Speakers

Maryland Free is a statewide, nonpartisan political research and education organization supported by corporations, trade associations, chambers of commerce, small businesses, and individuals. We were founded in 1983 as Maryland Business for Responsive Government and changed our name in 2019 to better reflect our mission.

The purpose of Maryland Free is to:

INFORM Maryland’s businesses, elected officials, and the general public about the political and economic climate needed to foster economic development and job creation in Maryland.IMPROVE the role of business in Maryland’s public policy.

PROVIDE support for pro-business candidates.

ENABLE business to hold politicians accountable for the state’s economic well-being—like no other organization—through Maryland Free’s evaluations of the voting records of Maryland’s state legislators.

Anthony (Tony) Cancelosi, K.M. was appointed president and CEO of CLB in September 2005. Under his leadership, CLB is refocusing its priorities to better serve the needs of the residents living in Maryland, D.C., and Virginia who are blind or visually impaired. To accomplish this goal, Tony is expanding CLB’s strategic partnerships within the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area and forging alliances with other blindness and disability organizations, both regionally and nationally. Tony represents CLB on the District of Columbia’s Workforce Investment Council, the Northern Virginia Workforce Investment Board and Montgomery County’s Commission on People with Disabilities. As CLB increases the depth and outreach of its local programs, Tony is working to identify and cultivate new sources of private and government funding, reduce administrative expenses, and bring an increased level of fiscal accountability to the organization.  Tony comes to CLB with extensive executive experience. Prior to joining the nonprofit organization, he was President of ICL, an international software company, and the CEO of several for-profit technology companies including iBrite, Inc., eStara, and Source Digital. He also served as COO for Kee Systems (now Sylvan Learning). His nonprofit experience includes involvement with the International Center for the Disabled, National Kidney Foundation, and the Special Olympics. In addition to serving on CLB’s Board of Directors, Tony serves on the Board of Directors of the DC Police Foundation, serves as secretary of the Providence Health Foundation, is president emeritus of the Association for Corporate Growth, serves of the Executive Committee of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, and he is co-chair of the Capitol Network Veterans Engagement Board. He serves a member of the Wharton Club, Leadership of Greater Washington Class of 2007, and the Rotary Club. Tony was elected “Man of the Year” by the 2013 Lido Civic Club of Washington, DC. In 2015, DC Councilmember Anita Bonds awarded him with the Community Cornerstone Award. In 2010, Tony wrote a book called Santa’s Secret, and all book sales benefit Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind. Tony completed the Executive Finance Program at the Wharton School of Business in Philadelphia and received a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from St. Joseph’s University, also in Philadelphia.

Anna Quint joined Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind in 2015. She supports the President and CEO and contributes to communications and development initiatives, primarily related to grant funding. Previously she held development roles in organizations including the National Cherry Blossom Festival and Kidsave International. Prior to her switch to the nonprofit sector, Anna helped establish and run a boutique public relations company and worked at Christie’s in Los Angeles. She has volunteered extensively for organizations including the American Cancer Society, as well as The Art of Elysium as a volunteer artist. A native of Washington, DC, Anna received a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of California, Los Angeles. Her interests include abstract painting, film, nature, meditation and health.

 

On June 5, 1981, five cases of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) were reported in previously healthy homosexual men from Los Angeles, California. Within weeks, additional cases of PCP, life-threatening opportunistic infections and disseminated cases of a rare cancer, Kaposi’s sarcoma were reported. In many ways, Dr. Harry Haverkos was ideally suited to confront this new challenge. He had excellent training in infectious diseases and internal medicine and he was one of only a handful of physicians in the world at the time that had cared for a patient with this condition. Additionally, he brought energy, motivation, and an endlessly inquisitive mind to the Task Force. His impatience to solve the problem was laudable and inspiring. That is how Harry Haverkos got to the “front lines” during the early years of the AIDS epidemic and he tells the story compellingly and provocatively within these pages. – James W. Curran, MD, MPH, Dean, Rollins School of Public Health and Co-Director, Center for AIDS Research, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia

Inside the Hot Zone is an insider’s account of one of the most dangerous workplaces on earth: the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) in Fort Detrick, Maryland. Retired U.S. Army Col. Mark G. Kortepeter, a leading biodefense expert, recounts his journey from the lecture hall to the role of department chief, to the battlefield, to the Biosafety Level-4 maximum containment lab, and finally, to the corner office.
During Kortepeter’s seven and a half years in leadership at USAMRIID, the United States experienced some of the most serious threats in modern germ warfare, including the specter of biological weapons during the Iraq War, the anthrax letters sent after 9/11, and a little-known crisis involving a presumed botulism attack on the president of the United States. Inside the Hot Zone is a shocking, frightening eye-opener as Kortepeter describes in gripping detail how he and his USAMRIID colleagues navigated threats related to anthrax, botulism, smallpox, Lassa, and Ebola.
Kortepeter crafts a rich and riveting narrative as he wrestles with life-and-death decisions managing biological weapon exposures. The stories are real, but they could just as easily serve as plotlines in popular fiction or Hollywood thrillers. He gives the reader a seat at the table as each crisis unfolds, with an unvarnished and personal perspective on the dangers, the drama, the fear, the frustrations, the irony, and the uncertainty he encountered as a physician in the role of “Biodefender.”

Ralph Buglass, a Montgomery County native and avid history buff, has taught at lifelong learning institutes associated with Johns Hopkins and American universities and Montgomery College. He speaks frequently to community groups, businesses, and other organizations as well as at national conferences. He is also a docent at Montgomery Parks’ restored Kingsley schoolhouse in Clarksburg’s Little Bennett Park. A graduate of Winston Churchill High School, he has a B.A. in American history from Cornell and an M.A. in journalism from American University.

David M. Feehan is a world recognized expert in downtown revitalization. For more than forty years, he has provided leadership and management to successful downtown and business district organizations, founded and directed a technical assistance center for community development organizations and a public policy organization, authored numerous books and articles, and taught at two universities. He is often quoted by news media throughout North America, the Caribbean, and elsewhere. 

He is a frequent speaker at conferences and meetings, and has provided consulting services to many government agencies, organizations and associations. He has served on numerous boards of directors, and has chaired the boards of the International Downtown Association, the Responsible Hospitality Institute, and other organizations. 

As the chief executive of three downtown organizations and one community development corporation, Feehan managed major real estate and infrastructure projects, successful business attraction and retention programs, and an award-winning parking system. 

As the chief executive of two technical assistance centers, he provided organizational development, marketing, fundraising and other management support to more than 500 nonprofit organizations. 

As a consultant, Feehan has helped downtown and business district organizations as well as units of government develop visions and missions, strategic plans, innovative programs, and transformational processes.

As an author and professor, he co-edited and wrote the most recognized textbook on downtown management, Making Business Districts Work, and is a frequent writer for journals and trade publications.