Brian Rubinstein, M.D.

Dr. Rubinstein is the founder and director of Faces of Tomorrow. He is a board certified facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon. He serves as chief of Pediatric Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Kaiser Permanente in Sacramento, CA. He is also the assistant director of the Northern California Regional Craniofacial Panel for Kaiser Permanente.

Dr. Rubinstein received his BS degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara and then his M.D. and Masters of Science degree from the Rosalind Franklin University/The Chicago Medical School. He then continued on at the University of California at Davis to complete a residency in Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery.

Dr. Rubinstein has participated in six medical missions to Ecuador and has helped nearly 300 Ecuadorian children who suffer from facial deformities such as cleft palate, cleft lip and ear deformities. The birth of Faces of Tomorrow is a long realized dream for this compassionate physician.

Dr. Rubinstein's Home Page

Nima Pahlavan, M.D., DDS

Dr. Pahlavan is one of the founding members of Faces of Tomorrow. He is a board certified head and neck surgeon and dentist. He is chief of Head and Neck Surgery at Kaiser Permanente in Sacramento and is also a member of the Craniofacial Panel at Kaiser Permanente in Sacramento.

He initially obtained his dental degree from the University of Pacific. While there, he became fascinated with many head and neck disease entities including treating patients with craniofacial disorders. This motivated him to pursue further training as a medical doctor.

He then attended medical school at Tulane University and performed his residency in Head and Neck Surgery at University of California, Davis.  He has been involved in several surgical cleft missions to Ecuador.

Dr. Pahlavan's Home Page

Charles Shih, M.D.

Dr. Shih is one of the founding members of Faces of Tomorrow. He is chief of the Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and serves as clinical attending faculty for both at the Kaiser Oakland Medical Center.

Dr. Shih received is BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois. He went to medical school at the University of Rochester, New York. He continued his education at the University of Southern California where he completed an internship year in general surgery as well as four additional years of specialty training in Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery. Dr Shih then went to the University of California, Davis and completed a fellowship in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive and Otolaryngology.

Dr. Shih regularly volunteers his time on surgical mission trips benefiting children with facial deformities.

Dr. Shih's Home Page

Craig Senders, M.D., F.A.C.S

Dr. Senders is an expert in pediatric otolaryngology, cleft lip, cleft palate, endoscopic sinus surgery and surgery for sleep apnea.
Dr. Senders is the Director of the University of California, Davis Cleft and Craniofacial Program.
He regularly volunteers his time on surgical mission trips benefiting children with facial deformities.

Dr. Senders' Home Page

Kristen Kanerva Richards, RN

Kristen is a founding board member of Faces of Tomorrow. She is a Nurse Practitioner student at the University of California, San Francisco. Fluent in Spanish, Kristen is able to communicate with the Latin community she is dedicated to helping. Kristen works at a bilingual family practice clinic in the Mission neighborhood of San Francisco and the Maternal Child Health Department at Marin General Hospital.

She was a health volunteer for the Peace Corps in Ecuador from 2001-2003 where she lived and worked in a rural community in the Amazon Basin. Her experience includes over eleven years of international travel and service on medical missions around the world including Faces of Tomorrow missions to Ecuador.

Charlotte J. Lucero

Charlotte is a founding board member of Faces of Tomorrow and a Returning Peace Corps volunteer. She holds a MSW, masters in social work from San Jose University and a  BA from The University of California, Davis in Women's Studies with an emphasis in Ethnic Studies.  Charlotte has five grown children and thirteen grandchildren.

Charlotte's passion for education is evident both here and abroad. After retiring from the UC Davis School of Medicine in 2002, she became a Peace Corps volunteer in Ecuador. She committed two years to global service and advocating education and improved health care for children from the poorest of families. She gives credit to the Peace Corps for the opportunity of being invited to serve as a Spanish interpreter for a medical brigade working with children with cleft lip and cleft palates.  Charlotte has participated in five medical missions as a social worker, interpreter and a lay minister.

Charlotte also serves as a sponsor for a small school in Puembo, Ecuador that serves autistic children and is involved in a program for young women around the world globalscholarshipfund.blogspot.com.

Jim Thompson

Jim is a board member of Faces of Tomorrow and serves as the Chief Financial Officer.

Jim has eighteen years of public and private company financial experience. Jim is currently CFO at Gold Standard Diagnostics, a provider of medical diagnostics solutions in Davis, Ca., where he also serves on the Board of Directors.

Jim has consulted with and worked for several high technology start ups over the past ten years, including Iron Horse Interactive, Air Media (sold to AOL), Fuego Nation, and Global VR, among others.

Jim is an original founder of Faces of Tomorrow, and went on his first mission to Ecuador in 2009, an experience that changed his life.  He recently returned from his second mission to Ecuador and plans to lead the organization for years to come.