About - Board of Directors

Jeff Duty

Board Chairperson

Born and raised in Texas, Jeffrey has had food allergies since he was an infant, which in that day and age was a difficult diagnosis. Jeffrey is allergic to several food items including wheat, dairy, alcoholic beverages, and chocolate. Jeffrey has enjoyed working with Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) on several initiatives prior to joining FAACT’s Board of Directors. Jeffrey's son, Kenton, also has food allergies.

Duty has been a business consulting executive for 24 years. He has consulted in many industries. Duty has also worked with all sizes of companies. He has worked in one-person start-ups to Fortune 100 companies. Duty has been accountable for understanding his clients’ business initiatives and challenges and strategically building the appropriate team to deliver the work products to achieve those initiatives and challenges. He has been responsible for also aligning the technological development and incorporating the business strategy enabling his clients to shape their company and be a leader in their industry.

Duty has previously worked as a Business Executive Consultant at IBM, responsible for development and execution of multiple consulting organizations. He has also previously worked as a Business and Information Technology Consultant at Dun & Bradstreet Corporation. He holds a bachelor of business administration degree from University of North Texas. Duty is committed to educating and raising awareness for food allergies and anaphylaxis, and is looking forward to furthering FAACT's mission.

Christina Fanning

Board Treasurer

Chris Fanning is Vice President of Finance with the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI), a 501(c)3 organization with international operations, where she is responsible for all finance, accounting, audit, and information technology functions.

Chris brings to the FAACT Board of Directors more than 25 years of finance, accounting, and operational experience. She holds a BBA with a concentration in Accounting and an MBA. Her C-level experience spans more than 15 years in a variety of business structures, including private for-profit companies, government contractors, and not-for-profit organizations. For the past six years, her focus has been solely in the not-for-profit sector, including five years in the voluntary health charity space, where she served as the Chief Financial Officer for The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network™ (FAAN) in Fairfax, Virginia, overseeing all finance, accounting, technology, human resources, and administrative functions. Chris is a wonderful advocate for the food allergy community and has spent time at many food allergy events, getting to know the families. Chris is committed to fulfilling FAACT’s mission and helping to raise awareness for food allergies and life-threatening anaphylaxis and to ensuring FAACT has the resources to succeed well into the future.

Sara Shannon

Board Secretary

Sara Shannon is an active member of the North American allergy/asthma community. Sara’s daughter Sabrina Anne was born on May 29, 1990. When Sabrina was diagnosed with multiple food allergies and asthma, Sara became an advocate and educator on behalf of her daughter.

When Sabrina was nine years old, her mother encouraged her to produce a radio documentary, “A Nutty Tale,” about her food allergies for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). At the time, Sabrina was the youngest producer at CBC, and the radio documentary she made brought her story to national attention.

Tragically, Sabrina suffered a fatal anaphylactic reaction at age 13 during her first year of high school. Sabrina died at Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) in Ottawa on September 30, 2003. When Sabrina was dying, Sara held her hand and made a promise to her that she’d do everything possible to prevent a similar tragedy from happening to another child’s family. Sara immediately sent a letter requesting an investigation. One year later, the first press conference regarding anaphylaxis was held at CHEO in Ottawa. Dr. McCallum, the hospitals supervising coroner at the time, recommended sweeping changes to anaphylaxis management in Ontario schools due to Sabrina’s avoidable death.

In 2005, Sara testified to the Ontario Government Standing Committee regarding her daughter Sabrina’s life and death. Inspired by her life and memory, Sabrina's parents and other members of the allergy community have kept her spirit alive by advocating for safer school communities and raising allergy awareness across Canada. Their efforts resulted in passage of “Sabrina’s Law” in Ontario, a landmark piece of legislation that continues to influence school board policies across the country.

CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta received the Clarion award for his report, "Sabrina’s Law,” which aired in May 2005. Dr. Gupta travelled to Pembroke and interviewed Sara Shannon as well as Sabrina’s friends and teachers.

Sara has received numerous awards for her advocacy work, including the Upper Ottawa Valley Citizen of the Year, the “Daniel P. Moynihan Public Awareness Award” from the Food Allergy Initiative, the North West Food Allergy Initiative Award for Recognition of Commitment to Food Allergy Advocacy, an “Allergies in Courage” award in Dallas, Texas, and numerous awards of recognition from Anaphylaxis Canada, including the 2011 National Volunteer Award.

A documentary produced by Lank/Beach Productions, Merit Motion Pictures, and The National Film Board of Canada called “Sabrina’s Law” profiles Sabrina Shannon as a young food allergy advocate who died at age 13 and documents Sara Shannon’s journey in keeping a promise to her daughter. “Sabrina’s Law” is highly recommended viewing for educators.

For a decade, Sara has been a featured speaker at annual national walks sponsored by Allergy Asthma and Information Association to raise money for the Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. On September 30, 2012, Sara was moved at the FAAN Walk for Food Allergy in Chicago when the participants blew bubbles in memory of Sabrina.

In 2012, Sara contributed to an allergen research project, “Exploring Social Exclusion among Youth with anaphylaxis,” conducted by the University of Waterloo and University of Toronto. The paper was published and Sara presented a section at a conference.

Sara also travels often to raise awareness about anaphylaxis and life-threatening food allergies. She is also working to keep her daughter’s memory alive. Sara’s hope is that there will be a cure for anaphylaxis. Sara knows the importance of education, knowledge, and awareness. Sara would like “Sabrina’s Law” or laws like it to be passed in all places.

Eleanor Garrow-Holding

Chief Executive Officer/President and Founder

Eleanor Garrow-Holding has worked, educated, and advocated in the food allergy community for almost 10 years. She was inspired to start this work after her son, Thomas, was diagnosed with life-threatening food allergies to tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and sesame; eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) triggered by milk and wheat; asthma; and environmental allergies.

As CEO of the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Connection Team (FAACT), Eleanor provides leadership, development, and implementation for all of FAACT’s initiatives and programs, including Camp TAG (The Allergy Gang) – a summer camp for children with food allergies and their siblings that Eleanor founded in 2009. Eleanor has a Bachelor of Healthcare Administration degree from Lewis University in Romeoville, IL, and worked in hospital management for 15 years in Chicago and suburban Chicago prior to working in the nonprofit sector.

Andrew Eisenberg

Andrew Eisenberg is a business leader with more than three decades of successful experiences with mature and early-stage companies. He has built his career solving problems and scaling businesses in the health and wellness, technology, consumer product, and entertainment markets.

He was most recently President of Awearables, LLC (DBA AllerMates). Having joined the company in its infancy, he built it to become one of the best known and fastest growing brands in the children’s health and wellness market. While there, he dramatically expanded sales channels and product lines, negotiated marketing and licensing agreements with top pharmaceutical and allergen-safe food companies, and created one of the largest online education and community destinations for parents of kids with allergies. He is pleased to have created a safer environment for, and helped to educate, hundreds of thousands of children with allergies, asthma, diabetes, and other medical conditions.

Prior to Awearables, Andrew was a Lead Consultant with Anichris, Inc. and Energy Media Group, LLC, where he created innovative product and marketing strategies for clients in healthcare, technology, and consumer goods.

His previous, management successes include two content platform companies. As VP Business Development for Brand Asset Digital, a disruptive technology company in the online music and entertainment discovery space, he led channel sales and engaged with clients such as Pepsi, GM, and Time Warner. He then led a spinoff of one of its business units into a new venture. Additionally, he was Founder/CEO of Handheld Media Group, where he created media assets for those engaged with handheld devices (such as the Palm and Handspring PDAs).

As a serial entrepreneur, Andrew has created and exited several successful ventures. Today, as Principal Consultant at Coastal CxO Services, he consults to add value for clients seeking to expand brands of early stage companies.

Brian J. Hom

Brian Hom has advocated in the food allergy community for more than twelve years. He has made it his personal mission to raise awareness of the dangers of food allergies and to help find a cure as well as the cause of food allergies so no other families have to suffer loss of life from food allergies. Brian’s 18-year-old son, BJ Hom, died on a family vacation in 2008 after eating a dessert that contained traces of peanuts. The family was visiting a resort in Los Cabos, Mexico, to celebrate BJ’s 18th birthday and his graduation from high school. BJ did not have an epinephrine auto-injector with him because his doctors thought his symptoms would always be mild that they never prescribed auto-injectable epinephrine. Brian has two younger sons, Brandon and Steven Hom. Steven, who is now age 18, has the same severe peanut allergy as his older brother BJ and is participating in the Phase 2 Viaskin Peanut Patch Study at Stanford University with Dr. Kari Nadeau to find a cure.

Brian chaired the California Bay Area FAAN Walk for Food Allergy in 2011 and 2012 and has raised more than $290,000 through these events. He was awarded the FAAN Family Advocacy Award in 2010 and was named “Outstanding Volunteer for 2013.” Brian advocated on Capitol Hill for the School Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act and appeared on Lifetime Network’s television show, “The Balancing Act,” to raise awareness of the dangers of food allergies. Brian filmed a YouTube video for Mylan Corporation called “Food Allergies Don’t Take Vacations” and has appeared on NBC News Bay Area and KPIX Channel 5 and many radio talk shows, sharing his son’s story to raise awareness of the dangers of food allergies. He has also shared his family’s story in two news articles on CNN.com “"Study: Food allergies more common, more severe among children" and “8 percent of US children now have food allergies,” and the San Jose Mercury newspaper.

Brian is also co-founder of the Food Allergy Zone Web site with Elizabeth Hamilton-Guarino, which is dedicated to helping us all stay alive and thrive with food allergies and to find the cause and cure for food allergies. Brian has been on the Board of Director of the Bay Area Allergy Advisory Board. He has worked closely with Bay-area sports teams – including the Golden State Warriors basketball team, San Francisco Giants baseball team, San Jose SaberCats arena football team, San Francisco Bulls hockey team, and the Oakland A’s and San Jose Giants baseball teams – for Food Allergy Awareness Night Fundraisers with peanut-free and food allergy courteous sections. Brian has partnered with Whole Foods Market and New Leaf Community Market on 5% Charity days as well as with Jamba Juice company. He has worked with musician Kyle Dine on many Bay Area School Assemblies to raise awareness and educate students on the dangers of food allergies. He is also a member of the California Advocates for Food Allergies, which is advocating for mandatory emergency stock epinephrine in California schools.

Brian has a Bachelor’s degree in Managerial Economics and a Master’s degree in Business Management and has been working in the high-tech industry for more than 34 years as a Global Commodity Manager for IBM, Hitachi, and HGST Inc. a Western Digital Company and owns a Vitality Bowls franchise.

Keith Norman

As a veteran Marine and with 20 years in the culinary arts field, Keith Norman brings a sense of discipline and order to everything he does, both in the business world and in the culinary world.

Chef Norman has a passion for food safety and sanitation that is apparent in his role as Assistant Executive Chef and Food Safety Manager for the South Point Hotel & Casino. Chef Norman is responsible for training and educating students and culinary professionals in one of the most important facets of the food service industry.

Chef Norman has worked his way up the culinary ladder at Las Vegas properties, including Bally’s, the Mirage, Treasure Island, Paris, Suncoast, and South Point hotels and casinos. He is a certified professional food manager, certified HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) manager, NEHA (National Environmental Health Association) certified food trainer, NRA (Nevada Restaurant Association) certified food safety trainer, a certified registered OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) trainer and a master certified food executive. Chef Norman has trained through the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) in the areas of foodborne illness investigation, agro-terrorism and food systems disasters.

Chef Norman is also a member of the Casino Management Association, International Food Safety Council, Alliance of Black Culinarians, Nevada Food Safety Task Force, and Stop Foodborne Illness.

Awards and Recognition:

Nominated for Culinarian of the year, 2010
Emcee for Food Safety Day in Chicago
Nominated for the National Restaurant Association Best Neighbor Award
Guest Speaker at the 2010 FAAN conference in Las Vegas
2010 FAAN Walk for Food Allergy Appreciation Award
2011 FAAN Walk for Food Allergy Las Vegas, NV Committee member
2012 Guest Speaker for Nevada Food Safety Task Force Conference
2012 FAAN Walk for Food Allergy Las Vegas Honorary Chair
Stop Foodborne Illness Board Member

Paul Sturkey

Chef Paul Sturkey is familiar with food preparation at both the restaurant level and on a national scale. He is Product and Project Development Chef at The Kroger Company, where he has ServeSafe Certification and educates on the importance of safe and proper food handling and food allergen awareness.

In addition to creating culinary masterpieces for diners around the country, Chef Paul has faced more urgent food challenges at home. His son Mitchell, now 16 years old, is allergic to peanut, tree nuts, eggs, and dairy.

Chef Paul also understands the importance of gluten free food preparation and works diligently to deliver “guest first” training to servers and all front of the house employees to his US Foods customers

A native of Akron, Ohio and a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America – Hyde Park New York, Chef Paul brings over 35 years of food and beverage experience including hotels to private clubs, as well as owning seven restaurants of his own.

Chef Paul is the owner of The Paul Sturkey Bottling Company, which produces a line of salad dressings and an all-purpose seasoning. His insight into food trends as a Certified Food Fanatic keeps his finger on the pulse of what valued customers are asking for in the market place.