our team

Fred founded No Worries Now at the age of 15 in honor of his best friend Shiri Gumbiner, who passed away from a rare form of bone cancer before the duo could fulfill their dream of attending prom together. Now 21, Fred has worked tirelessly to put on annual proms since 2007. Fred was a CNN Hero in 2010, earning him an international fan base. He has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times and Women’s World Magazine, and on multiple local and national news networks. Fred has studied at Cornell University and the University of California, Berkeley, and is expecting to graduate with his bachelor’s degree in 2012. Fred is also a rising star in the stand-up comedy world, performing regularly at venues throughout Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco – including laundromats and TGI Friday’s (on a Monday) – with all proceeds from his shows benefiting No Worries Now. Fred’s friends cite his unwavering energy and ability to find humor in every situation as his greatest charms. When he’s not working on No Worries Now, Fred can be found gathering standup material while hitting the gym, eating at his favorite Sherman Oaks panini café, walking his family’s beloved Collie, or watching Millionaire Matchmaker with his mother. Fred says his proudest moment was eating twelve scoops of Berkeley’s Ici ice cream in 24 hours. He has a twin sister, and is convinced she is the evil one.

Marta joined the No Worries Now Board of Directors in 2008. Inspired by the time she spent with No Worries Now spokesperson Samantha Ashburn, who passed away in April 2011 of bone cancer, Marta spearheaded the Now Pairs program before taking on the position of Executive Director in summer 2011. Currently a fourth-year rhetoric student at the University of California, Berkeley, Marta plans to pursue a law degree starting in 2012. At Berkeley, she has been a consistent dean’s list honoree as well as a recipient of merit scholarships from the Alumni Leadership Foundation and Institute for International Studies. She has also studied at Freie Universität Berlin and is fluent in German. In order to further her vision of a public umbilical cord blood banking system, Marta founded the Cal Cord Blood Initiative in 2009 and is in the process of producing a documentary on the topic. She has interned in the office of California Assemblymember Anthony Portantino and in the Legislative Affairs Department of the National Marrow Donor Program working on cord blood issues. She worked as the copy editor and a staff writer for the Outlook Newspaper for four years until 2008, and previously had her own column in the Daily Californian. In her spare time, Marta enjoys geocaching, reading about quantum physics, spending quality time with her cat, and sending art through the mail.

Jason was inspired to join No Worries Now by his sister, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma two years ago at the age of 17. As she went through chemo, losing all her hair and feeling drained of energy, one of her biggest goals was to attend her school’s senior prom. Unfortunately, she did not have a good experience at her own prom because she felt overwhelmed by being “different.” Jason is grateful that No Worries Now provides a truly amazing prom experience for teens in his sister’s situation. Currently, Jason is a freelance filmmaker and focus group coordinator for a market research company in Los Angeles. He worked with Australian pop star Sam Sparro on a television pilot in 2010, and that same year made a short film that went to international film festivals all over the world. Jason has a bachelor’s of science in digital filmmaking and video production from the Art Institute of California, Los Angeles. He has been extensively involved in philanthropic organizations, including coordinating events for Britney Snow’s Love is Louder campaign and Richard Branson’s Rock the Kasbah. Jason loves to travel, and eating out is his ultimate guilty pleasure. He balances a busy social life with relaxing yoga rituals. He dedicates a great deal of his time to helping others and raising his three-year-old Miniature Pinscher. His friends, as well as his dog, cite his dynamic, spontaneous personality and his intense drive towards success as the traits Jason brings to the Board of No Worries Now.

Bianca Philippi brings more than seventeen years of experience in business development, education and international marketing, including thirteen years in marketing research with organizations such as Olson Zaltman and Campbell Rinker. Bianca has extensive experience working across sectors on professional development, corporate social responsibility, philanthropy, global poverty and volunteerism. Bianca has worked with firms as varied as The Coca-Cola Company, Proctor and Gamble, Audi, Cessna, Chevron-Texaco, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Pfizer, Kimberly Clark, Hugo Boss, Escada, Intel, Microsoft, the Harvard Business School, Phillips Academy (Andover), The World Bank, CARE International, The Carter Center, NFTE (National Foundation for the Teaching of Entrepreneurship) and Opportunity International. She is an adjunct instructor at The College of the Canyons and the University of California, Los Angeles, Extension as well as the founder of Creative Insights. She studied at Boston University, Harvard University and the University of California, Los Angeles.

Sara currently lives in Alexandria, Virginia. Sara heard about No Worries Now from a media piece on CNN, and immediately contacted us to ask how she could help. Since then, she has been an active volunteer, and she now brings her incredible energy to the Board as the secretary. In addition to her duties on the Board, Sara is heading up the organization’s first “Prom in a Box,” hosting a Now Prom at Top of the Town in Washington, D.C., on June 11, 2012.

Lucene came to No Worries Now as a prom attendee. Diagnosed in January 2005 with a tumor on her optic nerve, Lucene immediately lost her eyesight. Since then, Lucene has developed an intense passion for volunteer work, and has logged more than 2,000 volunteer hours with various organizations, including Teen Impact, Extreme Mobility, the International Order of the Rainbow for Girls, and Junior Statesmen of America. She has also been involved with a project of a Washington State school for the blind involving creating brail literature. Now 19, Lucene is starting her first year at the University of California, Los Angeles. When she isn’t volunteering, Lucene enjoys skiing, snowboarding and painting.

Lauren is studying graphic design at Pierce College and currently lives in the San Fernando Valley. She has a doodleblog, and enjoys visiting art galleries, going to shows and movies, gardening, baking, crocheting and doodling. She attended high school with No Worries Now Founder Fred Scarf and loves working with No Worries Now because of the hands-on nature of the organization.

Gina, a Los Angeles native, is the support and bereavement coordinator in the Mattel-UCLA Children’s Comfort Care Program. Gina has worked in New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles as a pediatric medical social worker since 1988. She is the proud mother of four daughters ranging in age from 8 to 18 years. Her husband, Fred, is a social worker and psychologist at the V.A. Hospital. Gina earned her bachelor’s degree at Kenyon College in Ohio and went on to get a double master’s in special education and social work from Columbia University School of Social Work and Bank Street College of Education. She has been on the board of Carrie On Day Camp and St. Matthew’s Day Camp. Gina has been working to get the support and bereavement services up and running in pediatrics at UCLA and has started a monthly staff support session, puts on an annual family memorial service and is introducing a family bereavement group in the fall in Westwood Village. Gina plays volleyball, hikes, bakes, and loves hanging out with her family, preferably by a body of water. Gina climbed Mt. Whitney in September 2008 starting at 2:30 a.m. and finishing the 14,000-foot climb by 6:30 p.m. later that day. Gina advises the No Worries Now board about how to best fulfill their mission of making teens with life-threatening illnesses feel less isolated.

Stacey came to No Worries Now when her daughter, Rachael, a leukemia patient, was invited as a prom guest in 2010. After meeting Fred and learning about the organization, Stacey offered her services as a volunteer in any capacity. Rachael, already the Make-A-Wish Ambassador and President and founder of Kids for Wish Kids at her school, joined with her mother to spearhead collateral dress and beauty events to enhance the prom experience for our 2011 prom guests. Stacey has a degree in fashion design form the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, and a Bachelor of Arts in advertising from Cal State Fullerton. In the course of her career, Stacey has worked as a commercial artist, corporate events manager, and production manager for a full service advertising agency. Currently she works alongside her husband in a small law office. Stacey is active in several organizations promoting quality of life for seriously ill children and teens. Her best times are spent in the company of her two daughters, Paige & Rachael.