Forward thinking, forward moving, patient focused.
Our Team
Susan Rees, RN, BSN, MSN
Chief Clinical Officer
Susan Rees, RN, BSN, has a passion for using innovative solutions to improve the lives of patients and give them the gift of more time with their families. Susan has over 25 years of experience helping to save lives through organ donation and transplantation. She is a registered nurse with an additional Bachelor of Science in nursing from Mercy College of Ohio and the University of Toledo. She has participated in clinical research, published abstracts, and co-authored a case study and numerous transplantation journal articles. As co-founder and chief clinical officer at Rejuvenate, her goal is to get people back to their families and their lives. “The employers we’re working with truly want the best for their employees, and that's what Rejuvenate's Health to Hope program can provide. We’re a concierge service giving patients their own, personal guide of the medical field.”
Deanna Bauman, CPT, CF-L2
Director of Fitness
Deanna Bauman has impacted countless patients and families through her dedication to saving and enhancing lives through fitness. With her infectious optimism, she leads a team of coaches that mentors kidney donors and recipients to lead healthier lifestyles. Utilizing fitness methods and sound nutritional guidance, she helps others achieve greater health and wellness, with an overall goal to increase the number of successful kidney transplants.
Deanna is a certified personal trainer who has been involved with CrossFit since 2014. She has additional certifications in aerobic capacity and is a CrossFit Level 2 coach. Deanna thrives on helping people cultivate better lives and finds joy in sharing in her clients’ “aha!” moments.
Mindy Black, PCC, MCNC
Director of Mental Health
Mindy Black is passionate about helping people find and maintain the motivation to thrive. As a Momentum Coach, she helps create a safe space for Health to Hope's clients to acknowledge, honor and navigate the many challenges and obstacles that arise. Mindy holds a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) accreditation from the International Coaching Federation. She is also a Certified Holistic Health Practitioner and a Master Certified Nutrition Coach (MCNC). Mindy holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and has 20 years of healthcare experience, first as a radiographer in sports medicine and then as a licensed massage therapist.
This path ultimately led her toward the specialty of how mindset affects the physical body and vice versa. The intersection of mind and body plays a significant role in motivation when dealing with chronic diseases. Mindy has been coaching for 10+ years and specializes in chronic kidney disease and diabetes.
Nicole Williams, MPH, ACC
Director of Strategic Operations and Grants
Nicole Williams is a senior healthcare strategist with 15+ years in project management, health education and quality improvement. Committed to bridging the gap between patient visits and improved health outcomes, Nicole has focused her career on healthcare equity, disparities and population health. She holds a Bachelor of Science, a master’s in public health and an associate certified coach credential.
Utilizing her unique experience and expertise, Nicole enhances Rejuvenate's program development and serves as a Momentum coach. She empowers clients to address mindset and emotional barriers that can be a hindrance to achieving greater health outcomes. Specializing in coaching individuals with kidney disease and other chronic conditions, Nicole fosters emotional awareness, goal setting and skills development for healing and personal growth. Her multifaceted expertise contributes to a holistic approach for lasting health transformations.
Sandy Flick, RN
Transplant Educator
Sandy Flick believes so strongly in Rejuvenate’s mission that she came out of retirement just to be a part of it. As a transplant coordinator for nearly 20 years, Sandy cared for over 1,600 transplant patients and helped train at least 17 transplant coordinators.
Sandy’s nursing career began when her children started school and she was looking for a way to help her father, who was ill. She soon realized her love for nursing, and it wasn’t long before she found herself on a renal transplant floor. From working directly with doctors in a clinic and managing labs to helping patients medically, physically and emotionally, there isn’t a side to transplantation that Sandy hasn’t seen. She loves how a kidney transplant can improve a patient’s quality of life and the gratitude each person has for their lifesaving gift. Now serving as a transplant educator for Rejuvenate’s Health to Hope program, Sandy enjoys sharing her deep knowledge of the transplant process to help even more patients access lifesaving kidney transplants.
Natalie Simmons
Administrator
Natalie Simmons is known as the fearless administrator who keeps everything organized and running smoothly. In this role, Natalie handles a million tiny details each day. She also assists with the coordination of various activities, meetings, conferences and workshops. Natalie earned her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. She taught kindergarten for four years before serving another four years as director and administrator of a childcare center. Natalie says everyone on the team at Health to Hope brings something to the table. “I can’t say enough things about the people we work with. When you come into contact with our employees, whether you’re a benefits director or a patient waiting for a lifesaving kidney transplant, you can expect welcoming arms.”
Rizza Loveranes, MBA, CTBS, CQA
Project Manager
Rizza Loveranes brings a positive outlook and over four years of experience in organ and tissue donation. Rizza started her career at an organ procurement organization with a primary focus in tissue recovery administration before transitioning to a quality and regulatory affairs position. She holds an undergraduate degree in healthcare administration from the University of Nevada Las Vegas and a Master of Business Administration with a focus in executive leadership from Ohio University in Athens. Additionally, Rizza holds designations as a Certified Tissue Banking Specialist through the American Association of Tissue Banks and a Certified Quality Internal Auditor through the American Society for Quality. Through passion, teamwork and innovation, she believes we can all help end the wait for lifesaving organs. “To be able to witness transplantation and impact change in someone’s life has been gratifying and fulfilling.”
Jessica Cahoy, RN
Fitness Coach
Jessica Cahoy has coached thousands of people on how to improve their eating and workout habits, not only to improve their lives but also to eradicate chronic diseases. She first discovered her passion for health and fitness while balancing simultaneous careers in competitive CrossFit and nursing.
While serving as a nurse, Jessica gained experience with gastrointestinal diseases, urology, orthopedics, neurology and Level 1 trauma centers. While she enjoyed serving others, she found herself facing an internal battle of wanting to follow doctors’ orders by administering routine medications, yet also recognizing how diet and exercise were overlooked as effective and less invasive options. Through her experience with CrossFit, she became well-versed in proper nutrition and exercise to build strength and endurance and eventually made the career leap to serving as a life coach.
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Silas Norman, MD, MPH
Medical Advisor
Since joining the Health to Hope team, Silas P. Norman, MD, MPH, has enhanced the program with his creativity and passion for educating and caring for people with CKD and kidney failure. Board-certified in Nephrology, Dr. Norman serves as a clinical professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Michigan and a transplant nephrologist at UM’s Transplant Center, where he is a co-medical director of kidney and pancreas transplantation. He is also the director of the Kidney Transplant Outreach Clinic and the Taubman Transplant Multi-Disciplinary Ambulatory Care Clinic at UM. Dr. Norman has focused his research in kidney transplantation in patients living with HIV, improving access to transplantation for underserved populations, and examining how physical function and frailty impact access to transplants for older candidates.