The KBF is thrilled to announce the election of four new board members and a new board president, each with invaluable expertise in organizational management, fundraising, and social impact programming.

“I am delighted to be announcing the addition of our new board members, all of whom bring fantastic perspectives and years of expertise to the KBF,” said Kelly Brush, founder of the KBF. Meg Reynolds, John Brantley, Etsukazu Taniguchi, and Erin Tunnicliffe (ordered as pictured above), have all come onto the board to help guide the KBF into its next phase of growth.

Current board member David Sabow has been elected President of the Board. David brings decades of organizational knowledge through his background leading health & technology investments for Silicon Valley Bank. “Dave has already been instrumental in positioning the KBF for the next 10 years, and helping us think creatively and cohesively about how best to address the needs of the spinal cord injury community,” said KBF Executive Director, Edie Perkins, “his leadership, along with the dedication of our entire board, puts us in such an exciting position as an organization.”

The Kelly Brush Foundation is entering its 16th year, after a record-breaking fundraising effort in 2021. Collectively, over 5,000 donors raised $2.5 million to support the KBF’s mission to inspire and empower people with spinal cord injuries (SCI) to live active and engaged lives.

Along with these new board appointments, the Kelly Brush Foundation is working to develop a multi-year strategy to reach more people with spinal cord injuries earlier in their journeys from injury to independence. Though the organization has been able help thousands of people with SCIs, including over 1,300 Active Fund grant recipients, the KBF believes there is more work to be done. Through web-based collaborative resources; partnerships, camps, and Try-It-First grants; and hundreds of annual grants to provide custom adaptive sports equipment, the KBF aims to provide opportunities for all people with SCIs, regardless of time of injury, financial situation, or location.

About the New Board President

David Sabow leads Technology and Healthcare Banking Division for Silicon Valley Bank. He also serves on SVB’s Asset & Liability Committee as well as the Credit Risk Policy Committee at Silicon Valley Bank. Prior to joining Silicon Valley Bank, Dave spent nine years in the life science investment banking practice at Canaccord Genuity, with responsibility for both domestic and international transactions across the life science and healthcare sector. Dave graduated from Santa Clara University, and completed the executive program at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, focusing on Leadership and Strategic Impact. Dave, his wife Alexis and three children live in Mill Valley, CA where they take full advantage of the trails and waves of Marin County.

About the New Board Members

  • Meg Reynolds is Principal and Portfolio Manager at Westwood Global Investments where she co-manages Global Emerging Markets Equity portfolios. She has over thirty years of broad investment experience including Fidelity Investments and Putnam Investments in Boston, Massachusetts. She received a B.S. from University of New Hampshire and an M.S. from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

  • John Brantley was the General Manager for IBM’s $2 Billion a year Global Chemicals and Petroleum and Industrial Products industries. During his career he traveled to over 50 countries and lived in China for three years. Mr. Brantley has served on the Board of Directors for several non-profits, including the United Way of Rochester, NY, Urban League of Rochester, NY, and Boy Scouts of America, Rochester, NY. John and his wife Betsy enjoy hiking, camping, motorcycling, winter sports and bicycling.

  • Etsukazu (Etsu) Taniguchi was born in Osaka, Japan. Due to his father’s career as a diplomat he grew up in six different countries before he was 18 – Japan, Brazil, The Philippines, Switzerland, Argentina, and the United States. He has worked for a Japanese cable/satellite startup in NYC, FedEx (managing Asian high-tech companies supply chain) and currently runs the international office for a Japanese media research company (think of Nielsen of Japan, since 2012). On top of his business experience, Etsu started the women’s soccer team for the New York Athletic Club(NYAC) in 1999 taking them to 3 National championship final 4 and winning it in 2007. He has retired from soccer and now is the Team Director and an active racer for Veselka Cycling team which he founded 15 years ago.

  • Erin Tunnicliffe is an experienced leader in nonprofit advancement and strategy, advising clients on successful capital campaigns, leadership transitions, and organizational alignment. Erin recently served as Associate Dean for Advancement at the Tuck School at Dartmouth, her MBA alma mater, where she built a high-performing advancement organization, led its largest capital campaign, and secured catalyzing mission-impact gifts. Erin has been a yoga practitioner and teacher for decades, and enjoys all that her Vermont home has to offer, from trail running and gravel biking to Nordic skiing and SUP boarding, often with husband John and terrier Bea.