Lisa Schmidt is an active volunteer in her community and has been a childhood cancer advocate since her daughter Amelia’s brain cancer diagnosis in 2014. In addition to being on the board of Special Love, Lisa is currently on the board of the Green Spring Master Gardener Association and also is an active member (and former board member) of a local chapter of PEO which raises money for women’s higher education.

Lisa volunteers with other organizations such as The Truth 365, a childhood cancer awareness and advocacy organization, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and her church. Her former volunteer activities include Animal Assisted Care program at Inova Fairfax Hospital and the Northern Virginia Therapeutic Riding Program (now Cloverleaf Therapeutic Riding Program) in Clifton, VA. She is a certified Master Naturalist and Certified Master Gardener and is has a special interest in Horticultural Therapy in the medical setting.

Lisa’s career included employment with Fairfax County Public Schools, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Westat, and Salient Content. She also conducted health policy research with the RAND Corporation focusing on long-term care for the aging. She graduated with a BA in Biochemistry/Cell Biology from the University of California San Diego (1987), and an MPH (1990) and Ph.D. (2000) in Public Health Policy from the University of California Los Angeles.