MEET THE TEAM

Experience. Expertise. Relationships.

 

Our team of world-renowned physicians, innovators, tech investors and venture capital market managers bring decades of experience developing and commercializing new transformational healthcare innovations.

MANAGING PARTNERS

J Burner Crew

J. Burner Crew
Managing Director 

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Aaron Kelley

Aaron E. Kelley, CFA, CAIA
Managing Partner

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Frank A. Papay, MD, BME, DSc(HON), FACS, FAAP
Consulting Managing Partner

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Raymond R. Rackley, MD, BME
Consulting Managing Partner

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Marc S. Penn, MD, PhD (BME), FACC
Consulting Managing Partner

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ASSOCIATES

Bill Leonard

William J. Leonard
CFO

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Jacqueline Di Dillo

Jacqueline Di Cillo
Operations Manager

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Gayle Pekkola

Gayle Pekkola
Advisor

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FUND ADVISORS

Marc S. Byrnes

Marc Byrnes, Chair

  • Chairman Emeritus & former Chairman & CEO, Oswald Companies (ranked among the largest US insurance brokers)
  • Inducted into the Cleveland Business Hall of Fame, 2016
  • Board Member: Cuyahoga County’s Economic Commission Council, United Way of Greater Cleveland, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, University School. Past Board Chair of United Way of Greater Cleveland & Cleveland Leadership Center
  • Board Advisor: Nirvana Analytics, Proformex, Tailwind Technologies, Inc., US Bank.
  • BA, Williams College

Dr. Toby Cosgrove

Toby Cosgrove, MD

  • Former President and CEO, Cleveland Clinic
  • Executive Advisor
  • Recipient of Cleveland Clinic’s Master Clinical Award, Innovator of the Year Award and Lerner Humanitarian Award
  • Board Member of Cleveland Medical Hall of Fame and Cleveland Business Hall of Fame
  • Named Cleveland Business Executive of the Year by the Sales and Marketing Executives of Cleveland and Castle Connolly’s National Physician of the Year
  • MD, University of Virginia School of Medicine

Ira Kaplan

  • Executive Chairman, Executive Committee Member & former ​Managing Partner, Benesch ​L​aw ​F​irm
  • J.D., The George Washington University Law School; BA, University of Rochester

    Stephen McHale 

     Stephen McHale

    • Founder & CEO, Unify Labs (nonprofit tech innovation center with mission of powering inclusive prosperity)
    • Former CEO and Chairman, Explorys (an IBM Co.); Everstream; US Connect
    • Board Chair, RxRevu; Board Member: Cleveland Clinic, The Cleveland Orchestra, The Centers for Families and Children, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, JumpStart, Greater Cleveland Food Bank
    • BA, Bowling Green State University

    GET IN TOUCH

    Join us in our mission to make the Midwest a global hub for investment in healthcare innovation. Learn more about Nirvana Ventures and Nirvana Healthcare Venture Fund by filling out the form below.