Steven J. Simonyi-Gindele – Founding Director and full-time CEO of The Reformed MS Society.

Born in Hungary, the only child of a father executed by the Communist regime, Steven came to Canada after the Hungarian Revolution and has built up a remarkable entrepreneurial career. His early business life was featured in Studs Terkel’s best-seller, “Working,” and later in his middle years, he headed a start-up pharmaceutical company to bring a Hungarian anti-cancer drug to market. Since 1986, Steven has been CEO of an international security system integrator and internet ID retailer. In March of 2010, he handed over this responsibility to his son, Caleb, to devote his full time to MS.

Steven’s involvement with the disease came through his wife of 35 years, Ruth. He has been her primary caregiver, and over the past five years, has seen her disease progress from RRMS to SPMS, with the symptoms becoming increasingly severe. In November ’09, after watching a TV program about Dr. Zamboni, Steven moved quickly to secure a treatment spot for Ruth in Poland. On December 29, 2009 she became Dr. Simka's 17th CCSVI patient. The results were life-changing, but full relief lasted only three months. The second CCSVI treatment was performed by Dr. Ivo Petrov in Bulgaria on May 29, 2010 when all three of Ruth's stenosed veins were fully opened for the first time. This made an enormous difference, but only temporary difference with the old symptoms started returning after three months. (You can read Ruth’s full story elsewhere on this site).

This experience of watching Ruth achieve a near total recovery from her symptoms within days of being treated for blocked veins, was a turning point for Steven and became his life’s mission: To break down the legal and profession barriers and gain easy access to CCSVI in North America … to help fund clinical trials to learn more about the CCSVI treatment and how to make it long lasting … and to work with the insurance industry to get full coverage for this procedure.

In March 2010, Steven formed two not-for-profit corporations in Canada and the U.S. to work towards achieving these goals. The Reformed MS Societies are intended to be highly patient-pro active, and are already working through government bodies to bring about real and significant change for CCSVI.

Steven has no other direct or indirect business involvement, and is giving his full time to building these not-for-profit societies. CCSVI is one of the great medical breakthroughs of our time removing a slow death sentence for MS patients. Steven welcomes the help and support from all individuals and organizations.

Patrick W. H. Garrard
Pat was born in Vancouver, but has lived in the U.S. for the past 40 years where he has a highly successful career in publishing and investor marketing.

While still in his 20s, Pat was a reporter (Vancouver Sun) and a foreign correspondent in the Caribbean where he had many adventures. (In particular, being jailed in Cuba as an American spy.) After moving to New York, he founded what was to become the largest entrepreneurial publishing business in the U.S. (The Capitalist Reporter, Inc.) that grew to a total paid circulation of 800,000. During this time, he was also one of the highest paid copywriters in the country.

During the past decade, he has worked with over 20 public companies to expand their market capitalization, generating many hundreds of millions of dollars in added valuation. It should be added The Reformed MS Society is especially important to Pat, partly because his eldest daughter has had MS for the past 12 years.

Steven Grauer
Steve Grauer, 62, is semi-retired and was diagnosed with relapsing/remitting MS in the late 1970’s. After having been in the construction business, he and his wife moved to Vancouver Island in the early ‘80s where they raised their two children. They currently operate a very successful real estate and vacation property management firm, providing office and computer services to local businesses.

Scott Low
Scott is a co-founder and Senior Vice-President of Canada Financial Group, a major insurance and investment firm providing clients with a full range of investment and insurance services. In this capacity he has recruited over 300 independent financial advisors, providing them with a full range of training and personal business guidance. Scott is a well-known in this area for sharing his unique practical experience with highly motivated people who seek to build financial stability through an independent business. Scott also consults to a number of local companies, and has been active in founding The Reformed MS Society.