Speakers

 Marc Cassalina

In 1991 Marc Cassalina’s newborn son Eric was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF).  Less than two years later, his daughter, Jena, also received the same diagnosis. While Eric had few CF-related medical complications throughout his childhood, Jena’s case was considerably more severe. On December 4, 2006, at the age of 13, Jena passed away from CF-complications while waiting for a double lung transplant. Despite the pain, hardship, and emotional roller-coaster of raising two young children with an incurable disease, Marc with his wife Margarete, always found a way to stay strong and committed to their family so that Eric and Jena could have the best quality of life possible.
Since 1991, Marc has been passionately involved with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.  He served with Margarete as National Public Advocacy Chairs, National Volunteer Leadership Chairs, and National Leadership Council Members.  For 15 years, Marc has served as a Board member in the Greater New York chapter and was a past president.  He has participated in countless local, regional, and national CF events including walk, Hike, golf, and Gala’s.   Last year the couple were recognized with the Breath of Life Award at the NY Gala. 
Marc currently co-chairs the National Individual giving Committee and is a committee member on the Milestones III campaign
Professionally, Marc’s 33-year Financial Services career has all been at Merrill Lynch; he has served as a Sr Resident Director and is currently a Sr Vice President leading a Financial Services practice that includes his son Eric. 
Marc and Margarete live in Milton, NY. Their son Eric, also living with CF, is married to Kourtney with a son of their own, Easton. Together, they have dedicated their lives to finding the ultimate cure so that one day CF will stand for ‘Cure Found’.
 

Paul Motenko

Paul Motenko is a co-founder and former co-CEO of BJ’s Restaurants Inc. He is also the co-founder and former co-CEO of Stacked Restaurants, LLC. He is now semi-retired, having worked in the restaurant industry for 30 years. Earlier, he was an accountant for several large firms, including Peat Marwick and Kenneth Leventhal, before co-founding Motenko, Bachtelle & Hennessy. Paul has been involved with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation since his daughter, Stacy, was diagnosed with CF in 1986. Stacy has two nonsense mutations. He is chair of the National Leadership Council Individual Giving Committee and is a former Volunteer Leadership Conference co-chair. He is also the chair of the Orange County chapter board and co-chair of its Pipeline to a Cure committee. Paul is a strong advocate for the CF community and attends both March on the Hill and the California State Advocacy Day each year. An avid hiker, he has participated in numerous Xtreme Hike events throughout the country. Paul holds a B.S. in accounting from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. Paul and his and his wife, Debbie, live in Orange County, California. They also have an older daughter, Lisa, and two grandsons, Benji and Micah.