Administration

Mark Nudelman
President & CEO

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A Bellevue native, Mark graduated with a business degree from WSU's Hotel & Restaurant administration program. After graduation he took a job in Maui with Renaissance Hotels (formally Stouffer Hotels.) Mark later returned to Seattle, to work at the Mayflower Park hotel for several years before transferring to the Warwick Hotel. In 1996, Mark transferred to Jamaica and took on the task of closing up a large resort as General Manager. While there, several high-pressure situations honed his management skills - a hurricane, a labor walk-out, and a massive power outage over the Christmas holiday. Mark built trust among his employees and the community as he resolved the labor dispute and aided in the renovation of the town square. Mark successfully closed the resort with full employee compensation packages.

 

It was then that Mark made the leap to healthcare. He joined Premier, the largest healthcare purchaser for hospitals, in charge of the Physician Program for the Western region. He traveled more than 100,000 miles a year and was the sales award winner for seven consecutive quarters. One of his mentors at Premier left to start an online education and training company, Safeware, and Mark joined him in the marketing arena. It was a great transition into his role at Wellspring EAP, a subsidiary of The Hope Heart Institute (having since been sold) before taking a more active role at The Hope as the Chief Operating Officer.

 

In 2008 Mark assumed his current role as President and CEO. He oversees all divisions of The Hope and ensures employees have all they need to be successful in their jobs. He hires the finest professionals and lets them do their job while serving as an advocate and resource. Mark also works to deepen board affairs and nurture community relationships.

Mark resides in Sammamish, Washington with his wife Laura and three daughters.

James H. Leggett, MD

Medical Director

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Dr. Leggett joined Overlake Internal Medicine Associates in 1990. He attended medical school at University of Arkansas Medical Sciences Center. His internal medicine residency was at University of Washington. He completed his cardiology fellowship training at University of New Mexico School of Medicine and Sequoia Hospital, Redwood City, CA. He is board certified in internal medicine, cardiovascular diseases.

Dr. Leggett's clinical interests include general cardiovascular care and non-invasive and invasive techniques to treat patients with coronary and peripheral artery disease.

 

Dr. Leggett serves as a Medical Director of The Diagnostic Vascular Laboratory at Overlake Internal Medicine Associates and is Medical Director of The Hope Heart Institute.

 

 Development, Marketing & Public Relations

Lisa Grissom

Vice President for Philanthropy

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Lisa A. Grissom joined The Hope as Vice President for Philanthropy in 2010.  She oversees all areas of philanthropic development including fundraising, corporate partnerships, foundations and grants, marketing and communication.

Lisa has extensive experience in staff assessment and training, new program development, campaign assessment and implementation, major event planning and implementation, and Board assessment and development.

She worked with Bentz Whaley Flessner, a national consulting firm as a senior associate with special emphasis on medical center foundations. Clients included Cincinnati Children's Hospital, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Miami Children's Hospital, and Immanuel St. Joseph's - Mayo Health Systems, among others.

Lisa has served in senior management and fundraising capacities at City of Hope National Medical Center and Beckman Research Institute, where her positions included Associate Vice President of the eight-state Southeastern Region, Senior Director of the Northern California Region, and Director of Development in the Los Angeles office. She has also served as Chief Development Officer for the Alabama Historical Commission and as Director of Major Gifts at the North Colorado Medical Center Foundation.

Craig Schaefer

Director of Major Gifts and Planned Giving

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Craig is a native of the greater Seattle area, growing up in Bellevue, Washington. He received his BBA in Marketing with a minor in Art from Gonzaga University. Craig stayed at Gonzaga University where he worked as the Assistant Director of Major Gifts and completed his Masters in Business Administration.

 

Upon completion of his degree, Craig left Spokane to move back to Seattle. He took a job at his high school alma mater, Eastside Catholic School, as the Alumni Relations and Annual Fund Manager. While in that position Craig worked on a $42 million campaign to build a brand new middle school and high school campus in Sammamish, Washington. Craig spent four years at Eastside Catholic before joining The Hope team as Major Gifts Officer.

Outside of work, Craig enjoys running, skiing, traveling, cooking, wine tasting and relaxing with friends and family. Craig lives in downtown Kirkland.  One of Craig's goals is to visit all seven continents. So far he has three to go!

 

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Laura brings a great background in communications, fitness and the non-profit sector. As Director of Promotions and Corporate Relations she is responsible for acquiring sponsors for several larger events, such as the golf tournaments and the gala. In addition to that, Laura works with The Hope’s partnership with Dream Dinners on a variety of levels.

 

Prior to joining The Hope, Laura spent three years at Radio Disney as a Promotion Manager and Account Executive. She has also been an Event Coordinator for the City of Hope Cancer Research Center as well as a Promotion Coordinator for 710 KIRO.

 

Laura is a Walla Walla native. She received her BA in Communications with an emphasis in Broadcast News from Washington State University. Exercise is one of Laura’s many passions. She is an AFAA Certified Group Fitness Instructor and currently teaches kickboxing at Allstar Fitness in West Seattle. Laura and her husband Bryan love to spend time with their two dogs, Rylie and Sawyer. They also enjoy camping, hiking and spending time with friends and family.

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Carol Coughlin started as the The Hope Heart Institute receptionist, she quickly moved into her current position working with the Development Department in event planning and managing the donor base. Like the hundreds of other people Carol has talked with at events and health fairs, her life has also been affected by heart disease. Her grandfather, Marvin Snyder, was one of Dr. Sauvage’s first open heart surgery patients in the 1960s.

 

Before coming to The Hope, Carol worked as a Title 1 Para-Educator with the Highline School District for nine years. She was lucky enough to work at Parkside Elementary where she not only attended school, but her children did as well. Carol has an associate degree in Early Childhood Education from Highline Community College. She has 20 years experience working along side her mother, Jean, in child care.

 

Also known as “Tiny”, Carol enjoys volunteering time to organizations such as ICARE. She has recently taken two mission trips to Mexico to deliver toys to children and helped in a veterinary clinic. Carol is married and busy raising four teenagers. She and her husband are either at one of their children’s sporting events or on the road in the RV whenever they can slip away.

 

Her hopes for the future are that The Hope continues to spread the word of Cardiovascular Research and Education and that every child has the opportunity to learn to live a heart healthy lifestyle.

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Fianna brings a fantastic communications and public speaking background to The Hope. A native of Spokane, Fianna graduated from Gonzaga University with a degree in Public Relations and holds a Master’s Degree in Communication and Classical Rhetoric.

 

As the Director of Public Relations, Fianna focuses on increasing visibility for the organization through media relations and strategic partnerships. Like most Americans, she knows far too many people who have suffered from heart disease and values the chance to practice PR for such a worthwhile cause.

 

Aside from her duties at The Hope, Fianna teaches evening classes in the Speech department at Bellevue Community College. Her civic involvement includes chairing the Miss Washington Fashion Show. She’s honored to give back to the Miss America Organization that paid for her entire college education as Miss Washington 2003.

 

Fianna adopted a Corgi/Fox Terrier mix. Thanks to Lucy, Fianna has a new appreciation for long walks, chasing birds, and stopping to smell the flowers. She also enjoys hiking, boating, traveling and anything she can experience with good friends and family.

Robin Tanner
Development Associate

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Robin Tanner joined The Hope in 2007 after a marriage and relocation to the Northwest. She brings a journalistic background to The Hope, having worked as a producer, writer and reporter at ABC affiliates in Harrisonburg, Virginia (WHSV-TV) and Washington DC (WJLA-TV). Prior to that Robin anchored the nightly KBYU News Digest.

 

Proficient in Spanish and Portuguese, Robin has put both languages to use in her international travels. She spent a semester in Southern Mexico teaching literacy and served as a volunteer missionary for a year and a half in Brazil. Most recently, Robin worked in Mozambique with the NGO "Care for Life" helping to rebuild homes and volunteering in orphanages. She continues to volunteer for Care for Life editing the monthly e-newsletter.

  

Robin graduated from Brigham Young University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications, Broadcast Journalism emphasis. Although Robin now calls the Pacific Northwest home, she admits at heart she is still a displaced Arizonan who craves summer, Mexican food, wearing flip flops in December and her family. She is the oldest of five children. She and her husband Christian recently celebrated his graduation from Seattle U’s Law School.

Finance

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Christine Wieland came to The Hope after 13 years of teaching in the Issaquah School District. She received a biology degree from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota and spent the following year as a chemical technician with a pharmaceutical company.

 

Chris slightly switched directions after that job and served as a youth minister for her church in Washington for two years. During that time she recognized her passion for working with children. Chris’ first teaching opportunity came in an impoverished town in Mississippi where she taught 5th graders in a volunteer summer school.

 

She went on to receive her Masters in Teaching from Seattle University. Chris completed her student teaching at Issaquah High School and stayed there for five more years. She taught life science to at-risk students and general biology and physical science. From there she joined the core team in opening Skyline High School. At Skyline, she taught biology, International Baccalaureate biology, physical science and chemistry and served as department head. At the district level, she participated in curriculum adoption and alignment of the science curriculum at all levels.

 

As Education Director at The Hope, Chris supports education and outreach programs. Her main project involves working closely with her colleagues at the University of Washington on the middle school science curriculum, Youth Take Heart. The Hope, the U and MESA (Math, Engineering, Science Achievement) are partners on the National Institute’s of Health SEPA (Science Education Partnership Award) grant that funded the development and implementation of the program. The program trains teachers in the summer and supplies kits of materials during the school year.

 

Chris is in the early stages of developing a “Teen Take Heart” program. With such a vast science-teaching background, Chris finds her work at The Hope exciting as she explores heart disease and prevention and shares it with students. She is honored to be able to participate in a mission such as Dr. Sauvage’s for the Hope.

 

Chris and her husband Kurt love traveling, spoiling their two orange tabby cats, Mitty and Mowgli, watching old movies and spending summers hiking and backpacking together. By herself, she is a bookworm.

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Laurie Sween joined The Hope Heart Institute in 2004 as an Education Coordinator. In collaboration with an advisory council of certified teachers and organizations such as The Pacific Science Center, Laurie developed the 4-unit Kids Take Heart (KTH) Health & Fitness Curriculum. She piloted the program across 12 school districts from Seattle to Spokane with thousands of 3rd-5th grade students. She also presented KTH to teachers statewide at the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction’s 2006 Summer Institutes and smaller regional conferences such as the Washington Alliance of Physical Education Recreation and Dance.

 

Laurie can be found conducting Teacher Institutes for the KTH program or in the classroom. Additionally, Laurie helps with Community Outreach and Events whenever possible.

 

Laurie has a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Northwest University and a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Lesley University. She taught 3rd - 5th grades at Discovery Elementary in the Issaquah School District for five years. During that time, she received a grant from the Freeman Foundation and accompanied 12 other K-12 teachers on a study tour in Japan. Laurie was also awarded a technology grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

 

Laurie enjoys outdoor concerts, exploring new places, board games and spending time with her husband Shawn and daughter.

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Kristen joined The Hope in 2006 and is thrilled to be bringing heart health awareness and education to the public as the Community Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator. She is especially interested in educating women about the disease, as she has many personal connections to women with heart problems.

 

Kristen graduated from Evergreen State College in 1994 with a BA in Performing Arts and Film making. While studying dance in college, she became fascinated with the psychology and theory of movement. Kristen studied Laban Movement Theory, and eventually went on to attend the Brenekke School of Massage. Kristen also pursued a two-year Mind-Body therapy certification at the ARC Institute. From there she worked as a mind/body counselor and massage therapist.

 

In 2001, Kristen joined a fledgling non-profit called the Depression Wellness Network. As Program Director, she developed programs for adults with depression, led support groups and taught workshops. She also implemented a volunteer program which trained clients of the Network to provide peer support to others with depression while actively working on their own healing.

 

After the organization closed, Kristen moved on to manage Viva Day Spa, a wellness spa on Lower Queen Anne. While there she implemented the Spa’s first free Skin Cancer Screening Program.

 

In her “spare” time, Kristen writes fiction and poetry, creates fine art for her side business Roaring Rose Designs, and produces and edits the ARC Institute Newsletter. A trip to Ireland is in the works sometime this year. Currently in her car CD deck: Nina Simone, which she sings along to very loudly and badly with the car windows rolled up. She shares an apartment in beautiful downtown Ballard with her husband, two cranky cats, two bouncy fire-bellied toads, and a goldfish.

Meagan Jepson

Women Take Heart & Youth Take Heart Program Manager

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Meagan first joined The Hope as a summer intern. After graduating from Walla Walla University with a BS in Health Promotion she was quickly offered a job back at The Hope supporting the education and outreach departments. Meagan quickly moved into her current role as Program Manager over The Hope's Women Take Heart and Youth Take Heart programs. 

Meagan is passionate about healthy living and exercise, especially with how each relates to heart disease prevention. She taught gymnastics for four years and is an Assistant Girls Basketball coach at Auburn Adventist Academy (her Alma matter). Sticking with the sports theme, Meagan is a giant Seahawks fan!

Meagan grew up in Auburn, Washington and loves living in the Northwest. She isn’t fazed by the rain here and actually really enjoys it. She is a coffee fanatic and likes hiking, shopping, watching movies, and reading. If she isn’t busy doing all of that, Meagan loves to spend time with her family, her fiancé and her black lab Sookie.

 

Clinical Research

Michelle Morris

Clinical Research Administration Specialist

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Michelle was born in a small Kansas town and survived an F5 tornado on March 13, 1990 while working at a Pizza Hut, although she doesn't have a dog named Toto but her grandmother's name is Dorothy.
 

After completing a year at Washburn, a private law school, she moved to Colorado where she graduated cum laude from Colorado State University with a B.S. in Speech Communication; emphasis in disorders and a minor in Psychology.

 

Michelle moved to Seattle in January of 1998, when even the locals were complaining about all the rain. Although her job was in banking/loan processing, her heart was still with healthcare. By 1999 she was working at Overlake Hospital and soon was supporting the Director of Critical Care, the Cardiac Service Management Team and Physicians.

 

Staying in the field of cardiology Michelle joined The Hope in 2005. Continuing with her love of paperwork - the regulatory aspect of research couldn't be a more perfect fit for her. Michelle and her husband Mike have two children.  

 

Clinical Research Administrative Specialist

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Robyn was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. She previously worked at the Texas Transplant Institute as a Regulatory and Operations Manager. Since Robyn was nine years old she has enjoyed the game of volleyball. She played volleyball both in high school and at the collegiate level until a torn ACL sidelined her from the action. Fortunately, Robyn found a way to stay in the game. She has coached three high school state volleyball champions as well as 10 years of club volleyball. She now coaches volleyball at Edmonds Community College. Her team finished third at the NWAACC Championships. She also coaches a 12 and under volleyball team for Northwest Juniors Volleyball Club.

 

When she isn't on the volleyball court Robyn loves to cook and bake. In Fall 2009 she will start her Master of Sport Administration and Leadership at Seattle University. Robyn lives in Seattle with her husband Michael. They welcomed their first daughter October 2009.

Liz McKinney, BS
Clinical Research Coordinator

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Liz McKinney is an instrumental asset to physicians doing cardiovascular clinical research as she sorts through the mountains of paperwork required to do the studies. She works with a great team in a variety of exciting and challenging pursuits.

 

Liz wasn’t always in the business of clinical research. She graduated with a Math Sciences Degree from Stanford and her first career was as a software developer in the oil industry. Liz worked for Occidental, Sohio and finally, Shell Oil Company at the Bellaire Research Lab in Houston. All told, Liz spent 15 years in the “oil patch.” After moving to the Northwest, she was a partner with Good Northwest Corporation, developing educational and environmental CD-ROMs.

 

Liz credits an RN friend for initiating her move into clinical research by nonchalantly asking one day if computers could help with her clinical research business… thus began a love affair with clinical research that continues to this day. Liz likes the unique combination of science, medicine and business that makes clinical research so fascinating and challenging.

 

Liz recently served as a chaplain intern and earned two units of clinical pastoral education (CPE) at the VA Hospital in Seattle. She has been active in the Kairos Prison Ministry for almost 10 years.

A native of Bakersfield, California, she and her husband have lived on Bainbridge Island since 1992. Liz says if she could have just one luxury a day it would be a helicopter ride to and from work! 

Heather Rasmussen, BS, CCRC
Clinical Research Coordinator

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Heather Rasmussen joined The Hope in 2006 as a Research Coordinator. Prior to The Hope, she worked at a medical device company in quality assurance as a Documentation Specialist.

 

Heather left Woodinville, Washington to attend the University of Portland where she received a Bachelor of Science in Biology. Her previous research experience includes Gastroenterology/Hepatology at the University of Washington. Recently, Heather received her Health Care Assistant Category E license. She is now able to give therapeutic agent injections, which helps with her current study.

 

She enjoys camping, hiking, and snowmobiling. She and her husband Billy recently purchased their first home. They share it with three pets; a cat, a pug and a boxer.

 

Sue Keller, BS
Clinical Research Coordinator

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Sue Keller joined The Hope in 2007 after a 6 year respite for quality family time raising her active, now teenage son. She brings 20 years of experience in health care starting as a Public Health Nutritionist and moving into the Pharmaceutical industry. Sue spent 15 of those years in Clinical Research and Regulatory Affairs. A transfer brought her family to Seattle and Sue joined the Sales division with responsibilities for an area managed care account.

 

Sue received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nutrition from the University of Rhode Island. The field of nutrition remains a lifelong interest of hers. Sue maintains a long-standing and ongoing commitment to volunteerism and is a current member of the Kirkland Park Board.

 

Sue grew up in New Jersey, a state that the singer/songwriter John Gorka likens to ‘Ohio, only more so’. However, she feels at home in the Pacific Northwest. In addition to her work at The Hope, Sue can be found at her house where the light comes in from all four directions with the west being her favorite in winter. She spends her free time on the sidelines of Crossfire games and baseball tournaments. Sue travels as much as time and money allows.

Colleen Soleau
Clinical Research Coordinator

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Colleen Soleau joined The Hope in 2010 as a Research Coordinator. Previsouly she worked as a Clinical Lab Assistant at Evergreen Hospital Lab. She also has experience working in the Client Service Department and Pathology.
 
Colleen was born in Portland, Oregon and moved to Seattle with her family at a young age. She attended the University of Washington where she received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Society, Ethics and Human Behavior along with a minor in Education.  
 
Something unique about Colleen is that she has an identical twin sister named Heidi. Colleen enjoys spending time with her family and her husband Joe.

Jonah Piston
Clinical Research Assistant

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If Jonah tries hard enough, he can still conjure up his old Midwestern twang. He was raised in the suburbs of Detroit until the age of thirteen. His family relocated to Mercer Island, Washington, where he graduated high school in 2003. Five years and two colleges later, he graduated from Occidental, a small liberal arts college in Los Angeles, California, with a bachelor's degree in history. He is grateful to have had such overwhelmingly rich learning experiences.
 

Finished, perhaps forever, with interpreting historical documents, Jonah now works for people who, as a New York Times columnist once quipped, use data, not diaries, to know the secrets of the human heart. When he isn't entertaining his fellow Hope staff with original jokes about cardiovascular research, he is industriously gathering data for the Hope's studies, and chipping away at the mountains of data entry work that keep the clinical research world turning.

Regina Chewning, BA, BS
Clinical Research Assistant

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Regina was raised in Spokane, Washington but started her professional career in Portland, Oregon. Working as a chemist, she was the first woman to be hired in an all male work force. Regina has a BS/BA from the University of Portland in Biology with a minor in Chemistry.  

 

Seattle became home when Regina's husband accepted an engineering position in the area.  After staying home to raise four daughters, Regina attacked the work force as a "Rocket Scientist".  She had a number of exciting positions ranging from the wood industry, managing two small chemical sales companies, Diabetes Research, a few more mind expanding jobs, until settling down at The Hope Heart Institute. Regina's current role as a clinical trials coordinator keeps her involved with her love for the medical field and helping those who need it most.
 
For the past 10 years Regina and her husband are avid beer brewers and wine makers. When they are not helping their married children tackle various home projects, you can find them training their Goldens and entering them in Hunting Trials. A hobby which keeps them "going" for most of the year.

 

 Office of the Founder

Eli Chiaviello
Assistant to the Founder

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A native of San Francisco, Eli grew up in Ohio, and moved to Seattle in 1996.  He attended Ohio State University and City College of San Francisco, but his most valuable coursework was the typing class he took in junior high.  After accumulating five years of administrative office experience in a diverse range of industries from nonprofit community outreach to electronics sales, Eli came to The Hope as a temporary employee in 1998.
 
He has since worked to support The Hope's research staff, as well as the Education, Administration, Finance, Human Resources, Development, and Marketing departments, before settling in to his current role as assistant to The Hope's Founder, Dr. Lester R. Sauvage.  As Dr. Sauvage's assistant, Eli has continued to be involved in many aspects of The Hope's operations, and has worked on a variety of projects, including managing a five-year research study in collaboration with HealthNet, and editing Dr. Sauvage's research papers and book manuscripts.
 
Eli is an avid technology enthusiast, and when he's not at work he enjoys backpacking and camping in the Scottish Highlands, and traveling throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Europe.