About Us

Jordan is a pharmacist practicing in Austin, TX. She earned her PharmD at Belmont University in Nashville, TN, with a concentration in Missions & Public Health. Nashville is where she first got involved with the Shalom Foundation and the Moore Center. Belmont has a special relationship with the Moore Center and was integral in creating its pharmacy, which is nicknamed “La Belmont Farmacia”. Her time in Guatemala has changed her life and helped shape her career. She has been on multiple trips to the Moore Center since 2013 and looks forward to many more! 

Dr. Seremetis was born in New York City  & grew up in Greece, France, NYC, & Washington DC. He attended college at Brandeis U & competed in fencing. He received an MS & MD from Georgetown University then did a General Surgery & Urology Residency at Dartmouth & Pediatric Urology fellowship at Northwestern U. He took a year off while at Dartmouth & worked at an Afghan refugee center in Pakistan (1988-1989) and has been working in Austin since 1995. Dr. Seremetis has been head of the Pediatric Ethics Committee, the Chief of the Surgery Council, & the Chief of Staff at Dell Children’s Medical Center over the past 2 decades! He has been on a mission trip to Kenya & on 7 trips to Guatemala and was one of the founding members of OKD.

Dr. John Williams, MD is a pediatric orthopedic specialist and currently serves as a pediatric orthopedic surgeon at Central Texas Pediatric Orthopedics in Austin, TX. As a graduate of Dartmouth-Brown Medical School, he has been practicing for over 30 years and specializes in general pediatric orthopedics, pediatric spine disorders, and congenital abnormalities. 

He has previously served as the Chief of Orthopedic Trauma at Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas and currently serves as a Clinical Assistant Professor at Dell Medical School’s Department of Surgery and Perioperative Care. He is also a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) as well as a Member of the Pediatric Orthopedic Society of North America (POSNA).

Dr. Tory Meyer is a Pediatric Surgeon with Austin Pediatric Surgery specializing in the care of neonatal and pediatric patients. He grew up in Chappaqua, New York, attended Yale and Columbia University and has lived in Austin, TX since 2000. He has served previously as the Surgery Department Chair, the Chief of Staff and the Chairman of the Pediatric Leadership Board at Dell Children’s Medical Center. He has also been on the Board, and former President, of the Hill Country Conservancy and is a present Board Member of Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center, dedicated to getting children out into nature.  Dr. Meyer has been with OKD since its inception and feels honored to be able to help take care of these deserving children. In addition to spending time with his wife and kids, Dr. Meyer brews beer, mountain bikes, and flies a paramotor. 

Rachel is a registered nurse who grew up in Southeast Texas. She has been a nurse for 27 years and has worked in various aspects of nursing over her career. Over the last 12 years she has been an OR nurse at a pediatric surgery center in Austin. Her passion is working with children and especially those who are less fortunate. Rachel has also started her own  jewelry business and has donated a portion of her profits to OKD. Her hobbies include traveling,reading, and shopping. 

I have helped our organization evolve from a very small dedicated group called Dell Children’s Surgical Global Outreach (DCSGO) to the now high functioning Operation KidDocs.  My role as a Board Member is to assemble Anesthesia Teams to deliver the same complex anesthesia care as we provide here at home in Austin. I am currently the Chief Pediatric Anesthetist at Dell Children’s Medical Center and USAP Anesthesia in Austin. My continued mission is to maintain the support of our dedicated Anesthesiologists and Nurse Anesthetists as we further share our skills and continue the journey for all of the children for whom we care. “Love only grows by sharing.  You can only have more for yourself by giving it away to others.” *Brian Tracy

Dr. Jones is an otolaryngologist (Ear, Nose, and Throat) who practices at Austin Regional Clinic.  He sees adult and pediatric patients, with a particular interest in obstructive sleep apnea. Dr. Jones grew up in Jacksonville, Illinois.  He majored in biology as an undergraduate at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, graduating with honors in 1985.  He attended medical school at Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago, graduating in 1989.  Graduate medical training in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery was also done at Northwestern, completing his residency in 1994.

Dr. Jones initially went into practice in general otolaryngology in Yakima, Washington.  In 1998 he moved with his family to Austin, Texas, joining Austin Regional Clinic.  Dr. Jones is currently the chief of the Ear, Nose, and Throat Department at Austin Regional Clinic. He joined the board of Operation Kid Doc in 2017.

Sheri Valencia is a native Californian who settled in the great state of Texas in 2009. She has called California, Texas, and Illinois home over the years. Sheri earned her associates degree in nursing at Palomar College, her Bachelors in Nursing at UT Arlington and her Masters as a Family Nurse Practitioner at Maryville University.  When Sheri moved to the Austin area she continued her passion for surgery at Dell Children’s Medical Center, with experience in adults, critical care, pediatrics, hospice and cardiac care. Starting in 2012 she went on her first mission trip to Guatemala with Dell Children’s Surgical Global Outreach (now OKD) and has never looked back. She has a passion to work with the underserved and underprivileged and finds it very rewarding.  Currently Sheri splits her time between Dell Children’s Medical Center and working locally as a Nurse Practitioner. Sheri spends her free time with her husband Marc and their two daughters Kayla and Krista.

Wayne was raised in Baytown, Texas and attended UT, Austin on football and track scholarship while earning his degree in Zoology. He received an MA and MD from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. He joined the military where he completed his anesthesia residency at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.  Wayne completed fellowship training in pediatric anesthesia at Denver Children’s and Sick Kids in Toronto.

Wayne began joining surgical mission trips in 1985 with multiple different medical groups. Wayne was one of the founding doctors for the group of health care professionals that ultimately became Operation Kid Docs and was part of their inaugural trip to the Moore Pediatric Surgery Center in 2012.  Teaching has been Wayne’s passion throughout his practice and continues at the Moore Center, helping teach medical students, attendings and residents in Guatemala.

Larry Shannon is a RN with experience as a circulator and scrub tech. Although retired he works part time at a local hospital because he enjoys working in surgery with other dedicated nurses, scrubs, surgeons and anesthesia folks. The majority of his nursing career has been in pediatric surgery. He has been on mission trips to Haiti and Guatemala with other organizations. Larry is thrilled to be with OKD helping to make lives better for the children of Guatemala.

Leilani is a Surgical Tech specializing in pediatrics.  She is grateful and honored to give back by volunteering for countless international surgical mission trips both with Operation Kid Docs and Austin Smiles.  As a Board Member, her goal is to bring first world surgical care to the developing countries. She is proud to volunteer alongside a group of dedicated volunteers coming out of her hometown of Austin, as well as other cities within Texas.  In her spare time, Leilani loves to drive the countryside and take photos of the beautiful Texas Hill Country.

Stanford Young MD is an affiliate faculty member for the Department of Surgery and Perioperative Care at Dell Medical School and a partner at US Anesthesia Partners.  He earned his M.D. from Texas Tech University School of Medicine. After completing his residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, he completed his pediatric anesthesia fellowship at George Washington University’s Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.  Now, he is a member of multiple medical organizations including the Travis County Medical Society, the American and Texas Medical Associations and the Society of Pediatric Anesthesia.  Dr Young is board certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology.  Areas of interest include medical information technologies and data management.  He has participated in multiple medical mission trips in many parts of the world.  He is proud to be a member of Operation Kid Docs which is the latest greatest non-profit organization from Austin fulfilling the surgical needs of kids in developing countries.

Wanda is a surgical technician and one of the founding members of our organization. Someone once told her that “to make a difference in someone’s life you don’t have to be brilliant, rich, or beautiful. You just have to care.” Her first trip to Guatemala was the most rewarding, humbling, touching experience she had ever experienced. She realized on her first trip that not only did we provide free medical services to low income and underserved communities, but we were a beacon of hope for people who often feel abandoned and forgotten. She has a hard time putting into words what these trips do for her heart. She thought she went to Guatemala to save children’s lives, but instead they saved hers.

Megan Roberts was born and raised in Austin, Texas. After earning a degree in Nutritional Sciences from Texas A&M, she studied at UT Health in San Antonio to earn her PA License. During her education she served as a volunteer, then a student leader, of the San Antonio Refugee Health Clinic. Her career started in Emergency Medicine at a Level 1 Trauma center in San Antonio, University Hospital. She joined the Central Texas Pediatric Orthopedic practice in 2017 where she still treats pediatric trauma patients at Dell Children’s Medical Center. Megan is grateful for an opportunity to serve Operation Kid Docs and joined the board in 2019.