New Executive Director Christy Gillham

The Board of Directors of Dogs for Diabetics, Inc. (D4D) is pleased to announce the appointment of Christy L. Gillham as Executive Director, effective January 1, 2018. Ms. Gillham has served D4D as Director of Development since January 6, 2014. In her four years with D4D, she has successfully assisted the organization through a period of transition in which it has increased its resources and capacity to serve a broader community with its highly trained Medical-Alert Service Dogs. D4D recently moved into a new 5,500 sq. ft. training facility in Concord, CA.

Ms. Gillham came to D4D from Children’s Hospital and Research Center in Oakland, California where she was a Development Manager. She had previously served with Argosy University as Assistant Director of Admissions. She has broad experience in both non-profit and corporate fundraising as well as marketing and organizational management. She has a BA in Industrial Organizational Psychology and a Masters in Public Administration from California State University, East Bay.

I am extremely honored to be transitioning into this new role with Dogs4Diabetics. I consider myself lucky because I truly love what I do and the community we serve. I’m excited to continue to build upon all the wonderful initiatives in place to better serve and meet the needs of our clients, and the overall success of our organization. I can promise you I will continue to pour my heart into making sure Dogs4Diabetics is living up to our fullest potential and having the greatest impact possible on the diabetic community, and all those who turn to us for support. Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much… and we have the most incredible team of people and dogs! – Christy Gillham

Ralph Hendrix, who has served as D4D’s Executive Director since June 2013, has accepted the position of Director of Finance. Mr. Hendrix has volunteered his services to D4D in a variety of roles since 2006 and will continue to serve without compensation. Mr. Hendrix retired from the Comptroller of the Currency, a bureau of the US Treasury Department in 1996. He then served Sumitomo Bank of California, California Bank & Trust and Zions Bancorporation as SVP & Chief Credit Examiner until his retirement in 2006.

“It has been a great honor and joy to serve our wonderful clients with these great dogs, and I look forward to serving this community for many more years to come!” – Ralph Hendrix

Dogs for Diabetics is the first service dog provider in the world to scientifically train medical-alert assistance dogs to serve insulin-dependent diabetics and to be accredited by Assistance Dogs International after its formation in 2004. Its founder, Mark Ruefenacht and his dog Armstrong are recognized as the originators of this service dog skill. Mr. Ruefenacht works with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Washington, D.C. as a researcher and educator for his work in scientific measurement and quality assurance.

The Board of Directors is pleased to share this news with our community and look forward to a bright, impactful, and meaningful future at Dogs4Diabetics. We’re looking forward to this new chapter in our work and mission.

Sincerely,

Mark Ruefenacht

Founder & President

Dogs4Diabetics, In Loving Memory, Service Dog