Organization & Governance

Board of Trustees

Formally established on September 21, 2000 under the laws of Florida and Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, FAMRI has no connection with any tobacco company and is governed by a Board of Trustees, comprised of a majority of flight attendants, Patricia Young, Lani Blissard, Bland Lane (deceased February 15, 2007), and Leisa Sudderth, Class Counsel Stanley M. Rosenblatt, Chairman and CEO, and Susan Rosenblatt, as well as Florida attorney, John B. Ostrow. Grants are competitively awarded through Requests for Proposals and can be initiated by the Board of Trustees. The American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) conducts a peer-review process and on recommendations from FAMRI’s advisors the Trustees make the final decisions.

Medical Advisory Board

Julius B. Richmond, M.D., Chair, is former U.S. Surgeon General and one of the founding directors of the Head Start Program. He is currently a John D. MacArthur Professor of Health Policy, Emeritus, Harvard Medical School.

David Sidransky, M.D., is Professor of Otolaryngology and Director of the Head and Neck Cancer Research Division at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland and is Senior Scientific Editor for the upcoming Surgeon General’s Report.

W. Jarrard Goodwin, M.D., is Director of Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami.

Eloise M. Harman, M.D., is Chief of Critical Care Services and Professor of Medicine, University of Florida.

David W. Kennedy, M.D., Rhinology Professor and Vice Dean for Professional Services, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

Michael C. Fiore, M.D., MPH, University of Wisconsin, and director of the Wisconsin Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention.

David D. Waters, M.D., Chief, Division of Cardiology at San Francisco General Hospital and Professor of Medicine at University of California, San Francisco.

Lay Advisory Board

Rev. Michael H. Crosby, OFMCap., Chair, is Coordinator of the Tobacco Program at Interfaith Center of Corporate Responsibility in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Jack Cannon was Treasurer and Chairman of the Smoking and Health Committee of the American Lung Association of Southeast Florida and former Vice President of GASP of Miami.

Joseph W. Cherner heads Smoke Free Educational Services, Inc.

Billy Williams is a retired Pan American Airlines’ avionics mechanic and union shop steward.

Rita H. Zemlock is President of GASP of Florida.

Amos Hausner, Esq., an Israeli attorney, helped eliminate smoking from El Al Airlines and has been active in controlling second hand tobacco smoke throughout the world.

Learn more about second hand tobacco smoke exposure and the Flight Attendant Trustees.