

Joining the board are: Dr. Archelle Georgiou of Minneapolis, a physician, former healthcare industry executive and author of a book on consumer healthcare choices; Molly Jungbauer, CEO of Hollstadt Consulting, Inc.; with offices in Minneapolis and Atlanta; Adrian Slobin, CEO of Nerdery, a digital business consultancy with offices in Minneapolis, Chicago and Phoenix; and Scott Spiker, CEO/Chairman of the Dallas-Fort Worth-based First Command Financial Services.

“We are so pleased to have Archelle, Molly, Adrian, and Scott join our board,” said Liwanag Ojala, CEO of CaringBridge. “They have a wealth of experience and expertise in a wide range of industries that will strengthen our strategic direction for CaringBridge.”

Following are highlights of key experiences and career accomplishments that will inform the work and contributions of the new board members:

  • Dr. Georgiou earned her medical degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and was a practicing internist before being named Chief Medical Officer of UnitedHealthcare, one of the largest healthcare companies in the world, by revenue and customers. She also worked with the Center for Health Transformation, a bi-partisan think-tank founded by former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Newt Gingrich that focused on designing a data-driven 21st Century Health System. Dr. Georgiou also was medical correspondent for a Blue Zones international expedition with bestselling author Dan Buettner, who identified five regions where populations live healthier and longer lives than others. In 2017, Dr. Georgiou published her first book, “Healthcare Choices: 5 Steps to Getting the Medical Care You Want and Need.” Dr. Georgiou has also been a collaborator with the CaringBridge team and National Geographic photographer David McLain in producing “How We Heal,” a project in which patients and caregivers share their stories with the hope of helping others.
  • Molly Jungbauer is CEO of Hollstadt Consulting, Inc., a woman-owned IT and management consulting company serving the Twin Cities and Atlanta markets. Her extensive business background, predominantly in accounting and finance, will be a strong complement to the talents of the CaringBridge board of directors. Jungbauer currently serves as chair of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, and previously served as chair of their Healthcare Policy Committee. She is also past chair of Solid Ground, a nonprofit dedicated to ending the cycle of homelessness, and currently serves on their Housing Committee. In addition, she serves on the Carlson School of Management Undergraduate Advisory Board at the University of Minnesota. Jungbauer said that serving on the CaringBridge board is an opportunity to “honor everyday heroes who have had to overcome personal tragedy or health issues and still find reasons to be happy and live their lives productively.”
  • Adrian Slobin is CEO of Nerdery, a digital business consultancy that helps clients evolve and thrive by bridging strategy, design and technology. Since 2007, CaringBridge has partnered with Nerdery to help bring to life technologies essential for the platform to work in ways that patients and caregivers need and expect. Before joining Nerdery, Slobin was head of business transformation services for SapientNitro (now SapientRazorfish) and has supported digital strategies for a variety of Fortune 100 clients in healthcare and technology.
  • Scott Spiker is CEO and chairman of First Command, a company that helps military families achieve financial security at all stages of their lives. As a U.S. Naval Academy graduate and former commissioned officer, Spiker will be a passionate supporter of the formal agreement between CaringBridge and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Through the agreement, the VA has established protocols at its medical centers, clinics and private partners for communicating the benefits of using CaringBridge to service members, veterans and their families.

The CaringBridge team is grateful for the commitment of its entire board of directors, which does extraordinary work in demonstrating what is possible when compassion and technology unite.

About CaringBridge

CaringBridge is a nonprofit social network that helps people connect with friends and family during a health journey. Founded in Eagan, Minn. in 1997 by Sona Mehring, CaringBridge has made it simple and safe to offer or ask for support when it’s needed most. With nearly 300,000 active daily users—CaringBridge offers simple tools for patients and their caregivers to share health updates and rally their community’s support. A health journey of any kind—diagnosis, injury, medical or behavioral illness, pregnancy complications or other experiences—is difficult to endure alone. CaringBridge is here to ensure that no one goes through a health journey alone. Learn more at caringbridge.org.