Shalonda is Chief Executive Officer at Sickle Cell Foundation of Palm Beach & Treasure Coast. Previously, she served as President at Warren Warren and Cook. Online profile

Tracee was a Director of operations and outreach at Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Inc. She also founded Kids Explore Japan in 2014. She studied Masters of Administration, International Administration, and Human Resource Management at Central Michigan University. She graduated in Arts from Eastern Michigan University. Experience: * Operations Management * Stakeholder Engagement * Community Outreach *Fund Development *Japan Study Abroad Coordination *Training & Development *Federal Grant Administration *Fiscal Planning & Administration *Problem Solving & Change Management Online profile

Nancy is the grandmother of a child with Sickle Cell Disease. She has been active in the sickle cell community since the birth of her grandson, participating in fundraising and attending conferences. She has attended Sickle Cell in Focus at NIH and testified at the FDA as an advocate for those with sickle cell disease. As a career educator and a retired high school principal, Nancy has special interests in helping parents and educators make appropriate decisions for students with sickle cell disease. Online profile

Trained at St John’s University, College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in New York, Marie Ojiambo is a Formulation Scientist by profession specializing in pre-clinical Pharmaceutical Research. She is also a Sickle Cell warrior and a global advocate for Sickle Cell Disease Awareness. Diagnosed at the age of 1, she uses her knowledge and personal experiences to raise awareness about the disease, mentor young warriors and consult with Pharma and other CBO’s on matters Sickle Cell Disease. Currently consulting with Pfizer Inc, the Sickle Cell Diseases Associations of America and heading the Consortium’s Clinical Trials Initiative work group, Marie uses her experiences of living with the disease to inform research, advocacy and various other stakeholders within the Sickle cell disease space on strategies to advance the healthcare and treatment options available to sickle cell warriors. Birthed in the year 2013, Marie founded the Sickle Strong Initiative, a Kenyan based NGO whose mandate is to raise awareness around sickle cell disease and advocate for better health care opportunities for patients suffering the Disease in Kenya. Through SSI, she has been able to host medical training and awareness campaigns for patients suffering the disease in Kenya. Marie is also the proprietor of the annual sickle cell public awareness forum, Ongea (which means to ‘speak out!’ in Swahili). Ongea is an annual public forum that provides a platform for sickle cell warriors to speak out about their condition, share and interact with each other. It also provides an opportunity for patients to engage with and challenge the Government, Pharma, Insurance companies, the public and other stakeholders on what is being done to improve the health care and environment that patients are exposed to. An estimated 650 plus warriors and their families have benefited from Ongea. Marie also holds beauty pageant titles of Miss Kenya 2014/15, The People’s princess Miss Africa USA 2014/15 and is currently 1st runners up Face of Kenya USA 2016/17, platforms that she has used to actively and vocally raise awareness around the disease. Online profile

Jon Mark Hirshon, MD, PhD, MPH, FACEP, FAAEM, FACPM is dedicated to improving access to high quality acute care in the United States and in every country across the globe. He is a Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine and in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He is the former director of the Charles McC. Mathias, Jr. National Study Center for Trauma and EMS and is currently the Senior Vice-Chairman of the University of Maryland, Baltimore’s Institutional Review Board. Dr. Hirshon is a federally funded researcher and teacher who has been the principal investigator on over $9 million in federal research and training grants and contracts and has been co-investigator on numerous other funded projects. As part of his international work through a National Institutes of Health Fogarty International Center grant, he and his dedicated teams have trained approximately 1000 physicians from Egypt and multiple other countries in the Middle East in acute care related topics including the clinical care of trauma patients, disaster preparedness and response, and injury research methods. Special Interests: Emergency Medicine Infectious Disease Surveillance International Medicine Preventive Medicine Research in Public Health Surveillance Online profile

Tosin Ola, BSN, RN (aka Sickle Cell Warrior), is one of the most eloquent and dynamic voices in the sickle cell disease community. As a sickle cell warrior herself, she understands and resonates with issues in the SCD community. Tosin is a practicing registered nurse, mentor, sickle cell advocate, friend and reliable source of sickle cell impressions and advice from both the medical and patient perspective. Tosin strives to create a community where people can feel comfortable asking (and getting answers to), their most pertinent and personal questions related to sickle cell disease. She is dedicated to presenting positive and uplifting messages about sickle cell to the society, as well as empowering sickle cell patients to take control of their disease and think differently about life with sickle cell. She believes that sickle cell does not define you, and that one can have a beautiful and fulfilling life regardless of sickle cell. Online profile

Dr. Jawan C. Ayer-Cole is a Hematology / Oncology Specialist in Tampa, Florida. She graduated with honors in 1998. Having more than 19 years of diverse experiences, especially in hematology/Oncology, Internal Medicine, Dr. Jawan C. Ayer-Cole affiliates with many hospitals including Tampa General Hospital, St Josephs Hospital, and cooperates with other doctors and specialists in the medical group. Online profile

Michael U. Callaghan, MD, is Associate Professor of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at Wayne State University School of Medicine and Director of the Sickle Cell Center at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan. He received his medical degree from Wayne State University, and completed his pediatric residency and pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship at Children's Hospital of Michigan. Dr. Callaghan cares for more than 100 children and adults with hemophilia and has served as Medical Director of Camp Bold Eagle hemophilia camp. He participates in basic, translational, and clinical research. Dr. Callaghan has authored or coauthored over 50 peer-reviewed articles that have been published in journals such as Haemophilia, Blood, Nature Genetics, and The New England Journal of Medicine. He is the previous recipient of the John Penner Award from the Hemophilia Foundation of Michigan and has been featured in Top Doctors in America.   Clinical interests: Bleeding Disorders Hemophilia and its Complications von Willebrand Disease ITP and other immune cytopenias Polycythemia Congenital bone marrow failure Sickle cell disease Hemoglobinopathies   Research interests: Clotting factor inhibitors New Coagulation Unfolded Protein Response Translational hematology and early clinical trials with emphasis on drug discovery Sickle cell disease Hemoglobinopathies Online profile

From the moment she found out her daughter would have sickle cell disease, she began educating herself and others about the disease. When her daughter had her first sickle cell pain episode, she shared it with the world, not knowing the type of impact it would create. Jennifer was able to expose the ugly realities of sickle cell disease, while capturing the hearts of thousands of viewers. Jennifer has accomplished so much in very little time. In September 2014, Jennifer took sickle cell advocacy and awareness to a whole new level when she focused her efforts on the Sickle Cell Treatment Act petition. Jennifer is also active within the sickle cell community and has introduced it into the Latin community. She has also hosted sickle cell fundraisers and support groups for moms with children with sickle cell. She is actively educating others about the disease, while looking for ways to put sickle cell on the map. Jennifer has done an outstanding job not only as a mother, but a true advocate for sickle cell. Online profile

Dr. Laura D. Edler is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work at University of Florida. In addition to her teaching assignments, Edler previously served as Title IV-E Stipend Coordinator for three years, which educated and trained social workers to advocate for child safety, family preservation and permanency, focusing on the areas of child abuse and neglect. Dr. Edler’s accomplishments outside the classroom include developing a grant proposal to use simulation activities to strengthen child welfare professional skills and using civic engagement projects and digital storytelling for education. She also co-authored the Life Style Education and Counseling Program Manual, addressing teen pregnancy for the Escambia County Mental Health Center. Online profile