KDA LEADERSHIP TEAM

Terry Thompson

President

Terry has been active as a volunteer in the KDA for several years, serving as President since 2021. He is passionate about finding treatments and a cure for KD, a disease that directly affects his family. Terry’s professional experience includes 30 years of government service and 15 years with Booz Allen Hamilton. He also taught cyber security courses at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.  He has a BA and MA from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, and a PhD from Georgetown University. Terry is an avid golfer and participates in the annual KD Golf Scramble in Magnolia, Texas.

Jameson Parker

Vice President

Jameson first learned of KD after his older cousin had endured years of testing and uncertainty before receiving this rare diagnosis.  Within a few years, in his early 30s, Jameson began to experience the symptoms of KD and received his own diagnosis.   Soon after this he attended his first KD conference.  His eyes were opened as many of the men with this diagnosis still lived active and fruitful lives.

Jameson has four children and is joyfully married to his sweetheart Heidi.  He is involved in his church, enjoys competitive chess and loves to travel and spend time with his extended family.   With 10 years in scientific research and development in industries such as space science and alternative energies, Jameson left his engineering career to embrace his calling as an educator.  Jameson currently works as a high school physics teacher in an urban district in Connecticut. He has a B.S. in Physics, an M.S. in Education and is involved in multiple leadership positions within his school district.

John Lauber

Treasurer

John and his wife Debby, live in Milwaukee and are proud parents of three adult children and five grandchildren. He received the CPA designation in 1974. His career included time with a national public accounting firm and serving as the CFO of four companies in the Milwaukee area prior to founding a firm that provided fractional CFO services. John grew this business for 30 years. It continues today under new leadership as Lauber Business Partners.  

John continues to work with clients a few days a week. Over the years, he has been an active volunteer, sharing his financial expertise with his church, schools, professional organizations, and nonprofits. John was diagnosed with Kennedy‘s disease in 2004. A muscle biopsy led to the diagnosis.  John looks forward to working with the Kennedy’s Disease Association as they search for a cure. John enjoys spending time with family, boating at their lake home in Northwest Indiana, and watching Wisconsin sports teams.

Kathy Thompson

Corporate Secretary

Kathy became an active member of the KDA in 2010 when she volunteered to help plan the conference in San Diego. This led to her involvement in organizing KDA conferences ever since. A carrier and mother of two sons, she had a brother and at least one cousin who were victims of the disease.

A native of Pennsylvania, Kathy has a BA from the University of Pittsburgh and a master’s degree from the University of Toronto. During a 40-year career with the federal government, she worked as an intelligence analyst and executive manager as well as an instructor at the National Cryptologic School. She resides in Maryland with her husband, Terry, with whom she enjoys hiking, traveling, and taking advantage of a variety of cultural events and activities in music, art, and dance. She is also a voracious reader of contemporary literature. In addition to fiction, books on molecular biology and medical research now occupy the space on her nightstand.

As a Board member, she is committed to finding a cure for Kennedy’s Disease and extremely grateful to the founders of the organization as well as the dedicated cadre of doctors, researchers and staff at NIH and labs across the country who are leading the effort.

Andrew P. Lieberman

Scientific Review Board Chair

Dr. Lieberman is the Gerald D. Abrams Professor in the Department of Pathology and Director of Neuropathology at the University of Michigan. Dr. Lieberman received his BS from Duke University and his MD, PhD from the University of Maryland Medical School. He completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology and fellowship training in Neuropathology at the University of Pennsylvania. He trained as a research fellow with Dr. Kenneth Fischbeck at the Neurogenetics Branch NINDS, NIH, and then joined the University of Michigan Medical School faculty in 2001. Dr. Lieberman’s research has focused on the mechanism of neurodegeneration in inherited neurological disorders. His laboratory uses cell culture and mouse models to explore the pathogenesis of Kennedy’s disease and Niemann-Pick C, a lysosomal storage disease resulting from impaired lipid trafficking.

Diane Merry

Scientific Review Board

Dr. Merry is a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Vice Chair, Faculty Development and Engagement at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. She is also a member of Jefferson’s Vickie & Jack Farber Institute for Neuroscience and Chair of its Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Merry’s research uses novel cell and mouse models to understand the molecular pathogenesis of SBMA, first, by determining the role of AR structural and functional domains in DHT-dependent AR misfolding, aggregation, and toxicity and second, by determining pathogenic mechanisms through the identification of altered AR protein-protein interactions. These studies are designed to understand how motor neurons and muscle cells respond to the accumulation of misfolded AR protein and to identify therapeutic opportunities in SBMA. Dr. Merry organized and chaired the first-ever international SBMA research conference in 2021.