Meet AARP Oregon's Executive Council
By: Source: AARP.org Date Posted: 2006-09-21 14:36:00-04:00
Ray Miao, State President
Ray Miao has been active in the Bend community, where he was instrumental in the formation of a unified county library system while serving as chair of the Deschutes County and Bend Public Library Boards. He is currently in a fourth term as an elected member of the Board of Directors of the Deschutes Public Library System. Miao also volunteers for the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) and is on the budget committee for the Deschutes County Rural Fire Protection District. Professionally, he has been a senior biochemist/cell biologist at Stanford Research Institute International, Menlo Park, CA; director of research and development, DAKO Corp., Inc. Carpinteria, CA.; and corporate vice president-operations, Coast to Coast Analytical Services, Inc. Miao received a PhD from Duke University, Durham, NC.
Don Bruland
Don Bruland has been a long-time older persons advocate in southern Oregon. He's served as director of the Rogue Valley Council of Government's Senior and Disability Services since 1975. In that role, he's responsible for managing all local programs serving seniors and persons with disabilities in two counties, including: the Older Americans Act; Medicaid Long Term Care; Cash Assistance; Protective Services and Abuse Investigation; Adult Foster Home Licensing; and Oregon Project Independence. He's also been a gerontological nutrition instructor at Oregon State University, served on numerous boards and commissions, and holds a master's of social work.
Chad Cheriel
Chandran "Chad" Cheriel, PhD of Portland, is currently a senior research associate and consultant for the Portland State University Institute on Aging. His career milestones include serving as: Director of the Oregon Office of Health Policy; Manager of Hospital Policy & Program, Oregon Department of Human Resources; Director of Policy, Seattle City Office of Management and Planning; Director of Research & Finance, Oregon Division of Senior & Disabled Services; and Executive Policy Advisor and Special Assistant to the Director of the Oregon Department of Human Services. He also chaired the Oregon Department of Human Services Diversity Development Coordinating Council. Cheriel has served on state and national boards and projects addressing health and long-term care issues for public, private and government
Gwen Curran
Gwen Curran is a retired arts educator living in Eugene who's worked in California, Oregon, and various U.S. Dept. of Defense Dependent schools in Europe. She's been a lifelong member of the National Education Association and has served as a union representative in several school settings. Other community roles have included serving as Chair of the Oregon Alliance for Arts Education, Chair of the Oregon Imagination Celebration, and as an elected member of the Executive Board of the American Dance Guild. Curran has been awarded a Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Fellowship for her community and educational work in dance, using that opportunity to research dance for the older dancer. She writes dance reviews for the Eugene Register Guard and has also written articles on arts education and developed curriculum guides in dance, arts-related teaching, women's studies and social studies. She is currently on the board of Sparkplug Dance in Eugene and is developing an intergenerational dance program. A volunteer trainer for AARP Oregon since 2004, Curran 's focus continues to be creative problem solving and healthy and active aging through the arts.
Allen Douma
Allen Douma, MD from Ashland, brings a wealth of health care experience to AARP Oregon. He's held leadership positions in Oregon's state government and national nonprofit and for-profit organizations including: State Medicaid Director for the Oregon Department of Human Services; CEO of an Internet health information company; Medical Director for two national health insurance companies; and professor at George Washington University Medical Center and the American Medical Association. Since graduating from medical school and completing a fellowship in health economics, Douma has mixed his administrative roles with being a health communicator including authoring health books and a syndicated column as well as editing and writing for health magazines and online services. He also helped develop and write material for AARP's Wise Use of Drugs Campaign.
Laurel Murphy
Laurel Murphy has been a leader in AARP Oregon for several years. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Longview Stageworks, a professional theatre company. Murphy has been deputy director of the State of Alaska Division of Mining and director of special investigations for the Alaska Human Rights Commission. In other career paths, she has been director of a private elementary school in Berkeley, CA. and branch manager for an environmental consulting firm. Murphy is former chair of the Alaska Women's Political Caucus. She holds a law degree.
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