Category Archives: National Council

A staunch life-long believer in the moral superiority of government-delivered healthcare, Canadian physician Lee Kurisko, MD, radically changed his opinion when confronted with the reality of trying to actually deliver care in Canada’s single-payer system of healthcare. As Medical Director of Diagnostic Imaging at Thunder Bay Regional Hospital in Thunder Bay, Canada, he had to contend with a CT scan waiting list for seven months, and an MRI waiting list for 13 months. With government claiming a monopoly on healthcare, he came to realize that it is an illusion that government delivers care that otherwise wouldn’t exist, but rather impedes the level of care that could exist in a transparent, competitive free market.

Idealistically trying to improve care, Dr. Kurisko realized that government stands in the way of doing so while claiming benevolence ‘caring’ for the public. Dr. Kurisko finally “got it” that socialism not only doesn’t work and cannot work, but it is immoral because it is based on a loss of freedom. Dr. Kurisko became an advocate of free markets in healthcare and unconstrained charity care rather than government programs.  Seeing the futility of striving to provide excellent care in Canada, Dr. Kurisko resigned from his position in Canada and moved to the relatively freer United States in 2002, where he has lived and worked since.  Extrapolating from the valuable lessons learned in Canada, he came to see that freedom and limited government provide moral and effective solutions in all areas beyond just health care.

He and his wife moved to Iowa, where he now works as a radiologist. He has also worked as a family physician and an ER doctor early in his career. He is trained both as a general radiologist and neuroradiologist. He is Medical Director for Medibid.com, an online service for buying and selling medical services without the intrusion of third parties. He served briefly on a White House Committee regarding healthcare reform with Dr. CL Gray of Physicians for Reform under Assistant White House Chief of Staff, Dr. John Fleming with the Trump administration. He is also certified in Anti-Aging Medicine and along with his wife Joyce has started an online wellness company, “Kurisko and Company.” He is deeply honored and pleased to serve on the National Council of The John Birch Society.

Born in Utah in 1939, David Jorgensen has always lived in the Beehive State except for time he spent in the U.S. Army in Texas. He earned a degree in Business Management from the University of Utah. He then used his knowledge to enter the business world first with his father and later to build his own successful company, Bedrock Quartz Surfaces. Bedrock specializes in fabrication and installation of granite and quartz countertops, fireplaces and bathroom fixtures. A third-generation family enterprise, the company operates in Utah, Wyoming, Nevada, and Idaho.

Dave joined the Society in 1965 and in 1969, he left the business world to serve for eight years as a John Birch Society Coordinator in Utah. He is one of a very few men who have ever been appointed to the JBS National Council after having served as a Field Coordinator.

As one of his varied efforts to alert fellow Americans, Dave has, since 1989, chaired the semi-annual meeting of the Newquist Group in Salt Lake City. At these gatherings named after Jerreld Newquist, author of the widely celebrated book Prophets, Principles and National Survival, concerned patriots have heard important messages from an array of patriotic authorities that has always included leaders of the John Birch Society.

Married in 1968 to Laurel Cook (who had joined the Society in 1967), the Jorgensens are proudly grateful for their six sons, two daughters, and 15 grandchildren – with more to come. Blessed with principled children, Dave and Laurel believe it is increasingly obvious that if we do not teach our children our values, someone else will teach them theirs.

A determined patriot, Dave laments the lack of knowledge about our nation‘s unique roots among fellow citizens and, even more, about America‘s enemies who seek to destroy our nation. He is determined to continue his many efforts to spread the JBS message of hope to fellow Americans.

Kurt Hyde was born in Texas 1945 and raised in Connecticut. He joined The John Birch Society in March of 1965 during his sophomore year in college.

After graduating from college with a degree in Physics in 1967, he went to Air Force Officer Training School and was commissioned as a second lieutenant. He earned a master’s degree in Systems Management while on active duty. He left the active-duty Air Force in 1976 and joined the Air Force Reserves in 1977 and retired in 1990 at the rank of lieutenant colonel. His primary duties were as a navigator, but he also served as Missile Launch Officer and as an Aircraft Maintenance Officer.

In civilian life, he became a computer professional. He started as a programmer and worked his way up to becoming a systems analyst and also a database administrator. He occasionally taught computer science courses as an adjunct faculty member. It was in that capacity that he led his systems analysis students in a study of a computerized voting booth in 1985 and 1986. He presented his findings at a symposium in Boston on August 14th, 1986 where he recommended that computerized voting equipment should have a voter-verified paper trail to ensure the computer did as the voter instructed. In October of 2000, he co-wrote an article for The New American similarly warning of the dangers of Internet voting.

After retiring in 2011 he became a full-time John Birch Society volunteer and has written numerous articles for The New American, many of them dealing with election integrity. He accepted an appointment to the JBS Council in October of 2016.

Robert W. Henderson, P.D., N.D., is Chairman of the Board of Nutramax Laboratories, Inc. and Nutramax Manufacturing, Inc. He is a member of the Maryland Pharmacists Association, American Pharmaceutical Association, and American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. He received his B.S. in pharmacy from the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, his P.D. from the Maryland Pharmaceutical Association, and his N.D. from Bernadean University.

Nutramax Laboratories holds numerous Patents worldwide and its products can be found in many developed countries. Nutramax Laboratories is active in research and development. In 2009 it was ranked the 6th largest Bioscience firm in the Baltimore area. Nutramax Laboratories has both Consumer Health and Animal Health divisions that provide high quality Nutraceuticals.

The products are manufactured in Edgewood, MD by Nutramax Manufacturing following the high standards required by the FDA for the Pharmaceutical Industry. Additionally, Nutramax Agriculture, Inc. markets environmentally friendly biofertilizers for the turf industry with applications for fruit and vegetable growers.

Robert started his career with Eli Lilly Pharmaceutical Company, but left to help his father operate Henderson‘s Pharmacy in Baltimore. After his dad retired, Robert sold the pharmacy and began to focus on the nutritional approach to health care and was innovative in some of the nutrition and diet recommendations now suggested to reduce the risk of cancer. In 1992 he developed and patented the combination of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate with the introduction of Cosamin for humans and Cosequin for animals which has changed the way many physicians treat osteoarthritis. He holds no less than six patents.

In addition to his duties at Nutramax Laboratories, he serves on the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy Advisory Board and the Harford Christian School Educational Foundation. His most important roles are dad, granddad and husband while being a part-time farmer on God‘s Blessing Farm.

Andy “Hirsh” Dlinn, President and Senior Portfolio Manager with Senior Wealth Management, LLC in Pittsburgh, PA has been a wealth manager and estate planner since 1993. He is a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA). Mr. Dlinn has a long track record of political/community activism. Andy is a 35 year veteran life member of The John Birch Society, an educational organization advocating less government and more responsibility.

He serves as the organization‘s Southwestern Pennsylvania Section Leader and is active in the JBS National Speakers Bureau. He has been a past contributor to The New American Magazine. In early 2006, Mr. Dlinn realized, the time was right to get Republican politics back to its Americanist roots, so along with a strong core of other community leaders, a meeting was held and it was decided to form the PA Republican Leadership Council, ‘the Republican Wing of the Republican Party,‘ with Mr. Dlinn serving as its president. He is chairman of the city of Pittsburgh‘s 5th Council District Republican Committee and serves on the PA Republican State Committee

He is a past-president of the Pittsburgh Rotary Club and is now an Assistant Governor for Rotary District 7305, and a graduate of Leadership Pittsburgh. He is a past-president of the Squirrel Hill Urban Coalition and Founder/Director of the Squirrel Hill Citizen‘s Patrol. He produced a weekly local radio show ‘The Jewish Experience,‘ an hour of music, news and information which was enjoyed by Jews and Gentiles alike.

In 1995, Commander Dlinn retired from the US Naval Reserve after serving 20 years as a Public Affairs Officer. His naval career has taken him through every time-zone in the world. He led a team that created the first shipboard television station in the Western Pacific Operating Area. He has received the Battle Efficiency E and the Communications C Awards. He has acted as a US Navy spokesman and a Jewish Lay Leader for area commands.

Among his honors and awards, Andy has been selected 8 years in a row as a Five Star Wealth Manager and has been featured in Pittsburgh Magazine. He has received the Marjorie S. Eiseman Community Leadership Award. He has also received the Prudential Securities Community Champions Award for four consecutive years. He has been selected recently for the Community Leadership Award from the ZOA Pittsburgh District. He is a past honoree of the Lubavitch Center of Pittsburgh and a US Jaycees Outstanding Officer of the Year awardee.

Graduating from the University of South Carolina, Andy earned a bachelor‘s degree in physics in 1974. He went on to achieve a master‘s degree in mass communications with academic excellence at the same school.

He stays active in his local synagogue and is married with six wonderful children.

Clark was born and raised in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Central State College in Edmond, Oklahoma. He worked fifty years in the insurance industry and retired as President of Curry Insurance in 2016. Clark was a founding board member of LOOPS, Inc. ( Loved Ones of Prisoners) in 1989. He currently serves on several boards and has served as a church elder for many years. He and his wife Janis have actively supported Christian education for over forty years. They remain active in promoting responsible citizenship and constitutional government.

Clark was appointed Chief Operations Officer of The John Birch Society in 2010. He has served as a member of the Executive Committee the past several years and currently serves as a member of the council.

Clark and Janis have been married since 1968 and have two children and six grandchildren.

Arthur D. Crino was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1924. He joined the U.S. Navy during World War II and rose in the ranks to become a Seaman First Class while serving on a submarine chaser in the Pacific. In 1951, he earned a degree in electrical engineering from Oregon State University and soon became a Licensed Professional Engineer in both Oregon and California.

He began his professional career with the Allis-Chalmers Corporation in California. Ten years later, the firm erected a new facility in Oregon and Art headed back to the Northwest. Eventually, Siemens Corporation bought Allis-Chalmers and when the new owner moved the plant out of Oregon in 1988, Art left and formed his own Pacific Air Switch Corporation. Functioning as chairman and president of this hugely successful operation, he sold it in 1997 and retired fully in 2003.

Art and his wife, Sally, joined The John Birch Society in 1960. Appointed to the Council in 1999, he was also a member of the Society’s Executive Committee.

Ray Clark was born in 1941 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. His family relocated to Southern California in 1951. He claims that diligent study of the American government helped him not only to pass the U.S. citizenship exam in 1961 but also made him a strong defender of the U.S. Constitution.

Ray joined The John Birch Society in 1963 and has functioned as a Chapter Leader, Section Leader, and Volunteer Coordinator. After working for several years in nutrition stores owned by others, he opened his own Clark’s Nutritional Center in Riverside, California, in 1970, and now has branches in San Bernardino and Loma Linda. He is a graduate of the Donsbaugh University School of Nutrition in Huntington Beach, California.

Each of the Clark establishments sells a huge amount of John Birch Society literature from large and conspicuous displays. Ray has been a leader in the fight against unconstitutional federal regulatory agencies, especially the Food and Drug Administration’s attempt to gain control over the vitamin and health products industry.

Appointed to the Council in 1999, Ray and his wife, Carol, reside in Lake Arrowhead, California.

Ronald Arlen Britton was born in El Paso, Texas. His father was in the Army Air Corps and they moved throughout his youth living in Arizona, California, Florida and Ohio. After graduating from Westchester High School in Westchester, California, Mr. Britton attended what is now Oklahoma State University. Mr. Britton then spent five and one-half years as a Naval Jet Fighter Pilot on the Nuclear Carrier USS Enterprise. He returned to Midland, Texas after discharge from the U. S. Navy and entered into the oil business full time. Mr. Britton is President and CEO of Rohill Energy, Inc. and is now currently managing Rohill Operating Company with other various affiliated companies in oil and gas exploration and development programs. Mr. Britton was President and CEO of Rohill Energy, Inc. and was affiliated with many other companies in the oil and gas exploration industry.

Since retirement, Ron has continued some of his business ventures. He also operates Rafter R Cattle Company, and a wide variety of other business ventures.

In 1962 he married Susan Alstrin of Midland, Texas. They raised three children and have three grandchildren. Over the years, Ron, his wife and family have been active participants in many organizations. He is past chairman of the Palmer Drug Abuse Program, has served on the Executive Committee of the International Association of Drilling Contractors, has served on the Midland Independent School Board and serves as a lifetime Colonel in the Commemorative Air Force.

Mr. Britton is a lifetime member of The John Birch Society and has served as Chairman of the Midland Business and Professional Chapter in Midland, Texas.

William H. Blewster first saw the light of day in Houston, Texas, in 1939. He earned his bachelor’s degree in business from Texas A&M University in 1962. After graduation, Bill entered the U.S. Navy’s flight training program. Commissioned as an Ensign and awarded his wings as a Navy Flight Officer, he specialized in navigation and air intelligence. Deployments took him to Alaska and Japan from his home base at Whidbey Island, Washington. He left active service in 1965 with the rank of full Lieutenant.

The Blewster family settled for a time in Houston, and Bill began his life’s work in the insurance industry. In 1972, the family relocated to Phoenix, where Bill’s expertise in his field won him a promotion to president of an insurance company that was later sold to a large international brokerage firm. In 1985, he launched his own Blewster Insurance Services, Inc., providing a wide array of coverage but specializing in commercial insurance. He accepted appointment to the Council in 2003. From their home in Mesa, Arizona, Bill and his wife, Barbara, a former Arizona state representative, continue as JBS activists.