Catherine Baldwin has joined Suspended Animation as its new General Manager. Catherine will be managing day to day activities and will join the standby team after completing Suspended Animation’s training programs. She brings more than a decade worth of research, management and development experience to Suspended Animation as well as expertise as an Emergency First Responder Instructor.

Early in her career as a scientist with UCLA’s Neurobiology department she helped develop remote injection and monitoring techniques for in vivo experiments in the cannulated brain. Later, managing a laboratory for the Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute’s Cardiopulmonary Research department, she developed a single cell animal model for thermoregulatory responses to hypoxia as well as the custom gas and cooling circuitry required for cell and whole animal experiments.

She went on to become a Product Manager and Strategic Marketing Manager at Applied Biosystems and then Director of Business Development for Pharmaceutical Platforms at Symyx Technologies.

Before joining Suspended Animation, she was the senior business strategist for Stratagos, a strategic business consulting company she founded to help both mature and start-up biotechnology companies develop rational business plans and product development strategies. Among her many clients were Bio-Rad Laboratories and the Ischemia Research and Education Foundation.

A native of California, her background includes a bachelor’s degree from Grinnell College in Cell and Molecular Biology with research interests in the molecular mechanisms of ischemia and reperfusion injury and hypoxia and thermoregulation. Catherine also holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Grinnell and master’s certification in New Venture Creation in High Technology from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley and in science writing from UC Santa Cruz.

After Gary Battiato graduated from the University of New Hampshire he went to Lonza Biologics, a biopharmaceutical manufacturer where he became a department leader and gained experience in areas such as fluid handling, regulatory compliance, sterilization procedures, and control systems. He next moved to a contract engineering firm which specialized in design, planning, startup, and processes in new biotech manufacturing facilities.

At Suspended Animation he is applying his diverse experience to refine procedures such as cardiopulmonary support and initial rapid cooling, where there is ample opportunity for him to exercise his lifelong interest in mechanical problem-solving. He supervises our design and fabrication activities.

Saul has been active in cryonics since 1965, when he cofounded the Cryonics Society of New York with Curtis Henderson and others. Currently he serves as a Director of Alcor Life Extension Foundation and is a director of Suspended Animation with William Faloon, who cofounded SA with Saul in 2002.

Saul is widely regarded as the greatest benefactor of cryonics related research, having played a key role in the formation and funding of companies such as 21st Century Medicine and Critical Care Research.

After joining Suspended Animation as an office assistant in April 2005, Kelly Kingston rapidly became essential to the company in a growing variety of tasks, from book keeping to the supervision of standby inventory. In recognition of her concern for fiscal responsibility and her loyalty to the company, Kelly acquired the title of Chief Financial Officer in mid-2006. Although her previous work in real estate and her years as a professional golfer are unrelated to cryonics, she is seriously committed to participate in cryonics cases and has received relevant training. She is also studying for a degree in psychology.

Because Suspended Animation’s equipment designs rely heavily on stainless steel and aluminum, the company employs a full-time custom fabricator with extensive welding experience. After three years of schooling in vocational welding, Piotr spent twelve years doing TIG, MIG, and arc welding, primarily in Detroit, in the automotive, aviation, military, and custom fabricating industries. After moving to Florida he worked in marine welding until joining Suspended Animation in 2006.

Piotr is certified by the American Welding Association in MIG and TIG welding, using aluminum, stainless, and mild steels. He assists in other forms of fabrication from time to time, has developed an interest in cryonics, and has attended training sessions with the intention of participating in case work. His perfectionism, precision, and attention to detail have enabled designs that would otherwise have been impossible.

Ken Schroeder started his career in design shortly after becoming a housing contractor and found a love for designing objects combining creativity and utility, using innovative materials. He graduated from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, where he studied Industrial Design. After joining Suspended Animation in mid-2006 he tackled a series of projects requiring initiative and creativity, beginning with vehicle access ramps and continuing with the interior of our local rescue vehicle. He brings to Suspended Animation a combination of practicality and original thinking.

Some of Ken’s prior design work can be viewed online at his personal web site, ktschroeder.com.

Mathew has been with Suspended Animation since September 2005. He was employed at the Alcor Life Extension Foundation from 1996 to 2005, where his responsibilities ranged from Patient Care and Facility Operations Manager to Director of Suspension Readiness. In these capacities he got extensive exposure to many clinical and technical aspects of cryonics and participated in more than 40 cryopreservation procedures.

At SA, Mathew is responsible for maintaining the operating room and lab readiness, participation in developing new stabilization and cryoprotection technologies, and maintaining relationships with vendors and sales representatives.

Mathew attended the University of Ohio from 1989 until 1994. He is a graduate of the Arizona School of Business and has attended the University of Phoenix and Scottsdale Community College. Mathew has been an Alcor member since 1996 and is an Advisor to its Board of Directors.