“Uniting Healthcare with Holiness to Relieve Suffering”
Leadership
EPISCOPAL ADVISORS
Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke
Episcopal Advisor of CHI, Patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke (born June 30, 1948) is an American Cardinal Prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He serves as the Cardinal Patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, and his previous position was Cardinal Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, which he held until November 2014.
Before being called to Rome to serve in the Apostolic Signatura, Cardinal Burke served as the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of St. Louis, Missouri (2003–2008) and as the Bishop of the Diocese of La Crosse, Wisconsin (1994–2003). He is the Cardinal-Deacon of S. Agata de’ Goti Church in Rome and holds the title of Archbishop Emeritus of the St. Louis Archdiocese.
Cardinal Burke was ordained a priest on June 29, 1975 by Pope Paul VI and consecrated a bishop on January 6, 1995 by Pope John Paul II. He was elevated to Cardinal on November 20, 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI. Along with Mr. Palazzolo, Cardinal Burke was one of the original signatories to the Collaboration Agreement signed between Padre Pio’s Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza and Catholic Healthcare International on October 1st, 2009.
Bishop Earl Boyea
Episcopal Advisor of CHI, Bishop of the Diocese of Lansing, MI
Earl Boyea, Jr. was born April 10, 1951 in Pontiac, Michigan, as the eldest of the ten children of Earl and Helen Boyea, Sr. He was raised in Waterford and attended Our Lady of the Lakes Church and the parish school from third through eighth grades. He studied at Sacred Heart Seminary High School and College from 1965 to 1973, obtaining his Bachelor’s degree in History. He studied at the Pontifical North American College and Pontifical Gregorian University (1973–1977) in Rome, earning his Bachelor’s degree in Sacred Theology from the latter in 1976. He was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Joseph Imesch on May 20, 1978, and in 1979 returned to the Gregorian in Rome, from where he obtained his Licentiate in Sacred Theology in 1980. Fr. Boyea obtained his PhD in Church History from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. in 1987.
On July 22, 2002, Msgr. Boyea was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit and Titular Bishop of Siccenna by Pope John Paul II. Pope Benedict XVI named him the fifth Bishop of Lansing on February 27, 2008.
Bishop Boyea currently serves as the Episcopal Moderator of the United States Association of Consecrated Virgins, and on the Board of Directors of the Michigan Catholic Conference. Within the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, he sits on the Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations, having formerly sat on the Committee on Boundaries of Dioceses and Provinces and on Priestly Formation and Committee on Selection of Bishops. Bishop Boyea also belongs to the Catholic Biblical Association, Fellowship of Catholic Scholars, and American Catholic Historical Association.
CHI BOARD of DIRECTORS
Jere D. Palazzolo, MHA
Founder & President of CHI; Founder & President of Marian Medical Services, LLC
Jere Palazzolo has over 40 years of experience in executive leadership and the delivery of healthcare services. He received a Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Mr. Palazzolo has presented at national and local forums and has published several articles on current issues and trends in the delivery of healthcare services. Inspired by the “Work” and charism of St. (Padre) Pio of Pietrelcina, Mr.Palazzolo founded the nonprofit apostolate Catholic Healthcare International.
On October 1st, 2009, this apostolate signed a formal collaboration agreement with Padre Pio’s hospital in Italy, the Vatican-owned Casa Sollievo Della Sofferenza (In English: The Home for the Relief of Suffering) for the expressed purpose of duplicating Padre Pio’s “Casa” as a model of truly faithful Catholic healthcare delivery in the United States and other areas around the world. Catholic Healthcare International is now pursuing the active implementation of its comprehensive Casa USA Three Pillar Program in the Diocese of Lansing, Michigan, under the Episcopal leadership of Most Reverend Earl Boyea, Bishop of Lansing, that includes a faithfully Catholic medical school in the charism of St. Pio.
Fr. Francis Sariego, OFM Cap.
Board Member of CHI, National Coordinator of the Padre Pio Prayer Groups USA
Fr. Francis has served the Order of Capuchin Friars Minor in numerous capacities both in the United States and Italy. He is currently Superior of the St. Francis of Assisi Friary in Wilmington, Delaware. In his role as National Coordinator, Fr. Francis provides spiritual leadership to over 100 Padre Pio Prayer Groups throughout the United States and is the liaison with the International Headquarters in San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy. A strong bond between CHI’s initiatives and Padre Pio Prayer Groups is critical to the success of our vision.
This was reinforced by the great Saint himself as he formed this international network of Prayer Groups long before beginning his “Work” on the Casa hospital, since they are to serve as the prayerful foundation that would ensure the success of the Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza mission of “relief of suffering” to those in need.
Father Timothy Nelson, MD
Board Member of CHI, Pastor, Saint Mary Star of the Sea Parish, Jackson, MI
Father Tim Nelson is Pastor of Saint Mary Star of the Sea Parish in Jackson, Michigan.
Father Tim is a former cardiologist who practiced medicine in Grand Rapids, Michigan until he entered Sacred Heart Seminary.
Bishop Carl F. Mengeling ordained Father Tim on June 10, 2000.
Read “Heart and Soul – Tim Nelson Gave Up a Career as a Cardiologist to Become a Priest” in Faith Magazine to learn more about his inspiring story .
Dr. George Mychaskiw II, DO, FAAP, FACOP, FASA
Chief Learning/Academic Officer, Salud Education. Director of Perioperative Services, Ochsner-LSU Health
Dr. George Mychaskiw is Director of Perioperative Services, Professor and Vice-Chair of Anesthesiology at the Ochsner-LSU Health Science Center in Shreveport, LA. He received his medical degree from the Kansas City University, College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Mychaskiw completed fellowships in cardiac and pediatric anesthesiology at the Yale University School of Medicine, Yale-New Haven Hospital and was appointed as an assistant professor of anesthesiology in the cardiac and pediatric divisions at the Yale New Haven Hospital. He has also received training in hyperbaric medicine at the University of Texas, Galveston.
Mychaskiw is certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology, American Osteopathic Board of Anesthesiology and has been certified by the National Board of Echocardiography.
Mark Palazzolo
Board Member of CHI; Executive Director of Marian Medical Services, LLC.
Mark Palazzolo is the Executive Director of Marian Medical.
He has previously developed a rural health clinic model through Marian Medical Services which was a mission clinic serving underserved people. This clinic was faithful to the Roman Catholic Church on all matters of faith and morals.
Mark has been instrumental in the success of Marian Medical Services, a State-of-the-Art service that has optimized the practice of Cardiac Nuclear Imaging in the outpatient setting.
CASA USA LEADERSHIP TEAM
Jere Palazzolo
See detailed biography in the Board of Directors section.
Father Timothy Nelson, MD
See detailed biography in the Board of Directors section.
Ann O'Reilly
Assistant to the President, CHI
Ann O’Reilly is the Worldwide Adoration Program Coordinator for Padre Pio’s Casa USA, the prayer foundation for the soon-to-be-constructed Prayer Campus in Howell, MI, a future Home for the Relief of Suffering hospital, the Saint Padre Pio Institute for the Relief of Suffering Medical School, and a Terri Schiavo Home for the Brain Injured, each of which will be located on different campuses in the USA.
Ann has worked with numerous non-profits and has served on the Board of Directors and Board of Trustees for a variety of organizations. She co-founded a Catholic Homeschool group while homeschooling her three children. She served women experiencing crisis pregnancies for 17 years before joining the Board of Directors of Right to Life of Livingston County working to protect the sacredness of all human life.
Contact AOReilly@CHI-USA.com
Dr. George Mychaskiw
Chief Learning/Academic Officer, Salud Education. Director of Perioperative Services, Ochsner-LSU Health.
Dr. George Mychaskiw is Director of Perioperative Services, Professor and Vice-Chair of Anesthesiology at the Ochsner-LSU Health Science Center in Shreveport, LA. He received his medical degree from the Kansas City University, College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Mychaskiw completed fellowships in cardiac and pediatric anesthesiology at the Yale University School of Medicine, Yale-New Haven Hospital and was appointed as an assistant professor of anesthesiology in the cardiac and pediatric divisions at the Yale New Haven Hospital. He has also received training in hyperbaric medicine at the University of Texas, Galveston.
Mychaskiw is certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology, American Osteopathic Board of Anesthesiology and has been certified by the National Board of Echocardiography.
He is the author of numerous articles and book chapters and has been a visiting professor at many academic institutions in the US, Canada, China, India, the Philippines and Saudi Arabia.
An authority in osteopathic medical education, Dr. Mychaskiw has been involved in the development of 4 Osteopathic medical colleges in the US, including the Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine at New Mexico State University, where he served as Founding Dean and Chief Academic Officer. Dr. Mychaskiw joined Salud Education to continue development of medical colleges to meet the health care needs of the country’s underserved and vulnerable populations.
Michael J. O'Dea, MBA
Founder, Christ Medicus Foundation/CMF CURO
Michael O’Dea is Founder and Executive Director of the Christ Medicus Foundation (CMF), non-profit organization focused on reclaiming Christ-centered health care by reforming corporate and public policy to allow God’s people a conscientious choice in health care. Mr. O’Dea is an MBA graduate from the University of Detroit. He entered the United States Army in 1967 as a Private and attended Officer Candidate School, where he was commissioned in 1968. He served both in the United States and Vietnam, where he was awarded the Bronze Star. From 1987 to present Mr. O’Dea has been providing employers and individuals unique health care management resources and benefits consulting, specializing in Christ-centered health care.
In 1984 he founded and is currently a board member of Mother & Unborn Baby Care, a non-profit charitable organization that assists mothers faced with a crisis pregnancy.
Out of 750 charitable organizations nominated in 1995 for the Acton Institute’s Samaritan Award, Mother & Unborn Baby Care was selected as one of three recipients for their dedicated commitment to serve others. Mike and Peggy, his wife, managed CASA VITAE to house mothers faced with a crisis pregnancy for 10 years.
Mike and Peggy are parents to seven children, five of which are adopted.
Bobby Schindler
President, Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network
Bobby Schindler is President of the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network and an associate scholar of the Charlotte Lozier Institute. Bobby advocates for the medically vulnerable in honor of Terri Schiavo, his sister. A full-time pro-life advocate, Bobby and his family has been instrumental in providing resources and support to more than 2,500 patients and families at risk of euthanasia from physicians, hospitals, insurance companies, and others more interested in healthcare rationing than in providing basic, life-affirming care for their most vulnerable. His writings have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribute, TIME, National Review, Human Life Review, Townhall, and others.
Bobby’s life took a dramatic and unexpected turn when his older sister, Terri, suddenly collapsed and was left with a profound brain injury. When Terri’s estranged husband sought court permission to starve and dehydrate her to death, Bobby was propelled into a life he’d never imagined. He spoke in defense of his sister on numerous national television and radio programs including Hannity & Colmes, the Oprah Winfrey Show, The Glenn Beck Show, Good Morning America, The Today Show, the 700 Club, EWTN and many others. Bobby co-authored the book A Life That Matters: The Legacy of Terri Schiavo as a resource for those seeking to understand the true story of Terri’s fight.
He speaks on topics relating to medical ethics and the bioethics movement, and how to uphold human dignity for a disabled or medically vulnerable loved one. He has testified before state legislatures in Florida, Louisiana, California, Kentucky, Ohio, and other states, and has addressed Members of Parliament in Australia and Canada concerning the protection of the medically vulnerable.