Our Team

Teamwork makes the dream work and we have one amazing team!
Tedy Bruschi headshot

Tedy Bruschi was born in San Francisco, CA, and attended Roseville High School where he was on the wrestling, track and football teams. He was an all-conference selection as defensive tackle while at Roseville.

Bruschi attended the University of Arizona and was a Wildcat football player from 1991-1995. While at U of A, he tied the NCAA Division I-A sack record with 52 sacks. He was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American in 1994 and 1995, and won the 1995 Morris Trophy as the Pacific-10 Conference’s best defensive lineman and was elected into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2013. Despite all that success on the field, his greatest accomplishment while at the University of Arizona was meeting his wife, Heidi. They wed in 1997 and have three boys — TJ, Rex and Dante.

Three-time Super Bowl champion Tedy Bruschi played in five of the Patriots’ Super Bowl appearances and in 189 career regular season games (and 22 playoff games) during his 13-year career (1996-2008), all with the Patriots. A defensive team captain for seven seasons, Bruschi helped lead the Pats to nine playoffs, eight division championships, five conference titles and three Super Bowl crowns (XXXVI, XXXVIII and XXXIX). He also helped guide the Patriots to the first undefeated 16-0 regular season record in NFL history in 2007.

A 2004 Pro Bowl selection, Bruschi finished his career with 1,134 tackles, 30.5 sacks and 12 interceptions. He is the only player in NFL history to return four consecutive interceptions for touchdowns.

He joined ESPN as a NFL analyst in August 2009, one week after announcing his retirement from pro football. The former New England Patriots linebacker appears on NFL Live, SportsCenter, ESPN Radio and more. In addition, Bruschi contributes to ESPN’s Super Bowl and NFL Draft coverage. In 2013, the Patriots named Bruschi to their Hall of Fame, capping his long, outstanding history with the franchise.

In 2012 and 2014, he ran the Boston Marathon® as a member of Tedy’s Team and loves cheering on his team at the finish line year after year.

Tedy is so inspired by all the survivors and caregivers that he has met since the beginning of Tedy’s Team and looks forward to the years to come.

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Tedy Bruschi

Co-Founder
"I didn’t know the warning signs of a stroke when I was having mine, so it was important to build awareness and be a support system for survivors and their families."

Heidi Bomberger Bruschi was born in Nebraska and moved to Tucson, Arizona at the age of nine. In Tucson, Heidi was a sports standout, winning High School Player of Year.

Heidi went to the University of Arizona on a full scholarship for volleyball. Heidi was not only a member of the women’s volleyball team but also the National Champion women’s softball team. It was at U of A where Heidi met Tedy. They married in 1997 and Heidi is the proud mom to three boys, TJ, Rex and Dante.

Upon her arrival to the east coast, Heidi coached the girls’ volleyball team for Walpole High School from 1997-2000.

Heidi embraced the role of caregiver in 2005, when Tedy had his stroke and since then has been an outspoken advocate for stroke survivors and caregivers. It is important to Heidi to make sure everyone knows the warning signs and knows what to do in case of a stroke emergency.

Heidi’s love for running is what led Tedy’s Team to forge their relationship with the Falmouth Road Race, one of her favorite local races. Since then, Heidi has run the FRR seven times as a member of the Team.

In 2012, Heidi laced up her sneakers and completed her first Boston Marathon®. Heidi loves the family Tedy’s Team has become and is so proud of everyone’s accomplishments and cannot wait to see what this year brings!

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Heidi Bruschi

Co-Founder
"Being a part of Tedy’s Team means that I get to meet and be inspired by survivors and their amazing families and caregivers. When we share our stories and our collective effort to raise awareness, we become teammates for life."

Before landing the Executive Director position with Tedy’s Team, Elizabeth was the Vice President, Athletics, at the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, where she managed all aspects of Tedy’s Team and other athletic related fundraising events in the Boston office. There she helped build powerful partnerships to create a healthier, happier Boston. Elizabeth was drawn to AHA/ASA because of her mission connections in her grandparents, Uncle Bobby, and cousins Danny, Scott, and Owen.

Before the American Heart Association, Elizabeth spent almost nine years with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society where she held the roles of Regional Director, Senior Director and Volunteer. Elizabeth oversaw million dollar campaigns and in her tenure worked with her teams and volunteers to raise over $12 million for the organization.

Elizabeth dedicated her time at LLS to her Uncle Danny who passed away of Leukemia when she was a small child. To keep his name alive, Elizabeth, alongside her father, created the Danny Perry Memorial Foundation which raised money for LLS through numerous softball tournaments. When Elizabeth went to work at LLS, she passed DPMF on to her cousins so the tradition could continue.

Elizabeth has been giving back since a very young age, thanks to her parents direction and leadership but beyond her many years in non-profit, Elizabeth also loves sports. Elizabeth was a 3-sport athlete and All-State softball left fielder back in her hometown of Cranston, Rhode Island. She picked up her bug for long distance running back in 2012 and since then has run 14 half marathons, numerous mud runs and obstacle course races and finished her first marathon in 2017 – Boston!

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Elizabeth Perry Tirrell

Executive Director
"Tedy’s Team is a true family. We support each other and push each other. Tedy’s Team is a life changing experience and I am so happy to be a small part of that."
Allison Slattery headshot

Prior to starting her role as Director of Public Relations and Digital Strategies at Tedy’s Team, Allison worked for the American Heart Association|American Stroke Association for six years as a Communications Specialist and most recently Communications Director. During her time there, Allison managed and executed communications plans for multiple events in Greater Boston and Central Massachusetts, including Tedy’s Team, and worked with volunteers and survivors to help raise awareness and build healthier communities in Massachusetts. Allison also managed the Tedy’s Team social media accounts and co-managed the AHA Massachusetts social media pages.

Shortly after starting at the AHA|ASA, Allison’s passion for her work became more personal when her cousin, Cali, suffered a stroke at just 26 years old. Allison is looking forward to continuing her work with Tedy’s Team to help other stroke survivors like Cali and raise more awareness of stroke and it’s warning signs.

Allison is not only passionate about the Tedy’s Team mission, but also a Tedy’s Team alumnus herself. She completed the 2013 Rock n’ Roll Half Marathon in Las Vegas with the team and finished her first marathon in 2017 – Boston!

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Allison Gianfelice

Communications Director
"Our Tedy’s Team family inspires me every single day. The dedication and passion of our runners and their families and friends is incredible. I am so proud be a part of the Tedy’s Team family as an employee and as an alumni runner!"

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