David is from New England, growing up in Connecticut and living in Massachusetts for over two decades. He is a survivor of testicular cancer and was introduced to Epic Experience as a winter camper in 2017, where he has said his experience “changed his life.”  He has since volunteered at the 7W ranch during the winter of 2019.

David is the CEO of Doc Wayne Youth Services, which is a Boston based award winning non-profit focused on working with youth with mental health challenges and victims of complex trauma through the power of sport. He is a former college soccer player and has been involved in the sport for social change space since 2008 as he is also the founder of Playing It Forward, a non-profit which provides sports equipment to thousands of underserved youth around the world. 

David earned his B.S. from Babson College and his MBA from the McCallum Graduate School of Business at Bentley University.

He and his wife, Lauren, have two daughters and two Doodles. He enjoys coaching, traveling and honing his Rummikub skills when he can. His goal is to help the organization grow so that more adult survivors are able to attend camp and experience how “game-changing” Epic Experience can be.

Jacob grew up in Buhl, ID, and moved to Denver, CO for his first job after college. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma in Sept. 2016 and finished treatment at UCHealth in March 2017, five days after his 24th birthday. He was first introduced to EPIC Experience in April 2017 at CancerCon and attended his first EPIC camp the following summer. The friends that he made and the experiences that he had on the trip have helped him become more connected to the cancer community.

Jolynn is a native Coloradan and enjoys family and friends, but more importantly values assisting others with solutioning challenges—no matter what those challenges may be.  This is a driving force for Jolynn’s personal and professional life along with a desired outcome to both optimize and minimize risk, whenever possible. 

Jolynn enjoys trying new things, including cooking (of course, eating too!), participating in local runs (i.e., Bolder Boulder 10k), Orange Theory Fitness, Barry’s Bootcamp, walking, reading, interior design, art, traveling, and studying anything new!

Learning about Epic Experience from her husband’s childhood friend provided her with a new perspective for how adults with Cancer truly needed an experience that goes from surviving to pushing forward with thinking and living in a new way.  This includes, but not limited to, understanding these adult survivors fit into society after being diagnosed / living with Cancer.  The experiences provided by Epic Experience have inspired Jolynn to not just live a better life, but to actively participate in a way to help with driving desired outcomes and objectives to assist all.

Jolynn has over 25+ years in Human Resources (known as Total Rewards) where she specializes in health, retirement, compensation, systems, workforce planning, transformation, etc. for all size of global reach organizations.  As a result, her extensive professional human resources experience translates to helping employees at all levels, which is a direct match for Epic Experience.

Julie Uspal is an Emergency Medicine physician in Philadelphia and is honored to be part of the Epic Experience family. 

She is originally from Reading, Pennsylvania, and attended the University of Pittsburgh for her undergraduate studies and the Penn State College of Medicine for medical school. She completed her residency in Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and then joined the faculty at Penn Medicine in 2016. She currently works as an Emergency Medicine Attending and serves as the Director of Quality and Safety in the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Emergency Department. 

Julie is a breast cancer survivor who attended a winter camp with Epic Experience in 2018. She is grateful for the healing power of the Colorado mountains and the lifelong friendships she made through Epic Experience. Her experience at camp was so inspiring that she felt called to give back to the cancer community as a volunteer with Epic Experience. She has volunteered at multiple camps, is a member of the Medical Advisory Team, and now serves on the Board of Directors. She is honored to give back to an organization that does so much for the adult cancer community.

Julie enjoys travel, cooking, and adventures with her family. She lives in South Jersey with her wonderful husband, two amazing sons, and beloved pug. 

Ruth is excited to become a member of the Epic Experience Board of Directors. She has been involved with other organizations addressing the needs of people affected with a cancer diagnosis, but feels that Epic is fulfilling a great need. Her initial experience with the thrivers involved with Epic Experience truly showed that there is something special about Epic.

Ruth is CEO of Northern California PET and Optimal Tracers. Northern California PET (NCPIC) was established in 1992 as the first fully clinical PET (Positron Emission Tomography) imaging center in the US, with the first whole body scanner that enabled the team to begin determining PET’s value in cancer diagnosis, treatment, and evaluation of treatment response. Ruth and the NCPIC team published numerous papers validating the use of PET in lung, colorectal, and head and neck cancers, as well as melanoma and lymphoma, in addition to studies demonstrating the cost-effectiveness of PET. These studies were used to gain insurance coverage for the very important new modality. 

While still leading NCPIC, Ruth became one of the founding officers of PETNET Pharmaceuticals, now a worldwide leader in the manufacturing and distribution of PET radio pharmaceuticals. In 1999 she became president of an early professional organization, the Institute for Clinical PET. She finds it very gratifying to now see that patients with a cancer diagnosis have access to PET imaging. 

Ruth formed Optimal Tracers in 2012 to provide manufacturing and development services for clinical trials involving PET Imaging. Many new specific PET tracers are being developed that will have an impact on future patients.

Ruth has two grown children and two grandchildren. She lives in Sacramento with her partner, John, and spends part of her time in Lake Tahoe. She enjoys skiing, scuba diving, hiking, and bicycle riding with her friends and family. Travel includes being able to enjoy her favorite sports in different places in the world. Mostly, she enjoys being with family.

Cory Sly was introduced to Epic Experience by his good friend and McKesson mentor, the late Louis Chinn, aka “Stud”. Cory and a group of friends and co-workers came together to run a half marathon in San Leandro, CA and raise funds for Epic Experience in honor of Louis’ battle with cancer.  The group pivoted once COVID-19 lingered and ended up running the half marathon virtually and raising over $10,000.  

Cory is a midwesterner at heart, born and raised in the St. Louis/Southern Illinois area before spending 10 years in the suburbs of Chicago all while maintaining his love for the better of the baseball teams, the St. Louis Cardinals.  Cory attended Ball State University in Muncie, IN obtaining his Bachelor's degree in Sports Administration and Marketing.  A couple years after college, Cory had the opportunity to join McKesson and over the past 12 years has spent his time with the company working with Oncology Clinics and Manufacturers to ensure oncology practices and patients have the drugs they need, when they need it. Louis’ mentorship instilled a true patient first approach into Cory’s philosophy.  That approach tied with the ‘get the job done attitude’ he inherited from his parents have led to many successful problem solving drills in order to get the patient what they needed, when they needed it. 

Cory and his family call Indianapolis home, enjoying the full four seasons the Midwest offers.  Cory is a dedicated father, husband and son with an incredible support system.  When Cory is not spending time with his two daughters, wife, family or friends he enjoys running, golfing, traveling, catching up with friends and a glass of bourbon! When around the house his four legged best friend, Yadi, is not too far away.  

A multitude of family members and friends within Cory’s life have been impacted by cancer.  The opportunity to join the Epic Board of Directors was welcomed with open hands and excitement.  Cory looks forward to continuing to support and assist the amazing work and growth of Epic Experience. 

Michael was born in Sacramento and lived there  until he went off to attend Regis University in Denver, Colorado. He is a survivor of testicular cancer and a macro prolactinoma pituitary brain tumor, both of which were diagnosed in 2007. Michael has worked at Fortune 500 companies as well as smaller real estate SaaS start-ups. When Michael isn’t working, you can find him on the golf course, hanging with his dogs, and getting cocktails in Old Town Arvada with his fiancé.

Michael is excited to be a part of Epic Experience and looks forward to Epic’s future growth and continuing its mission of empowering cancer thrivers and survivors.

David Thomas learned about Epic Experience through his wife, Rebecca “Giddy Up” Thomas, who is a Hodgkin's lymphoma and breast cancer survivor. She was a camper at one of the week-long Epic Experience camps and now volunteers regularly for the organization. In 2022, David attended the Epic Experience Hearts and Hope Gala and a regional meet up in the state of Maine, and quickly realized why Rebecca found the Epic Experience community extraordinary. He is excited to help Epic Experience with its mission and positively influence the lives of cancer survivors.

David has been with Consigli Construction Co., Inc. since 2004 and currently helps lead their Portland, Maine office. Consigli is one of the largest employee-owned construction managers in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic with offices dotting the east coast from Maine to Washington DC. Consigli has been recognized in each of their regional offices as a Best Place to Work and nationally as a Best Employer by Forbes.

David and Rebecca enjoy the outdoors, travel, running, fishing, and spending time with their four-legged children.