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Staff & Board

Donate Life Northwest is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors comprised of directors representing organizational stakeholders, member programs, health care professionals and community leaders committed to the mission and goals of Donate Life Northwest. The board sets direction and policies; ensures financial strength, stability, and oversight; and acts as agency ambassadors.

Staff

laura ellsworth executive director donate life northwest

Laura Ellsworth

Executive Director
Laura brings a wealth of experience, passion for our mission, connection to our community, and a track record of transformative leadership in nonprofit. Laura's roots with Donate Life Northwest are...
laura@donatelifenw.org
503.494.2288
Sara Lewis

Sara Lewis

Operations Director
Sara began at Donate Life Northwest as Coordinator of Volunteers in August of 2007 after returning to Portland from 3 years in Panama with the Peace Corps where she worked as a Regional Volunteer...
sara@donatelifenw.org
503.418.4034
Photo of Marissa Markintire

Marissa Markintire

Director of Education and Outreach
Marissa first learned about Donate Life Northwest after her granddad received a kidney transplant and her mom anonymously donated a kidney. After developing award-winning programs as Manager of...
marissa@donatelifenw.org
503.494.7836

Carolina Hunt

Development Coordinator
Carolina has a breadth of project management skills from her experience in luxury retail management, and is excited to bring those skills to the lifesaving work of Donate Life Northwest. Carolina is a...
carolina@donatelifenw.org
503.494.5388
Jenny Kane

Jenny Kane

Volunteer Coordinator
Originally from Texas, Jenny has lived in Portland for nearly a decade. A professionally-certified volunteer coordinator, Jenny has a passion for working with volunteers and has an extensive...
jenny@donatelifenw.org
503.494.3525
Sandy Jewell

Sandy Jewell

Education Coordinator
Sandy is a native Oregonian and Portlander. Most recently she worked in STEAM program management at Saturday Academy and OMSI as well as spending many years in local classrooms as a formal and...
sandy@donatelifenw.org
503.494.2257

Officers

Danny O'Hara

Chair

Vice President, Origination, Savion Energy (Recipient Family Member)

Julie Marquard

Vice Chair

Senior HR Business Partner, Retired, Nike, Inc. (Living Kidney Donor)

Chris Stoeger

Treasurer

CEO, VisionGift

Patrice Ball

Member at Large

Senior Adjunct Instructor, Portland State University (Living Kidney Donor)

Dominic Mara

Immediate Past Chair

Senior Director, Talent Management - Global Operations & Corporate Functions, Nike, Inc.

Mark Williams

Secretary

Interim Parking and Regulatory Group Director, City of Portland (Liver Recipient)

Members

Rob Boggs

Director, SolVita

John Dudrey

Of Counsel, Stoel Rives LLP

Afshan Nanji

Associate Professor, Oregon Health & Science University

Steve Rymer

City Manager, City of Tigard (Donor Family Member)

Tom Sanchez

CEO, The Oregon Clinic (Living Kidney Donor)

Norrine Smokey-Smith

Consultant, Native American Parent Technical Assistance Center (Lung Recipient)

Sondra Tootell

Community Relations Program Manager, Cascade Life Alliance

Jennifer Watson

Managing Broker/Realtor, Living Room Realty (Awaiting Kidney Transplant)

Nathan Westerlund

Mortgage Lender, Nexa Mortgage (Liver & Kidney Recipient)