Board of Directors
Allie Bryan
Allie Bryan moved to Charlottesville from New York City, where she worked for nearly a decade in the nonprofit sector providing social and educational services for at-risk children and families. Now raising two young children with her husband, she is excited to be a part of an organization that builds strong communities by coming alongside children and their parents. She currently works for Books Behind Bars, an educational program in which UVA students meet with incarcerated youth and adults to explore questions of meaning, value, and social justice through life-changing conversations about Russian literature. Allie holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Spanish from Colgate University and a Master’s degree in Public Administration with a specialization in nonprofit management from the Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service at NYU.
Elizabeth Carpenter, BSN, RN
Elizabeth Carpenter is the RN Care Coordinator at the International Family Medicine Clinic at UVA, working with the refugee and Special Immigrant Visa holders who are resettled to the Charlottesville area by the International Rescue Committee. Elizabeth previously worked as a Community Health Nurse with Child Health Partnership and as a labor and delivery nurse in Charlottesville and Seattle. Prior to nursing school, Elizabeth earned a degree in technical theater and built props at the Seattle Repertory Theater. Elizabeth is the parent of two teens with her husband Dan and enjoys hiking and volunteering with PACEM and as a COVID vaccinator.
Martin Couric
Martin has owned and operated a practice as a Financial Planner and Wealth Advisor with Northwestern Mutual for 15 years. One of the most enjoyable parts of his career has been the many people he has met and shared stories with along the way. Martin and his wife Alida attended UVA and graduated in 2007. After a six-year stint in the DC area, they recognized that Charlottesville was an ideal place to start their family. They are currently raising their three children, Mac, Charlie and Allie, in the Ivy area. When they have free time, Martin and Alida enjoy watching their kids play sports, attending UVA events, and playing golf and tennis. They both have supported the Child Health Partnership for many years and look forward to many more!
Serwa Ertl, MD
Serwa Ertl, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Adolescent Medicine and the Associate Chair of Community Engagement for the Department of Pediatrics at at the University of Virginia. She grew up in Branford, Connecticut, and attended undergraduate and medical school at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. She returned to Connecticut for residency training at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center in Hartford, and completed a fellowship in adolescent medicine at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. In 2018, she moved to Charlottesville to join the UVA Teen and Young Adult Health Center. She is passionate about providing care for vulnerable populations in the community and supporting adolescents and young adults in taking ownership of their health.
Mary E. Gibson, PhD, RN
After teaching obstetric and public health nursing at the University of Virginia School of Nursing for more than 20 years, Mary retired in 2019. Early in her career, she worked as a Public Health Nurse in Charlottesville and Albemarle and that experience profoundly influenced her subsequent practice as an obstetrics nurse and professor. Mary was a member of the board of Child Health Partnership from 2011-2020, and chaired the board from 2014-2016. Following a year off from her first nine years on the board, Mary has returned and currently serves on the Program and Diversity and Equity Committees.
Claudette Grant
Chair
Claudette Grant is originally from Hartford, CT. She completed her undergraduate work in Urban Studies at the University of Connecticut and has a master’s degree from the University of Virginia in Urban and Environmental Planning. Claudette has worked as a planner for the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Her work in the housing field includes community organizing for Piedmont Housing Alliance, housing counselor for Housing Opportunities Made Equal, and loan assistant for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Claudette currently works as Community Outreach and Engagement Specialist at the University of Virginia, School of Medicine Cancer Center. She enjoys spending time with her family and being involved in the community through her work at church.
Farah Ibrahim
Farah was born and raised in Iraq, where she later graduated with a civil engineering degree. After losing family members to sectarian violence, Farah fled with her daughter to Jordan. She was granted refugee status by the UNHCR who decided she would resettle in the United States. Since arriving in 2008 as a single mother with a toddler, Farah has found it most rewarding to work in a sector where she has the opportunity to offer support, share experiences, and encourage people in similar situations. She enjoys empowering others with resources, knowledge, and guidance. Farah worked at the IRC (refugee settlement agency) for almost 10 years before having an opportunity to be a part of the family support team at Child Health Partnership. She then transitioned to work at the Piedmont Housing Alliance, assisting first time homebuyers with financial literacy and education. Farah currently works at the IRC as a casework supervisor. Charlottesville, Virginia, has been Farah’s home for the last 15 years; this is where she and her daughter now call home.
John Jertson
John Jertson has lived in many places including Connecticut, Uruguay, Brazil, Florida and most recently Austin, but has called Charlottesville his favorite home for the last 3 years. John has been in the tech space for over 10 years and is currently working at TradeCentric, a Charlottesville based tech company. His better half, Casey, is a neonatal nurse practitioner at the University of Virginia Medical Center. On John’s downtime, he enjoys trail running and triathlons.
Ann Lhospital
Since graduating from UVA with her clinical psychology degree in 2011, Ann Lhospital has worked at UVA’s Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning (UVA-CASTL). She focuses on early childhood coaching and mental health consultation programs that support children, teachers, and families. Ann is excited to join the Child Health Partnership Board to be of service to children and families in our community!
Ashley Palmer
Vice Chair
Former Imagine Award winner (2011) has been on the board serving as Chair of Fundraising for 5 years. Ashley is an enthusiastic member of our community as well as a local Realtor. A longtime resident of Charlottesville, Virginia, she currently resides in Pantops with her husband, Gary and two sons Laker & Noah. Ashley has always possessed an entrepreneurial spirit. She studied Biology and Chemistry at Virginia Commonwealth University and graduated with a BS degree in 2015. She is an award-winning Realtor in Virginia and for her involvement with Child Health Partnership she has been awarded the Good Neighbor Award by the local association of Realtors (CAAR) in 2021 & the Virginia Association of Realtors (VAR) in 2022. She has also been voted Best of C-Ville Weekly, Best REALTOR® in Charlottesville 2019 & Runner Up in 2023. As a graduate from the Child Health Partnership program, she is very excited to take her role full circle as Vice-Chair and serve the community in a greater capacity by helping to bridge the gap between our families and board members.
Cara Pates
Treasurer
Cara Pates is a Virginia native and graduate of The College of William and Mary (BBA in Accounting) and UVa’s McIntire School of Commerce (MS of Accounting). Cara has 7+ years of experience in public accounting and is a Tax Manager for KPMG, LLP. She and her husband Seth, a Charlottesville native, moved back to town 4 years ago. Cara enjoys reading, cooking, and chasing after her two kids.
Kathy Rhyne
Katherine L. Rhyne, a UVA graduate, retired to the Charlottesville area after a career practicing law in Washington. She was a senior partner at King & Spalding LLP, a global law firm, where her practice focused on defense of mass tort and class action litigation, environmental regulatory issues, and crisis management for large corporate clients. Kathy was also known for her work with scientific and medical experts. She and her husband have been Child Health supporters since moving to Charlottesville.
Nareen Scott
Nareen Scott, originally from Maryland, is the Director of People Operations for Legal Aid Justice Center. Prior to joining LAJC she spent eight years as the Administrator for the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation. Transferring from Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD, she earned a degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Management from Old Dominion University. While spending time with family, traveling, music and running a business as an Independent Beauty Consultant are things she loves, she also enjoys volunteering and mentoring with nonprofits in the Charlottesville and surrounding areas that focus on youth, young adults and women.
Vickie Southall, MSN, RN
Vickie Southall is an Assistant Professor of Nursing at the University of Virginia, where she has taught pediatric and community/public health nursing for 37+ years. She began working with Child Health Partnership in 1997 supervising nursing students, recognizing the impact of the organization on the lives of children and families. She served on the first Board of Directors in 2008 until 2018, was off for a year and has been on the board since then. She is involved in many volunteer activities in her hometown of Louisa, and her collaboration of teaching with community service garnered her UVA’s first Excellence in Public Service Award in 2019, an all-University award from the Provost. She lives with her husband, Al, who is a family practice physician in Louisa. They have two adult sons and one granddaughter.
Toya Trager
Toya Trager is the Director of Marketing and Administration for family-owned and operated Trager Brothers Coffee. For 12 years she has worked alongside her husband William in growing the family’s organic coffee brand and promoting the local food movement. As the mother of a special needs child who required intensive home health care, she understands the importance of the role Child Health Partnership plays with support and outreach to families in the Charlottesville area community.
Autumn Wade
Secretary
Autumn Wade grew up in Madison Heights, VA, and spent time in MA and Heidelberg, Germany before calling Charlottesville home. She earned her B.A. in Mathematical Sciences and German Studies at Sweet Briar College. Autumn is a coach with a passion for seeing people live confidently as their full awesome selves. She also works in Strategic Operations at S&P Global and has over 15 years of experience in strategic execution and creating spaces for people and teams to grow and succeed while having fun. Autumn lives with her husband Jordan and her two birds Sam and Jake.
Gregory A Winston
Gregg is a retired Healthcare Executive with a broad background in operational, financial, marketing and general management functions of medical entities, in both profit and non-profit sectors. Proven leader recognized for both strategic planning and execution of best practices and programs. Strong focus on customer relations, quality and achieving financial objectives. In retirement my major emphasis is on addressing inequities / disparities in healthcare access to ensure universal coverage.
