Meet the Team

Jodi Norton, President and Co-Founder

Jodi Norton, President and Co-founder of L.I.F.E., has battled lupus since her teens. Since her diagnosis, she overcame numerous challenges and fought for many successes.  Jodi graduated from Columbia College in New York City with a degree in neuroscience, maintaining a 3.7 GPA while diving on the NCAA Division I diving team. Despite being told by doctors to abandon her academic and athletic ambitions, she went on to place 10th at the prestigious Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) Diving Championships.  After the 1995-96 season she was selected from over 400 nominations to receive the ECAC Award of Valor.  Jodi’s diving coach, Gordon Spencer, described her as being “intensely driven” and added “it’s not just sports.” The following year, Jodi received the 1997 Giant Steps Award-Courageous Female STUDENT-athlete award from the Center of Sport and Society at Northeastern University and NCAA.  On national STUDENT-Athlete Day she was honored at the Whitehouse by President Clinton. Furthermore, Jodi was the first female diver from her region to win a Gold Medal at the Empire State Games.When Jodi wasn’t training or in the classroom she taught inner-city children to swim or dive, visited elementary schools to talk and inspire children to follow their dreams, and volunteered for the Child Life Program making hospital visits to critically ill children. 

While at Columbia, Jodi’s artwork went into publication and she served as a spokesperson for the New York City Lupus Gala and was named the first Exceptional People with Lupus by the Lupus Foundation of America.  Jodi spent her last year of college conducting independent research in ecological health at Columbia’s Biosphere II Center and was a student-researcher for Dr. Andrew Weil’s Program of Integrative Medicine in Tucson, AZ.  During and after college, Jodi lectured to medical students and has taken advantage of many opportunities to share her story—which is one of triumph and relentless determination to overcome the limitations of an autoimmune disease.  Jodi started L.I.F.E. after undergoing an experimental bone marrow transplant in 2001 and has also battled thyroid cancer. In the year 2005 book by Richard E. Lapchick, 100 Heroes: People in Sports Who Make This a Better World, Jodi received recognition for being one of the top 100 most inspirational sports figures in America. 

Jodi has dedicated her adult life to the service of others and her mother is her greatest ally.  Together, Jodi and her mother started "Toys of Courage" in 2012. This program was established in an effort to recognize the bravery of children that undergo painful treatments, hospitalizations and frequent visits to the doctor’s office. Toys, games, books and other distraction items are given to ease the fear small children face while in a scary environment.  The act of giving a toy to a child that is scarred and to watch the fear turn into a big smile is so rewarding.

Currently, she is working towards an advanced degree in clinical research and hopes to continue to share her story and be a source of hope and inspiration to all those facing adversity.

Whitney Carter

Whitney is in her final year at UC Berkeley where she is studying Psychology and Disability Studies. She began working with L.I.F.E. after being a scholarship recipient in 2020. Whitney is heavily involved in advocacy for autoimmune diseases like lupus. She has spoken at conferences such as the American College of Rheumatology Convergence, the Inaugural Autoimmune Summit through the Autoimmune Association, the Western Psychological Association Convention, and at the Rare Disease California Caucus. After recognizing a lack of support for people with lupus, she also started a chronic illness support group in the Bay Area. 

Jenna Larsen, V.P. of Communications

Jenna became involved with the L.I.F.E foundation after meeting Jodi at the University of Arizona in 2009 while pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutritional Sciences. Since graduating, she went on to obtain a Master of Science degree in Nutritional Sciences at Columbia University’s Institute of Medicine in New York City. During this time, she completed her thesis work in the field of public health, working on NYC food access and health education initiatives.  She remained in the field of public health after graduating in 2011, working as a consultant to implement physical activity and nutrition initiatives in child care centers and in farmers markets in high-need areas in New York City. In her spare time, she spends time catching up with friends, nannying, and contributing nutrition content for the blog, pt2go.co.

John Grogan, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

John Grogan’s contribution to L.I.F.E has been invaluable. Since 2005, John has consistently offered his skills and expertise in IT as the founder and web developer of lifescholarship.org. John holds a BA & MS in Computer Science as well as an MBA from Columbia University. He currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area, and serves as Vice President, Information Technology at Axiom Law. 

Christianna Parker, Volunteer

My name is Christianna Parker, and I am one of the 2020-2021 L.I.F.E. scholarship winners. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease when I was 13 years old and then formally diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus at 18 years old. Now 21 years old, I have learned much about this autoimmune disease that is affecting millions of people across the globe today. I believe knowledge is power and individuals with lupus and their families and support systems should have every opportunity to obtain information about this chronic disease. This is why I am honored to help Jodi and her team write and edit a highly informative and detailed book about lupus that will be truly beneficial for lupus patients, especially newly diagnosed patients. Currently, I am a senior at The University of Alabama, and I am studying social work with a minor in biology. I plan to graduate in August 2022, and although I am not sure of my future career, I am interested in animal therapy for children/teens with disabilities. Some of my hobbies include hanging with my friends and family, playing with my dog, reading, and watching Disney movies.