Our Children, Our Cause:
Robyn O'Brien
Robyn O'Brien launched AllergyKids on Mother's Day 2006 after her fourth child was diagnosed with food allergies and has earned the title of "food's Erin Brockovich". She has received encouragement from Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Erin Brockovich, Dr. Oz and parents around the world. Her work has been featured in PEOPLE Magazine, the New York Times, REDBOOK and on the TODAY SHOW, Good Morning America, the CBS Early Show, CNN and OPRAH RADIO with Dr. Oz.
AllergyKids' goal is to preserve the well-being and livelihood of children and their families by protecting them from the chemicals mow found in the US food supply and by educating the population about the severity of food allergies and the important role that diet plays in the health of our families.
AllergyKids is the only food allergy organization whose medical advisors do not accept funding, grant money, speaker fees or patent royalties from food, chemical and pharmaceutical corporations, as these funding ties have been shown to present a direct conflict of interest between the interests of the corporations and the interests and well-being of our children.
About the Founder:
According to the New York Times, Robyn O’Brien is “food’s Erin Brockovich.” Robyn is the founder of AllergyKids, an organization designed to protect the 1 in 3 American children with autism, allergies, ADHD and asthma. Robyn has appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, CBS Evening News with Katie Couric and CNN highlighting the role that chemicals in our food supply are having on our health. O'Brien is the author of
The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food Is Making Us Sick and What We Can Do About It (Random House/ May 2009) and it exposes the role that money plays in our federal food policy.
Born and raised in Texas, Robyn earned a Fulbright Fellowship, an MBA and served as an equity analyst on a multibillion dollar fund prior to moving to Boulder, Colorado with her husband and four children. Additional resources, articles and information are available at
www.robynobrien.com
Robyn serves on the boards of the Environmental Working Group and Hot Moms Club and works in conjunction with non-profits around the country in an effort to inspire women in motherhood and families in health. She is a contributing writer and regular columnist for websites and magazines across the country and Canada including the Huffington Post and the Daily Green.
Robyn's story can be found in Healthy Child Healthy World (Dutton, 2008), Living Fresh with Sara Snow (Bantam 2009) and Green Gurus 2 (2008) and in the documentary, Here We Grow (Sept 2009), and she is quickly becoming known as a "Green Guru" (despite the fact that she ate her share of Twinkies and PoBoys in the South as a kid and has been known to burn noodles!).
She is a motivating speaker who has presented to Lance Armstrong's Foundation in Austin, Ted Turner's family in Atlanta, at conferences with Mariel Hemingway and often presents to organizations, college classrooms and Fortune 500 companies. Learn More.
Our Inspiration Team
AllergyKids is extremely grateful for the brilliance, courage and tenacity of the following individuals and for the friendship, support and encouragement that their teams have provided. Their roles have been remarkable, and we can not begin to express our gratitude for their uncompromising integrity and courage - they are gifts to an entire generation of children and Our Inspiration!
Prince Charles: Ten years ago, due to the growing concern over the spraying of industrial pesticides (and to increase the profitability of crops like corn and soy!), the US began to genetically engineer neurotoxic, allergenic proteins into our food. The Prince thought it was such a bad idea that he took the royal farmland in England and dedicated it to organic farming in order to avoid these genetically engineered neurotoxins. Given that the UK has recently banned MSG, aspartame, food colorings and additives in almost 95% of children’s foods, we think that this man deserves a white horse for his leadership and courage in protecting the health of children!
Nell Newman: Her famous parents, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, gave us amazing movies, but Nell’s savvy insight and brilliance have given us safe food for our children. As the founder of Newman’s Own Organics, Nell launched a revolutionary movement, bringing organic foods to almost every grocery store in the country. “Sweet Mama Nell” not only recognized that organic foods taste better (just ask her Pa!), but that they also promote health and well-being from the inside out. Just one look at Nell and we’re sold on how beautiful an organic diet can make your family! Nell's beauty resonates through the phenomenal support that her team has been to AllergyKids.
Erin Brockovich: Infamously famous for her inspiration behind Julia Robert’s character in the self-titled movie, Erin has inspired us through her friendship, candor, courage and tenacity. Not only does she speak to the “power of one”, but her personal story also resonates with us, as she has been touched by food allergies in her own life. In her continuing efforts to help improve the environment, she inspires us with her focus on the health and well being of children.
Dave Scott: As the sport of triathlon firmly takes a grip on our friends and families across the country, we sought the friendship, advice and visionary brilliance of the original Ironman. The founding father of triathlon, David defined the sport, as a six-time Ironman World Champion. His brilliance is our inspiration, as his research and uncompromised faith in the role that an organic diet plays in the mental and physical health of an athlete is something that we believe in for our children.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.: As the father of an AllergyKid, Bobby Kennedy can relate to the enormous task confronting all of us. His strength and courage are gifts in the pursuit of truth for the millions of children with food allergies. As AllergyKids focuses on the recent introduction of neurotoxic, allergenic proteins into the food supply and the impact that they have on our children, we can not begin to express our gratitude for Bobby's support and for his unwavering integrity.
Our Executive Director: Seleyn DeYarus
Seleyn is the former Development Director for The Organic Center (TOC), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to furthering scientific research behind the health benefits of reducing our exposure to chemicals and synthetic ingredients now found in our food supply, where she was responsible for fundraising, the development of educational materials, consumer guides and videos and outreach. Seleyn is also Managing Partner of Compass Natural LLC, a full-service marketing, communications, event planning and production, and PR agency. She is a former environmental consultant for international business strategist Booz Allen Hamilton and served in the White House under the Reagan administration in the President’s Speech Writers Research office, where she was personally hired by President Reagan. She is a member of both the Denver and Boulder Chamber of Commerce. She has a B.A. degree from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she served as President of the Student Government Association. She is a photographer, loves gardening and enjoys hiking in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.
This remarkable team speaks to the ability that all of us have to inspire change for our children!
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