Conquering CHD Welcomes Carissa Ostrom as Executive Director

September 3rd, 2023 by Amy Basken

Dear friends and community,

As we celebrate ten years of Conquering CHD, it also marks my 18th year as an advocate for congenital heart disease. I am entering into a new season of life as our youngest son has successfully transitioned to managing his CHD care and is off to college this fall. It is time to pass the torch to Carissa Ostrom as Executive Director and Karen Grossich as Outreach Director. As our Operations Director, Carissa has demonstrated excellent leadership, passion and capability to be successful in this role. I have complete confidence these women will lead the organization into the next decade of serving patients and families; I just need to get out of their way!

My abrupt departure last year due to a family emergency made it challenging for anyone to pick up the reigns as Executive Director. I am committed to ensuring this does not happen again. I look forward to stepping into the role of Board Chair, where I can continue to support strategy and development efforts while mentoring staff, providing continuity, and empowering them to be successful.

This organization brings so much value to the CHD community, and I look forward to its success in serving patients and families for decades to come through awareness, knowledge, community and research..

With sincere gratitude (and heart hugs!),

Amy Basken,

Co-founder and Chair of the Board of Directors Conquering CHD

About Conquering CHD: We exist to conquer the most common birth defect. We engage, listen, learn and act. We create visibility and empower all impacted by CHD. We accomplish this through awareness, knowledge, community and research.