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Colleen Merrell
Colleen Merrell
Director of Advancement
Phone: 4809634951

Mrs. Merrell grew up in Cherry Hill, NJ.  She graduated from Thomas Jefferson University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing. She is certified in oncology nursing and worked in many different care settings including the National Cancer Institute. She held positions in direct patient care, cancer center director, quality, education and most recently was the Chief Compliance Officer for a national healthcare company.

Early in her nursing career she was challenged with building a breast cancer program with very little budget.  She had to be creative in fundraising efforts and grant writing to raise capital and significant funds to help patients and their families. She received several awards for her efforts from the Susan G. Komen Foundation, Girl Scouts of America and Philadelphia Business Journal.

The Merrell family relocated to Gilbert in July 2019 when Mrs. Merrells’s husband, a Phoenix native, accepted a promotion at Boeing in Mesa. Their goal in house hunting was to find a Catholic School first. They found their home at St. Mary-Basha for their two children. During the last three years, Mrs. Merrell became an active volunteer and HSA Board Member while working full-time from home. Little did she know that God had a plan that was leading her to the Advancement Office at SMB. She is excited to bring her passion and work with our community to raise funds to support SMB’s growth and development.

She hasn’t left nursing completely and still gets to help out in the SMB Health Office at times! In her spare time, she loves spending time with her family, enjoys arts and crafts and anything Disney!