Wayne Detmer, MD // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: Yale University

Medical School: University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine

Residency: University of Cincinnati

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Dr. Detmer has worked at Lawndale Christian Health Center since 1999 and was promoted to Chief Clinical Officer of Operations in 2001. Dr. Detmer has been a coach and advisor to hundreds of interns and medical students, working with our residents in their Chief Rotation during PGY3. He has a particular interest and wisdom when it comes to exploring how faith should inform our practice of medicine.

Dr. “D” lives in South Lawndale with his wife, Gina, who is a pediatrician at LCHC. They have four incredible children.

Kara Greeley, MD // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: Mount Holyoke College

Medical School: University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine

Residency: Thomas Jefferson University Hospital

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Dr. Greeley is one of our primary clinic preceptors and OB attendings, and regularly teaches our Wednesday afternoon didactics. She has served as Director of Maternal Child Health for LCHC for ten years. She also provides maternity and infant care through Centering groups, and provides holistic care for multi-generational immigrant families at Farragut Career Academy, where patients are seen both from the community and the high school, and where she also serves as the Site Medical Director. Dr. Greeley has taken call on Labor and Delivery throughout her career, during which she enjoys teaching and mentoring students and young physicians to provide excellent and compassionate maternity care.

Dr. Greeley has lived in the South Lawndale community for over two decades with her husband, Siri, and family, who always keep it an exciting place with her three boys, one girl, two cats, and rambunctious dog. She has found that living in the same community as her patients has given her insight into the strengths and challenges of life in their neighborhood, and creates a deeper bond with them.

MICAH CHOI HONG, DO // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Medical School: Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine

Residency: Advocate Christ Medical Center

Fellowship: Maternal Child Health Surgical Obstetrics, West Suburban Medical Center

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Dr. Choi Hong regularly precepts residents in our continuity clinic, provides full spectrum family medicine in the outpatient setting and delivers babies as part of LCHC’s obstetrics team in the hospital.

Dr. Choi Hong graduated from the Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2015 and completed her family medicine residency at Advocate Christ Medical Center in 2018.

Dr. Choi Hong loves the outdoors, including camping (even in the winter), hiking, biking, and traveling with her husband Stephen. She also likes to go on long walks with her dog Gabriel, to do innovative cooking, and to learn from failures on how to care for plants.

Thomas Huggett, MD, MPH // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: University of Wisconsin - Madison

Medical School: University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine

Residency: University of Missouri-Columbia

MPH: Johns Hopkins University

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Dr. Huggett currently serves as Medical Director of Mobile Health at LCHC, leading a team of healthcare providers providing full spectrum family medicine to 12 homeless shelters. Their team-based care includes care and support of severe mental illness, medication and support for opioid and other substance use disorders, HIV care and prevention, in addition to broad primary and preventive care.

Dr. Huggett was named the 2018 Illinois Family Physician of the Year by the Illinois Academy of Family Physicians, recognizing his 25 years of working on the West Side of Chicago passionately providing primary care to residents of marginalized communities, particularly those struggling with homelessness and substance use. He is the ideal role model, mentor, and instructor for family physicians.

Dr. Huggett lives in the Austin community on the West Side of Chicago.

GRACE PARK, MD, MPH // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: University of Chicago

Medical School: University of Illinois College of Medicine

MPH: Yale School of Public Health

Residency: University of Cincinnati (Christ Hospital)

Fellowship: Emory University School of Medicine (Palliative Medicine)

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Dr. Park leads the Geriatric Medicine rotation, teaches during Wednesday didactics, and regularly precepts residents in continuity clinic.

She first came to LCHC as an intern in 2013. A lasting impression from that year was her recognition of her need for God in order to love others well, and her need for others in order to know more of God. This conviction has continued to shape her path in medicine, guiding her desire for deeper relationships with patients and for opportunities to influence how people relate to one another.

Board certified in Family Medicine and Palliative Medicine, Dr. Park is especially drawn to the ways both fields invite clinicians to discern what matters most to patients. Her professional interests include communication, home-based care, community medicine, and innovative models of care delivery.

Outside of work, she enjoys home-cooked meals, dancing, hiking, and meaningful conversations. She lives in North Lawndale and is delighted to return to serve alongside the friends, mentors, and neighbors who helped shape her calling.

Alex Porte, MD // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: Hope College

Medical School: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine

Residency: South Bend Memorial Hospital

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Dr. Porte is the supervisor for the Mobile Health-Substance Use Disorder rotation, and also works as a preceptor in the continuity clinic of the residency program. He began work at LCHC in 2019, based out of the Homan Square clinic. Dr. Porte’s interests include addiction medicine and treatment of severe mental illness. He also has a special interest in treating persons experiencing homelessness, and his experiences in that area includes serving as the site medical director at Pacific Garden Mission (one of the largest shelters in the country), and working at a hotel-based shelter used to protect vulnerable persons during the Covid epidemic.

Dr. Porte graduated from Michigan State University College of Human Medicine in 2016 and completed his family medicine residency at Memorial Hospital in South Bend, Indiana, in 2019.

Originally from Kalamazoo, Michigan, Dr. Porte lives in North Lawndale with his wife, Courtney, and his four children. He loves playing pickup basketball at Lawndale’s gym, going to Douglass Park, and hiking the dunes of Lake Michigan with his family.

Melissa Alia Preyss, MD // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: University of Chicago

Medical School: University of Illinois College of Medicine

Residency: University of Chicago

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Dr. Preyss is lead faculty for the Women’s Health rotation. She provides comprehensive obstetrics and gynecology care to patients at LCHC as well our primary partner hospitals, where she takes call and operates. Her clinical interests include full spectrum obstetrics and gynecology, abnormal uterine bleeding, and providing access to minimally invasive surgery and prolapse management to historically medically underserved patient groups. She is passionate about health equity and fluent in Spanish.

Dr. Preyss is board certified in obstetrics and gynecology, serves on the steering committee for Chicago's Equal Care — Cervical Cancer initiative, and is also faculty for the OB/GYN residency at Sinai Hospital.

She lives in Oak Park with her husband, Ben, and their three young boys. She loves to travel and try new foods, though nothing will ever quite taste as good as her Grandma's pozole.

Daniel Song, MD // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: Princeton University

Medical School: Yale University

Residency: University of Cincinnati/Cincinnati Children's Hospital

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As core faculty, Dr. Song leads the inpatient medicine curriculum (FMS) for the program, oversees LCHC's home visit program, precepts in continuity clinic, and contributes regularly to weekly didactics. Dr. Song's clinical interests include transitions of care between home and hospital, reducing hospitalizations and ER visits, and SUD treatment.

Dr. Song is board certified in both internal medicine and pediatrics. He first worked for LCHC in 2013 as an intern before going to medical school, intending to return to California once he completed his training, but God took him on a detour to join LCHC once again as a physician and to be part of the residency program.

Dr. Song's personal interests include enjoying live classical and jazz music, reading poetry and working on linocut prints. He lives in North Lawndale with Florence Hsiao, his wife and fellow FMR faculty member, and attends Lawndale Community Church.

MICHELLE YOO, MD // Faculty ▼

Undergraduate: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Medical School: University of Illinois at Chicago

Residency: Loyola University/MacNeal Hospital

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Dr. Yoo precepts residents in continuity and OB migrant clinic, including morning teaching and case-based discussions in clinic. Dr. Yoo enjoys procedures and broad-spectrum family medicine, and has a particular interest in women’s health/OB and global health.

In medical school, Dr. Yoo was a scholar in the Global Medicine Program, which provided supplemental curriculum in global health. She was involved in overseas medical mission work/research during this time and was also a member of the Gold Humanism Honor Society.

Dr. Yoo stumbled across LCHC's Green Tomato Cafe during medical school while in search of a place to study. After witnessing two strangers interlocking hands and fervently praying together, she later found out about LCHC and its mission. Since then, she has found LCHC to be a perfect fit for her.

Outside of medicine, she loves traveling and exploring new cultures and foods. She also enjoys hiking and music (playing guitar, piano, leading worship at church) and spending time with her husband, newborn baby, and German shepherd puppy.

Gabriela Cossyleon, MD // PGY-3 ▼

Originally from the southeast side of Chicago, Gaby attended Dominican University in the Chicago suburbs where she studied biochemistry, before going on to medical school at St. George’s University School of Medicine. Gaby has worked as a barber and a supervising chemist with hazardous waste at a processing center. Among her extracurricular experiences, Gaby volunteered for several years with a prison ministry for women inmates at Cook County Jail, where she valued the opportunity to build trust and rapport with women who had grown up in some of the same neighborhoods where Gaby had her roots.

Seeing that “there is no place like Lawndale” as Gaby shared in some early correspondence with the Lawndale FMR, Gaby shared her own heart for “building deeper roots within the community and with the Love of Christ.”

Tiffany Pariva, MD // PGY-3 ▼

Tiffany studied microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics as an undergraduate at UCLA, and then went to the Loma Linda University School of Medicine, before leaving her home state of California to join us here in Chicago. While volunteering with a street medicine program, Tiffany was involved in developing a program to provide eye care and eyeglasses to the homeless population in San Bernardino. She also volunteered with a group from her church at a homeless shelter in Riverside, worked with pregnant teens as San Bernadino high schools, and with a community health center in Los Angeles.

These and other experiences drove Tiffany to research physician management of adverse childhood experiences and social determinants of health to improve screening methods to identify high risk populations. She writes “this research and my clinical experiences have shown me the power of social risk factors in determining a patients' overall health and has taught me the role of advocacy a physician has, especially for those most vulnerable in a society. In the future I hope to advocate for my patient's health through further research and education.”

Josephine Sebagisha, MD // PGY-3 ▼

Originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Josephine lived in Massachusetts before completing her undergraduate studies at the University of Massachusetts in Lowell, and then going to the St. James School of Medicine. Prior to medical school, she was a science and literacy lab teaching assistant for immigrants with English as a second language. Working with Congolese immigrants who were born and grew up in refugee camps, she understood their challenges, and they found comfort simply by seeing a "familiar face."

Josephine was drawn to family medicine in part by witnessing the profound impact it can have on patients and their families as she accompanied her own family members on journeys with serious illness. She writes of a physician caring for her loved ones, “The physician addressed not only acute but chronic illness. He not only addressed the medical needs but also acknowledged our family's trauma and embraced us with compassion. These experiences provided valuable insights about the complex relational aspect of family medicine, combining specialties of pediatrics, women's health and geriatrics.”

Alisha Tillman, DO // PGY-3 ▼

A Tennessee native, Alisha completed her undergraduate and medical degrees in Alabama, at Alabama Agricultural & Mechanical University and the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. She also completed a post-baccalaureate research internship at the Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine, where she conducted research that investigated the effects of chemotherapy on premature ovarian follicles in mice. She was also part of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Medical Scholars Program, a National Medical Fellowship Primary Care Leadership Program Scholar, and a J.W. Darden Scholarship Recipient.

Reflecting on a volunteer experience to address inequalities in healthcare access, Alisha shared “Being an integral part of this project underlined that health disparities not only stem from lack of finances, access, or education. They can be created or worsened by culturally unaware healthcare professionals. This project motivated me to ensure the people I encounter feel heard and supported.”

Lauryn Ashford, MD // PGY-2 ▼

Lauryn left Atlanta to complete her undergraduate studies at Tougaloo College in Mississippi, and then went on to Brown University for medical school. While at Tougaloo, she was an officer in the Student Government Association and part of several academic honor societies. At Brown, Lauryn participated in research to improve the quality of patient-centered outpatient discussions regarding advanced care planning and to improve satisfaction with feedback coming from residents of Brown Medicine’s Residency Program.

Lauryn’s observations of her great, great aunt Mattie Mae’s encounters with the healthcare system led her to pursue a year of elective research as an Academic Scholar, resulting in a systematic literature review titled "The Effects of Racism on Black Maternal Mortality," and strengthened her commitment to advocate for all patients' voices to be heard and validated throughout their healthcare journeys.

Lauryn shares “My commitment to Family Medicine is driven by a desire to provide trustworthy, comprehensive care that will support patients throughout their lifetime. I am passionate about serving diverse populations, advocating for health equity, and fostering long-term relationships with patients and their families.”

Aaron Holley, DO // PGY-2 ▼

A native of Mobile, Alabama, Aaron finished her undergraduate degree at Auburn University and stayed nearby to study medicine at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. She had a specific interest in osteopathic medicine because it equipped her to view patients from a multidimensional perspective, starting early in medical school, which is particularly crucial in family medicine.

While Aaron’s extracurriculars included some traditional roles like membership in the Christian Medical and Dental Association, volunteering in a community garden, and serving as president of an organization using volunteers to deliver essential medical care to underserved communities, one of Aaron’s first activities on her CV is one she lists as “Neighbor”, in which she describes the commitment she and her husband have had to being good neighbors, picking up trash or lending a ride to someone with unstable transportation.

“Some of our neighbors live with inconsistent housing and food insecurity. We try to build a sense of community with our fellow neighbors, no matter their circumstances, knowing everyone brings something valuable to the relationship in their own way.”

Ifunanya (Ify) Nweke, MD // PGY-2 ▼

Growing up in Houston, Ify watched her mother ensure that anyone who visited their home always had something to eat. This lesson inspired Ify to take care of others not only through food, but also in family medicine by nurturing patients' well-being and building strong, supportive relationships.

Ify completed her bachelor’s degree at the University of Texas at Austin, a master’s degree at George Washington University, and then medical school at Ross University. Ify has volunteered and mentored with several community organizations and was the president of her Student National Medical Association chapter in medical school. While working on her master’s degree, Ify was a Residence Director overseeing ten resident assistants supporting over 400 undergraduate students. Feeling that she was falling short in serving her Spanish-speaking patients, Ify embarked on learning Spanish, and learning medical Spanish has enriched her understanding of diverse patient needs, underscoring the importance of making every patient feel valued, and preparing her to provide more inclusive and effective care.

Regarding her pursuit of a residency program to support her in continuing her journey, Ify writes “As I embark on this next step in my career, I am eager to find a residency program where I can build a strong foundation as a primary care physician. I aspire to be a doctor who is engaged with my patients, supporting them through the various medical seasons of their lives.”

Diamanta Panford-Ufere, MD // PGY-2 ▼

Born and raised in South London, Diamanta relocated to Bolingbrook, Illinois as a high schooler, quickly recognizing the vast differences between the health systems in those two places. She studied psychology and global health at Northwestern University, received her Master of Public Health (MPH) at Johns Hopkins, and completed medical school at Northeast Ohio Medical University.

Diamanta’s research and community service experiences have ranged from collaborating with the American Heart Association and The Urban Barber Association to develop a blood pressure screening program in Cleveland barbershops, to composing and publishing articles of global and public health interest for a daily newsletter while at Johns Hopkins. As an NHSC scholar, Diamanta was sure of her commitment to equitable healthcare, primary care, and patient advocacy early in her medical school trajectory.

Writing of her decicion to join LCHC, Diamanta shares, “With my strong interest in community outreach, I hoped to join a program that explores healthcare solutions beyond the clinic...to work in an environment where I can engage with patients, colleagues, and faculty who are rich in cultural diversity, and share my passions for community engagement, advocacy, and compassionate patient-centered care.”

Markia Pettway, DO // PGY-2 ▼

Markia received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Alabama, and went on to medical school at the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Markia is a National Health Service Corps Scholar, a scholarship awarded to medical students committed to working in underserved areas. She also worked as an adjunct professor in biology at Jefferson State Community College in Birmingham. Working with 'A Promise to Help,' a nonprofit organization that provides care, medicine, and screening services to rural areas in Alabama, Markia recognized the profound impact that accessible healthcare can have on underserved populations and reinforced her commitment to serving communities in need.

Markia writes of her vision for practicing medicine, “My journey through medical school has solidified my passion for family medicine, a field where the cornerstone of effective healthcare lies in the relationships we build with our patients. Whether it's connecting with a patient through sign language or offering guidance much like my own doctors did, I am eager to continue building meaningful relationships with patients and to contribute to the well-being of the communities I serve.”

Vasilios Stefanis, MD // PGY-2 ▼

Vasilios studied biology, chemistry and religion at Loyola University before embarking on his medical studies at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.

Vasilios undertook a variety of research projects while at both Loyola and Rush, and has volunteered with a community health clinic and for many years with Saint Haralambos Greek Orthodox Church. It was in those volunteer experiences that Vasilios learned how public hospitals offer some of the most valuable resources to patients who are otherwise unable to access the level of treatment they need. This ranged from helping a prisoner better understand the testing and treatments he was receiving to better manage his portal hypertension, to speaking with the family of a young mother to better understand and explain how her alcohol use led to her having Wernicke's encephalopathy.

Of his desires for residency training, Vasilios wrote, “I pray I attend a family medicine program that will train me to help vulnerable patients and their families overcome their most limiting barriers to achieving the more joyful, loving, and healthy life they deserve."

Nicole Diaz-Rosario, MD // PGY-1 ▼

A Florida native, Nicole completed both her undergraduate studies and medical school at the University of Florida. She was selected as an Emerging Leaders Scholar by the American Academy of Family Physicians, one of only thirty recipients of this award, which included a year-long mentorship program and leadership project. Nicole was also the Language Services Director for the Equal Access Clinic Network, for which she oversaw phone and interpretation services, and led an interdisciplinary language access working group to improve language services across the UF Health system. Through interpretation services, Nicole found herself inhabiting the patient's world as I shared in their confusion, worry, and hope as if it were her own. Although Nicole found important lessons from her time in various clerkships, she stated that “Ultimately, it was in Family Medicine where I found the thread tying everything together. It is where I can meet people not only where they are at, but also guide them through every stage of their lives and collaborate with multiple disciplines to strengthen healthcare systems and ensure continuity of care. Along the journey, I have come to realize that I translate more than words, I translate medicine, helping patients turn complex science into care that fits their lives.”

Lindsay Dyas, MD // PGY-1 ▼

Raised on the outskirts of Detroit, Lindsay remained in Michigan for her degree in physiology from Michigan State, where she continued on to complete medical school. Over the years she volunteered with the Children’s Hospital of Michigan, which she credits with being the source of her interest in medicine and passion for serving marginalized communities. She also volunteered with a high school tutoring program and with a street medicine program. During medical school she was the president of her school’s chapter of the Christian Medical and Dental Association, and co-president of both the Family Medicine Interest Group and the Student National Medical Association. As a result of her commitment to primary care for the underserved, Lindsay was awarded a National Health Services Scholarship. Lindsay writes of her journey to practice medicine, “I am not just seeking a career; I am seeking to build a practice where I can use my keenly developed and cultivated an intuition that allows me to recognize the needs of others, often before they have even realized the need themselves, to anticipate and meet patient needs. I am confident that training at a program dedicated to preventative care and community engagement will prepare me to form long, trusting relationships—becoming a bridge between my patients and the resources they need to thrive.”

Alizah Griffin, DO // PGY-1 ▼

Alizah studied biology at the University of Georgia before migrating west to Alabama to complete her medical studies at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine in Auburn. Through experiences as varied as a medical missions trip to Honduras to an outreach program to foster stroke prevention in rural Chambers County in Alabama, Alizah’s conviction around bridging the gap between medicine and the community was reinforced and showed her how health literacy empowers change. She also served as a Pre Medical Minority Enrichment & Development (PMED) Mentor, through which she encouraged and provided practical supports to minority students interested in medicine. Of her own journey to train as a physician, Alizah shared “I'm focused not only on becoming a capable physician, but I'm also thinking about the kind of physician I want to be. I envision myself practicing full spectrum family medicine, and I am committed to serving communities similar to the ones I grew up in, areas where access to primary care is limited. I want to be a trustworthy presence in my patients' lives, helping them navigate challenges and celebrate health milestones along the way.”

Sharice Hill, MD // PGY-1 ▼

Sharice majored in anthropology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and then completed medical school at Ross University. During medical school she volunteered with a free clinic and a rescue mission, performing a variety of tasks to assist clients at those facilities. A native of the Chicago area, Sharice was already familiar with Lawndale through her work there as a clinical quality intern, where she work with the Chief Clinical Officer on a variety of projects, including chart audits and patient safety assessments. Sharice attributes the origin of her interest in family medicine to her own family’s doctor, and writes of her vision for her own practice, “want to build a career in family medicine that extends beyond the clinic walls. I see myself practicing in underserved communities like where I grew up, engaging in public health projects that promote wellness, and teaching future physicians. I am also interested in research that explores preventive and community-focused approaches to care. Above all, I want to be a physician who listens closely, speaks plainly, and earns the trust of my patients and their families.”

Christopher Okine, MD // PGY-1 ▼

Chris studied neuroscience as an undergraduate at Harvard University, and then completed medical school at the University of Michigan. Chris has participated in a variety of extracurricular activities, from teaching middle school math for a year in Boston, to singing in the choir of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, to working with Healing Brothers United, an organization that was started in response to the need for better mental health awareness and service access for Black men and boys in Washtenaw County, Michigan, which created culturally affirming spaces where Black men and boys can feel valued, thrive with optimal mental health, embrace their individuality, and experience brotherhood. Chris has written of his interest in family medicine, “Early on, I enjoyed the inclusivity and broad scope of medicine, which created an environment that supported me in caring deeply for anyone, regardless of age, identity, or condition. I also found fulfillment in the emphasis on prevention, as it was a way to help people protect themselves and invest in their futures. Furthermore, I admired how family physicians made space to acknowledge patients' emotions and lives beyond the clinic visit.”