.png){kind=small}
Leadership Development Council
Our Leadership Development Council consists of teens and young adults. We help them turn their ideas into projects that support the IBD community and become future leaders in the IBD space.
Adam Finkelstein
Council Member
​
This coming month Adam Finkelstein will be graduating medical school at the Penn State College of Medicine and will be entering general surgery residency at VCU. He was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at two years old and had his colon removed when he was twelve. He published a children's picture book about his experiences facing IBD with a positive attitude, mentored patients young and older about dealing with IBD, was a camp counselor at Camp Oasis, and have been on multiple IBD related podcasts.
Claudia Contreras
Council Member
​
Claudia Contreras went to Cal State Northridge and has a BA in political science with a minor in women studies. Her boyfriend of 6 years has Crohns and she loves being involved with his annual golf tournaments pre-pandemic.
Hannah Würzburger
Council Member
​
Hannah is currently a senior at the Abraham Joshua Heschel High School. She was diagnosed with Crohn's disease shortly after she turned seven and was treated with partial enteral nutrition (a special protocol involving a mostly liquid diet) for seven years. She is a hardworking student, and she hopes to pursue a career in medicine. She is currently an intern at Cathie Pfleger’s oncology lab at Mt. Sinai Hospital and is in the High School Immersion Program at Lenox Hill Hospital. She is also co-editor-in-chief of her school paper, Helios, and co-founder of Helix, a science magazine and newsletter at her school which combines her passions for science and journalism. In her free time, Hannah enjoys playing piano, writing, reading, and listening to music! She is excited to serve as a mentor to young people facing new diagnoses and to contribute to the IBD community.
Jack Mouch
Council Member
​
Jack is a recent graduate of Williams College and is very passionate about mentoring IBD patients and IBD patient advocacy. Having been diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at age four, Jack enjoys mentoring young patients with IBD, and has co-facilitated multiple IBD support group meetings. In addition to mentoring IBD patients, Jack has helped plan IBD fundraising events and has served as a Counselor at Camp Oasis @ Home for the summers of 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Jaxon Honeycutt
Council Member
​
Jax is a 9th grade caregiver for his Mom who was diagnosed with UC, had a total colectomy and has been rediagnosed with Crohn's. He is an activist, actor, and student. He has advocated to Congresspersons and Senators. He works with his mom on her non-profit group IBDMoms and he hopes to accomplish more on the council!
Josef Miller
Council Member
​
Josef Miller is a second-year student at Washington University in St. Louis. Raised in a multicultural family, he has lived in Venezuela, Ecuador, Spain, Peru, Mexico, and the United States. Josef was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease during his junior year of high school, an experience that deeply shaped his perspective. Since then, he has turned to writing and sharing positive messages as a way to inspire and bring hope to others in the inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) community.
Lowell Dylan
Council Member
​
Lowell Dylan lives in Los Angeles and was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease at the age of two. Lowell’s mother Stacy is the co-founder of Connecting to Cure Crohn’s and Colitis. Through 20 years of experience dealing with endless complications of his disease, Stacy been a great advocate and caretaker for his health and the health of other IBD patients and families. Lowell has learned about patient advocacy along the way. Lowell is a musician and a basketball coach.
Neneh Bah
Council Member
​
Neneh Bah goes to North Cobb High School, and hopes to become a gastroenterologist in the future to help others like her! She works at a bakery and hopes to make a cookbook one day!
Ritu Gaikwad
Council Member
​
Ritu Gaikwad has been an IBD patient since age 13. She has been involved in C to C for a while now, around 2 years, and has really enjoyed contributing to IBD fundraising and awareness and support for the greater patient community! She is a recent graduate of UCLA, with a BS in Neuroscience and currently applying to medical school in the hopes of being a future GI! She believes that nutrition and diet are also super important, and has been working on a South Asian cookbook project with the team here in an effort to spread awareness to other IBD patients.
Simon Reyter
Council Member
​
Simon Reyter is 17 years old and currently a rising senior at Calabasas High School. He is a very diligent student and very active in his community. He plays varsity tennis and works at Stonefire Grill. His connection to IBD is through Ulcerative Colitis. He was diagnosed with UC at 7 and lived with it for around two years. As time grew, his condition worsened and he was forced to have his colon removed. Over three surgeries, he had his entire large intestine removed and his stomach reconstructed. Now much later, he lives colitis free and perfectly healthy. He strives to give back to his community as they treated him so well when he was his most sick.
Talia Boren
Council Member
​
Talia Boren is a senior at Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences, where she serves as co-editor-in-chief of the school newspaper and managing editor of the creative writing magazine. She is also the co-executive director of Published Points of View (PPoV), a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting media literacy among the next generation, reaching over 1,700 students. Diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease in 2023, Talia has turned her experience with chronic illness into advocacy, contributing to organizations like Positivity Beats IBD. In her free time, she enjoys reading, journaling, listening to music, running, playing soccer, and writing poetry, combining her passions for creativity, education, and storytelling.
Maya Scholder
Council Member
​
Maya Scholder is from Chicago, Illinois, and now lives in Columbus, Ohio. Diagnosed with Crohn's disease in 2023, Maya has undergone four surgeries and lived with a temporary ostomy bag. Maya works in the marketing department at Nationwide Children's Hospital, where she received her diagnosis and initial treatment. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, baking, and attending concerts.
Jason Guo
Council Member
​
Hello, my name is Jason and I'm currently a high school senior in California. I was diagnosed with Crohn's in my freshmen year after numerous visits to the hospital. Thanks to wonderful doctors and numerous procedures, my flareups have been minimal. In the past years, I was the one that needed someone to guide me out of the once distraught place I was in. Now, I'm ready to help others battle their IBD, which is why I joined Connecting to Cure. I'm excited to continue advocating and helping others with their IBD journey!
Brandon Sikes
Council Member
​
Brandon is an undergraduate student at Washington University in St. Louis, who plans to attend medical school. His father was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis as a teenager and has inspired Brandon’s focus on patient-centered treatment and advocacy. Brandon is excited to be involved with Connecting to Cure, where he can broaden his involvement with and support of the IBD community.
Priscilla Contreras
Council Member
​
My name Is Priscilla Contreras. I'm a junior at Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences. I'm sixteen and am a student athlete. I play golf, soccer, and softball. I am also the co-president of the Positivity Beats IBD Chapter here. I have two siblings and a golden doodle named Eloise.