It’s really exciting to be back in the Sevier County area and to see lots of familiar faces. So many of you had a hand in educating and mentoring me, and I have a huge debt of gratitude to this community. There are too many terrific teachers/coaches/neighbors/friends to mention, but to all of you I want to say “thank you” and that I look forward to reconnecting.

 My journey has been anything but straightforward. After graduating college at U of A Fayetteville, I spent a year working as a social worker at Boys’ Town in Omaha, NE. This experience was a pivotal one in my early adult life as it showed me the huge disparity in background experiences people face. I quickly realized just how lucky I was to have grown up in a small community surrounded by friends and family. Boys’ Town also taught me something about myself: I love working with kids! I spent the next several years in the Northwest Arkansas area teaching junior high and high school math. I taught for 5 years before eventually pursuing my lifelong dream to become a physician and was fortunate to be given the opportunity to study medicine at UAMS in Little Rock followed by residency training in Family Medicine at Texarkana.

 During my last year of residency, I focused mostly on Emergency Medicine. The prospect of treating anything from upper respiratory infection to severe trauma keeps the ER interesting. This next chapter in my life will be acting as Medical Director for our new hospital. SCMC has a wonderful staff with many years of experience and a shared focus on providing the best care possible to our neighbors and friends. I am honored to be given this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to serve as its first Medical Director and will work hard to give back to a community that has given me so much.