Meet Your State Advocacy Captains!

Dr. Tabatha Dragonberry has been a respiratory therapist for over 15 years. She is a passionate educator teaching patients, students, and respiratory care professionals. Currently, she is an assistant professor at UT Health San Antonio and the Director of Online Education for the Degree Advancement Programs. She has worked in various environments including neonatal/pediatrics, adult critical and acute care, home care, and leadership.

As a State Captain for Texas, she wants to help educate and empower those with COPD and their families to live their fullest lives possible!

Her favorite quote is, “Save a life – you are a hero; Save 100 lives – you are an RT”- unknown

My name is Skyler Hughes. I am the COPD/Sepsis Clinical Program Specialist at Owensboro Health Regional Hospital. I am a registered nurse and have worked with COPD patients in multiple settings including the emergency department, case management and home health care and as a leader of our inpatient COPD program. I enjoy educating and serving patients to provide them with the knowledge and resources they need to live a fulfilling life. Outside of work, I am a wife, step-mom to an amazing growing boy, and fur-momma to a rambunctious dog and cat. My family is my biggest blessing in life. I love to spend time with friends and I am a huge fan of classic country music.

I'm Sheryl and am a COPD Foundation State Captain from Iowa. As a captain I hope to raise awareness and have fundraisers that will help with the prevention of COPD, and more importantly in finding a cure.

My main passion for being a captain is to let people know that stopping smoking, beginning to exercise, and eating healthy will help to give them a longer and more productive life. Also, keeping the most positive attitude possible will definitely help you accomplish those three things. I don't think most patients hear that those things will help their breathing and lives until later. Once they have progressed to that point it's really hard and they just don't have the energy to do them. However, I'm a firm believer that it is never too late to start.

I want you to know that I live with COPD, and spent some time being very sick -even to the point of nearly dying. But by quitting smoking, exercising, and eating healthy I have brought myself back from near death to an active and productive life. My goal is to accomplish important things in order to make the lives of COPD patients as easy as possible.

As State Captain, I believe there is no limit to the value of the voice of the COPD patient and that the care the patient receives should not be limited by geography, race, or income. I am most interested in advocacy and education. My goals as an Ohio state captain are to help people with COPD cope with a diagnosis, learn how to care for themselves, and help their loved ones understand the COPD patient's journey and enjoy a full life.

As a State Captain, I aim to be a driver of change within my local, state, and national communities. I am most interested in helping people living with COPD access resources available to them so they can live healthier, fuller lives. I believe raising awareness of COPD by participating in advocacy on the state and national levels is very important. I am always ready to lend a compassionate ear via COPD360social.

My proudest COPD moment was joining the COPD Foundation as Ohio State Captain. It’s the decision to act and move the cause forward that is most inspiring as is the power of the human spirit to persevere, improve, and care about others more than themselves.

My motto is short, sweet, and stolen from my dear husband, David: "You answer to the name you call yourself." Call yourself a volunteer - and you help others. Call yourself active - and you get on the treadmill. Call yourself happy - and you are grateful every day.

As a licensed clinical social worker, I recently completed2+ years working on a clinical trial for COPD patients and caregivers about the role of peer support in the management of COPD.

I hope to participate in research activities as a State Captain and connect others in the COPD community with the resources necessary to lead healthier and fuller lives.

I would also like to focus on issues that are important to caregivers, as they have separate and unique challenges to learn about the condition, to advocate for their loved one, and to take an important role in assisting health care professionals.

I am a COPD Foundation state captain living in Birmingham, Alabama. I decided to become a State Captain so I could help people who have COPD understand that there is so much they can do to take charge of their health and to stay connected with resources they will need to manage their health well.

When I was diagnosed, I knew there were things I was going to have to do to take charge of my health. The first thing was to quit smoking. The day I was diagnosed, I threw my pack of cigarettes away and never smoked another one. I also learned the importance of exercise. I was able to develop an exercise regimen with my pulmonary doctor, and I am convinced that this faithful exercise has helped keep my COPD from progressing.

If you or your loved one has been diagnosed with COPD, don’t give up. Get active. And above all, have faith in yourself, and in God.

My name is Phyliss DiLorenzo. I live in Brooklyn; New York and I was diagnosed with COPD four years ago. I had earlier symptoms that I put off to getting older and being out of shape.

I quit smoking 5 months before my diagnosis. I am do glad that I did! What brought me to be diagnosed was pneumonia.

I saw my PCP, who sent me for an X-Ray. It was then I was told I have emphysema and battling a pneumonia infection and was given a rescue inhaler and medication.

Throughout that first year, I was short of breath on a daily basis. I received a nebulizer and another rescue inhaler. All of these were short acting bronchodilators, or SABAS, which gave only temporary relief and didn’t help against exacerbations. I was treated in hospital 5 times, for bronchitis, flu, and exacerbations from other respiratory infections.

After a particularly severe exacerbation, hospitalized for 3 days, most time on a BiPAP machine, my PCP referred me to a pulmonologist. I took a PFT (pulmonary function test) and was given a prescription for a long-acting bronchodilator, or LABA, and an emergency action plan.

As a caregiver for my husband with COPD, I hope to encourage others who find themselves in a caregiving role by giving them support and helping them as they care for their loved one. I would love to share my experiences so that others may benefit.

As a State Captain, I am interested in connecting others in the COPD community to the resources that help them live fuller, healthier lives as well as helping others understand the issues that face caregivers.

My proudest COPD moment was when my husband went to a fitness facility for the first time. He is on oxygen 24/7 and was determined not to let that deter him!

Let me introduce myself to you. My name is Patricia Billeb - I prefer people calling me Pat. I am a wife, mother and grandmother. I was diagnosed with COPD in 2011. I think I had an inkling that I had it, however, I was in denial until I was hospitalized. Here's the kicker - I quit smoking a week before I was diagnosed. Probably couldn't take another breath.

I had an excellent pulmonologist with a very caring nurse. I got stable and went through Pulmonary Rehab and embraced it with open arms. Through Rehab I was given copies of the Pulmonary Paper magazine and started googling everything. I got connected with a group known as EFFORTS. I was a regular member of the "walkers" window. One of the friends I made was Jean Rommes - she was holding a Lung Expo in Des Moines and I went. I was so excited about the Lung Expo - the Efforts group that my Pulmonary Rehab counselor asked if I would represent Efforts as a COPD booth. I have done that for the last four years. Last year I took along PPRN handouts to the WISCHPR Conference and have been asked to bring COPD Foundation information with handouts in 2018 - which will be held in Oshkosh.

Hello, I am Amanda Smith and I am happy to be a State Captain for the state of Kentucky. I was diagnosed with COPD in 2017 and want to help others who have been impacted by COPD.

I know what it is like to live with COPD and have taken an active role in my health by being informed, educating myself, and participating in programs like Pulmonary Rehab.

My motto in life is: Stop, take a deep breath in, be thankful. I would share those words with anyone who is living with COPD or who has a loved one with COPD. There is so much you can do to live life to its fullest.

I am a respiratory therapist working to provide education and training throughout the Midwest to improve the quality of care COPD and bronchiectasis patients receive. Over the course of my career I have participated in health fairs and educational events to promote awareness and better education for those dealing with COPD.

As a State Captain, I hope to participate in promoting research opportunities to help find a cure, recruit new State Captain volunteers, and help connect people in the COPD community to the resources available so they can live healthier fuller lives.

I am Lorrie Williams, State Captain in Mississippi. I live in Southern Mississippi and know firsthand what it is like to live with the challenges of living with COPD in the heat, humidity, and hurricanes. My diagnosis with COPD happened in 2017 and I found myself with a diagnosis I knew very little about. I felt desperate for answers and found the COPD Foundation was just what I was looking for.

One thing I am good at is being a wonderful encourager and I am dedicated to helping other people find the answers they are looking for about living well with COPD. I am eager to advocate and help raise awareness for COPD in her community.