HMRI Appoints Two New Members to Board of Directors

Leading biomedical research organization welcomes Edward Mena, MD and Rick Wentzel, CPA

PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Huntington Medical Research Institutes (HMRI), a leading biomedical research organization in Southern California with a 70-year track record of impact, announced it added Dr. Edward Mena and accountant Rick Wentzel to its board of directors.

“We are thrilled to welcome Edward and Rick to our board of directors,” Dr. Julia Bradsher, president and CEO of HMRI, said. “Their extensive insights, experience and guidance will play a critical role in continuing to execute HMRI’s mission of advancing scientific discovery and will help us scale our research organization over the next 10 years. Edward’s medical experience alongside Rick’s extensive financial expertise adds to the breadth of the existing board in bolstering HMRI’s strategic plan.”

Edward Mena, MD, MBA, FAASLD
Mena has more than 20 years of liver research and hepatology practice, currently serving as the medical director of Pasadena Liver Center and medical director-CEO of California Liver Research Institute. He previously worked at the HMRI Liver Center and later opened his own private practice and research facility focused on liver disease. His work over the years centered around improving liver care for diverse communities. His specialties include nonalcoholic fatty-liver disease in adult and pediatric patients, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in response to chronic hepatitis C, and liver cancer. For his commitment to helping engage the broader healthcare community and the Latin community, he received the Hispanic Health Leadership Award in 2019 and the Health Care Visionary Award from the American Liver Foundation in 2020. After graduating from the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, he received his executive Master of Business Administration from the USC Marshall School of Business.

Rick Wentzel, CPA
For more than 30 years, Wentzel has exclusively served not-for-profit organizations and currently is an independent consultant, assisting organizations with operational reviews, board governance reviews and risk assessments. He previously served as Grant Thornton's, Audit Partner, West region not-for-profit and higher education practice leader. Additionally, Wentzel has over 35 years of public and private audit and accounting experience, serving a variety of industries, including higher education, healthcare and employee benefit plans. He held prominent positions at PricewaterhouseCoopers after launching his career at Coopers & Lybrand.

Mena and Wentzel join the distinguished HMRI Board of Directors, led by Board Chair Dr. Susan E. Kane. HMRI’s mission is to advance scientific discovery through innovative biomedical research to improve health outcomes and inspire the next generation of scientists. Learn more at www.hmri.org.

About HMRI
Based in Pasadena, California, Huntington Medical Research Institutes (HMRI) is an independent, nonprofit organization that advances scientific discovery through innovative biomedical research to improve health outcomes and inspire the next generation of scientists. For seventy years, HMRI has focused life-changing studies on diseases and conditions that impact the everyday lives of families. Our scientists seek solutions to daunting challenges, like Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease, consequences of toxicity of nicotine, smoking, and vaping, and biological basis of mental illness.