For Immediate Release                              Contact: Dorothy Coyle, 773-332-6201

CHICAGO, Jan. 8, 2020 – The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF) today announced that 60 pulmonary fibrosis (PF) support groups nationwide received grants from the 2019 Leanne Storch Support Group Fund. The Fund is sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and Genentech, a Roche company.  
Named for the PFF’s former executive director who was diagnosed with PF in 2003, the Leanne Storch Support Group Fund honors her passion for supporting those affected by the disease. Established in 2012, the Fund enhances the PFF’s Support Group Leader Network by providing resources to leaders to meet the objectives of their local groups. Storch passed away last May from complications of PF. 

“Support groups provide a lifeline to our patients, their caregivers and loved ones,” said Kate Gates, Senior Director of Programs of the PFF. “Through the Leanne Storch Support Group Fund, we are able to assist our volunteer-led PF support groups to engage their local communities with educational events, meetings and public awareness.”

Each year, support group leaders can apply for two grant types:
• $500 grant to establish a new pulmonary fibrosis support group
• $750 grant to develop an existing pulmonary fibrosis support group to expand and extend its reach

Groups can apply for one grant per funding year. Funds can be used for expenses such as site rental fees, printing costs, refreshments and other costs related to starting and/or managing a quarterly or monthly PF support group. 

The 2019 Leanne Storch Support Group Fund Recipients are -

Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group of Montgomery 
Montgomery, AL 
Support Group Leader: Janet Mann and LaKeyla Jones

Westgate Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group
Glendale, AZ
Support Group Leader: Madeline Wollmer and Rebekah English, DNP

East Valley Interstitial Lung Disease Support Group 
Mesa, AZ
Support Group Leader: Samuel Allen 

Tucson Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Banner – University Medicine North 
Tucson, AZ
Support Group Leader: Carolyn Fike

John Muir Restrictive Lung Disease/Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
John Muir Health Pulmonary Rehabilitation 
Pleasant Hill, CA 
Support Group Leader: Cindy Cayou, RCP, Gloria Stambaugh 

Central Valley Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
University of California Davis Medical Center 
Sacramento, CA 
Support Group Leader: Maya Juarez

Living Well with Interstitial Lung Disease 
University of California San Francisco Medical Center 
San Francisco, CA
Support Group Leader: Elida Oettel

San Juan Capistrano Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Paloma Medical Group 
San Juan Capistrano, CA
Support Group Leader: Fernando Altamirano 

Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Stanford University Medical Center 
Stanford, CA
Support Group Leader: Susan Jacobs, RN, MS

National Jewish Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
National Jewish Health 
Denver, CO
Support Group Leader: Katherine Rosen, ANP-C

Greater Hartford Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
West Hartford, CT 
Support Group Leader: Malcolm Doyle 

Port Charlotte Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Port Charlotte, FL 
Support Group Leader: Linda Milo 

Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Piedmont Atlanta Hospital 
Atlanta, GA 
Support Group Leader: Maria Tingas and Diane Pullins 

Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group – Austell 
Piedmont Healthcare-Austell 
Austell, GA
Support Group Leader: Sheila Greene

Idaho Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Boise, ID 
Support Group Leader: Deborah Herndon 

Suburban Lung Associates Pulmonary Fibrosis Meet and Greet 
Suburban Lung Associates 
Elk Grove Village, IL 
Support Group 
Leader: Kimberly Chismark, RN

Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Loyola University Medical Center 
Maywood, IL 
Support Group Leader: Jose Vazquez and Brad Bemiss, MD 

Pulmonary Fibrosis Hope Support Group 
Highland, IN
Support Group Leader: Elizabeth Gaiser

Airbenders
University of Louisville 
Louisville, KY 
Support Group Leader: Belica Graf, RRT

Grand Rapids Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Spectrum Health 
Grand Rapids, MI
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Cannestra, RN

The Lung Research Center Pulmonary Support Group 
St. Luke’s Health 
Chesterfield, MO
Support Group Leader: Neill Ettinger, MD and Tammy Nickleson, CCRC

Mid-Missouri Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Columbia, MO 
Support Group Leader: Judith Frost 

Greater Kansas City Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
St. Joseph Medical Center 
Kansas City, MO 
Support Group Leader: Dawnie Ellison 

Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group of the Northland 
North Kansas City Hospital 
North Kansas City, MO 
Support Group Leader: Rhonda Gibson, RRT

Just Breathe Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Cone Health Alamance Regional Medical Center 
Burlington, NC 
Support Group Leader: Debra Baldwin 

Pulmonary Fibrosis Together 
Duke University Medical Center 
Chapel Hills, NC 
Support Group Leader: Shannon Tilley and Sandra Sherrill 

Garden State Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Morristown, NJ 
Support Group Leader: Margaret Liebig and Charlie Bryant 

Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital 
New Brunswick, NJ 
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Wescoe, MEd, NCC 

Monmouth Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Healthsound Rehabilitation Hospital Tinton Falls
Tinton Falls, NJ 
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Wescoe, Med, NCC

Better Breathers Club-Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis 
Albuquerque, NM 
Support Group Leader: Rebecca Padilla and Karen Smoot 

University Medical Center Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
University Medical Center of Southern Nevada 
Las Vegas, NV 
Support Group Leader: Jason Meilleur, RRT

The Lucille A. Fennessy Support Group 
Mt. Sinai Medical Center 
New York, NY 
Support Group Leader: Alexandra Bertolini 

New York Presbyterian Hospital Patient and Family Support and Education 
New York Presbyterian Hospital 
New York, NY 
Support Group Leader: Julie Porcelli, MSN, RN, CNL 

Breathe Easy Rochester 
Rochester, NY 
Support Group Leader: Mary Pollock and Mary Ann Kinsky 

Phelps Hospital Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group
Phelps Hospital 
Sleepy Hollow, NY 
Support Group Leader: Susan Difabio 

Northeast Ohio Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group
Cleveland Clinic
Independence, OH 
Support Group Leader: Jessica Glenni

INTEGRIS Bass Baptist Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
INTEGRIS Bass Baptist Health Center 
Enid, OK
Brenda Jordan, RRT

Oklahoma City Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Integris Baptist Medical Center 
Oklahoma City, OK
Support Group Leader: Lisa Ball 

Portland Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
The Oregon Clinic 
Portland, OR 
Support Group Leader: Terri Jo Christenson

Portland Lung Transplant Support Group
The Oregon Clinic 
Portland, OR 
Support Group Leader: Mike Henderson 

Lehigh Valley Health Network Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Lehigh Valley Health Network 
Allentown, PA
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Wescoe, MEd, NCC 

St. Luke’s University Network/Bethlehem Campus: Lung Transplant Mentorship Program 
St. Luke’s University Network
Bethlehem, PA
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Wescoe, MEd, NCC 

Geisinger Medical Center/Danville Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Geisinger Medical Center 
Danville, PA
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Wescoe, MEd, NCC 

St. Luke’s University Hospital Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
St. Luke’s University/Anderson Campus 
Easton, PA
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Wescoe, MEd, NCC 

The Hershey Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group
Penn State Milton S Hershey /Medical Center 
Hershey, PA 
Support Group Leader: Rebecca Bascom, MD, MPH and Max Whitehead-Zimmers

Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group – Temple University Hospital 
Temple Lung Center 
Philadelphia, PA 
Support Group Leader: Michelle Vega-Olivo, MSN, CRNP, FNP-BC

Simmons Center for Interstitial Lung Disease Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Simmons Center 
Pittsburgh, PA
Support Group Leader: Kathleen Lindell, PhD, RN

Geisinger Medical Center/Wyoming Valley Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Geisinger Medical Center 
Wilkes Barre, PA
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Wescoe, MEd, NCC 

Rhode Island Support Group 
Brown Medicine 
East Providence, RI 
Support Group Leader: Erin Rose, RN, BSN 

Medical University of South Carolina Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Medical University of South Carolina 
Charleston, SC 
Support Group Leader: Ashley Warden, CCRC

San Antonio Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
San Antonio, TX 
Support Group Leader: Dorothy Delarosa 

University of Virginia Arlington Interstitial Lung Disease Support Group 
University of Virginia Health Systems 
Charlottesville, VA 
Support Group Leader: Tessy Paul, MD and Bobby Flood 

Breathe Vermont Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
University of Vermont Medical Center 
Burlington, VT 
Support Group Leader: Prema Menon, PhD

Madison Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
University of Wisconsin Health – University Hospital 
Madison, WI 
Support Group Leader: Nancy Donahue


New Support Group Grant Recipients

Lexington Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Baptist Health 
Lexington, KY
Support Group Leader: Audra Marcum, APRN

Coffee with Carepartners 
Central Valley, PA 
Support Group Leader: Jennifer Wescoe, MEd, NCC 

Chambersburg Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Chambersburg, PA 
Support Group Leader: Bonnie Harmon

Jefferson Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Thomas Jefferson University/Pulmonary Division 
Philadelphia, PA
Support Group Leader: Tamra Perez, BSN, RN

Richmond Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Richmond, VA
Support Group Leader: Jay Buston 

Milwaukee Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group 
Froedtert Hospital 
Milwaukee, WI 
Support Group Leader: Joy Levin BSN, RN, MBA and Theresa Johnson-Reilly, RN


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About the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation
The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation mobilizes people and resources to provide access to high quality care and leads research for a cure so people with pulmonary fibrosis will live longer, healthier lives. The PFF collaborates with physicians, organizations, patients, and caregivers worldwide. The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation has a three-star rating from Charity Navigator and is a Better Business Bureau accredited charity. For more information, visit pulmonaryfibrosis.org or call 844TalkPFF (844.825.5733) or 312.587.9272 outside of the U.S.