Bio

In 1922 the tomb of King Tutankhamen was discovered along with 5,398 objects inside.  It took 10 years to finish cataloging the items.  By examining the things we carry an intimate portrait can be painted of an individual. I believe these items might even say more about who we are than an image of our physical anatomy.

I started Three Pieces of Me in 2015 after the death of my mother’s father Bill Grace. Sitting around a table in Andalusia, Spain, he shared a story about his work as a fire chief in Portland Oregon when I asked him about a ring he was wearing.  I immediately recognized the power of objects to aid us in recalling and conveying our life experiences.  My goal is to use this project to tell the stories of those who have been marginalized or neglected by our society; particularly the elderly, and eventually individuals suffering from mental illness and homelessness.

I was born in Detroit and grew up in Southeast Michigan.  I attended the University of Pittsburgh where I studied neuroscience. I published and trained in the UPMC Translational Neuroscience Program from 2007-2011 with a focus on auditory cortical deficits in schizophrenia. From 2011-2013 I earned a master of arts in medical sciences at Boston University.  I worked in collaboration with the Harvard drug development initiative using a stem cell model to find novel therapeutic interventions for ALS patients.  I graduated from Florida Atlantic University’s School of Medicine in Boca Raton where I maintained my interest in the intersection of the neurosciences, wellness, and healthy aging learning from South Florida’s large and diverse geriatric population.  I went on to match for a neurology residency in Charleston SC where I have chosen to specialize in movement disorders.

Three pieces of me is about how each of us is more than a photo or bio can tell. It’s also about how we each have many facets to share.