Our Staff

Scott Santarella 

CEO

Scott assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer of Global Lyme Alliance in May 2016. As CEO, he heads the leading private nonprofit dedicated to Lyme and tick-borne research and education. Scott directs overall strategy, operations, and fundraising to increase awareness and hasten advances in diagnostics and treatments with the ultimate goal of finding a cure for Lyme and tick-borne diseases.

He brings nearly 30 years of experience as a senior executive with proven track record in strategic planning, innovative marketing and raising public awareness for neglected, underfunded or stigmatized diseases.

Prior to joining GLA, Scott was President and CEO of the Bonnie J. Addario Lung
Cancer Foundation (ALCF) in San Francisco, where he successfully grew the organization from a regional lung cancer research and patient services organization to a globally recognized leader in the lung cancer community as well as the broader oncology research and patient-survivor industry.

Previous to ALCF, he was President and CEO of the American Lung Association of New York (ALANY) and former Executive Director and COO of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation. He received his Executive Leadership Certification from Harvard Business School in 2006.

Timothy J. Sellati, Ph.D. 

Chief Scientific Officer

A noted immunologist and microbiologist, Dr. Sellati has more than 20 years of research experience with Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. He has published more than 20 peer-reviewed papers and is frequently invited to speak about his cutting-edge research and tick-borne disease at national scientific meetings. Today he is considered one of the nation’s foremost experts in the search to understand infectious disease processes and improve treatments of patients suffering from those illnesses.

Most recently, Dr. Sellati served as a Senior Research Fellow and Chair of the Infectious Diseases Department at Southern Research Institute in Alabama. Prior to that he was Immunology Scientific Councilor for the International Endotoxin and Innate Immunity Society and is the past President of the Eastern New York Branch of the American Society for Microbiologists.

Dr. Sellati received his Ph.D. in cellular and developmental biology from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. As GLA’s Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Sellati leads GLA’s research initiatives to accelerate the development of more effective methods of diagnosis and treatment of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases.

Mayla Hsu, Ph.D. 

Director of Research and Science

Mayla Hsu, Ph.D, joined Global Lyme Alliance in 2015 as its in-house Science Officer and is now Director of Research and Science. She manages GLA’s research grant program, working with the Scientific Advisory Board and creating viable partnerships to help advance the development of a reliable diagnostic test, effective treatments and ultimately a cure for Lyme.

Mayla, who previously worked as a science writer at the Rockefeller University in New York, has a background in medical virology. She obtained her Ph.D. in 2000 from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, studying the mechanisms of drug resistance in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

She followed this with post-doctoral studies at the Rockefeller University, working on HIV transmission, where her interest in host-pathogen interactions developed. She then decided to pursue more translational research and moved to Bristol-Myers Squibb, where she joined a team developing screening assays to look for new compounds targeting HIV and hepatitis viruses.

Christine Llewellyn 

Director of Finance

Christine joined Global Lyme Alliance in June 2015. As Director of Finance, she works closely with the CEO to manage the accounting and finances of the organization, including budgeting and expense management. Christine has broad responsibilities, including preparation of all financial reports and tax returns, managing payroll, overseeing the annual audit conducted by independent auditors and assisting with the preparation of tax returns.

She began her career at John Hancock Financial Services in Boston, where she managed clients in the employee benefits division. She later joined the Waters Corporation to spearhead the global employee benefits function and provide technical expertise to the company’s foreign subsidiaries. Her expertise in finances and human resources also serve her well in the role of mom to her three young children.

Christine graduated from Bucknell University with a dual degree in International Relations and Spanish.

Angelo Masino 

Director of National Events

Angelo joined Global Lyme Alliance in October 2016 as its Director of National Events. He has extensive experience in the sports and entertainment industry where he has helped to build brands through creative events and partnerships. His primary responsibility is to expand the GLA event footprint around the country.
 
Previously, Angelo held various roles with the New York Road Runners and the United States Golf Association, where he was involved in the planning of some of the most prominent sporting events in the world. After spending nearly 13 years in the sports world, he decided to bring his experience to GLA.
 
Angelo graduated from the University of Connecticut in 2003 with a B.S. degree in marketing and later earned a Graduate Certificate in Marketing and Public Relations from New York University.

Sara V. Tyghter 

Director of Education and Outreach

Sara Tyghter joined GLA in September 2016 as Director of Education and Outreach. She oversees the development of GLA’s educational platform supporting children, adolescents, adults, and healthcare professionals. Sara is focused on developing multi-channel educational programs that will help increase awareness and prevent the increase of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases as well as support those who are living with these illnesses.

Prior to joining GLA, Sara spent close to 10 years working at the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation as an Associate Director of Patient Programs. She was responsible for developing educational programs for patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals as well as overseeing the Patient Support Center. In addition, she was responsible for writing grants, budget management, and managing relationships with key partners.

Sara graduated from Sacred Heart University with a B.S. degree in Business Administration.

Holly Wainwright 

Director of Marketing and Communications

Holly joined GLA in May 2016 as Director of Marketing and Communications. She brings an extensive marketing and business development background to the organization.

Most recently she served as Director of Marketing at Datto, one of the nation’s fastest-growing technology firms. Previously she was Director, Sales & Marketing for The Forsite Group and held leadership roles in sales and marketing at McGraw-Hill, including BusinessWeek.

Holly’s biggest motivation to create change in the Lyme community comes from her family. Seeing first-hand the effects Lyme and its co-infections have, and wanting to change that, motivates her every day. Holly graduated from St. Lawrence University with a BA in Government. 

Lindsy Brophy 

Digital Marketing/Social Media Manager

Lindsy joined Global Lyme Alliance in December 2016. As Digital Marketing/Social Media Manager, Lindsy plans and executes all web, social media and advertising campaigns, designs and maintains GLA’s social media presence and collaborates with internal teams to create landing pages and optimize user experience.

Before joining GLA, Lindsy worked as Production Coordinator, Integrated Media at MediaMax Network. Previously, she was Media Marketing Manager for Got a Laugh Entertainment in Los Angeles and an Associate Client Licensing Manager for Equity Management in San Diego, CA. She received an MBA with a marketing concentration at Alliant International University and a B.S. in Media Studies from Sacred Heart University.

Casie Richardson 

Database Manager

Casie joined Global Lyme Alliance in February 2016 as its Donor and Database Manager. She is responsible for the performance, integrity, and security of GLA’s database, which she uses to generate a range of key administrative, fundraising and grant-making reports. She makes sure that all donations are recorded and acknowledged accurately, as well as integrating information over various platforms. Casie is also the staff troubleshooter for all IT-related issues.

Prior to GLA, Casie was Database Administrator for Legionaries of Christ, Executive Assistant for the Teamsters Union and Senior Project Leader, IT at Clairol. She is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force where she began her IT career. She holds a B.S. in Accounting from Mercy College, New York.

Beth McTigue 

Executive Assistant to the CEO & Office Manager

Beth joined Global Lyme Alliance in August 2016 in a dual role as Executive Assistant to the CEO and Office Manager. Before coming to GLA Beth worked at Save the Children as Coordinator for Program Funding and Prospect Development. Prior to that she worked at Pequot Capital Management in office administration, at Viacom as Director of International Sales and New Business and for Showtime Networks in Business Administration and Marketing.

Beth is an ardent advocate for children’s safety. When her now-adult son developed a life-threatening food allergy as a toddler, Beth and her husband founded Alliance for Severe Allergy Preparedness to educate school administrators, nurses, students and parents about the seriousness of children’s food allergies. Today Beth maintains a deep personal connection to the parents of children with Lyme, since her own daughter suffered from the disease as an 11-year-old, but, happily, responded well to treatment.  Beth holds a BA from the University of Dayton, Ohio.

Rona Cherry 

Writer

Rona has worked with Global Lyme Alliance for five years as an independent PR and media consultant.  With extensive experience in print and digital content strategy and development, project management, and public relations for nonprofits and entrepreneurial companies, Rona has a broad range of GLA communications responsibilities.

She has served as Vice President/New Magazine Development for several major media companies, including the New York Times Company, the Golf Digest Companies, and General Media International. She launched and was Editor-in-Chief of several national titles, including Fitness, and prior to that was Executive Editor of Glamour Magazine, and worked with numerous non-profit clients including the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition.

Rona holds an M.S. degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, New York, and a B.A. from American University, Washington, D.C. where she has been involved for several years in its School of Communications Alumni Mentor Program.

Shelley Terry 

Event Planner

Shelley has worked with Global Lyme Alliance for over six years as an independent fundraising consultant. She assists GLA with its major events including its annual Greenwich Gala.

Shelley has an MSW from Boston University and a BA from Stonehill College. She lives in Ridgefield, CT with her husband and two children.