Venita Fields, Evanston, Illinois, joined the Lifespace Board of Directors in 2018. In her current role as a partner in Pelham S2K Managers, LLC, Venita manages equity investments in privately held middle market companies.
Prior to forming Pelham in 2016, Venita served as a partner and senior managing director of Smith Whiley & Company.
Venita brings more than 35 years of experience in the financial services industry.
Venita received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Northwestern University and Master of Management degree from Northwestern University, J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management.
Neal Yanofsky, Dallas, Texas, was elected to the Lifespace Board of Directors in July 2016, and elected as Chair of the Board in 2021. Neal is a strategy consultant to CEOs in the retail, consumer services and restaurant industries, and to private equity and venture capital firms that invest in these businesses.
He formerly served as chairman of Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen; international president of Dunkin’ Brands; chief executive officer of Generation Mobile; and president of Panera Bread.
Neal holds an A.B. from Harvard College, a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School, and completed a post-graduate fellowship at London School of Economics.
Gary Blackford, Eden Prairie, Minnesota, joined the Lifespace Board of Directors in 2022. Gary also serves as Chair of the Board for Avanos Medical, Inc., as Lead Director of ReShape Life Sciences, Inc., and Chair of the Board for Minnesota’s Children’s Hospitals & Clinics.
He formerly served as Chairman and CEO for Universal Hospital Services, Inc., where he transformed the organization from a regional medical technology rental company to a national leader in medical technology outsourcing and life cycle solutions.
Gary received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting from the University of Iowa.
He also earned a Juris Doctor from Creighton University.
Ana Dutra, Vero Beach, Florida, was elected to the Lifespace Board of Directors in July 2016. Ana is the CEO of Mandala Global Advisors working with CEOs and Boards on corporate strategy and leadership development.
Prior to Mandala, Ana was the CEO of The Executives’ Club in Chicago and, prior to that, she was the CEO of Korn Ferry Consulting.
Ana received a Bachelor of Economics degree from the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. While in Brazil, she continued her education by receiving her Juris Doctor/Law degree from the Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro.
In 1994, Ana received a Master of Business Administration degree from Northwestern University – Kellogg School of Management.
Joyce Hrinya, Kansas City, Missouri, joined Lifespace Board of Directors in December 2017. Joyce is a founding and managing partner of A&R Strategy Partners, where she provides strategic expertise to consumer CEOs to drive profitable revenue growth.
Prior to A&R Strategy Partners, Joyce held many roles, most recently as a managing director and operating partner of Z Capital Partners, LLC.
Joyce brings more than 30 years of marketing, communications and brand building experience.
Joyce received a Bachelor of Science degree from Pennsylvania State University and a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School.
Claus Jensen joined the Lifespace Board of Directors in April 2023. Claus serves as Chief Information Officer for Teladoc Health where he oversees all technology, IT, product design and management, product engineering, data science and analytics, plus clinical program design. Claus also leads healthcare innovation that will deliver a new category of care, providing health consumers with guided choice and the ability to interact with healthcare resources where, when, and how they want it. His experience prior to Teladoc Health spans 20 years of transformational leadership roles at Danske Bank, IBM, CVS Health/Aetna and latest as Chief Digital Officer and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Claus has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, as well as a master’s degree and a PhD in Computer Science from Aarhus University, Denmark. He holds 17 patents and is a published author of seven books and numerous articles. He is based in the greater Seattle area.
Amy McDonough joined the Lifespace Board of Directors in April 2023. Hired as one of Fitbit’s first employees in 2008, Amy built Fitbit’s Health Solutions business from the ground up to a $100M+ business which works with more than 100 health plans, 1,600 employers and dozens of integrated strategic partners. She currently serves as the Managing Director & General Manager for Fitbit Health Solutions at Google and is responsible for leading product and go-to-market strategy for Fitbit’s Health Solutions business globally. Prior to Fitbit, Amy held strategic positions at CNET Networks, at the intersection of media and technology. In both her time at CNET and at Fitbit, Amy was instrumental in identifying and growing emergent businesses in highly competitive markets, with a focus developing and operationalizing new business models at scale.
Amy has a bachelor’s degree from Merrimack College and a Professional Certificate in Integrated Marketing Communications from the UC Berkeley Extension program. She lives in San Francisco.
Jenifer Salamino joined the Lifespace Board of Directors in April 2023. Jenifer has more than 20 years of senior living and healthcare experience. She currently serves as President and Chief Operating Officer at SaVida Health, which operates outpatient medication-assisted treatment centers using evidence-based treatments with case management and support services. She has demonstrated success in healthcare administration and operations, paired with the innate talent to drive revenue, profitability, and efficiency to organizations. Prior to SaVida Health, Jenifer enjoyed a 20-year tenure with Sunrise Senior Living, serving in positions including Assisted Living Coordinator, Executive Director, Regional and Senior Vice President, and Chief Operating Officer. Throughout her career, Jenifer has created a culture of teamwork, common mission, and consistent top performance.
Jenifer has a Bachelor of Science degree in Health Science from State University of New York College at Cortland, a Master of Public Administration in Health Administration and Gerontology from Long Island University, and a PhD in Health Administration from Warren National University. She lives in Stamford, Connecticut.
Jonathan Sokeye, Charlotte, North Carolina, joined the Lifespace Board of Directors in 2022. Jonathan has more than 23 years of health care industry experience. As Chief Financial Officer for Caroline Complete Health, Inc., Jonathan provides leadership and oversight of all aspects of finance and analytics for a new Managed Care Health Plan start-up in the state of North Carolina.
Prior to that, he also served as Vice President of Finance for Option Health and Humana. He was also Chief Financial Officer at Walgreens Infusion Services.
Jonathan earned a Bachelor of Science degree with a focus in Accounting from Northeastern Illinois University. He also earned a Master of Business Administration with specializations in Finance and Entrepreneurship from the University of Illinois.
He is a Certified Public Accountant and a Chartered Global Management Accountant.
Pat Spangler, Golden Valley, Minnesota, joined the Lifespace Board of Directors in July 2016. Currently, Pat serves as chief financial officer of On Target Laboratories, a biotechnology company that has developed fluorescent markers to target and illuminate cancer during surgery. Pat brings more than 32 years of experience in the health care industry, executing domestic and international growth and exit strategies.
Prior to On Target Laboratories, Pat served as chief financial officer of MHC Software and VigiLanz Corporation, and served as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Healthland, Inc.; Epocrates Inc. (EPOC); ev3 Corp. (EVVV); and Empi Inc. (EMPI). Before joining Empi, Pat was the assistant treasurer at Medtronic (MDT).
Pat also currently serves on the Board of Directors of OptimizeRx (OPRX) and previously served on the Board of Directors of Urologix (ULGX) as Audit Committee Chair.
Pat holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting, a Master of Business Taxation from the University of Minnesota, and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago Booth Graduate School of Business.
Clyde Stretch was elected to the Lifespace Board of Directors in April 2023. Clyde has been a resident of Harbour’s Edge, a Lifespace community located in Delray Beach, Florida, since June 2019.
A Michigan native, Clyde grew up north of Chicago, after living in Hawaii where his father had served in the Navy. Clyde obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Michigan State University, while pursuing a career in sports medicine and editing the Journal of the National Athletic Trainers Association. Later he received his degree in Physical Therapy from Ohio State University. Clyde then returned to Michigan and shifted his career to physical therapy and hospital management. Clyde developed new and larger physical and occupational therapy departments in this role at different hospitals and served as one of the state’s first hospital Orthopedic Product Line Managers. He was elected Chair of the Michigan Physical Therapy Association’s Legislative Committee and served until his first retirement in 1994 when he moved to Florida.
In Florida, Clyde agreed to take on the Director of Rehabilitation Services position a Bethesda Hospital in Boynton Beach. There he provided leadership in developing its inpatient rehabilitation unit and oversaw all acute rehabilitation services, including audiology, speech pathology, occupational therapy, and pediatric therapies at numerous therapy locations.
Clyde and his wife, Melissa, have two children and two grandchildren. Melissa serves as Chair of the Harbour’s Edge Resident Health Center Committee and contributes to four other resident committees. Clyde chairs its Resident Finance Committee. They are very happy with their decision to move to this Lifespace community.
David Williams, Los Angeles, California, joined the Lifespace Board of Directors in 2022. As Co-Founder and CEO of Care3, Inc., David leads the development of a next generation health information platform for consumers of color to manage family health information and for health enterprise customers to reduce health disparities using real-world data to drive relevant interactions and timely interventions.
Prior to forming Care3 in 2015, David co-founded and led InvolveCare (A Healthagen Business), and PatientsLikeMe, Inc. He also served Eli Lilly and Company in global strategy, marketing, and sales.
David received a Bachelor of Science degree with a focus in Economics from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and a Master of Business Administration with a focus on digital strategy and corporate governance from the UCLA Anderson School of Management.