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About the Foundation
Statement of Purpose
 The Cooley's Anemia Foundation is dedicated to serving people afflicted with various forms of thalassemia, most notably the major form of this genetic blood disease, Cooley's anemia/thalassemia major.
Mission
Our mission is advancing the treatment and cure for this fatal blood disease, enhancing the quality of life of patients and educating the medical profession, trait carriers and the public about Cooley's anemia/thalassemia major.
History
For over fifty years, the Cooley's Anemia Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, has been a strong and supportive partner for families living with thalassemia. Although now national in scope, CAF began on a local level - a fact reflected in the continuing importance of our local chapters.  In 1954, Frank Ficarra was a young Italian-American businessman working and living in Brooklyn when two of his young children were diagnosed with a rare blood disease, Cooley's anemia, also known as thalassemia major.
Frank Ficarra began organizing neighborhood blood drives to make sure that his children and others like them would have the precious blood they needed to survive. Even though these blood drives were successful, Frank Ficarra realized that more was needed.
One autumn night, Frank Ficarra and the parents of other Cooley's anemia patients met in the back of his Brooklyn butcher shop to discuss what they could do to help their children and let the world know about this rare disease. From that meeting, the seeds of the Cooley's Anemia Foundation were sown.
 Since that night, CAF has grown into a national and international force with an extraordinary record of accomplishments. CAF established the first Fellowship Program for thalassemia research and has become a strong voice in Washington for thalassemia patients and their families.
Today, Frank Ficarra's son, Robert, serves as CAF Vice President of International Affairs and continues the work his father began on an international scale, reaching out to patients in every corner of the globe where medical knowledge and supplies are lacking.
What began as the story of one man's family is today the story of many families working together toward a common goal - better treatments and a cure for a disease which threatens their most precious resource - their children.
The National President
 Anthony J. Viola, CAF’s National President, was born in Queens, NY and raised in Long Island, where he currently resides with his lovely wife, Susan, and sons Anthony and James. A graduate of C.W. Post College, Tony is Managing Partner with Geller, Marzano & Company CPAs, P.C., which he joined in 1987, becoming a partner in 1995. He has been involved with CAF for many years, due to his close relationship with cousins Nunzio Cazzetta, Jr. and Ralph Cazzetta, both of whom succumbed to complications related to thalassemia. Starting in 1996, he was involved for several years with an annual golf outing fund raiser for CAF and annually plays a leading role on the committee which plans CAF’s very successful Cigar Smoker. Tony is committed to helping those with thalassemia live long and normal lives and to continuing to build upon efforts that are leading to a cure for thalassemia. He is also committed to ensuring that CAF has the financial resources needed to accomplish these goals. 
The National Executive Director
Gina Cioffi, Esq., is the National Executive Director of the Cooley's Anemia Foundation, which has been leading the fight against thalassemia for over half a century. Ms. Cioffi herself has been an active participant in that fight for over a decade. During those years, Ms. Cioffi has collaborated with the thalassemia community to help bring about major advances, including the establishment of the Thalassemia Clinical Research Network and the creation of the Centers for Disease Control's thalassemia prevention education program.
A staunch advocate for thalassemia patients, Ms. Cioffi has pushed for the development of more humane treatment options; these efforts have borne fruit for patients in Europe and Asia, and it is anticipated that soon patients in the United States will also have more options available to them. Ms. Cioffi is also the author of the Iron Warriors Activity Book, which has been published in 6 languages and distributed to thalassemic children around the world.
In addition to advocating on behalf of individuals with severe forms of thalassemia, Ms. Cioffi directs Cooley's Anemia Foundation efforts aimed at informing both the general public and specific at-risk populations about thalassemia trait. She also oversees programs to encourage all members of the public to donate blood, as treatment for thalassemia involves frequent lifelong transfusions.
Ms. Cioffi attended St Mary's College in California, majoring in its distinguished Great Books Program. She received her JD from Catholic University Columbus School of Law. She is licensed to practice in New Jersey, the state in which she was born and in which she currently resides.
Contact the Foundation
Cooley's Anemia Foundation
990 Form
If you would like to view a copy of CAF's 990 form, please click here.
Annual Report
Click here to view the CAF Annual Report for FY2003. |
National Office
330 Seventh Avenue, #900
New York, NY 10001
(800)522-7222
Fax: 212-279-5999
National Office Staff
National Executive Director:
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Patient Services Manager:
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Communications Director:
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National Fundraiser:
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Social Worker:
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CAF National Board of Directors
Anthony J. Viola, President
Amy Celento, Vice President Terri DiFilippo, Treasurer
Cammie Brandofino, Secretary
Nunzio Cazzetta, Vice President, By-Laws Committee
Peter Chieco, Vice President, Medical Information
Robert Ficarra, Vice President, International Affairs
Dean Hernan, Vice President, Fundraising Committee Gargi Pahuja, Esq.,TAG President
Ellis Neufeld, MD, Chairman, Medical Advisory Board Concetta Paradiso, Vice President, Office Administration
Frank Somma, Vice President, Legislative Committee Carmine Abruzzo, Executive Committee Alfred A. Affinitio, OSIA President Robert Aiello
Shirley Cammilleri Janice Cenzoprano, Executive Committee
Mary Ann Cervoni-Iaia
Thomas Cheng
Alan Cohen, M.D.
Ralph Colasanti, Executive Committee
Carol DiTrapani
Joseph DiTrapani Anthony Ferrino
Antoni Foe
Frank Fusaro
Laura Grassia-Smith Maria Hadjidemetriou
James Kalpakis, Esq.
Richard Mancino Frank Marzano
Teresa Minichello
Kamini Pahuja
Gianna Palminteri Dino Philippou
Paul Polo
Thomas A. Rotolo
Philip Rutigliano
Joseph Sciame
Mateen Shah John Sialiano
Christine Somma, Executive Committee
Francesca Sorrenti Frank Tidona, UNICO
Theresa Tomaino Paul Tucci Elliott Vichinsky, MD Lilia Viscomi
Carl Vitaliti CAF Medical Advisory Board
Ellis Neufeld, MD, PhD, Chair
Mark Atlas, MD
George Atweh, MD
Arthur Bank, MD
Jeanne Boudreaux, MD
Gary Brittenham, MD
Thomas Coates, MD
Alan Cohen, MD
Melody J. Cunningham, MD
George J. Dover, MD
Bernard G. Forget, MD
Patricia Jane V. Giardina, MD
Robert Grady, PhD
Paul Harmatz, MD
Yuet Wai Kan, MD
Lakshmanan Krishnamurti, MD
Frans Kuypers, PhD
Janet Kwiatkowski, MD
Timothy Ley, MD
Stephen A. Liebhaber, MD
Punam Malik, MD
Brigitta Mueller, MD
David G. Nathan, MD
Arthur Nienhuis, MD
Howard Pearson, MD
Charles Quinn, MD
J. Eric Russell, MD
Michel Sadelain, MD, PhD
George Stamatoyannopoulos, MD
Saul Surrey, MD
Alexis Thompson, MD
Tim M. Townes, PhD Elliott Vichinsky, MD
Maria Vogiatzi, MD
Mark Walters, MD
Mitchell Weiss, MD
John Wood, MD
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