Aruna Gambhir, Director of Marketing

Aruna was introduced to Canary Foundation by her husband Dr. Gambhir, Canary's Scientific Program Director. She has over 20 years experience in the software industry. Most recently with Siebel Systems, which she joined during the startup phase and retired 7 years later. She has extensive experience in management, sales, operations and marketing. She has a B.S. in Biochemistry, M.S. in Computer Science and an M.B.A.

Aruna is a breast cancer survivor and is dedicated to the cause of early detection of cancer. She has experience working with various fundraising volunteer committees and nonprofit organizations. She is co-chair of the Portola Valley Schools Endowment Fund and serves on board of directors of the Portola Valley School Foundation and Breast Cancer Connections, a nonprofit dedicated to providing information and support to people dealing with breast cancer.

Lucille Surdi, Volunteer Manager

Lucille was introduced to Canary Foundation by her son, Christopher, who attended the 2006 San Jose Grand Prix and learned about the Canary Foundation's cause for early detection of cancer. Lucille is an ovarian cancer survivor and an advocate dedicated to the awareness and cause of early detection of cancer.

Lucille has a diversified background in business and human resources and most recently joined the Disability Resource Center at San Jose State University as the ADA Compliance Specialist. Lucille's role focuses on the American with Disabilities Act along with the California State University's Accessible Technology Initiative. This initiative was enacted to eliminate barriers in information technology for persons with disabilities and to provide for an inclusive campus community. She has a B.S. in Business and a M.A. in Organizational Management.

Katie Cooney

Katie began photographing Canary Foundation events in 2005. Katie believes once you love someone with cancer it forever changes your life and you can't help but join the cause to fight this unforgivable disease. She is honored to support the Canary Foundation and the dedicated staff through her photography.

Katie holds a B.S. in Human Development from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and a M.A. in Counseling Psychology from St. Mary's College, Moraga.

Tom Burke

Tom has 15 years’ experience in finance, in sectors including energy, media, software, and broadband. Most recently, Tom was VP of Finance for Sana Security, sold in Jan `09 to AVG Grisoft. Before joining Sana, Tom was Directeur Financier for Musiwave, a 180-person mobile music provider in Paris. Rounding out his experience are positions as Manager, Project Economics with Exxon Mobil in Singapore; Sr Finance Manager with Excite@Home; and Finance Director at Openwave, Tom studied Economics at The University of Virginia, and received his MBA from the University of North Carolina (Kenan-Flagler). When outside the office, Tom can be found on his bike, skis, and trail running shoes.

Susan Siravo

Susan Siravo was first introduced to Canary Foundation when she interviewed Don Listwin for a story while working as a television news reporter at NBC Bay Area. Susan became interested in the non-profit because it was so unique and managed in such a results-oriented way. With a decade of experience writing, producing and reporting broadcast news, Susan offered to help create videos to tell Canary’s story.

She has served as the producer of Canary’s videos which are shown at events throughout the year and are also available for viewing on the website. Susan made a career change back in 2007 and now serves as the corporate spokesperson and communications manager for the Santa Clara Valley Water District in San Jose. Being a Canary volunteer has been a rewarding experience for her and she hopes others will be inspired to volunteer their talents as well.

Canary Foundation needs volunteers on an ongoing basis. Click here to volunteer