BOARD OF HEALTH MEMBERS
WILL COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT & COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER
Chief Paul Hertzmann
President
Chief Paul Hertzmann has more than 30 years of experience in the fire service. He’s served as the Chief of the Troy Fire Protection District since 2023. He joined the Lockport Township Fire Protection District in 1989 and dedicated 30 years of service to the district, rising to Fire Chief in 2017.
He provides the Board of Health (BOH) with insight regarding Emergency Preparation and Response. He holds an associate degree from Joliet Junior College, and both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from Lewis University. Chief Hertzmann has previously served as both the Secretary and Vice President of the BOH.
Resides: Shorewood
Joined BOH: July 2019
BOH Term Expires: May 2025
Dr. Billie Terrell, Ph.D
Vice President
Dr. Billie Terrell has worked 40 years as a Clinical Social Worker as well as 35 years as a university professor. Her background includes medical social work at Silver Cross Hospital and psychiatric social work at Saint Joseph Medical Center. She later moved into private practice and became Professor Emeritus at the University of St. Francis.
As a practicing counselor who remains current and actively involved in both the educational and clinical aspects of the behavioral health field, Dr. Terrell is exceptionally well-positioned to provide expertise and perspective to the BOH. Dr. Terrell maintains a private counseling practice. She served as Board of Health
President from 2022-2024.
Resides: Shorewood
Joined BOH: October 2011
BOH Term Expires: June 2026
Edna Brass
Secretary
Ms. Edna Brass comes to the Board of Health with 36 years of experience educating and supervising programs for students with disabilities and special needs.
Along with serving on WCHD Board of Health, Ms. Brass is also a Silver Cross Community Trustee as well as a board member of the Silver Cross Healthy Community Commission (SCHCC) and the Will Grundy Medical Clinic. These roles afford Ms. Brass opportunities to receive medical updates and to understand the trends that affect our world and our local community.
Ms. Brass is interested in bringing her pragmatic approach to a number of issues facing WCHD. First, she is particularly concerned about the long-term effects that the pandemic may have on all of the residents of Will County. Ms. Brass is also interested in the unique issues that confront the health of women and men. Additionally, Ms. Brass wants to make sure that the people of Will County—regardless of their socio-economic background—are aware that WCHD offers a wide spectrum of services.
Ms. Brass is retired from her work as Director of Special Services for Joliet Township High School District 204. She has been married for 45 years to her husband Saul. They are the parents of three daughters who along with their husbands are also actively involved in serving their community. Ms. Brass and her husband have been long, active members of Mt. Zion Baptist Church.
Resides: Joliet
Joined BOH: July 2022
BOH Term Expires: June 2025
Board Members
Chief Jeffrey Carey
Member
Jeffrey Carey is Chief of the Joliet Fire Department. He has been with the department since 1996 and was promoted to Deputy Chief in 2019 before being sworn in as Fire Chief in 2022.
Chief Carey has his associate degree from Joliet Junior College, and a bachelor’s degree from Waldorf University. Part of Chief Carey’s focus in the fire department has been community risk reduction (CRR) and community mental health programs. The community risk reduction program identifies and prioritize local risks, followed by the integrated and strategic investment of resources to reduce their occurrence and impact. The department’s first CRR program has been a mental health program that provides free, definitive mental health care for all residents of Joliet.
Resides: Mokena
Joined BOH: May 2022
BOH Term Expires: June 2025
Mica Freeman
Member
Mica Freeman joined the Board of Health in December of 2024. Mrs. Freeman is a Will County Board Member and is the current Vice Chair of the Will County Public Health and Safety Committee. She’s been a member of the Committee for four years, including two years as Chair of the Committee.
She used her time as chair of Public Health and Safety Committee to educate both the committee members and other board members about services offered by the Will County Health Department and resident concerns and needs that had been addressed or still needed to be addressed.
Mrs. Freeman was an elementary school teacher for 12 years and earned her bachelor’s degree from Eastern Illinois University and master’s degree from Concordia University River Forest.
Joined BOH: December 2024
BOH Term Expires: December 2027
Allison Gunnink
Member
Allison Gunnink [MBA, MT-BC (she/her)] received her undergraduate degree in Music Therapy from Western Illinois University in 2010, and a Master of Business Administration degree with a concentration in Health Services from the University of St. Francis in 2013. She obtained the Hospice & Palliative Care Music Therapy certificate for her primary focus of hospice care but has also obtained the NICU Music Therapy certificate. In addition to her work in the field, she has managed a broad team of supportive care providers in an administrative role. Allison resides in the Chicago suburbs and recently began in the position of Clinical Outcomes Manager at Lightways Hospice and Serious Illness Care.
Allison believes in community involvement and has served in various capacities on multiple boards. Allison currently serves as Vice President Elect of the Great Lakes Region of the American Music Therapy Association. She is passionate about health equity and inclusivity within the healthcare field; she believes that person-centered care is crucial in healthcare in order to cultivate an environment in which people feel safe seeking support.
Resides: Shorewood
Joined BOH: May 2022
BOH Term Expires: June 2025
Dr. Gary Lipinski, M.D.
Member
Dr. Lipinski brings over 46 years of experience in the medical field to the Will County Health Department Board of Health. Dr. Lipinski serves as the Medical Director and a family physician for the Will Grundy Medical Clinic. He previously served as the Chief Medical Officer at AMITA Health’s St. Joseph Medical Center in Joliet (2016-2021). He’s also worked as a Vice President of Medical Staff Services and Chief Medical Officer for Adventist Health System and was the President and Founding member of Hinsdale Physicians Healthcare IPA.
Dr. Lipinski attached medical school at Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine. He completed his family medicine residency at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. He earned a Master’s of Business Administration degree from University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business.
Resides: Burr Ridge
Joined BOH: October 2017
BOH Term Expires: June 2026
Dr. Silvio Morales, MD
Member
Dr. Silvio Morales, Department Chair of Emergency Medicine at Silver Cross Hospital, is a board-certified emergency medicine specialist. He received his medical degree from the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago and completed his residency in emergency medicine at the University of Illinois at Peoria College of Medicine. Dr. Morales is also a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians. He previously served as Chief of the Silver Cross Medical Staff from 2020-2022.
Resides: New Lenox
Joined BOH: June 2021
BOH Term Expires: June 2027
Pamela Robbins
Member
Mrs. Robbins is a retired nurse who began her nursing career in 1978, spending over 20 years at St. Joseph Hospital. She is a former Past President and Government Relations Director of the Illinois Nurses Association. She earned a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of St. Francis in Joliet. Mrs. Robbins also worked as an adjunct nursing faculty for Millikin University and as an Educator Consultant for Nursing Excellence Continuing Education Services.
Resides: Peotone
Joined BOH: October 2023
BOH Term Expires: October 2026
José Eduardo Vera
Member
José Eduardo Vera joined the Board of Health in December of 2024. He is the founder and Executive Director of the Southwest Suburban Immigrant Project in Bolingbrook, a social impact organization committed to community organizing for the rights of immigrants in Chicago’s southwest suburbs through education, civic engagement and advocacy. He’s served on multiple boards and commissions, including DuPage Federation’s Council of Community Leaders, Brooks Middle School Health Advisory Board and the Illinois Immigrant Impact Task Force.
A graduate from Bolingbrook High School, he earned an associate’s degree from the College of DuPage, a bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois Chicago and a Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law.
A resident of Will County for over 26 years, Mr. Vera brings a unique community perspective to the board through his lived and professional experiences, helping to include an equity lens in solving complex community health issues.
Resides: Bolingbrook
Joined BOH: December 2024
BOH Term Expires: December 2027
Dr. Scott Soderquist, D.D.S
Member
Dr. Soderquist was born and raised in Bolingbrook and works as an orthodontist with multiple practices in Will County. Dr. Soderquist earned his bachelor’s degree from Illinois Wesleyan University and obtained his Doctorate with honors from the University of Illinois in 2001. His experience as a practicing dentist is essential to the oversight and operation of the Will County Community Health Center’s Dental Clinic and Mobile Dental Unit.
Resides: Naperville
Joined BOH: December 2015
BOH Term Expires: June 2027