Martha Caswell, MPP — Program Manager, Latin America
Jane Sakovitz Dale — Development Director
Brendan Downs-Dudley — Office Manager
Annah Kichambati — Program Coordinator, Kigoma, Tanzania
Justin Mool — Communications Specialist
Dr Barinia Osejo — Nicaragua In-Country Doctor
Elisa Vandervort, FNP — Program Manager, Tanzania
August Burns, MPH, CM, PA
Executive Director
august@groundsforhealth.org
August has worked in women’s health as a midwife, clinical practitioner, and as a consultant to international reproductive health programs, and has taught courses on global issues in reproductive health at both the University of Vermont and Tulane University School of Public Health. August has worked in over a dozen countries and is an untiring advocate for every woman’s right to good health. She was a contributor to the most recent edition of Our Bodies, Ourselves, and coauthored Where Women Have No Doctor, a health guide for women in low-resource settings that has been translated into over 30 languages and used around the world.
Martha Caswell, MPP
Program Manager, Latin America
martha@groundsforhealth.org
Martha has over 10 years of experience in the nonprofit and public sectors, focusing primarily on community development and volunteer engagement. Prior to her work with Grounds for Health, Martha served as Director of Program Development at Phipps Community Development Corporation in New York City. She has also worked with the City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development; RW Ventures—a Chicago-based consulting firm focused on economic and community development initiatives, and was the Director of Annual Events at New York Cares.
Jane Sakovitz Dale
Interim Development Director
jane@groundsforhealth.org
Jane has more than 25 years of professional experience in health care, communications and development. For the past decade she has been working closely with a number of Fortune 500 clients to help them align their philanthropic activities with their business objectives while advancing social causes that seek private sector support and engagement. She holds a Masters Degree in Communications from Syracuse University, as well as accreditation from the Public Relations Society of American. Jane sits on numerous non-profit boards in Vermont and is an elected Justice of the Peace.
Brendan Downs-Dudley
Office Manager
brendan@groundsforhealth.org
Brendan earned her undergrad degree in Anthropology at the University in Vermont, and spent five months interning and conducting research at a women’s clinic in Central America. She will soon start nursing school at Vermont Technical College to become a RN, focusing in OB/GYN, pre-natal, and women’s health care.
Annah Kichambati
Program Coordinator, Kigoma, Tanzania
Dr. Annah Kichambati has over 25 years experience as a health care provider, community activist and community educator. In January 2010, Annah joined Grounds for Health’s staff as the program coordinator of our cervical cancer prevention collaboration in Kigoma, Tanzania. Prior to joining Grounds for Health, Dr. Annah was the HIV/AIDS coordinator for the Jane Goodall Institute’s TACARE project in Kigoma. She is an expert community educator, community organizer and talented health care provider. Over the last decade she has also held leadership positions in many local organizations, including the Kigoma AIDS Control Network (KACON) and the Tanzanian Red Cross Society. In addition to her work with Grounds for Health in Kigoma, Dr. Annah is currently pursuing a degree in Social Work.
Justin Mool
Communications Specialist
justin@groundsforhealth.org
Grounds for Health is Justin’s first real venture into the nonprofit sector. Prior to Grounds for Health, Justin spent three years as a content manager at outdoor gear etailer Backcountry.com. Justin graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Communications from Northwestern University.
Dr. Barinia Osejo
In-Country Doctor
Dr. Osejo is Grounds for Health’s first in-country physician on staff. Dr. Osejo has been an invaluable addition, coordinating patient follow-up, coaching local doctors and nurses to provide continued women’s health care, and expanding community training and outreach.
Elisa Vandervort, FNP
Program Manager, Tanzania
elisa@groundsforhealth.org
Elisa has worked as a family nurse practitioner since graduating from Yale University School of Nursing in 2001. In addition to her professional work in health care, Elisa has an extensive public-service record, serving as a volunteer nurse practitioner at a hospital in Guatemala, volunteering at an AIDS foundation in New Mexico, working with indigenous communities in Mexico, and teaching children in Nepal.
