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Event Chairs
Corporate Chair
Theodore L. Welding, CEO
Kindred Hospital - South Florida
Mr. Welding is Executive Director of Kindred Hospitals – South Florida. This includes Kindred Hospitals Coral Gables, Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and their newest Hospital Kindred Hospital Melbourne.
Raised in South Florida, Mr. Welding achieved his Masters in Business & Health Administration from the University of Miami. Prior to his 20 years with Kindred, he was the Chief Respiratory Therapist at Broward General Medical Center where he worked for 13 years. He remembers teaching smoking cessation classes for the American Lung Association and has first-hand experience in dealing with people who suffer from lung-related diseases.
Mr. Welding is active with various organizations, including Board Member for the South Florida Hospital & Healthcare Association. He currently serves as the Chair Elect for Board of the American Lung Association of Florida.
Ted has two children, Matthew a Senior at the University of Florida and Jennifer a Pharmacy student at Nova Southeastern University. His wife, Marguerite, is a Nurse Practitioner who works for a prominent Pulmonary Physician in Fort Lauderdale.
As Corporate Chairman of the Fight For Air Run/Walk for the past Five years he has enjoyed working with the American Lung Association on such an important event. Last year we raised over 70k benefiting local lung health programs, education, patients and research at the Asthma Clinical Research Center. Hopefully, this year's event will again surpass our goal.
What better way to help by taking a leisurely run or walk around a beautiful city like Ft. Lauderdale and knowing you are making a difference for those who taking a walk is not so easy.
Kindred Healthcare is a leader in taking care of long-term respiratory patients and a corporate sponsor of the ALA. "Supporting a cause like the Fight For Air Run/Walk is a commitment I welcome."
Community Recruitment Chair
Dr. Maria Maniscalco
Dr. Maria Maniscalco, Pharm.D., is a clinical pharmacist for XLHealth Care Improvement Plus insurance company. Previous to her present position, she was an Assistant Professor at Nova Southeastern University College of Pharmacy for 7 years and worked as a community pharmacist in NY.
She actively serves as a Board member for the South Florida American Lung Association Advisory Board since 2004 and serves as Community Co-Chairperson of Recruitment for the Annual ALA Lung Walk and Captain of the NSU College of Pharmacy team since 2003. Dr. Maniscalco is an active member of American Pharmacist Association (APhA) and volunteers for the Florida Pharmacy Association (FPA). Dr Maniscalco strives to engage student pharmacists to be 'agents of change' to further the role of the pharmacist in community practice.
Family Team Chair
Yolanda Fox-Newman
Yolanda Fox-Newman is a Family Law and Domestic Relations Attorney. Her practice is in downtown Fort Lauderdale as the Law Offices of Yolanda L. Fox. Attorney Fox is also a Florida Supreme Court Certified Family and Court Mediator and has enjoyed assisting parties and their attorneys through the process of divorce without litigation.
Attorney Fox is the proud parent of Mark Anthony Newman II, who is affectionately known as "Little M.A.N." due to his initials and being named after his Father. Little M.A.N. will be 5 years old on July 25th. Although Attorney Fox is asthmatic, along with her mother, sister and nieces, it could not have hit any closer to her heart than when Little M.A.N. at four months old began using a nebulizer daily for bronchitis that eventually turned into asthma. Today, due to Little M.A.N.'s preventative medicine, he has not had any asthma related illnesses so far for 2010!
In 2007, Attorney Fox learned about the "Asthma Walk" and immediately registered "Team Little M.A.N." As her first experience in this endeavor, Attorney Fox learned a lot of heart-wrenching statistics never known to her about her own illness and now the illness of her son. Seeking to learn more about assisting to find a cure during Little M.A.N.'s lifetime, Attorney Fox joined the Asthma Walk Committee in 2008.
In 2009, Attorney Fox again joined the committee and was honored to have been asked to serve as the Family Recruitment Chair. This year, Attorney Fox again serves as the Family Chair of the newly named "Fight for Air Run/Walk". Attorney Fox is so excited about the new changes and ides for this year's run/walk and believes that together, we can increase asthma awareness, along with other lung diseases, and research so that there is a cure for asthma during Little M.A.N.'s lifetime.
Local Celebrity Chair
Kristin Kane
WSFL
I'm happy to support the American Lung Association's 2010 Fight for Air Run/Walk. I've traded in my Ugg boots and winter scarves for sandals and sundresses! I never thought I would call South Florida, or anything south of the Mason-Dixon line, home-but here I am and I'm loving it so far! I'm also thrilled to be a part of the entire Morning Show team. I attended Columbia University in NYC. And just for the record, I was an American History major which I know has nothing to do with News Broadcasting; it's just something I was interested in. During my sophomore year at Columbia I started interning for CBS's "Sunday Morning." I then went on to intern for WCBS-TV. At the beginning of my senior year WCBS offered me a part-time job as an Assignment Desk Assistant. After graduating, I continued to work at WCBS and also started working at News12 Westchester in Yonkers, New York as an Associate Producer. Talk about no social life and no sleep! But it was so worth it! I learned SO much and met some pretty amazing people. However, I wanted to be in front of the camera, so that's when I headed to Erie, PA. Hello lake-effect snow!!! At WICU/WSEE in Erie, PA I was a reporter/fill-in anchor/fill-in weather forecaster/producer-I really did it all!! After 1.5 years in Erie, I was ready for my next challenge, and so here I am, in beautiful sunny South Florida!
Honorary Chairs
David, Laura and Leia Schwartz
David, Laura and Leia Schwartz are the Honorary Run/Walk Chairs this year.
David, an International Banker for more than 25 years, is currently Sr. Vice President and International Compliance Risk Manager of Regions Financial Corporation. He serves as a member of the American Lung Association of Florida – South Area Advisory Board and is a past President of the Florida International Bankers Association. David is also an asthmatic.
Laura worked for many years as an Asst State Attorney for the State of Florida, where she specialized in Juvenile Law. She now devotes herself to volunteering for numerous organizations, including the American Lung Association.
Their 14-year-old daughter, Leia, is a survivor of recurrent life-threatening asthma. Due to the severity of her asthma, she has suffered from numerous bouts of pneumonia and has been repeatedly hospitalized. In 2002, her lung collapsed after an asthma attack and she spent 2 weeks in critical condition fighting for her life. Thanks to the excellent care she received at Baptist Children's Hospital ER and PICU she miraculously recovered. Leia is currently thriving under the medical supervision of Dr. Maria Franco and Dr. Mark Young and will be entering 9th grade at Coral Reef Senior High School in the fall. She has led Team Leia in raising over $20,000 in previous walks. Because of the Schwartz's experience with their daughter's illnesses they are dedicated to helping the ALAF promote asthma awareness and research.
