Member Bios
Bernard Birnbaum, MD
Dr. Bernard “Bernie” Birnbaum, originally from Chapel Hill, N.C., graduated from George Washington University School of Medicine and completed a family medicine residency at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He then worked for four years in Chinle, Arizona with the Indian Health Service in a remote area of the Navajo reservation. In addition to practicing full-spectrum family medicine, he worked in a school based adolescent health clinic and served as the Chief of the Department of Family Medicine. His special interests include adolescent health and pregnancy, community medicine, public health/primary care integration, quality improvement processes and the care of the underserved. He moved to Fort Collins in 2006 to join the Fort Collins Family Medicine Residency and has been the Associate Director since 2014. He was publicly elected to the board of the Health District of Northern Larimer County from 2008-2016 and he currently serves as the President of the Board of Health for the Health Department of Larimer County. Bernie is the proud father of two amazing children.
Christy Bush
Christy Bush began a 20+ year career in public health after graduating from Colorado State University with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. This led her to pursue a master's degree in health policy from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a career path that includes roles as an analyst and planner for government and community-based organizations. After several years away, Christy returned to Fort Collins with her family, where she led LCDHE’s community health assessment and health improvement planning effort from 2011-2017. Christy currently works as an independent consultant providing expertise and technical support for organizational and community planning efforts for government, non-profit, and small businesses. She is skilled in team building, cultivating leadership, strategy development, and project management and has a personal commitment to integrity, authenticity, humility, and lifelong learning. She is also an engaged community volunteer, mother to two teenage boys, and is married to a family medicine physician. Christy is in the process of making a career change; she will be returning to CSU in Fall of 2022 to study fiber arts. However, she considers herself a lifelong champion for public health and is honored to have the opportunity to serve her community and continue to use her public health skillset in a meaningful way.
Brian DelGrosso
Coming soon!
Anthony (Tony) J. Van Goor, MD, MMM, CPE, FACP
Board of Health President
Anthony J. Van Goor is the newest member of the Larimer County Board of Health, having been appointed in January, 2021. He presently also serves as Vice President, City of Loveland Senior Advisory Board and as community liaison to the Larimer County Office on Aging.
He is a physician (MD) with nearly 40 years of experience, and he maintains his professional currency as a board-certified specialist in Internal Medicine. He holds a Master’s degree in Medical Management from Tulane University, he is a Certified Physician Executive by the Certifying Commission on Medical Management, and he is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. Dr. Van Goor is also a decorated military veteran and group commander, having served in the United States Air Force for over 23 years on active duty and for 5 years in reserve, retiring honorably as a senior Colonel in 2006. His duties included supervision of base-wide public health services and medical disaster response. He is a recipient of the military Legion of Merit and five Meritorious Service Medals. After his departure from the Air Force, he practiced for 12 years in civilian life as an internist, as medical director for pharmaceutical services for a national payor, and as a regional and a senior medical director for industry before his retirement in 2018.
A professional commercial and public radio announcer and program director for ten years before his entry to medical school, Dr. Van Goor enjoys vocal performance, and he has a long history of service as a liturgical cantor for numerous parishes and of choral performance with two opera companies. He and his wife are proud parents of two children.
Heather Weir, MPH, RD
Heather Weir, MPH, RD, has 20+ years of experience working in healthcare, public health, and local and state government, and has been working with multidisciplinary teams in organizational improvement and change management efforts, including public health accreditation, since 2008. She currently works as the Director of the Strategy, Performance and Administration Office at the Colorado Governor’s Office of Information Technology, a role she started in April 2021. Prior to that, she was with the Office of Planning, Partnerships and Improvement and the Office of Strategy and Performance at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) where she began work in February 2015. She previously worked with Denver Public Health as the Performance Improvement Manager and prior to moving to Colorado, worked with Providence Health & Services in Portland, Oregon as a registered dietitian (RD) and diabetes educator, and later worked in Eugene, Oregon with Lane County Public Health as a WIC Dietitian and Quality Improvement Coordinator for the Community Health Centers of Lane County.
Heather has served on the National Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) Evaluation and Quality Improvement Committee, the Advisory Board for the Center for Public Health Practice, and the Colorado Public Health Association board. She received her bachelor’s degree in health and human development from Montana State University, completed her dietetic internship at Oregon Health & Science University, and has a master’s degree in public health from Portland State University. Heather lives near Carter Lake outside of Loveland and enjoys spending time with her friends and family, including her husband, two daughters, and many pets.
Tom Gonzales, MPH, REHS
Larimer County Public Health Director and Board of Health Secretary
Serving as Larimer County’s Public Health Director since 2018, Tom Gonzales is dedicated to safeguarding community health and well-being. In addition to a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health from Colorado State University, he holds a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Northern Colorado. Tom brings extensive experience to Larimer County from his previous role as Deputy Public Health Director at El Paso County Public Health, where he led the environmental health response and recovery activities after four major wildfires and two flood events.
Tom is currently the President of the Colorado Association for Local Public Health Officials and Chair of the Larimer County Regional Opioid Abatement Council. With a wealth of experience in the field, he was previously a member of the Trailhead Institute executive committee, regional vice president of the National Environmental Health Association, and president of the Colorado Environmental Health Association.
Gonzales is a recipient of the prestigious Milton M. Miller Award and was appointed to the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission by the Governor in 2018. Recently honored with the Delta Omega Honorary Member distinction by the esteemed Colorado School of Public Health, Gonzales continues to make significant contributions to the field of public health.
