Sutter Health Board of Directors

The Sutter Health Board of Directors is comprised of community leaders from all over Northern California. These individuals work with Sutter Health leaders on quality improvement, improved access to services, and better ways to make health care as affordable as possible.

Geraldine R. Brinton

Ms. Brinton is a former board chair of Sutter Health-affiliated California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.

Throughout her business career Ms. Brinton has worked in management consulting and direct business management. In addition to health care, her current business interests are in property management and winery development.

After receiving a bachelor's degree in accounting from Duke University, Ms. Brinton earned a master's degree in business administration from the Harvard Business School. She resides in the Sonoma area.

Mary Brown

Ms. Brown, along with her husband Chip Brown, founded Hills Newspapers, Inc. At one time, they were responsible for the publication of 18 community newspapers and magazines in the East Bay, Monterey Peninsula and San Joaquin Valley areas.

Closely involved with her community, Ms. Brown is a trustee for Sutter Health-affiliated Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Oakland and Berkeley and has served on the governing boards of numerous other civic, academic and corporate entities. She currently serves on the boards of the Oakland Public Library Foundation, Samuel Merritt College and Holy Names University. Brown attended Maryville College of the Sacred Heart in St. Louis and the San Francisco College for Women.

Gary L. Depolo

A native Californian, Mr. Depolo received his Bachelor of Science from the University of California, Los Angeles and is a certified public accountant. Mr. Depolo currently serves as a member of the Alta Bates Summit Medical Center's Board of Trustees and sits on the Alta Bates Summit Board's Planning, Marketing and Business Development Committee and Finance Committee. During his tenure, Mr. Depolo has been a recipient of the medical center's Distinguished, Outstanding and Meritorious Service Awards. His association with then Alta Bates Hospital began in 1979 when he initially served as an Advisory Trustee and a member of the Alta Bates Hospital Management Advisory Committee.

Mr. Depolo had a long and distinguished career with the Transamerica Corporation before retiring as executive vice president in 1991 where he was responsible for finance, corporate staff and administrative functions. He became controller of that company in 1968, was elected vice president in 1971, senior vice president in 1977 and executive vice president in 1989. He joined Transamerica in 1963 as assistant treasurer after six years on the audit and tax staff of Ernst & Ernst.

He and his wife are residents of Orinda.

Patrick Fry

President and Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Fry joined the Sutter organization in 1982 as an administrative resident at Sutter General Hospital in Sacramento. Over the ensuing years, he worked his way up through the organization in increasingly responsible administrative positions both at the local affiliate and regional levels. In 1996, after serving as regional president for Sutter Health's affiliates in the greater Sacramento region, Mr. Fry became president of the organization's eastern operations, which covered 18 counties in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys. In 1999, Mr. Fry relocated his office to San Francisco, assuming leadership of Sutter Health's Western Division, which included more than a dozen hospitals and physician organizations throughout the greater Bay Area. From 2000-2005, he was Sutter Health's second-in-command, serving as chief operating officer and executive vice president.

A native of Berwin, Illinois, Mr. Fry grew up in South Lake Tahoe, California, in a family of health care practitioners. He graduated from the University of California, Davis in 1979 with a bachelor's degree in public health administration, and earned a master's degree in health services administration from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. in 1982.

Mr. Fry is married and is the father of four sons. He and his family reside in Davis.

Alexander Gonzalez

Alexander Gonzalez, Ph.D., president of California State University, Sacramento (CSUS), is well known and respected for his vision to transform the university into a leading campus of choice in the western United States, as well as for his passion and involvement in a vast array of Latino issues.

Before coming to Sacramento, Dr. Gonzalez was president of California State University, San Marcos and spent 18 years at California State University, Fresno in the roles of professor, department chair and administrator. He previously served on President Bush's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans and spent six years as a commissioner for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the agency that accredits higher education institutions in the western United States. Dr. Gonzalez also served as the chair of the governing board of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, a leading voice for the higher education needs of the country's Hispanic population. He is currently a member of the boards of trustees at Pomona College, the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges and Valley Vision.

Dr. Gonzalez holds a bachelor's degree in history from Pomona College as well as a doctorate and master's degree in psychology from the University of California, Santa Cruz. He spent a year at Stanford University as a postdoctoral fellow of the Ford Foundation and the National Research Council and also attended Harvard Law School.

Dr. Gonzalez resides in Sacramento with his wife of 35 years.

Jim Gray

Mr. Gray, president and managing broker of NAI Sacramento Valley Commercial, also serves as a member of the Sutter Davis Hospital Advisory Board and the Sutter Health Public Policy Council.

Mr. Gray is a former chair of the Yolo County Planning Commission, co-founder and chair of Davis Community Housing-CHOC and a former board member and treasurer of the Davis Food Co-op. He holds a degree in housing and community development from the University of California, Davis and is a certified commercial investment member of the Commercial and Investment Real Estate Institution of the National Association of Realtors.

Mr. Gray and his family reside in Davis.

David H. Jeppson

With more than 40 years experience in the health care industry, Mr. Jeppson has a deep understanding of the mounting financial challenges facing today's hospitals and physician organizations.

Mr. Jeppson, retired executive vice president of Intermountain Health Care, a multi-state not-for-profit health care system based in Salt Lake City, Utah, is the former chief executive officer of University of Colorado Medical Center as well as the University of Washington Medical Center. He served as regent, governor and board chairman to the American College of Health Care Executives and board chairman to the Health Care Forum. Author of numerous articles on the industry, Mr. Jeppson is a guest lecturer to U.S. universities and an international consultant to health care organizations in the Republic of South Africa, China, Egypt, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Western Europe.

Richard M. Levy, Ph.D.

Dr. Levy is the first vice-chair of the Sutter Health-affiliated Palo Alto Medical Foundation Board of Trustees. He is the non-executive chairman of the board and former CEO of Varian Medical Systems, a leading Silicon Valley-based company providing high-energy radiation equipment and the associated hardware and software for treating cancer, as well as X-ray tubes for diagnostic radiology. Dr. Levy is a member of the boards of directors of Pharmacyclics, Inc. and the California Healthcare Institute.

He also has served as board chair of the American Electronics Association and as a board member of the Diagnostic Imaging and Therapy Systems Division of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association.

Dr. Levy holds a bachelor's degree from Dartmouth College and a doctorate in nuclear chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley. He resides in Palo Alto.

Todd Murray

Todd Murray, attorney and owner of the Law Office of Todd A. Murray, specializes in business and business litigation and has been practicing law for about 30 years in Northern California. He opened his private practice in 2000. Mr. Murray is judge pro tem in Sacramento Small Claims, Municipal and Superior Courts, and he serves the Sacramento County Civil Service Commission as an administrative fair hearing officer.

An involved community member, Mr. Murray has been a part of the Sutter Health family for nearly 25 years. Currently, he serves as chair of the Medical Affairs Committee for Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento and as a member of various other committees. He is a past chair of the boards of directors of then Sutter Community Hospitals as well as Sutter Health's Central Valley Region. Mr. Murray also was a charter member of the Sutter Medical Center Foundation Board of Trustees and served as its chair. He has participated in a number of other community organizations, including serving as a board member and chairman of the Ronald McDonald Camp at Eagle Lake, and as a president of the Board of the Sacramento Area Special Olympics. He has been a dedicated member of the Point West Rotary Club since 1985.

Mr. Murray received his bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Iowa. He also graduated from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge Law School.

Born in San Luis Obispo, Mr. Murray and his family now reside in Sacramento.

Andrew Pansini

A longtime resident of Marin County, Mr. Pansini is president and chief executive officer for a San Francisco-based firm that owns and manages commercial real estate in Northern California. He was formerly president and chief executive officer for Marin County-based Jandy Industries, Inc.

Mr. Pansini is a member of the Board of Directors of Marin Community Health, which oversees Marin General Hospital and Novato Community Hospital. He is also a former a member of the Novato Community Hospital Board of Directors. Mr. Pansini serves on advisory and governing boards for multiple Northern California companies and community organizations. He attended College of Marin and the University of San Francisco.

Theodore Saenger

Mr. Saenger is the retired president and CEO of Pacific Bell. During his 36 years in corporate leadership, Mr. Saenger gained significant governance experience serving on and leading many corporate governing boards.

Since his retirement from Pacific Bell, Mr. Saenger has been active in civic activities, serving on boards of a number of organizations including the San Francisco Symphony, United Way of the Greater Bay Area, California Economic Development Corporation, Los Angeles Philharmonic and the YMCA.

A resident of Alamo, he currently serves as a member of the Board of the San Francisco Foundation and the University of California Berkeley Foundation, and is the past chairman of the Board of John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek.

He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California, Berkeley.

Elizabeth Vilardo, M.D.

Dr. Vilardo, an internist with Camino Medical Group (CMG) in Sunnyvale, Calif., received her doctorate of medicine from the University of California, San Francisco and a masters in business administration from Pepperdine University. Her thesis project was a strategic analysis and plan for the affiliation of Camino Medical Group and the not-for-profit Palo Alto Medical Foundation.

Active in the community, Dr. Vilardo serves on the board of directors for CMG, and was its chair for six years from 1994 to 2000. Prior to that, she was a board member for the Sunnyvale Medical Clinic (which became CMG), chief of medicine at El Camino Hospital and chief of medicine at CMG. For the Sutter Health Board of Directors, she is a member of the Public Policy Council.

Dr. Vilardo has been named a "Top Doc" by San Francisco Magazine four years running and was nominated for a "Women of Achievement" award in 2002.

Sharon Y. Woo

Ms. Woo, is a community leader who currently serves on numerous boards of trustees in the San Francisco Bay Area including Gateway High School, Golden Gate National Parks Association, Multicultural Alliance, and the San Francisco Ballet. In addition she is the current Advisory Council Chairman for the San Francisco School Volunteers.

A native of Honolulu, Hawaii, Ms. Woo holds a Bachelor of Arts in music and mathematics from Mills College in Oakland and a secondary teaching credential from San Francisco State University.

She is a resident of San Francisco.

Don Wreden, M.D.

Dr. Wreden, is a board certified physician in internal medicine with Sutter Medical Group, which serves the greater Sacramento area.

A native of Texas, he holds a bachelor's degree from Dartmouth College. He completed his medical education at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School and completed his residency at the University of Arizona affiliated hospitals.

Dr. Wreden also serves on the boards of directors of the Sutter Medical Group, the Sutter Medical Foundation, the Sutter Central Area and Sutter Senior Care.

He resides in the Sacramento Valley.