Healthcare Charities, Inc. (HCI) is a non-profit, public benefit corporation, registered and incorporated in the State of California in 1995, and granted tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Additionally, HCI was granted Private Voluntary Organization (PVO) status with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID Registration Number A0083). PVOs partner with USAID, in carrying out long-term sustainable development and humanitarian relief activities.
India is one of the most populous nations on earth. Its human health problems are by the numbers staggering – 41 million cases of diabetes, nearly half the world’s blind population, and sixty percent of the world’s incidences of heart disease. But behind the numbers are human beings, many of whom have no access to high-quality healthcare. It is for this reason that most of our efforts are to help the people of India.
Board Members
Karen Sneha Moawad has volunteered with the MA Math in India for the past 21 years and currently serves as Program Manager, Amrita Center for International Programs (ACIP), North America, representing Amrita University, the #1 private university in India (QS and THE Rankings for 2016). She was recently named as the CEO/President of Healthcare Charities, Inc. (HCI). And she teaches at Amrita University in the School of Business.
Karen was also selected as a 2015-2016 Global Champion for Women’s Economic Empowerment for Empower Women at the United Nations. She holds a BS Degree in Human Resources from School of Business, University of Oregon.
Consulting Experience
Karen is the founder and CEO of Hummingbird Associates, an international orthodontic management consulting firm. Karen has earned a well-deserved reputation for applying practical problem-solving skills to systems organization, integration of associates and partners, personnel related policies and systems, compensation assessment, incentive programs, staffing recommendations, and performance analysis benchmarking.Karen works with each practice as a coach/advisor/facilitator. She is a specialist in business strategy and organizational effectiveness and capitalizes on enhancing the relationship between these two dimensions while maintaining a holistic and personal involvement with each client and staff member.Books and Lecturing ExperienceAn accomplished author, Essays on Management of an Orthodontic Practice, Volumes I and II and Transforming Conflict in the Orthodontic Practice are important textbooks for orthodontists throughout the world. Karen also gives lectures at regional, national, and international conferences, often to audiences of 2500 or more.Bettie Little joined Healthcare Charities, Inc. as Chief Financial Officer in 1995. In this capacity she is responsible for all Management and Financial Accounting, including budgeting, forecasting, financial analysis, cash management, cost accounting, accounts payable and accounts receivable.
Prior to joining Healthcare Charities, she served on the General Motors Corporation Financial staff with responsibilities for the accounting, operations and reporting for the stock, investment, pension and retirement plans covering that organizations’ 650,000 domestic salaried and hourly employees. She has also consulted in the Merger and Acquisition arena handling asset transfers between trustees and defined contribution plan mergers and terminations.
From an early age Bettie was taught that one should make a contribution to the society. Her service at Healthcare Charities, has helped her to fulfill that strong desire. In her spare time she holds motivation sessions with pre-teen students in depressed areas to encourage them to pursue higher education and to develop life skills that will enliven their path.
Bettie studied with the Jesuits at the University of Detroit and holds an MBA from that institution.
- Cathryn Schmidt is a resident of Santa Fe, New Mexico. For over 30 years she has volunteered with local community organizations offering support to the less fortunate.She is currently serving as secretary on the Board of HCI and is strongly committed to helping HCI achieve its valuable and relevant mission.In addition to serving on the HCI Board, Ms. Schmidt oversees fundraising and other volunteer efforts for The Burrito Project – a local Santa Fe non-profit food project that has made and served over 112,000 handmade burrito lunches since 1996.Ms. Schmidt is also a founder and supporter of Children’s Outreach – a northern New Mexico project. The Children’s Outreach has raised funds to provide 500 school children with new outfits to start the school year.Teachers and counselors identified many children who often begin the school year with ill fitting, worn shoes and clothing. The families and children receive a huge emotional and mental boost from being able to walk into their classroom nicely dressed. This confidence translates to better academic success.
The program also supports Hooked on Books, an after school and summer tutoring program. Students receive one on one tutoring from teen mentors who work on reading skills with the children. Students often progress a full grade level. Ms. Schmidt has assisted with fundraising for these valuable programs. - Felicia Macindoe is a new member on the Board of Directors of Health Care Charities International.
Her commitment originates from a passionate belief that everyone deserves access to good education and healthcare. When disaster struck, New Orleans, Haiti, India, and other areas, Felicia has been instrumental in organizing the delivery of medical supplies to people in need.Felicia has a Masters in Education from Mills College and a BA in Human Development from Cal State East Bay. She has completed training in ISO quality management systems.Felicia’s career background is in education. She recently designed and create online vocational training curriculums. Intended for women whose family incomes are below the poverty line, these instruction units are now being utilized in training centers in 21 states throughout India.Felicia’s diverse skill set also includes program management, event planning and fundraising. She was a founding member of a grassroots program in Oakland, California to provide meals and school supplies to the homeless population.A native of Wisconsin, Felicia enjoys spending time in nature, organic gardening and berry picking. She lives in the Bay Area with her husband, Stuart. - Kristina Poole is a new member of the Board of Directors of Healthcare Charities, Inc.Originally from Seattle, Washington with origins in a family focused on social service, Kristina joined a non-profit volunteer organization in 1998, which focused on delivering health care, food and housing to those in need in India.Kristina’s prior work experience ranges from being a sought-after Catering Chef to managing pop-up bookstores across the world in an effort to raise funds for those in need. She also creates, produces and directs major theatrical productions. We are grateful to have her background in logistics, planning and program management on the HCI Board.
- John Weiss has been a successful financial planner and licensed principle and stock broker for over 30 years. As such, he has extension experience in both finance and the business world. He currently manages a branch office of Crown Capital Securities, located in San Juan Capistrano, California with a secondary office located in San Ramon, California.In addition to John’s business activity, he has devoted many, many hours to various charitable organizations over the past 25 years including Mother’s Kitchen in Tucson, AZ which regularly provides meals for a local homeless shelter. John and his wife currently volunteers at a food pantry called Family Assistance Ministries (FAM) located in San Clemente, California.Over the years, John and his wife have also hosted many money raising functions for various charitable organizations including several events after the 2004 tsunami to benefit the survivors of this horrific catastrophe. Additionally, they purchased and organized the transportation of thousands of specialized books to schools in India to help Indian students continue their studies.John and his wife are deeply committed to helping the underprivileged and suffering people of the world and regularly devote their time and resources to making their dream a reality.
