Board of Directors

Elizabeth Boelens was born and raised in West Michigan and is a graduate of Grand Valley State University. She is the executive assistant to the CEO at Service Express, a global technology company based in Grand Rapids. Prior to working at Service Express, she spent over 10 years in the health insurance industry, consulting with companies to lower their health care costs. She and her family have been active in the hemophilia community for several decades and have advocated on behalf of the 340B program with our lawmakers in Washington DC on two occasions. She is passionate about keeping access to bleeding disorder products affordable for all. She has spent many years serving on local community committees. Elizabeth has a son studying at Michigan Tech in the upper peninsula and a daughter in her senior year of high school. She lives in Grand Rapids and in her spare time loves reading, hiking and planning her next travel adventure.

Dr. William Berk, MD, is a distinguished medical professional with a career spanning over four decades. He graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in 1979 and has since dedicated his career to Emergency Medicine and Internal Medicine. Dr. Berk has been instrumental in educating medical students and residents, both locally and internationally. His work in Kingston, Jamaica, as the director of the Casualty Department at Kingston Public Hospital, has been particularly impactful. Dr. Berk’s contributions to medical education and administration are well-regarded, and he is known for his commitment to providing high-quality care and support to his patients.

Matt Clarin is President of Hungerford Technologies and COO at Hungerford CPAs, where he brings 25+ years of experience in business operations and management within the IT industry. Matthew has hemophilia, as does his brother, and has benefited from the support and resources the hemophilia community has provided to his family over the years. He joined Cascade’s board because he values the organization’s work and wants to give back to the community that has had such a significant impact on his life, living with hemophilia.

Outside of work, Matthew looks forward to the Michigan summers of boating, swimming, and cycling. A favorite family tradition is summer bike rides with his wife, Jill, and three children that often include an ice cream stop. Matthew studied finance and accounting at Western Michigan University. He and his family live in Caledonia, just south of Grand Rapids.

Every med rec number has a name. Every name is a person. Every person has a story. I love to hear people’s stories. I have owned and operated several small businesses before finding my niche in nursing. I served as a Pediatric Cardiac ICU nurse, a Progressive Care RN. Then I moved into my current position as the Program Manager of The Ohio State University Bleeding and Clotting Disorders Center. As a person with Hemophilia, I get to hear the stories from and empathize with other person’s with bleeding disorders, walking the journey through adulthood with them.

I share life with my wife, who is my best friend, and our five children. We love all things sports, anything boating, and traveling to the beach or taking cruises! I am currently working on my Master of Business Administration at OSU. My favorite hobbies include reading, working out and hiking at many of the state parks in Ohio.

Susan Fenters Lerch is an accomplished leader who has served in the non-profit sector for more than three decades. Sue joined HFM as the Executive Director in June 2014; however, she came to this role having previously served as the HFM Associate Director from 1983-1996. As the Executive Director Sue is responsible for statewide patient educational programming and advocacy services and also serves as the Great Lakes and Region V-East Hemophilia Treatment Centers’ Regional Director.

In 1997 Sue joined Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan as President and CEO until 2010 when she launched Autism Alliance of Michigan, served as the lead consultant in implementing World AIDS Day Detroit, initiated the Hospice of Michigan Foundation, and created Bring Joy consulting services.

Sue and her husband, Dan, have two grown children and are grandparents to Charlie and Margeaux Elise, the most adorable children ever – of course! Sue and Dan, together with their two rescue dogs Chip and Bree, reside in Ann Arbor.

Lisa Littner is the Program Manager at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital’s Hemophilia Treatment Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Miami University, a master’s degree in social work from the University of Cincinnati, and a master’s degree in public health from the same institution. She is pursuing her Doctorate in Health Administration at the Medical University of South Carolina and will graduate in 2026. Lisa is an independently licensed clinical social worker and a Certified Health Educator Specialist. She serves on several local, regional, and national boards, councils, and task forces related to bleeding disorders. She has presented nationally and internationally on topics of patient education, health literacy, and bleeding disorders.

Lisa lives with her husband and two daughters. Lisa enjoys hiking, running, biking, and international travel with her family.

Derek Robertson is a consultant who brings with him a vast experience in government pricing programs. Derek also has extensive experience in Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement as well as the federal Medicaid Drug Rebate Program. In his regulatory practice, Derek advises his clients on how to stay in compliance with various federal laws, regulations and guidance related to anti kickback laws and federal drug pricing discount programs. Derek has worked extensively with hospitals and universities on federal grants management and, program income calculation and reporting. He presents nationally at conferences on government pricing programs, specialty pharmacy trends and conflicts of interest in healthcare.

Derek is currently the Managing Director of Apogenics, Inc. Apogenics provides 340B Program management services to Hemophilia Treatment Centers (HTCs) and conducts mock HRSA audits.

Over the past 30 years Derek has held various positions in the hemophilia community including, Director of Administration at the National Hemophilia Foundation, Finance Director of the Gulf States Hemophilia Diagnostic and Treatment Center at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston and Associate Director of Healthcare Policy at Centeon (now CSL Behring).

Derek holds an MBA from City University of New York – Baruch College, a law degree from the University of Houston Law Center and is Certified in Healthcare Compliance by the Health Care Compliance Association. He is licensed to practice law in both Texas (currently inactive) and Washington, DC.

Charity Stadler, RN, BSN graduated from Mott Community College’s nursing program in 2000. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Southern New Hampshire University in 2017 and joined the team of the Jeanne M. Lusher Center for Hemostasis and Thrombosis in December 2018 as Nurse Coordinator. Charity has proudly stood beside her mentor, Dr. Meera Chitlur, in assisting with the development of the Flow Community Outreach Program in collaboration with Detroit Public School District.  The outreach provides menstrual education that promotes early recognition of abnormal period symptoms, assisting with early diagnosis and treatment, aiding in the prevention of severe complications that impact quality of life. Her primary focus is to provide education to both patients and health care workers regarding bleeding disorders, with a special focus on heavy menstrual bleeding.

Charity became the hemophilia treatment center’s Director of Nursing in January 2024, and is responsible for clinical quality control and improvement, creation and adherence to program policies and procedures and expansion of patient educational programs. Charity is also the 340B program manager, an important, federally regulated program that allows the center to purchase bleeding disorder medications at discounted prices, allowing the center to provide more comprehensive services, which overall benefits patients.

Stephanie has been with Cascade since, 1996, including 17 years serving as Associate Director.  As Executive Director, she guides the daily operations of 34 full- and part-time staff.  Stephanie also manages Cascade’s multimillion dollar funding program, supporting 18 Hemophilia Treatment Centers (HTCs) and 7 Hemophilia Foundations located in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana, fulfilling the mission and goals of Cascade.

She has extensive knowledge of the 340B Federal Drug Discount Program and is a dedicated advocate in Washington DC for the bleeding disorder community.  Stephanie serves as a member of the Hemophilia Alliance Board of Directors and because of her experience administering grants, serves as a board member of the Hemophilia Alliance Foundation as co-chair of their grants committee.

Stephanie feels very fortunate and thankful for the many long-time friendships made throughout her years at Cascade.  “We have an exceptional region filled with many wonderful and dedicated people”.