HANOVER, Md. — The Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Inc., a national nonprofit membership organization that advocates for people affected by sickle cell disease, named Joel Nepomuceno as membership engagement manager. He brings experience in membership strategy, community building, project management and marketing.

Prior to joining the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Inc., Nepomuceno served as the director of membership and development operations at Research!America, which advocates for increased federal health and biomedical research funding. During his tenure, he helped advance the organization’s mission by developing its membership strategy, focusing on member engagement and communication.

Previously, Nepomuceno was the membership manager at the National Council for Mental Wellbeing. While there, he worked to improve the member experience, oversaw database management and provided customer service to more than 3,400 organizational members.

Nepomuceno holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Maryland, College Park. He lives in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Sickle cell disease is a rare inherited blood disease causing red blood cells to take a sickle shape, which leads to blockages that prevent blood from reaching parts of the body. As a result, people with sickle cell complications can experience anaemia, jaundice, gallstones, stroke, chronic pain, organ damage and premature death. More than 100,000 Americans live with sickle cell disease, and 2 million Americans have sickle cell trait. No universal cure exists.

Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Inc. advocates for people affected by sickle cell conditions and empowers community-based organisations to maximise quality of life and raise public consciousness while advancing the search for a universal cure. The association and more than 55 member organisations support sickle cell research, public and professional health education and patient and community services. www.sicklecelldisease.org

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