The Founder
"Public health, for me, is not a profession. It is a calling rooted in what I witnessed as a child."
Her Story
I grew up in Georgetown, South Carolina — a small community shaped by deep roots, strong faith, and the kind of neighbors who show up when it matters. When I was five years old, my mother was diagnosed with renal failure.
Both of my parents were educators in the public school system, and when my mother was unable to work, my father drove four days a week to the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston, SC — 60 miles each way — so she could receive hemodialysis.
And then something remarkable happened. Our community and family came together and raised funds for a home dialysis machine. The medical professionals at MUSC trained my Dad to administer hemodialysis to my mother at home. I can remember playing with friends in the next room when my mom was on the machine and hearing the machine beeping because air had gotten in the line. This was my normal (from age 5-7)
for approximately 2 years and finally-
A MATCH! My mother's brother — my Uncle Curly — donated one of his kidneys to save her life.
I was too young to verbalize what I was experiencing, but that season shaped everything. Subconsciously, it taught me everything I needed to know about public health — before I ever knew what public health was. I learned that access to care is not guaranteed. That communities can fill the gaps that systems leave open and that love, compassion, empathy and trust are the most powerful health interventions there are.
That little girl from Georgetown grew up to dedicate her life to one thing — making sure families, communities, and individuals feel supported, know their pathways to care, and never have to navigate them alone.
Credentials
Education:
DrPH Candidate —East Tennessee State University | Health Management & Policy | Expected 2029
Honored to Be Selected for East Tennessee State University's Inaugural Online DrPH Cohort | Fall 2026
MPH-Community Health Sciences — Tulane University-Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine | 2025
BS, Health Education — Johnson C. Smith University (HBCU) | 2014
Certifications:
HIV Prevention Certified Provider™ (HIVPCP™) | HealthHIV | 2026
MA-P — Medical Assistant, Phlebotomist | Wa. State Exp. 2028
Professional Experience:
Founder & Executive Director — Unity Health Navigators, LLC
Founder & Executive Director-Unity Health Navigators-A Community Health Initiative 501(c)(3)
Adjunct Professor Spring 2027 | Johnson C. Smith University | Health & Human Performance Department | Human Sexuality
Disease Research & Intervention Surveillance Specialist — Seattle & King County Public Health-Jail Health Services, Seattle WA
Sexual Health Clinical Supervisor — Whitman-Walker Health, Inc. (FQHC), Washington DC
Gilead's Advancing Access Program-PrEP Navigator
HIV Prevention Program Manager — Quality Comprehensive Health Center (CBO), Charlotte NC
CDC PS15-1502 Cooperative Agreement — Federal Grant Management
CDC Behavioral Health Intervention Facilitator "Sister to Sister" (MOU)— Mecklenburg County Health Department, Charlotte, NC
Behavioral Health-Community Liaison, North & South Carolina Territory-Wilmington Treatment Center
Contact Tracer & Case Investigator — Johns Hopkins University (COVID-19 Pandemic Response)
Health Education Coordinator — Johnson C. Smith University
Johnson C Smith University-Student Campus Advisor for Planned Parenthood Southeastern Region-Reproductive Health
Recognition:
Inaugural Disease Research & Intervention Surveillance Specialist, Seattle & King County Public Health- Jail Health Services
Implemented the First Female Targeted Rapid HIV & POCT Syphilis Testing Initiative in Seattle & King County-Jail Health Services
October 2023-Present
OneWe Reach-2025 Distinguished Scholar
OneWe Reach Conference-Round Table Talk 2025 | Bridging Gaps in Community Care
"Connecting Systems-Ideas-Innovation & People".
Mountain West AIDS Education Training Center- Carceral Services Conference-Round Table Discussion 2025
The Advantages of Disease Surveillance in Public Health Programs
Volunteer for the United States Conference on HIV/AIDS (USCHA) 2023 & 2025
First AME Church | Seattle Wa. | President of the Health & Wellness Ministry 2024-2025
12+ years as a Public Health Practitioner, leading HIV prevention, disease intervention,
community health programming, and healthcare navigation.
Vision
Unity Health Navigators exists because of what I witnessed as a child and what I have seen across a decade of practice — communities with every reason to give up and every resource to thrive, if only the systems around them were connected.
My vision is a South Carolina where your zip code does not determine your access to care.
Where rural does not mean forgotten. And where Black women feel compelled to Flip the Script and lead the HIV prevention and care response even though they are disproportionally affected.