Leadership

Leadership Team

Melody West - Executive Director

Melody West came to SCHC in the fall of 2010 working in the accounting department. Ms. West has 30 plus years’ experience in business and business management. She has completed three years of biology pre-med curriculum and is currently enrolled in Alaska Pacific University to complete her degree in Business. Her knowledge and work experience quickly promoted her within SCHC. In 2013, she became Operations Manager, rising quickly to Chief Operations Officer due to her excellent problem-solving skills and her ability to organize and motivate staff. Ms. West quickly demonstrated her leadership ability at SCHC through her knowledge of the clinic, community and business. Being both well-liked and respected by the staff of SCHC, Ms. West was promoted to Executive Director. She has significantly improved the quality of SCHC’s patient support activities and was key in the necessary upgrading of the IT infrastructure.Ms. West has lived in the Talkeetna area since 2008. Her dedication and leadership abilities are beneficial for providing support and stability to the clinic. Ms. West’s focus is to continually enhance the accessibility, quality and delivery of patient-centered care to our communities.

George Hightower, MD - Medical Director

Dr. Hightower grew up in the inner city of Los Angeles. He dreamed of becoming either a doctor or a professional basketball player. He almost achieved both goals. At Whitter College, In 1978 he was named Whittier College Athlete of the Year. That same year he was named Captain of the Basketball Team and led his team in representing the U.S. in the Jones Cup Tournament in Taiwan. Eventually, he was twice inducted into the Whittier College Athletic Hall of Fame.

After college, he got serious about his other goal. In 1985, he was named a Health Professions Scholar by the U.S. Navy and was awarded a full scholarship to the medical school of his choice.

In 1989, he graduated from the George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington D.C. During his tenure there he was awarded the Commonwealth Fellowship Fund Scholarship for research in Pediatric Oncology at the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda M.D. In addition, he was named to the George Washington University Admissions Committee and honored with the Outstanding Student Leadership Award.

After graduation, Dr. Hightower completed his internship at the Naval Hospital, San Diego and served our country during the 1st Persian Gulf War. During his 12-year naval career, he was awarded 2 Navy achievement medals and a Navy Commendation Medal. After his naval career, he completed another post-graduate year in at SDSU/UCSD School of Medicine in Preventive Sports Medicine.

In addition to the U.S. Navy, Dr. Hightower was on staff at Oasis sports medical group, the then team physicians for the San Diego Chargers. He and his wife Linda started and successfully pioneered a thriving Occupational Medicine practice in Williston, ND. They sold that practice in 2017 and moved to Alaska for their next adventure.

Dr. Hightower and his wife Linda love the outdoors. Fishing and hiking are among their favorite things to do.

William Frantz, DDM - Dental Director

Raised in a small town south of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Dr. Frantz attended Washington and Jefferson College, graduating in 1993 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Biology. At the University of Pittsburgh, he attended the School of Dental Hygiene, receiving his R.D.H. in 1996, then continued his education to graduate with his Doctorate of Dental Medicine in 2000. He completed a post-graduate program in Esthetic Dentistry at the University of Buffalo in 2002. Dr. Frantz has maintained a fellowship status from the highly accredited International Congress of Oral Implantologists (ICOI) and Misch International Implant Institute since 2008. Dr. Frantz’s previous experience as a general dental practice owner and associate is a tremendous asset to SCHC in providing dental health education and care for the families in the community and surrounding areas.

Valera Brickel - Finance Director

Ms. Brickel was born and raised in Alaska. She came to the Matanuska Susitna Valley as a teen and graduated from Palmer High School. In 1984 she began work in purchasing at Valley Hospital in Palmer a small nonprofit hospital. She continued with the hospital moving to a staff accountant position in 1989 experiencing the growth and merger with a for-profit corporation and construction of MatSu Regional Medical Center. After 23 years of employment at the hospital, Ms. Brickel moved north to Talkeetna and joined the staff of Sunshine Community Health Center as an accountant in November 2007.

As chief staff accountant for SCHC, she quickly became the “go-to” person when questions arose during the implementation of the new Practice Management System/ Centricity EMR Program. Valera’s attention to detail, tenacity in solving problems, and keen knowledge of the fiscal operation made her the prime candidate for advancement when the CFO left in April 2009. In filling the role of Finance Director with payroll, accounting, and patient billing under her direction she has expanded her knowledge with both online and conference training.

She received a Hospital Accounting Certificate from Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana. She has completed NWRPCA’s CFO Skills series.

Stephanie Stanley-Harrell - Human Resources Director

Ms. Stanley-Harrell began working at Sunshine Community Health Center in July 2014 as the Human Resources Manager. She has been working in human resources roles since 1998 and received her Professional Human Resources Certification in February of 2014. She resides in Talkeetna, Alaska with her husband and their son, who currently attends Susitna Valley Jr./Sr. High School. Stephanie enjoys the wonderful community and outdoor activities the location has to offer. She loves helping others and feels the health care setting is a great fit between her experience and the joy she receives from helping.

Tanya MacDonald - Operations Director

Tanya has been employed by SCHC since August 2011. She started in a part-time position as administrative support and has worked across departments to where she now works in Operations with a managing role in Compliance. Tanya has an accounting background and has worked in this field since 1989, while completing a Bookkeeping Diploma in Johannesburg, South Africa and an Accounting Technician Program in Aylesbury, England.

Interested in the Medical field, Tanya certified as a Pharmacy Technician in 2013 and went on to complete an AAPC program in 2017 that designates her as a Certified Professional Compliance Officer.

Tanya visited Talkeetna in 2001 and finally settled in early 2003. Tanya loves the area and community and has participated as a volunteer for both KTNA and the Food Bank of Alaska over the years previous to employment with SCHC. Tanya enjoys her horses and dogs and can often be found floating on anything inflatable in the water, as well as swimming, daily walking and longer hikes as time allows.