Who we are

Leadership and Governance

Building capacity and vision

Memorial Blood Centers has been saving and sustaining lives since 1948 as an independent nonprofit blood center and is a vital community resource that provides quality blood and biomedical services to our customers and partners.

• Metro Advisory Board

  Tom Whelan 
  Chair
  Wheels Brewing Company 

  Rebecca Blaesing
  Past Chair
  Vizient

  Damon Fitzgerald
  Community Leader

  Steve Heintze 
  Alpha Source, Inc.

  Phillip Kibort, M.D.
  Children's Minnesota (retired)

  Timothy Kuck
  Crest Healthcare Supply

  Erik Lindell 
  U.S. Bancorp

  Madison Thelen
  University of Minnesota, Class of 2021
• Northland Advisory Board

  Gary L. Doty
  Chair
  Doty Development Group

  Dave Beattie
  Cenovus

  James Cherveny 
  Senior Community Representative

  Sara Clark
  Enbridge Energy

  Carl Crawford
  City of Duluth

  Courtney Edwards-Johnston
  Fond du Lac Tribal & Community College

  Greg Grell
  WDSE

  Matt Harrold
  Lamar Advertising

  Jesse Hurtig
  United Healthcare

  Shelly Moen
  Essentia Health

  Justin Pederson 
  Minnesota Judicial Branch

  Gina Pudlick
  University of Minnesota-Duluth

  Brandon Skaudis
  Minnesota Power

  Stephanie Sklors
  The College of St. Scholastica

  Gayle Taylor
  LHB

  Keith Turner
  Lake Superior College

• Leadership Profiles

  Kathy Geist, MBA, Senior Executive Director
  Bringing over two decades of experience in healthcare leadership and customer relations, Kathy oversees Midwest Operations for New York Blood Center Enterprises, including Innovative Blood Resources and its divisions, Memorial Blood Centers, Nebraska Community Blood Bank, and Community Blood Center of Greater Kansas City. With a background in managing recruitment efforts, effectively maintaining lean processes, and forging collaborative relationships, her focus is on growing our presence in the community while expanding partnerships with businesses and organizations. She aims to ensure a positive experience for all who sponsor blood drives and donate at blood drives in the community. Kathy previously served as Director of Hospital Services for LifeSource, and held leadership roles with Hu-Friedy and Baxter Healthcare. 

  Jed Gorlin, MD, MBA, Medical Director and Vice President, Medical and Quality Affairs
  A leading authority in transfusion medicine, Dr. Jed Gorlin oversees Quality and Regulatory Affairs and Physician Services, provides medical education and transfusion support to hospital partners, and carries the organization’s mission and expertise to national blood centers, worldwide healthcare organizations, and prospective hospital and laboratory clients. He serves as Medical Director for Memorial Blood Centers, Nebraska Community Blood Bank, and Community Blood Center of Greater Kansas City. In addition, he acts as a consultant for the Minnesota Department of Health and is Co-director of Transfusion Medicine at Hennepin County Medical Center and Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota. 

  Previously on the boards of AABB and the National Blood Foundation, Dr. Gorlin has been a consultant to AABB-PEPFAR (President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) projects in Rwanda and Tanzania and to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on national blood development programs in Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. He also has presented on a variety of topics in Armenia, Peru, China, and Korea. 

  Dr. Gorlin was formerly acting medical director for transfusion services at Children’s Hospital in Boston where he held various positions at Children’s Hospital and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, a principal teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. Board certified in pediatrics, and blood banking and transfusion medicine, he received his undergraduate degree from Stanford University, a doctor of medicine degree from Yale University, and a M.B.A. from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Business.

  Mark Janzen, Ph.D., Vice President, Laboratory Services
  A member of the organization since 2003, Dr. Janzen is responsible for donor testing, manufacturing, and the organization’s industry-leading Immunohematology Reference Laboratory. Over his tenure, Janzen has overseen the redesign and relocation of the organization’s advanced testing laboratories, the transition to automated testing equipment, and the upgrade of the laboratory information systems. Prior to joining Memorial Blood Centers, he was with the National Marrow Donor Program.

• Key Management

  Wendy Capetz
  Director, Marketing and Development 

  Angela Engblom
  Senior Manager, Duluth Operations

  Lindsey Garfield
  Director, Component Laboratory

  Aelgifa Kehr
  Senior Manager, Donor Testing

  Kendra Reynolds 
  Director, Quality and Regulatory Affairs

  Rick Teeter
  Director, Finance and Controller

  Nancy Van Buren, MD
  Medical Director

  Cheryl Warholoski
  Director, Nebraska Operations

  Jen White
  Director, Hospital Services