Merissa Davis

President

Merissa is a wildlife biologist by trade and has been working in environmental consulting for over 20 years, spending the last 12 at Bowen Collins & Associates in Draper. Diabetes completely took over the lives of the Davis family when Merissa’s son Otto, age 9, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of 2. Merissa volunteers her time with JDRF because this organization has allowed her family to step back from the day-to-day grind of T1D and instead focus on the bigger picture of what they can do to improve the everyday lives of those with T1D and their loved ones. In her free time, she loves to spend as much time as possible in the mountains with her husband Jason and their two children, Otto and Vivian. They love trail running, mountain biking, skiing, enjoying live music and baking. Merissa even turned her love of cooking and baking into Piebetes, a family organization where she bakes and sells pies to raise funds for JDRF year-round.

Dan Hair

Nominating and Board Development Chair

Dan’s association with the T1D community started soon after his second son Sean was diagnosed in 1990 at the age of 14. Dan became involved with the San Diego Chapter and served on the Board before being elected President. In 1995, Dan’s career took him to Salt Lake City, where he was the founding President of the Chapter in 1995. Dan served on the Los Angeles Board from 2000 to 2004 before he and Caroline returned to Utah in 2005. Since then, he has continuously served on the Utah Community Board as well as been a member of the JDRF audit committee and other regional assignments. Dan and Caroline are Beta Society members. Dan retired as Chief Risk Officer at WCF Insurance in 2019 and in retirement, serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Medicine at the University of Utah.

Annie Griffin

Walk Chair

Annie lives in Lehi with her husband Randy and their three sons: Hank, Max and Sam. Hank was diagnosed with T1D in 2011 and Max was diagnosed in 2015. They enjoy sports, (especially football), being out on their boat, golfing and skiing. Annie is a certified life coach who helps moms improve their relationships with their teenage sons. Her real-life experience caring for two teenagers with T1D has greatly influenced her coaching style. She decided to become involved with JDRF shortly after Hank was diagnosed. The research they help fund gives her so much hope for the future. She has loved serving in many capacities within the organization from the One Walk, to leadership committees, to mentoring, and now on the Utah Community Board. The type 1 community has given Annie so many wonderful friendships and support that she is very grateful for.

Christopher German

Research Information Volunteer

Chris has lived with T1D for nearly 35 years, since the age of 6. His family got involved with JDRF at the time of his diagnosis and has been involved with this organization in some capacity ever since. Chris is currently a senior scientist at Myriad Genetics, developing, overseeing and reporting the analytical studies needed for tests that inform cancer patients of chemotherapy treatment eligibility in order to work on regulatory body approvals. Chris continues to remain involved with JDRF outside of his professional career because he wants to see cures for a disease that affects him and millions of others. In his free time, he enjoys backcountry skiing, mountain biking, hiking, a glass of whiskey, reading and doing as much of it all as possible with his wife and two young boys.

Andrew Miller

Andrew’s son was diagnosed with T1D when he was 14 years old. It was a scary time for the Miller family. While staying with his son in the hospital, Andrew was reintroduced to JDRF. He had previously volunteered for JDRF years earlier and was reminded of the incredible work they were doing. The organization was there for the Miller family in a time of need and Andrew wanted to help champion the cause for his son and all those affected by the disease. His son, who is now 17, is doing very well and continues to be a great example to Andrew, his wife, and their other three children. He is now a rock climber, golfer, body builder and plays tennis for his high school team. As a family, the Millers love to travel, rock climb, golf, play pickleball and spend time outdoors. His wife is an Instagram influencer who stages video and photography shoots for businesses and Andrew has owned his own Farmers Insurance Agency since 2020.

Wade Sherman

Wade is currently Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of Adobe, in charge of the legal team in support of Enterprise Sales and the Digital Experience business unit. He also currently serves as Head of Integration for Adobe’s recent acquisition of Workfront. Wade is the father of a child with T1D. His daughter Julia was diagnosed at the beginning of her junior year in high school. It was a devastating discovery for a kid that was a
competitive swimmer, with goals to compete at the highest levels of the sport. This diagnosis, and the resulting lack of control, that is presented to someone of Julia’s personality type was extremely hard. It took a toll on the small family. She has since gone on to attend and graduate from the University of California, Berkeley in Genetics and Plant Biology and was a member of the Cal Triathlon team in each of her 4 years in school. She is now working as the Lab Manager and Associate Researcher for a microbiology lab, and she strives to manage her disease everyday with the frustrations and challenges it comes with. Wade wants nothing more than to see the technology evolve to a place where everyone with this disease has a reasonable means of managing it easily, eventually finding a cure. Wade believes the work that JDRF is doing is incredibly valuable in changing lives for the better. Wade enjoys having an active voice in his community and serves on multiple other boards, including for Utah Warriors Rugby, Emigration Brewing Co., EPIC Venture Fund and Silicon Slopes. He also serves as Co-Chair of the Utah Transportation Coalition of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce.

Chris Sanders

Chris has served as Vice President of Data and Architecture at 1-800-Contacts for nearly 2 ½ years. He is passionate about driving change and developing people, and the majority of his career has been centered around data and technology. Chris was personally introduced to T1D when a friend in high school passed away from hypoglycemia. Then later, his oldest daughter Lindey started showing symptoms at 8 years old. It rocked the world of the Sanders family. It was months before he was able to sleep through the night and would frequently check her blood sugar a couple times a night to make sure she was still alive. Every night tucking her into bed, he wasn’t sure if she would wake up in the morning. Over time, the family adjusted and life became normal again – at least for five more years when his 3rd child Kaylie also started showing symptoms at 8 years old. Round two was much easier since they all knew what to expect and how to manage T1D. 15 years later, both daughters have A1C’s in the 6’s and are doing an amazing job managing their T1D. The new tools available have been game changers and the Sanders family is very grateful for the advancements in technology to make life that much easier. Chris is very active and when not working, can be found trail running, hiking, bowhunting and exploring the remote corners of Utah.