Our Leadership

A long-time leader in the pregnancy help community at the local, state, and national levels, Cindi Boston was named Heartbeat International’s Vice President in January 2016.

Cindi previously served on Heartbeat International’s Board of Directors from 2013-15, and was recognized as a 2011 Heartbeat International Servant-Leader honoree. She chaired the board for Missouri’s Alliance for Life that played a role in passing a state resolution honoring the work of pregnancy help organizations, as well as directing funds for specific services covered under Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

Tracie Shellhouse began pregnancy help as a volunteer client advocate in 2003. She has served as an abstinence educator, client services director, executive director, CEO, and consultant. As Heartbeat International's Vice President of Ministry Services, she oversees a team of dedicated individuals committed to the growth and development of the pregnancy help movement. Tracie has an M.A. in Biblical Counseling, is a board-certified Master Christian Life Coach, and is a Life-Affirming Specialist. Her passion is enabling people to live abundant lives by helping them discover their God-given purposes and empowering them to live according to their original designs. Tracie and her husband, Gene, have four children, two sons-in-law, and three grandchildren.

Andrea oversees the public face of Heartbeat International and its network of more than 3,000 pregnancy help organizations worldwide as VP of Communications & Marketing. Beginning her professional career in radio while obtaining a degree in Journalism and Communications from The Ohio State University, she took the skills she received in speaking and writing and joined the noble cause of the pro-life movement. Andrea is one of the voices of Heartbeat featured in radio and television interviews, sharing the many ways that pregnancy help empowers women to make positive choices for themselves and their families. 

Andrea and her husband Dan have three precocious children who plan to change the world when they are grown.

Margaret H. (Peggy) Hartshorn, Ph.D., currently Chairman of the Board of Heartbeat International, has served on the Board for 30 years, as Chairman previously from 1990-2004. She also served as Heartbeat’s President for 23 years (1993-2015).

Peggy threw herself into the cause of life soon after the Supreme Court decision of Roe v. Wade, on January 22, 1973, which declared abortion restrictions unconstitutional. In 1974, she and her husband began opening their home to young mothers. They founded Pregnancy Decision Health Centers (PDHC) in 1981.

Today, Peggy travels and speaks extensively, sharing her hands-on experience with pregnancy help ministries as they develop programs on abortion, abortion recovery, sexual integrity, adoption, and alternatives to abortion. She leads Heartbeat’s commitment to organizational and leadership development for pregnancy help worldwide.

Peggy has been married to Michael Hartshorn for 47 years. They have two adopted children and five grandchildren.

Keith Armato is President of the Union Street Tin Co. Keith and Mary have visited Italy over 50 times introducing family, friends and business associates to the culture and especially the religious heritage of Italy. Keith is a Knight of Malta and a Knight of St. George. He has served two terms on the national Board of Governors of Legatus, the National Fund for Catholic Religious Vocations, and the Saint Pio Foundation.

Ronald Blake is the retired President and CEO of Rewards Network. Over his professional career, he has worked with several private equity firms, following a long career in telecommunications industry.

Ron has also served as the Chairman of the Foundation for Higher Education, was Vice President and Treasurer of Alverno College (a Catholic women's college) and a trustee of the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.

Ron has been married to Merilee Blake for 38 years. They have two children and two grandchildren.

Shiney Daniel is the CEO, Administrator, and Attorney for Agape Home Healthcare, which she started in 1994. She has been an entrepreneur since a very young age and has started and owned a number of companies and organizations. She has served on various boards and has held a variety of leadership positions.  

Shiney has been happily married to Pastor Shaji K Daniel, a businessman, pastor, and international conference speaker since 1993. Together, they have founded a Agape Bible School and Agape English School in Kerala, India.  They have established churches in India, the Middle East, and Texas.

Joe Dattilo retired in 2017 after a 40-year career in the financial services industry, beginning with Chemical Bank in 1975 and Manufacturers Hanover in 1981. Joining Fidelity Investments in 1987, Joe spent his entire Fidelity career in institutional sales, both as an individual contributor and manager of sales organizations. His primary focus was on America’s largest 401k and pension plan sponsors, delivering Fidelity’s investment and plan administrative capabilities.   

Joe has served on the boards of Lexington Christian Academy and is presently on the board of The First Tee LowCountry, a youth development organization focused on teaching life skills and healthy habits through golf.  He lives with his wife of 31 years and retired Heartbeat board member, Chris Dattilo. They have a son Matthew.

Charles A. “Chuck” Donovan is the President of the Charlotte Lozier Institute. He served as Legislative Director of the National Right to Life Committee, worked as a writer for President Reagan, helped to lead the Family Research Council for nearly two decades and has been Senior Research Fellow in Religion and Civil Society at The Heritage Foundation. Chuck has played key roles in the development of public policy regarding public financing of abortion, compassionate alternatives to abortion, the child tax credit, marriage penalty relief, and rights of conscience.

A native of Louisville, Kentucky, Donovan grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. He earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English at the University of Notre Dame.

Chuck and his wife Meg have two daughters, two sons, and five grandchildren.

Tim Garrison serves as senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom’s Center for Life, where he litigates across the spectrum of matters involving constitutional freedoms and the sanctity of life.

Previously, Garrison was a partner at Husch Blackwell LLP, representing clients ranging from individuals to Fortune 500 companies, including support for ADF’s litigation in College of the Ozarks v. Biden. Garrison was a federal prosecutor for 14 years and was U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri from 2018-2021. He personally prosecuted hundreds of cases involving international drug trafficking, violent crime, white collar crime, and crimes against children. Garrison successfully litigated numerous federal jury trials to verdict and received the Missouri Bar Foundation’s Appellate Advocacy award for his effectiveness at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

Garrison is also a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, where he has served on active duty or in the reserves since 2003. He deployed to Iraq as a war crimes prosecutor in 2007 and saw combat in Afghanistan as Chief of Operational Law for the I Marine Expeditionary Force in 2014. Garrison later served as Deputy Legal Counsel to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and is currently a reserve judge on the Navy and Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals. 

Tim and his wife, Dr. Traci Garrison, have three children.

In addition to his 25-year plus commitment to promoting a culture of life, Doug is an entrepreneur who manages an angel investing firm and a leadership coaching practice.  Previous ownership and/or executive leadership positions include: pro-life non-profit, public relations/public affairs, transportation and commercial real estate. Doug and his wife Mary, married 23 years, have one daughter and three sons.  

Denise Harle currently serves as senior counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom, where she is the director of the Center for Life and leads her team’s litigation and advocacy efforts to defend pro-life laws around the nation. She also networks with pro-life allies, speaks publicly on behalf of ADF, and works to defend the First Amendment freedoms of pro-life medical professionals and pregnancy resource centers. Since joining ADF, Harle took the primary role in drafting the briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court in NIFLA v. Becerra, resulting in a free-speech victory for pro-life pregnancy centers. She was one of several ADF attorneys who assisted Mississippi’s legal team in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the Supreme Court victory that reversed Roe v. Wade.

Ann Laird is a wife and mother of three married children. Her favorite pastime is loving on her eight grandchildren. She has served her church and the Houston community in numerous Christian ministries. Her first pregnancy help center experience was at Anderson House in Carrizo Springs, Texas. It was not a coincidence that just a few weeks later she and her husband, Marc, became avid, passionate supporters of Heartbeat International.

Dr. Smith is one of ten children who survived polio and many hardships on her road to becoming a physician. Dr. Smith is a woman of faith with two Doctorate degrees in in Biblical Studies and Biblical Wisdom. She has a ministry in teaching healing and miracle anointing. She is an author, frequent lecturer, missionary and singer. She was a pioneer as the first African American woman to graduate from The University of Texas at Arlington and a recognized leader in the field of Anesthesiology. She is now in private practice in her hometown and the owner of Triangle Anesthesia Consultants.

Zeke Swift brings 23 years of global marketing, issue management and organization design experience at Procter & Gamble, the world’s largest consumer product company. Prior to P&G, Zeke had six years of commissioned service in the US Army. Zeke co-founded the Southern Africa HIV-AIDS Collaboration (SAHAC) and consults with for-profit and not-for-profit organizations in the areas of strategy, organization development and issue management.

Gary Thome is a seasoned executive from the technology industry. He retired in 2020 after 32 years to focus on ministry work and spend more time with family. He has served previously on the Heartbeat International Board of Directors of Heartbeat from 2012-2022, serving as board treasurer. His pro-life work also includes an initiative to support parents receiving a prenatal diagnosis. He is the founder of LOVING STONES of CHRIST, a lay apostolate focused on making disciples and sending apostles in Catholic parishes. He and his wife Pam have five children and reside in Houston, Texas.

In 2008, Sherry Wright helped start The Open Door Pregnancy and Family Resource Center. In 2011, The Open Door expanded into a neighboring town with another medical pregnancy resource center. Sherry has been the president of the board since 2008.

A graduate of Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri, John Wootton is an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God. He has served since 2008 as an executive officer of the Ohio Ministry Network in the position of Network Superintendent, and previously as Network Secretary. John served as the district men’s ministries director, as well as the assistant to District Superintendent Robert Crabtree. He and his wife, Brigette have four children.