Family Council

Todd Werner, co-founding attorney of Avantech Law, has joined the FAST Advisory Council (FAC) as council leader. Todd is an intellectual property attorney bringing extensive experience from the pharmaceutical industry. His son, Louie, lives with Angelman syndrome.

Dr. Terry Jo V. Bichell has a Ph.D. in Neuroscience. She is the founder and director of COMBINEDBrain, which is devoted to speeding the path to clinical treatments for people with severe rare genetic non-verbal neurodevelopmental disorders. While working as a documentary filmmaker, Dr. Bichell’s youngest child, Lou, was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome. She quickly switched focus to help move bench science into the first clinical trials for Angelman syndrome. Dr. Bichell is a highly-published, experienced researcher with a history of working in neuroscience and women’s health.

Easton Bryant, PharmD, is the owner of an independent pharmacy, North Century Pharmacy, in Columbia, Kentucky. Easton's pharmacy offers a full line of innovative services including pharmacogenomic testing. He is passionate about helping others make educated and informed decisions regarding health-related issues. His oldest daughter, Izzie Mae, lives with Angelman syndrome.

Sue Edberg, MBA, is a Minnesota native and the grandmother of William, who has Angelman syndrome. After her career breaking barriers in the nonprofit and the corporate worlds, she now focuses on seeing it through that her grandson and all the other angels get a cure for Angelman syndrome. She brings a strong skill set in fundraising and advocacy to help support FAST’s mission. She lives in West St. Paul, MN with her husband, Jim. They have two sons, and four grandchildren.

Tami Hicks is mom to Ethan, age 22, who is living with Angelman Syndrome. Tami has been in public education for 17 years with 9.5 of those years in administration.  Tami is a Doctoral candidate at Purdue University researching educational leadership and policy.  She is now President / CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Elkhart County in northern Indiana. Tami and her husband, Bryan Wodtkey, have been married almost six years in June of 2023.

Dr. D’Orazio serves as a medical toxicology consultant for the Poison Control Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. He brings extensive experience in emergency medicine, medical toxicology, addiction medicine and has been involved in various clinical trials. His son, Gabriel, has Angelman syndrome.

Dr. Derek Matheson is a graduate of Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine and has over two decades of internal medicine experience. Dr. Matheson’s youngest child, Remi, was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome in June 2018.

Julie Renner, PA-C, has work experience as a physician assistant in neurosurgery, emergency medicine and currently specializes in private practice general orthopedics.  She has a degree in Neuroscience and worked as a Clinical Research Coordinator at the University of Pittsburgh with a focus on Traumatic Brain Injury prior to obtaining her Master of Medical Science, Physician Assistant studies.  She resides with her husband, Jon, and their three children. Their daughter, Sophia, lives with Angelman Syndrome.

Laura Sargent, APRN, PNP, is a pediatric nurse practitioner at Children’s Mercy in Kansas City, Missouri. She manages the developmental, nutritional, respiratory and other generalized healthcare needs of children born prematurely and with complex medical conditions. Laura and her husband, Patrick, have three children. Their daughter, Maddie, lives with Angelman syndrome.

Xiaowei holds a Ph.D. in experimental medicine from McGill University and a J.D. from Suffolk Law School. She also completed a three-year postdoctoral fellowship at Boston Children's Hospital . She then made a career change from science to intellectual property law. She was a patent analyst with IPSEN Bioscience, supporting intellectual property due diligence for acquisitions and licensing matters. Currently, she is working at WilmerHale, a law firm in the Boston area, where she focuses her practice on IP litigation, counseling, and patent prosecution. She is also a registered patent attorney before the U.S. patent office. Her daughter Raye lives with Angelman Syndrome.

Johnna Webb has over 15 years of accounting and finance experience in both public and private accounting. Johnna was recently the Controller of a local hospital prior to moving to Owensboro and currently works in the hospital financial setting. She was part of the first class for Kentucky’s Partners in Policy Making. She resides with her husband, Derrick, and their three children. Their daughter, Harper, lives with Angelman Syndrome.

Karly Baraga Werner is an experienced attorney and government relations professional. She has worked in the telecommunications industry for almost two decades, representing companies in front of federal, state and local regulators and governments, in advocating for and assisting with strategic growth initiatives. She currently works for Comcast in Government Affairs, covering MN, WI, MO and KS. Karly is a graduate of Georgetown Law School and a participant in the Humphrey School of Public Policy’s Policy Fellow program. Karly keeps busy with her three kids’ many sports and activities – Margot (13), William (12) and Louis (6) – and tries to stay sane by practicing yoga and reading novels.