BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Dr. Matthew Barrett is an Associate Professor of Neurology who specializes in seeing patients with Parkinson Disease and other movement disorders. 

Following neurology residency at the University of Virginia (UVA), Dr. Barrett completed a fellowship in movement disorders at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City. During his fellowship, he earned a Master’s of Science in Clinical Research Methods from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. 

He was a faculty member in the Department of Neurology at UVA from 2012-2019 and in 2019 he joined the Parkinson’s and Movement Disorders Center at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond, VA. 

His research focuses on improving treatment of cognitive impairment in Parkinson Disease through better understanding of the underlying causes of cognitive impairment.

Susan Dietrich has worked at the Department of Neurology at the University of Virginia (UVA) since 1995, beginning as an assistant in clinical trials for Parkinson's Disease, and then became a clinical trials coordinator for both Parkinson's and Huntington's Disease. 

Susan has been the coordinator for the American Parkinson Disease Association (APDA) Information & Referral Center of Virginia for many years.

In recent years, Susan has been involved in education and outreach for the Parkinson's community throughout Virginia, as well as continuing in assisting in clinical trials.

Executive Director

Sarah Lincoln was born and raised in Charlottesville and graduated with a B.S. in Hospitality and Tourism Management from Virginia Tech (VT). She worked in the hospitality industry until her father's Parkinson's Disease (PD) diagnosis in 2011, when she decided to move back to Charlottesville to be closer to family.

An athlete her whole life, Sarah became intrigued by the power of exercise for those with PD in hopes to help her father. In December 2016, her and her mother, Maryann, became certified Head Coaches in the Rock Steady Boxing (RSB) Method. Their vision was to have a exercise program in town for those with PD.

During the summer of 2022, Sarah decided to focus exclusively on the gym that her and her mother had built, with the vision that has since turned into The PARC.

After a legal career spanning more than four decades, Nelson and his wife Anne retired in 2015. He had an unusually wide range of practice settings — civil litigation at large and small law firms, criminal defense as a deputy public defender, law professor at Cornell Law School, New York State special prosecutor investigating misconduct by state troopers, and for almost 19 years in the general counsel’s office at Cornell as deputy university counsel and leading Cornell’s in-house litigation practice.

Nelson and Anne have two daughters, one who lives in Charlottesville with her family and teaches at the Peabody School and a daughter who lives in Maine with her family, and four grandchildren. Nelson enjoys walking, hiking, and photography.

 He started boxing at Rock Steady Boxing at PARC in 2022.  He hopes that his service on the PARC Board will in some small way support PARC’s amazing program for the Charlottesville Parkinson’s community.

Carolyn Shears is a commercial real estate broker with Colliers. She’s enjoyed a successful career in real estate,

representing real estate investors and local businesses in the Charlottesville market since 1996.

In addition to her brokerage career, Carolyn has served on the Boards of Live Arts, the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Charlottesville Economic Development Authority. She also served as President of the Board for the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors.

Carolyn is pleased to serve on the PARC Board, knowing first-hand the important role the organization plays in the lives of those living with Parkinson’s Disease in the Charlottesville community.

Wayne Snyder has worked in the aerospace and then the medical device industry for nearly forty years, primarily as an engineer focused on reliability testing and analysis. He holds an undergraduate degree in Bio-Engineering from Texas A&M and a master’s degree in Industrial Engineering from the University of Houston. 

Wayne, his bride Nancy, and their son Liam have called Charlottesville home for the past two decades. Wayne is active in the community, serving as an officer at the local Elks Lodge and the American Legion Post. 

Nancy was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease and is a regular participant in the Rock Steady Boxing Charlottesville program at The PARC.

Treasurer

Robert E. Spekman, PhD, is the Tayloe Murphy Professor of business administration Emeritus at the Darden Graduate School of Business, University of Virginia (UVA). 

Robert is well known for his scholarly work in business to business marketing, supply chain management, channels of distribution, and strategic alliances.  He is the author of more than 100 academic articles and seven books

Robert was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1995 and had deep brain stimulation in 2006.  He serves as a resource for others who have been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. 

He published My Journey with Parkinson’s Disease: A Story of Hope Personal Transformation in 2018.

Jenny Stoner is a commercial real estate broker at Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer. She is a Charlottesville native and holds an undergraduate degree from University of Virginia (go Hoos!) and a Masters in Business & Management from Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. 

Outside of work, Jenny serves multiple other community organizations including a board position at Building Goodness Foundation and was proud to partner with the PARC to find, lease, and build out their current space.

Jenny’s father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2010 and is a regular attendee at the PARC, and Jenny has seen firsthand the positive impact that it has had.