Our team

Men, women, doctors, nurses,and community leaders of Eagle County Colorado whose mission is to teach, promote and save lives from SCA. Of course, we wouldn’t be here without the help and support of our families and volunteers who have helped build this organization to where it is today.

Alan Himelfarb

Position: CEO, Chairman
Alan Himelfarb is Executive Director and Chairman of Starting Hearts.

His commitment to Starting Hearts’ mission stems from the loss of his father to cardiac arrest.

He holds an MBA with honors from Regis University, and his passion is to use his skills and experience to teach an entire generation with leadership and lifesaving skills to save thousands of precious lives.

Nice to meet you!

Mike McGee

Position: Defibrillator Program Director and Lead Instructor
Mike is a retired Deputy Fire Chief, Vail Fire Department, EMT, HSI, American Heart Association and Red Cross Instructor and is also part of our Call.Push.Shock.™ team. Mike’s extensive background and knowledge of life saving skills gives students exceptional insights using authentic examples and experiences. In addition to teaching all levels of life saving certification courses, Mike also manages the sales and servicing of defibrillators in our region.
Nice to meet you!

Janet Newman

Position: Curriculum Director
Janet has utilized her extensive background in curriculum development and teacher training to create engaging, comprehensive and sequential lessons for students of all ages. She is continually crafting new learning modules as our curriculum grows. She is a certified Health and Safety Instructor and is part of our certification team and teaches our Call.Push.Shock.™ classes for schools, businesses and community organizations. She also serves as an adjunct faculty member at Colorado Mountain College.
Nice to meet you!

Jackie Christiansen

Position: Operations Director
Jackie is the Director of Operations for Starting Hearts, as well as the Project Director for the Summit County Community Heart Health Program. With a background in health and marketing, she is an integral part of the team with a passion for heart health.
Nice to meet you!

Jillian Moore

Position: CARES Coordinator
Jillian Moore, MHA, BS is currently the Colorado State CARES Coordinator with Starting Hearts in Avon, CO. Jillian formerly worked at the Colorado Department of Health & Environment in the Emergency Medical and Trauma Services Department and Denver Health Medical Center. Jillian specializes in education and outreach both in trauma and out of hospital cardiac arrest.
Nice to meet you!

Starting Hearts Board of Directors and Advisory Board

Doe Browning, Philanthropist and philanthropy consultant; Board Member, Colorado Mountain College Foundation; Board Member, Betty Ford Alpine Gardens; Board Member, Bravo! Vail

Jack Eck MD, Executive Vice President for Clinical Program Development and Community, Vail Health, Jack’s Place Cancer Center in honor of Dr. Eck

Alan Himelfarb CEO and Chairman, Starting Hearts; MBA with honors, Regis University; Colorado Certified Business Consultant; Rotary Leadership Award recipient

Alan Markowitz MD, Chief Cardiac Surgery and Surgical Officer, Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute

Mike McGee, Program Manager, Starting Hearts; Retired Deputy Fire Chief, Vail Fire Department; EMT, HSI and Red Cross Instructor Trainer

Janet Newman, Director of Education, Starting Hearts; PhD Adjunct Faculty, Colorado Mountain College; Certificated Colorado K-12 Teacher; Owner, Clear Learning Private Learning Center

Morton Mower MD, Co-Inventor of Implantable Defibrillator, National Inventors Hall of Fame, Prince Mahidor Award recipient; Johns Hopkins University and Maryland School of Medicine; Captain and Chief of Medicine: Medical Corps of the United States Army; Sinai Hospital

Toby Mower RN, PhD, Philanthropist; Jewish National Fund Heritage Award recipient; founder, Jewish Recovery House

Mary Sperling Philanthropist, retired special education teacher

Cathy Tobin RN Philanthropist; Prep MDLLC, Boston Scientific; United States Army