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ASSH > Information for Surgeons & Hand Care Professionals > About ASSH > Governance & Administration > Staff

ASSH Staff

The staff of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand is ready and eager to serve you! If you have questions about an upcoming course, the Annual Meeting, ASSH publications or any other ASSH product or service, the Chicago staff can help.

ASSH Central Office
822 W. Washington Boulevard
Chicago, IL 60607
Phone: (312) 880-1900
Fax: (847) 384-1435
E-mail: info@assh.org

Mark C. Anderson, FASAE, CAE - Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer Mark is our visionary and innovative leader. His charge to staff is as follows: 1. If it ain’t broke, break it. Enjoy the mess you’ve made. Then fix it in the most cost effective and efficient way you can. 2. Never compromise on service to our members, to our customers, and to each other. You can see proof that Mark’s method works in ASSH’s positive bottom line -- and in the offices and cubes of the ASSH central office, where each staff person stands out from the crowd. Be sure to check out his wind-up toy collection when you visit us.
Dawn Briskey, CAE - Deputy Executive Vice President Dawn began working for ASSH the day the office opened in Chicago. She develops, refines and implements ASSH initiatives; works closely with the Executive Vice President in managing the day-to-day operations of the central office; and contributes to discussions centered on the future of the Society. When she’s not at work, you’ll find her smashing plates to make mosaics, playing word games, or fixing up the garden.
David Hood, CPA - Finance and Administration Director Dave is our numbers man, and is happiest when he’s working in his corner office creating spreadsheets, budgets, and reports. Although he has the added responsibility of making sure all the machinery in the office works, he’d much rather calculate gains and losses than call for IT support. When Dave’s not working for ASSH, he’s hanging out with his kids, playing softball, and being a dad.
Angie Legaspi, CMP - Meetings & Education Director Angie has more energy than the rest of us combined. She’s the driving force behind all the ASSH meetings, ever present and watchful, making sure they come off as close to perfect as possible. She questions everything, in a way that lets all who come in contact with her know who’s really in charge. If Angie says she’ll take care of it, you know it will be done in a top-notch manner.
Tara Havenga - Director of Communications Tara came to ASSH after studying public policy and law. She started as the governance coordinator, learning the Hand Society from the inside out, and now manages the publications program as well as public awareness, communications and marketing strategy. The most rewarding part of her job is engaging with members and brainstorming and testing new ideas. Tara loves being a part of this dynamic organization and keeping initiatives, new and old, “on their toes.” Outside of work, Tara is an avid reader. She also loves cooking, CrossFit, and above all, spending time with family and friends.
Mike Lakas - Director of Information Technology Mike is the resident technologist at the Society. He worked at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he was founding member of the prestigious ʽLansoftʼ systems group, close to a decade before coming to the Society. While at the Society, Mike has assisted with many strategic technology initiatives and led several website upgrades. Mikeʼs interests include software engineering, photography, history and music. His free time is spent with wife and sons.
Nicole Renn - Marketing & Publications Manager If you have received marketing material from ASSH, you have seen some of Nicole's work. She also lends her talents to the publications department, the meetings department and serves as the staff liaison to the Public Education Committee. In 2006, Nicole played a large role in the redesign of the ASSH logo. In her free time, Nicole enjoys reading, photography, playing Barbies with her daughter and cheering on her favorite hockey teams- her son’s Mite team and the Chicago Blackhawks.
Sarah Meyer Hughes - Special Projects Manager Sarah comes to the ASSH after working in corporate communications in advertising, media and law. She works with the research and practice divisions, produces the Self Assessment Exam, keeps our website updated, develops ASSH surveys and is staff liaison to several committees. Away from the office she takes care of her son and Moxie the dog.
Jeanne Bloesch - Membership Manager Jeanne is our manager of details. She’s in charge of everything that gets entered into our membership database, down to the apostrophes. Jeanne keeps us all on our toes, making sure we fully understand the implications of decisions that are made related to our members. Jeanne has three rescued feral cats, including one that was found outside the ASSH Central Office.
Jessica Daniels - Education Channel Manager, Foundation Manager Jessica works alongside the rest of the meetings team in coordinating educational programs like the Annual Meeting and smaller activities. She also supports the Foundation Board of Trustees and donors and works to bring emerging technologies to the ASSH members through mobile app development. She comes from a background in associations after starting in the non-profit world of Theater management following her graduation from Ohio University. Jessica loves a good crossword and spends the colder months knitting items for her Etsy shop and the warmer times biking around the city with her husband.
Kris R. Delas Armas - Meetings and Corporate Relations Manager Kris oversees the exhibits for the Annual Meeting as well as the development and maintenance of all industry relationships. He comes to ASSH with a solid background in corporate, association and non-profit event management. In his spare time, he enjoys travelling, reading books, watch a movie and playing volleyball. He is also an avid Chicago Bears and Cubs fan. He is thrilled to be part of the ASSH family!
Carrie Corona - Accounting Coordinator Carrie is our Task Master. She assists all staff with various projects from time to time. She reconciles daily transactions. She is the go to person for anything relating to our CRM system (Membership Database). She processes orders, registrations, donations, payments and refunds. She tracks our product inventory and works with our warehouse to get orders processed. Carrie likes learning new things and trying to figure out better more efficient ways of doing things. When Carrie is not working at the ASSH, she enjoys hanging out with her three children and two dogs. She’s also a big time DIY’er…she works with her husband on projects around the house and knows her power tools.
Kim Mackey - Editorial Coordinator Kim is our in-house coordinator for the Journal of Hand Surgery. She vets journal submissions for adherence to the author guidelines, and she works with the Editor-in-Chief, the authors, and Elsevier to make sure that each party has what it needs to keep the JHS running smoothly. Kim comes to ASSH from the medical publishing world of Philadelphia, where she worked on both clinical reference books and nursing textbooks. She enjoys traveling, trying new restaurants, and savoring each bite of a Philly soft pretzel.
Olivia Moran - Governance Coordinator Olivia graduated from the University of Iowa where she studied Journalism and Political Science. She is excited to take on governance responsibilities and looks forward to working with ASSH's members. Olivia comes from a nonprofit where she communicated with members of the dairy industry to produce sustainable milk products. She enjoys spending time with friends and family, reading, and playing with her dog, Belle.
Karol Bort - IT Coordinator Karol works with Mike on strategic technology initiatives for the Hand Society. From a young age, he has been interested in technology, and decided to make a career out of his passion. Karol’s journey began in Poland, and after graduating from college, he decided to pursue better opportunities overseas. He is currently pursuing his master's degree in internet technologies. With his positive energy and hard work ethic, Karol is excited to be a part of the ASSH team.
Diana Shkap - Senior Meetings Coordinator As a member of the Meetings department, Diana made the leap from the corporate publishing world and is truly excited about her journey in becoming a Meetings Coordinator. The transition was a natural career progression with her attention to detail and outgoing personality. When she’s not hard at work, she is enjoying all Chicago has to offer such as local concerts, good food and cheering for the Cubbies!
Haley Licata - Publications and Communications Coordinator Haley brings an ardent love of the written word to our Publications department, where she works on a number of projects, including the Weekly Member Update and ASSH publications. She is also involved in some of our online initiatives, such expanding the Learning Management System and revamping our online store. Outside of the office, Haley can be found experimenting in the kitchen, blogging, and exploring Chicago’s many cultural offerings.
Gladys Apura - Web Developer Gladys is our in-house web developer. She works with Mike to fix website issues. Gladys previously worked as a web developer for a provider that specializes in creating and managing auto dealership websites. As early as grade school, she wanted to learn more about IT and ended up with a degree in Computer Science. Fixing existing programs and creating new programs gives Gladys a great sense of accomplishment. When she is not at work, Gladys enjoys playing with her daughter, taking care of her family and spending most of her weekends at family gatherings.
Becca Daly - CME Assistant Becca works in the meetings department at ASSH. She is attending Kendall College for her B.A. in Meetings and Event Coordinating. She is enthusiastic about her work and hopes to continue her career in Event Planning for years to come. On her rare down time, she enjoys watching her favorite Chicago sports teams every season and taking cruises with her family.