About BlackDoctor

Most of Reggie Ware‘s career has been spent fighting health disparities for Black Americans by educating, informing and inspiring them to make better decisions about their health and understanding that one size doesn’t fit all when it comes to healthcare. Black people’s health needs are different and require a different game plan, one that leverages culture, content, and technology to improve health outcomes.

As the Founder of BlackDoctor, Reggie and his team produce more culturally relevant health content for Black consumers than anyone else in the country. Reggie’s previous media experience includes being the founder and publisher of Heart & Soul, which was the nation’s first national health magazine for Black women. Under Reggie’s guidance, Heart & Soul reached over 1 million people per month and was among the largest magazines targeted to Black women.

Reggie also oversaw the launch of two television properties for Black Enterprise. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in marketing from the University of Arizona, which he attended on a football scholarship. He grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, and now resides in Chicago.

As Chief Executive Officer, Aki Garrett oversees enterprise strategy, revenue growth, operations, and organizational transformation, guiding the company through its next phase of scale and impact. Aki initially joined BlackDoctor in 2025, as the President and Chief Operating Officer.

Before moving to BlackDoctor, Aki was Vice President and Head of Business Development and M&A at REVOLT, where he also founded and served as General Manager of the REVOLT Podcast Network. In these roles, he led company-wide strategy, new business development, and mergers and acquisitions, helping drive growth for the largest Black-owned media company in the United States. Aki also spent three years as Senior Vice President of Business Development and Publisher Partnerships at SHE Media (formerly SheKnows Media), where he was a member of the senior leadership team that successfully exited the business through its acquisition by Penske Media in March 2018. Earlier roles include business development leadership positions at CBS Local and ABC News, where he helped launch and scale innovative products such as ABC News’ video distribution platform and CBS Local’s podcast network, Radio.com (formerly Play.it), which helped incubate landmark podcasts including Rap Radar and Drink Champs. Aki began his career as a technology, media, and telecommunications investment banker at Barclays Investment Bank.

Aki holds an MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University and a BSBA in Finance and Accounting from the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis. He is a proud member of the Robert Toigo Foundation and was recognized as a Top 40 Under 40 honoree in 2015.

He currently serves on the Board of Trustees of The Shipley School and is a founding General Partner of Sankofa Family Ventures, a family office focused on investing in Black- and Brown-led venture funds. In addition, he is a minority owner and board member of Fort Lauderdale United, a professional soccer franchise competing in the United Soccer League, and serves on the Investment Committee of Resilient Ventures, a venture capital firm based in Durham, North Carolina.

Lindsey Guenther is the Chief Finance & Growth Officer at BlackDoctor. She brings more than 20 years of experience in digital media, the majority of which has been spent in digital health. Over the course of her career, she has worked at the intersection of growth, operations, and strategic finance, helping organizations scale, diversify revenue, and prepare for successful transactions.

Most recently, Lindsey served as Executive Vice President of Corporate Development, Operations & Strategy at HealthCentral (formerly Remedy Health Media). Over her 15-year tenure, she advanced from leading revenue, advertising, and client operations, along with performance marketing, to overseeing M&A, corporate strategy, operations, investor relations, and finance. In these roles, she was pivotal in driving high-growth initiatives — leading two sell-side and three buy-side transactions, shaping integration strategies, and positioning the company for a successful exit and transition.

Following HealthCentral, Lindsey has advised a range of e-commerce and private-equity backed consumer brands on growth strategy, digital operations, and financial planning. Her work has focused on accelerating top-line growth, strengthening operational discipline, and preparing companies for scale and investment. She currently holds advisory roles with Everviolet, a women’s wellness intimates brand, and GREATERVita, a premium supplement platform.

A graduate of Wake Forest University, Lindsey began her career at The Washington Post, where she worked in digital media account management and advertising product and operations.

Originally from Columbus, Ohio, she spent time in the Washington, D.C. area and Charlottesville, Virginia before relocating to the Bay Area in late 2018. She lives there with her husband, Drake, and their two daughters. Lindsey is passionate about advancing mission-driven brands in health and wellness, and outside of work, she spends much of her time on a pool deck or in a gymnastics gym supporting her girls.

Derrick Lane is a transformational marketing executive and brand architect with nearly two decades of experience turning community engagement into measurable business growth.

As Chief Marketing Officer of BlackDoctor.org, Derrick leads enterprise-wide marketing strategy across digital, experiential, and brand partnerships. He partners with Fortune 50 pharmaceutical brands and leading healthcare companies to authentically connect with diverse audiences, delivering measurable business results while driving meaningful health engagement and positive health outcomes at scale.

Throughout his career, Derrick has led award-winning brand and community strategies for global organizations. As a builder of online communities, he has created engaging brand communities online and offline–many from scratch–for Albertsons, SuperValu, Nielsen, Coca-Cola, Turtle Wax, and others. His work sits at the intersection of culture, commerce, and community—where brand trust, behavioral influence, and performance marketing converge.

A graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Derrick also serves as on multiple boards of faith-based and community institutions in Chicago and Dallas, equipping leaders with modern marketing frameworks to expand their reach, community impact, and economic advancement.

Aryeh Lebeau is a seasoned digital media executive with more than 25 years of experience driving revenue growth and building high-performing teams within health publishing. As Chief Commercial Officer, he oversees all revenue-generating and client-facing functions, including sales, client engagement, ad operations and marketing.

Prior to joining BlackDoctor, Aryeh served as Executive Vice President of Client Operations at HealthCentral, where he led client services, ad operations and performance marketing. During more than 15 years of executive leadership, he managed a large portfolio of direct and programmatic advertisers and led cross-functional teams responsible for pre-sale through post-sale execution. He brings deep expertise across the health landscape, spanning consumer and healthcare provider initiatives.

The early part of Aryeh’s career was spent working on TheBody.com, an HIV-focused site, where he became passionate about providing educational resources for underserved patient populations.

Aryeh holds a B.A. from Columbia University. He is known for his collaborative leadership style, operational rigor, and ability to translate market insight into sustainable growth.

Stephen O’Brien is an accomplished product executive in the healthcare technology and education space, currently serving as Chief Product Officer at BlackDoctor. He leads strategy, product development, and growth initiatives for the BlackDoctor ecosystem.

Previously, he held leadership positions at Doximity, where he delivered high-growth products such as DocNetwork, and at WebMD/Medscape, building multimedia content, live event operations, and product pipelines. Over his 20+ year career, Stephen is known for scaling new business units, forming strategic partnerships, driving revenue growth, and innovating at the intersection of healthcare, education, and digital media.

Contact Steve at [email protected]

As Chief Content Officer, Kristin Vaughan helps drive the strategy creation, development, and execution of content across all digital platforms. She oversees a team of editors, content creators, medical contributors, and multimedia producers, working cross-departmentally to expand BlackDoctor’s reach, refine its voice, and amplify its impact.

A seasoned editor, writer, and content strategist with more than 20 years in media, print, and digital publishing, Kristin began her career as a newspaper reporter at the Philadelphia Inquirer and The Palm Beach Post before transitioning to digital media. She went on to focus on women’s lifestyle content, books, and entertainment news at major Black media and health digital media outlets, including ESSENCE, Black Entertainment Television (BET) and Everyday Health (EH), where she held senior editorial positions at each. At EH, Kristin oversaw daily editorial website content, newsletters, social media accounts, mobile apps, video, SEO, and third-party sponsorships for several popular subscription websites of health and fitness experts, including Jillian Michaels, Denise Austin, and NBC‘s TODAY nutrition expert Joy Bauer, MS, RDN, to name a few. Throughout her career, Kristin has stayed committed to maintaining the highest level of editorial standards and journalistic integrity while delivering content that speaks to diverse audiences and aims to motivate and inspire them.

Before joining BlackDoctor, Kristin founded Kriss Cross Media, a boutique content and brand strategy firm. There, she developed strategic communications plans, (re)launched websites, created thought-leadership pieces, and ghostwrote for executives and celebrities. Her writing has been published in The Boston Globe, Black Enterprise, Ms., The Kansas City Star, and other national publications and websites. She has also contributed to two book anthology series, co-authored a children’s picture book, and is working on a novel. She is a Columbia, Maryland native and a proud graduate of Howard University with a master’s degree from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Contact Kristin at [email protected]

Dr. Ashanti Carter serves as Chief Medical Liaison for BlackDoctor.org, where she leads strategic academic and clinical partnerships that advance the organization’s commitment to health equity. In this role, she works to strengthen BlackDoctor’s presence in the clinical trials space by fostering trusted relationships between physicians, research sponsors, and community stakeholders. Her efforts focus on increasing community participation in clinical trials and addressing long standing medical mistrust through transparent, culturally informed engagement.

Dr. Carter brings more than 20 years of experience in higher education, healthcare workforce development, and community-based health initiatives. Prior to joining BlackDoctor, she served as Director of Community College Partnerships at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, where she built pathway programs that expanded access to healthcare careers for students from under-resourced communities. She previously held the position of Program Director at The Rodham Institute at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, leading efforts to reduce health disparities through education, research, and community engagement.

Dr. Carter also served two terms as Chair of the Industry Advisory Board for Health Sciences for the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) in Washington, D.C., where she helped shape regional strategies for health workforce development and educational alignment.

She is the founder of HEROES, LLC, a college and career readiness consultancy that supports underrepresented students pursuing higher education and healthcare careers. This work complements BlackDoctor’s long-term vision for community engagement and talent development.

Dr. Carter earned a Bachelor of Arts in Human Development from the University of California, San Diego; a Master of Public Health (MPH) from Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science; and a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) from The George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development, where her dissertation focused on pathway programs into healthcare professions for historically excluded populations.