Kelly Dearman is the Executive Director of the San Francisco Department of Disability and Aging Services (DAS) and has more than 15 years experience developing policies and services to help ensure San Franciscans thrive as they age. Before joining DAS, Kelly was Executive Director of the San Francisco In-Home Supportive Services Public Authority, which helps older adults and people with disabilities live independently and participate in their communities. She is also the former President of the San Francisco Human Services Commission. Kelly currently serves on the California Association of Area Agencies on Aging, is an alternate board member of USAging (formerly N4A) and is a member of the San Francisco Long Term Care Coordinating Council.

Kelly has a BA from the University of California, Berkeley, a JD from UC Hastings Law, and an MA in Political Science from Rutgers University. For ten years, she ran a small law practice specializing in elder issues and probate law. Previously, Kelly and her sister operated a real estate company founded by their grandmother more than 50 years ago.

Anni Chung oversees and manages a Bay Area community-based organization, Self-Help for the Elderly that provides a comprehensive range of health, housing, educational, social and recreational services to over 40,000 seniors a year in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Self-Help's Mission is to promote independence, well-being, and dignity for Older Adults through culturally aligned services and programs. Self-Help serves mostly immigrant, low-income, Limited English Proficient Asian and Chinese seniors.

Anni currently serves on the Steering Committee of API Council. She also serves as the Elder Abuse Chair of the Family Violence Council in San Francisco. In October 2020, she was appointed by Governor Newsom to serve on the California Commission on Aging.

Anni is the Producer of a Public Affairs show called \"Chinese Journal\" for KTSF-TV 26.

Dr. Jeff Newman is a Professor at the UCSF Institute for Health & Aging. He is certified by the American Boards of Preventive & Internal Medicine. His long-term research interests are the prevention and control of chronic disease, the use of information systems to improve quality of care, and collaboration with community organizations for public health.

Jeff previously served as Medical Director at the Centers for Disease Control, the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization for California, and the Sutter Health Institute for Research & Education. He was twice elected to the Board of the San Francisco Medical Society.

Jeff currently focuses on brain health, advance care planning, and palliative care - especially collaboration with primary care & geriatrics. He is Co-Chair of the San Francisco Palliative Care Work Group.

Dr. Sarah Nouri is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Palliative Medicine at UCSF. She specializes in caring for people with serious illness in both the outpatient and inpatient settings. Dr. Nouri's research is focused on achieving equity in access to high quality palliative care among racially, ethnically, and socioeconomically diverse populations.

Her current scholarly work includes community-engaged research in advance care planning among Black, Chinese, and Latinx communities in San Francisco, and mixed methods research to better understand use of and outcomes associated with digital health in palliative care. She is committed to mentoring learners and increasing workforce diversity in palliative care.

Bridget Sumser is a social worker with the Palliative Care Program for adults. She focuses on the whole person and the family, addressing each patient's social and emotional well-being through counseling, care planning and assistance with navigating the health care system.

Bridget's research and academic work centers on palliative care education. This includes implementing courses and strategies that bring together members of various professions as well as studying how different specialists can best integrate palliative care principles and techniques into their practices. She also investigates how social workers learn palliative care practices.

Bridget earned her master's degree at the New York University Silver School of Social Work, where she also completed a Zelda Foster fellowship in palliative and end-of-life care. She then completed a palliative care social work fellowship at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Bridget is a member of the Social Work Hospice and Palliative Care Network, which in 2015 honored her at its annual assembly as an emerging leader in the field.

As Director of Senior Programs & Operations – Day Services, Sandra Rivas oversees day-to-day operations for On Lok 30th Street Senior Center and Openhouse + On Lok Community Day Services.

In her previous role as Assistant Director of Programs & Operations – Day Services, Sandra managed five On Lok 30th Street Senior Center departments consisting of 11 programs serving more than 1,500 older adults, including On Lok Mission Nutrition congregate and home-delivered meals program, On Lok Always Active, Social Services, Activities, and the Volunteer Program. She joined On Lok in 2018 as Program Manager for Community Services, planning and implementing lifelong-learning classes and over 50 weekly activities for the senior center’s diverse community, as well as 2,000 social service hours connecting older adults to the community. In previous roles at nonprofit and private organizations, she has led care teams and residential care facilities through transition of operations and the launch of senior communities.

Sandra has 13 years of expertise in residential care settings for the elderly, care coordination, hospice and Alzheimer’s care, culturally appropriate community programming, and disease prevention. She holds an Associate Degree in Nursing from College of San Mateo.

Morela Madriz-Ray has over 30 years in health care and education. Working as the Medical Director and Chief Physician in remote villages of Venezuela, she later continued her medical career in city hospitals.

In time Morela's compass pointed to the Bay Area, toward an enriching role as care aide for the terminally ill. It’s those years she credits most for deepening her reservoirs of compassion and igniting a powerful desire to share her knowledge. It was during that time when Morela's soulful approach to health care took shape.

In 2010, Morela joined the team at Homebridge, a San Francisco nonprofit, where she developed curricula in English and Spanish, trained personal care attendants, and served as Lead Traveling Instructor of the Career Pathways Program teaching IHSS providers in two languages throughout California. Morela also has worked as a bilingual instructor for the American Heart Association and Public Authority of San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin Counties, as well as owned a company that certified healthcare professionals, care providers and community members in lifesaving skills.

Morela is motivated by her passion for medicine, health care and community. She holds various health-related certifications including Plant-Based Nutrition from Cornell University, Mental Health and Crisis Intervention certificates, has been a featured guest on KIQI 1010AM, a Latinx radio station, and regularly hosted nutrition and English tutoring seminars in the Mission District of San Francisco.

Loren Pogir brings 25 years of experience in strategy, finance, and operations across healthcare, financial services, and philanthropy to her role as the Executive Director of the Palliative Care Work Group. 

In addition to her role as Executive Director, Loren is also the Founder and Managing Partner of Transforming Care Partners, a consulting firm focused on improving the experience of aging, serious illness, and end-of-life care.  Her firm collaborates with leading and growing organizations, providing expert guidance on strategy development, implementation, and evaluation/learning. 

Prior to founding Transforming Care Partners, Loren was the Managing Director at the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation where she directed a $40M annual grantmaking program in Health Care.  She also served as Chief Operating Officer of the BlackRock Investment Institute at BlackRock and was Director of Strategy at BlackRock. Loren started her career at Ernst & Young, where she was part of their Health Care Strategy Group.  

Loren Pogir holds a BBA and a MPA from The University of Texas at Austin. She is an advisor to the Serious Illness and End-of-life Funders Group, which is a part of Grantmakers in Aging. Prior to taking on the role of Executive Director of the Palliative Care Work Group, Loren was an advisor and member of the Steering Committee.