Dr. Skelton
Joseph Skelton, MD is the director of the Brenner FIT Program and a member of the gastroenterology team at Brenner Children’s Hospital. He is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, and is Co-Director of the Kohl’s Family Collaborative, a partnership between the YWCA of Winston-Salem and Brenner Children’s Hospital. Prior to coming to Brenner Children’s Hospital, he was director of one of the nation’s largest pediatric weight management programs.

A native of East Tennessee, he received his undergraduate degree from Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. He received his medical degree from the University of Tennessee, Memphis, and completed his training in Pediatrics and Pediatric Gastroenterology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. His is active in community outreach, and researches better ways to reach families interested in improving their health. He is the father of 2 young boys.

Dr. Cohen     
Gail Cohen, MD, MS is one of the physicians with Brenner FIT, and is a general pediatrician at Brenner Children’s Hospital and the Downtown Health Plaza, a part of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. She is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. She is a native of Southern California, received her undergraduate degree at University of California, Berkeley, and received her medical degree at Harvard Medical School. She completed her training in Pediatrics and Fellowship in clinical research at Virginia Commonwealth University. She participates in a diverse set of research initiatives and teaching. She enjoys reading and traveling, and is the mother of 2 young girls.

Stacy Kolbash, Dietitian
Stacy Kolbash, MS, RD, LDN, CDE is one of the dietitians with Brenner FIT. She works closely with families to improve their nutritional habits. She is also involved with Six Sigma Quality Improvement, Spanish-language outreach, and our FIT Meals program (quick and healthy cooking classes). She received both her undergraduate (BS in Dietetics) and graduate (MS in Food and Nutrition) degrees from Ohio University. Stacy’s personal interests include any outdoor activities, such as hiking, running with her dog, biking, camping, as well as watching collegiate sports (especially ACC basketball) and spending time with family and friends. She likes to support the Slow Food Movement, local retailers, farmers, and farmer’s markets. She is the new mother of a baby girl.

Katie Boles, Dietitian
Katie Boles, RD, LDN is one of the dietitians with Brenner FIT. She also works closely with families looking to improve their health and nutrition behaviors. Katie is also involved in Brenner FIT’s telemedicine and FIT Meals programs. She received her BS degree at Appalachian State University and completed her dietetic internship through Meredith College in Raleigh, N.C. She loves to dance, scrapbook, and spend time with her friends and family. Katie is also a huge fan of the Appalachian State football team (Go Mountaineers!) and tries to attend as many games as she can.

Dara Garner-Edwards, Family Counselor
Dara Garner-Edwards, MSW, LCSW is a Family Counselor with Brenner FIT. Her role is to help families change unhealthy habits into healthy ones. Dara's BS in Psychology and her MSW in Social Work are both from UNC at Chapel Hill. As a native of North Carolina, she enjoys the beach almost as much as the mountains of the state. Dara is also a working mother of two (and what mother isn't working!?). Her primary focus at home is keeping up with her children and spouse.

Christine Jordan, Family Counselor
Christine Jordan, EdS, LMFT is a Family Counselor with Brenner FIT., Christine’s role with Brenner FIT is to help families find the habits they would like to change and provide support as they create healthier lifestyles. She received her graduate degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Christine is married and has a school-aged daughter and college-aged stepson. At home, she enjoys playing with her daughter, listening to her stepson play guitar, knitting, and reading.

Sherry Frino, Physical Therapist
Sherry Frino, PT is the physical therapist with Brenner FIT. She encourages families to add more movement and play into their daily lives. She also helps children overcome problems with exercise, such as pain and injuries. Sherry received her BA in Physical Education from the UNC at Chapel Hill (Go Heels!) and BS in Physical Therapy from Winston-Salem State University (Go Rams!). Sherry enjoys distance running and working outside in her yard. At home, her active kindergartener and interest in photography keep her busy.

Megan Irby, Exercise Specialist
Megan Irby, MS is the exercise specialist with Brenner FIT and serves as the Family Coach for the V-FIT program, a research study with Brenner FIT and the Victory Junction Gang Camp. Megan received her BS in Health and Exercise Science from Wake Forest University and her MS in Exercise Physiology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Megan truly loves to work with children (she will always be a kid at heart) and is passionate about educating families and promoting positive health behaviors in the Winston-Salem community and beyond. Outside of the clinic setting, Megan is a violinist who also enjoys fitness, watching Demon Deacon Athletics, and spending time with her husband and two crazy (but wonderful) dogs.

Angélica Guzman, Spanish-language Health Educator
Angélica Guzman is the Spanish-language Health Educator with Brenner FIT, working with Spanish-speaking families in clinic and the community. She is also involved with community-based research projects. She was born in Santiago, Chile, where she obtained her degree in Family Therapy. In January of 2004 she moved to Winston Salem, North Carolina, with her husband and four children. Spanish is her native language and her passion is working with Latino families. Nutrition and Parenting Education are her preferred subjects. She enjoys spending time with her kids and husband; specially watching her sons’ soccer games.

Angélica Guzman es la Educadora de Salud del programa Brenner FIT. Ella trabaja con familias hispanohablantes en el dispensario de Brenner FIT  y la comunidad. Ella también trabaja con proyectos de investigación en la comunidad. Angélica nació en Santiago, Chile, donde obtuvo su título de Terapeuta Familiar. En Enero del 2004, ella se mudó a Winston Salem, North Carolina, con su esposo y cuatro hijos. Su lengua nativa es el Español y su pasión es trabajar con familias Latinas. Nutrición y Educación para Padres son sus temas favoritos. Ella disfruta el tiempo con sus niños y esposo, especialmente asistiendo a los juegos de soccer de sus hijos.

Lorri Busby, Family Support Specialist
Lorri Busby, MSW is a Family Support Specialist with Brenner FIT. Lorri supports families in Brenner FIT even before they step foot in clinic by providing phone coaching to get them started. Through the phone coaching process, Lorri helps families to identify community resources that will help them as they make changes. She received her MS in Social Work from New York University in New York. Lorri is married and has seven grown children and one grandson. For fun, she enjoys thrift store treasure hunting, reading, and getting together with her family.

Sara Ebbers, Program Coordinator, Kohl’s Family Collaborative
Sara Ebbers, MSW coordinates the innovative partnership between the YWCA of Winston-Salem and Brenner Children’s Hospital, the Kohl’s Family Collaborative, which is a community-based approach to the obesity epidemic. Sara has experience working in churches and hospitals, focusing on families and their well-being. Sara received her BA in English and Philosophy/Religion from James Madison University, and her MSW from Boston College. In her spare time, she enjoys snowboarding and backpacking.  She also works with the National Ski Patrol in the mountains of North Carolina.

Nancy Ortiz, Administrative Assistant
Nancy Ortiz is usually the first contact for families in the Brenner FIT program. She processes referrals, schedules appointments for the clinic, and truly enjoys working with families. Born in Texas, Nancy moved to North Carolina in 1997 to be closer to her son and his family. She spends her extra time taking her grandsons fishing, skateboarding, swimming, playing cards, or just listening when they want to talk. She also has a dog named Harley and a cat named LuAnn as roommates.