About Us

Our Dedicated Team Focused on Helping Brain Tumor Patients

Brain Tumor Support Group

SUPPORT

HOPE

COURAGE

Board Members

updated 2/5/24

Our Board

SBTF Board members have all been touched by a brain tumor diagnosis. As a result, each is dedicated to raising funds for brain tumor research. Also, each member works diligently to provide support and outreach for those in the brain tumor community.

We know the feeling of isolation, confusion, and fear. We understand the importance of being hugged, and we treasure the talents of those who are good listeners.

We are your SBTF Board of Directors, diverse in background but all focused on the same outcome. We are patients, we are healthcare providers, we are caregivers, we are researchers. We work in a voluntary, unpaid capacity, and we are consumed with our mission to find a cure for brain tumors.

We are proud to serve you and to be of service to you.

Officers and Staff

New Project (38)
New Project (39)
garvin
New Project (41)
geri
Joy Basham, SBTF Director of Programs and Events

Board Members & Staff: (In Alpha Order)

THE HISTORY OF THE SBTF

The Southeastern Brain Tumor Foundation was incorporated in 1995.  Our Founders, the Warshaw family, were in search of brain tumor resources in the Atlanta, GA area after their son was diagnosed with a brain tumor.

Their persistence to identify and locate resources resulted not only in our Incorporation, but in the establishment of our mission to fund brain tumor research with the hope of advancing curative treatments and improve the quality of life for brain tumor patients and their families.

We received our IRS Non-Profit determination letter in May of 1995, the same letter recognized the Southeastern Brain Tumor Foundation as a public charity.  Since inception, and to this day, the Foundation is led by an all-volunteer Board of Directors who serve in an uncompensated capacity. Each member has been impacted by a brain tumor diagnosis as a patient, a caregiver, or as a brain tumor related medical clinician.

The directives from our Board strive to ensure that all decisions result in the maximum allocation of funds for brain tumor research grants and support services. While we do not offer direct financial support to individual patients, we do support patient programs.

Our brain tumor support group meetings are designed to give patients, as well as their families and caregivers, access to information and resources. These can help them navigate the brain tumor journey.  Our Voices of Hope Academic Scholarship program provides provide individuals, whose life has been impacted by a brain tumor diagnosis, the opportunity to pursue post-secondary education at an accredited college, university, or technical school. 

Our annual fundraising activities, as well as support year-round from our donors have enabled us to fund scientific research and investigator-initiated clinical trials. Read more about our impact on brain tumors.

SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Our Scientific Advisory Committee members are involved in discussions which seek out and identify opportunities in which the SBTF might collaborate, or partner, with other organizations to identify, uncover, collect, and review research grant proposals. The Committee strives to identify which research grants proposals contain the most promising research pointed to deliver effective treatments for results. The Southeastern Brain Tumor Foundation has no obligatory financial affiliation with a research institution or organization. We don’t care who finds the cure, just that a cure is found.

From the President

Kelly Turner, SBTF Board President

SBTF President Kelly Turner

I’m Kelly Turner, your SBTF President. My journey with brain tumors began in 2007 with my mother’s Glioblastoma diagnosis. After a 16-month battle, it ended the way many GBM journeys end, with her death. After this devastating loss, I wanted to find a way to continue the fight in her memory. I became involved with the SBTF as a participant in the 2007 Race For Research 5k, and continued to participate year after year, even after Mom's passing. About four years later, wanting to do more, I found my way to the Foundation’s Board of Directors. I am honored to to serve as your President for another year; this is an amazing organization. 

The SBTF is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit voluntary health organization and public charity. Our primary mission is to improve the quality of life for brain tumor patients and their families and to provide funding for research so that a cure for brain tumors can be found. SBTF Board members are all volunteers; we come from different backgrounds and have regular jobs and regular daily stresses. We are current patients, healthcare professionals, and survivors. We are those touched by a friend or family member’s diagnosis, and we are those who support the SBTF’s mission. It is our common dedication to the SBTF that brings us together and enables us to succeed.

Since its creation, the SBTF has funded $3 million in research grants. This funding resulted from the success of our annual fundraisers, including our signature event, the Race for Research, held each fall in Atlanta, Georgia. Event registration, individual donations, gifts of securities, employer gift matching, and personal fundraising, as well as the ever-important support and sponsorship by local corporations, enable us to fund critical brain tumor research.

In addition to raising funds for research, the SBTF offers support groups led by a nurse practitioner. Our support groups offer a safe and supportive environment for patients and families to share their experiences and receive resources and understanding. The SBTF also strives to educate the brain tumor community by providing regular research updates and making available resource information for those affected by the disease.

We provide support, hope, and courage to those impacted by brain tumors. We understand that while we wait for a cure, patients and their loved ones need support now. To lend a hand, we created two programs: Voices of Hope Scholarship and Patient Initiatives. We offer the Voices of Hope Scholarship to students of any age entering post-secondary education who have been impacted by a brain tumor diagnosis. In addition, we provide patient support services to patients in the midst of treatment to assist with transportation, meals and other needs.

It is you, our fellow advocates, who have enabled this organization to support the brain tumor community’s necessary emotional, informational, and scientific needs. We deeply appreciate your invaluable contributions.

To learn more about the SBTF, speak to a member of our board or volunteer, please contact us via email at info@sbtf.org.

With hope for a cure,

Kelly Turner
2020-2024 President, Southeastern Brain Tumor Foundation

Stewardship

The SBTF Board meets monthly in a face-to-face setting either in person or via web conference. Our Board members are not compensated for their service and complete an annual Conflict of Interest document. Financial statements are reviewed by a CPA who also prepares and files our annual IRS 990 Form. EIN 58-2166144

2023 spending by program graphic

Our Stewardship

The Southeastern Brain Tumor Foundation strives to assure at least $0.65 of each dollar is spent directly on programs including research grants, scholarships, support groups and patient initiatives.

Our lifetime average is $0.80 per dollar directly funding our programs.