MEET OUR TEAM - Austin, TX

Brenda Reed – Health Relationship Coordinator

Although Brenda was born in Germany, she is certainly an Austinite. Before she can remember, North Austin has been her home and is still today. Her career in dentistry began in 1972 through a dental assisting program offered at Austin High School. She started at 8118 in May of 1979, where she has since been a superstar on both the clinical and admin teams. “I enjoy educating new patients about their oral health and treatment options and supporting their path to total body wellness”. An accomplishment she is proud of was her involvement in developing curriculum and instructing students for over 10 years in an accredited dental assisting school.

Beyond the office, Brenda loves being outdoors and tending to her garden where she grows tomatoes, cilantro, lime trees, and more! Working out, Zumba, and swimming are also favorite activities, but above all, she loves making treasured memories with her family. She has two children, three grandchildren, her husband, and the newest addition, Chow Mein, a stray cat that adopted them.

Brenda’s most fond pastimes are from “personal growth” trips she’s taken with 8118 over the years, and feels those trips have enhanced her passion for educating others about dentistry.

If you need a compassionate dental home, schedule a new patient appointment with Brenda and let her show you why we shine!

Rhonda Balling – Office Administrator

Rhonda, another 8118 Austinite, grew up in the Hyde Park area and started her dental journey in 1985 when her friend and local dental consultant encouraged her to try dental assisting. Excited for a new venture, she took the advice and is glad she did. In 2003, she landed at 8118 and has served on the admin team with her childhood cheermate, Brenda Reed, ever since. Her motivation is simple: “I love the relationships I build with patients, and seeing the outcome when their smile goals are achieved.”
Born into a large Lebanese-Italian family, the first of 26 grandchildren, it’s no surprise that she loves to cook and is quite good at it. However, it’s not only people she makes “fat and happy,” she feeds the wild animals on her property nightly, and historically housed 6 dogs at a time. No, Rhonda is not “the crazy dog lady.” She has an innate ability to care for animals and has spent much time rehabilitating and rehoming dogs in need. Although recently, in preparation for her retirement, Rhonda’s pack has been reduced to one, the office mascot, Gypsy, a beautiful stuffed Border Collie who surprises each patient that comes through the door.
Beyond furry friends, Rhonda has two children whom she is extremely proud of, four grandchildren she adores, and her partner, Mike, who is diligently remodeling a motor home for the two of them to explore the countryside.
Come show Rhonda your smile before she kicks up a cloud of RV dust!

Lauren Wheeler – Implant and Marketing Coordinator

Lauren is a native Austinite, born in downtown and grew up in Cedar Park, and has since lived all over the Austin area. She started as an assistant on the clinical side of dentistry, but has since transitioned to the admin team. “Through God’s will, I found dentistry”, she says, “because I never imagined I’d love working in people’s mouths!” However, since 2015, she has embraced her path and has fallen in love with the life-giving power of a healthy smile. Her goal is to make all people feel comfortable when talking about the state of their oral health, no matter what condition that might be.

In her free time, you may find Lauren breaking a sweat at the gym or walking Lady Bird Lake with her Pit Bull, China, or at home meal prepping for the week, playing dominoes or pool, attending comedy shows, bowling, golfing, or playing darts. “I’m an amateur at them all.” She also enjoys relaxing movie nights, snuggling with her partner, Jacolby, and one-eyed cat, Pirate. One achievement she is proud of is graduating from college with honors from Texas State University in 2021.

If you need a full mouth restoration or any implant services, call and ask for Lauren.

Evee Gonzalez – Patient Coordinator

Eve is a Floridian, having grown up in Tampa, FL, until 2020, when she moved to Austin in the midst of COVID-19. After her move, she was looking for her new calling, and to her surprise, dentistry quickly called her name. She had watched her mother struggle with dental issues and the inability to afford proper treatment, so it seemed fitting for her to have found her passion in the dental field, “helping patients find honorable and affordable care”.

Beyond dentistry, Eve has several passions; at the top of them are her pets and plants. She has three dogs, Barry, Paws & Vitani, a cat named Boo and the most recent addition, Luna, a white beta fish and other tank mates. Eve has many plants she nurtures at home, and she helps care for the plants at 8118 as well. Other hobbies she enjoys include reading, sunbathing, routine self-care, and often volunteering in the garden at the Central Texas Food Bank. A proud moment for Eve was her graduation as a first-generation college student!

Eve’s bright smile will be waiting to greet you when you open our front door.

Lisa Jimenez – Hygiene Coordinator

Lisa was born in Seguin, TX, but considers herself an Austinite since she moved here at age five and has remained ever since. She stumbled across dentistry after college on what started as “just a job to make some money,” but ended up making a career of it and has now served the community for the past 28 years! “I enjoy what I do because it allows me to help others. I strive to make our patients feel comfortable, and I love the time I spend getting to know them and their families.”

Lisa, who has a 24-year-old daughter of her own, a dog named Mickie, and a cat named Pica who live with her, is also grateful to have her parents and siblings living close by. She enjoys making memories with them and her close friend group, with whom she often travels.

Beyond traveling near and far, she has several hobbies that fill her schedule: hiking, volunteering, pet sitting, listening to music, attending concerts, and watching movies are her favorites.

If you need help coordinating your family’s next hygiene appointments, Lisa is your lady!

Gaby Sturgis – Dental Assistant

Gaby’s passion for dentistry started in her home country, Peru, when she got braces at age 13, “I just knew,” she says. And so, in 2005, she realized her dreams and became a practicing Peruvian dentist until she moved to Waco, TX, in 2009. There she worked as a dental assistant for 8 years before joining the 8118 team in Austin in 2017. Gaby is our lead surgery assistant in complex cases like the All-on-Four procedure and similar restorations. “I love collaborating with patients to make their smile a work of art.” Undoubtedly, her assisting skills are excellent and well-versed, however, she is known in the office for her compassion, calming nature, and comedic relief. Recently, after much hard work, she’s passed her national boards and hopes to soon obtain her license to practice dentistry in Texas.

Outside dental life, Gaby is a huge soccer fan, loves cooking, drawing, traveling to Peru to visit family, and spending time with her husband, Trey, and two fur babies, Tulip, a German Shepherd mix, and Boykin Spaniel, Beau. Furthermore, Gaby is 8118’s turtle momma! Taking care of the turtles in both office ponds and nursing newly hatched babies at her home until they are ready for the wild.

When Gaby assists your next appointment, you will see how this girl comforts you through laughter and keeps you on your toes!

EJ Martinez – Dental Assistant

EJ was born in Austin, TX, and has been here most of his life, only living in Chicago for a short, 5-year stint. His love for dentistry began in 2011 when he interned at an orthodontic office and says, “I was captivated by the smile transformations I saw”. While in Chicago, he continued dental assisting, but became homesick for his family and friends, thus returning to Austin in July of 2023. Currently, EJ is 8118’s lead endodontic assistant, helping the doctors in root canal procedures, but is greatly skilled in all services offered.

Outside the operatory, EJ enjoys walking his rescued Basenji mix, Enzo, who has one brown eye and one blue, on local Austin trails. He bikes both indoors and outdoors, has monthly movie nights with his sisters, loves live shows, trying new restaurants, and Beyonce! One place on his bucket list is Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he will likely try their enchiladas (because that’s his favorite food!).

EJ will gladly assist you with anything you need on your next visit.

Crystal Garcia – Dental Assistant

Crystal was born and raised in El Paso, TX, but moved to Austin in 2021 and is already looking forward to many years to come. She has been in the dental field since 2017 and has found that the most enjoyable moments of her work are when she sees that the teeth she is helping restore in patients’ mouths also help restore their confidence and self-esteem. “It’s improving their overall well-being”, she says.

A recent achievement Crystal is proud of is not only successfully relocating from “one amazing city to another”, but also the recent purchase of her first home in Manor. She shares her happy home with her partner, Gabe, and “my Kyra,” her super smart, people-loving, great Pyrenees/yellow lab mix.

Although Crystal is excited about her new homeowner responsibilities, she also loves to travel and make memories with the people she loves as often as she can.

Let Crystal help you fall in love with your smile again.

Angela Clement-Groves – Registered Dental Hygienist

Angela was born in Houston, TX, but split her time growing up in Colorado and then Alaska before she landed in Austin for her high school years. She has been enjoying her career in dentistry since 1995 and appreciates that through her work, she can help people realize health from a whole-body perspective. “It’s not just about the teeth!” she says. Furthermore, Angela finds it rewarding to work with the like-minded doctors and team members at 8118, who are all careful and conscious to care for people as individuals and whole person.

In her spare time, Angela loves to stay active indoors, outdoors, and in water. You may find her in a local yoga or Pilates class or with her husband, Keith, hiking, stand-up paddle boarding, or scuba diving. But if you can’t find her in any of those places, she’s likely checking off another foreign country from her bucket list, because the 40 she’s already visited isn’t enough for this explorer!

After being with 8118 since 2001, Angela’s schedule stays filled with many long-standing and dedicated patients. Come see why.

Joy Seiberling – Dental Hygienist

Joy grew up in Bellville, TX, a small town an hour outside Houston. She has lived on and off in the Austin area for six years and loves to hear any foodie recommendations the city has to offer. Her dental journey started five years ago, and she has been a full-time member of the 8118 team since February 2023. Joy’s goal for her patients and the reason she loves dentistry is to help them achieve and maintain full-body health because “it all starts in the mouth!”.

Outside of dentistry, Joy is a very active person who loves going to the gym, attending concerts, doing yoga, lake days, hanging out with friends and family, reading, and running around Lake Pflugerville. She has a German Shepherd mix named Ranger and a blind orange tabby cat named Shrimp. “They are my children”. A cool accomplishment to know about Joy is that she won a national bartending competition while putting herself through dental hygiene school!

Meet Joy in person for a cleaning or hygiene assessment and see that this gal certainly lives up to her name.

Megan McDowell – Dental Hygienist

Megan was raised in Amarillo, TX, but leaped onto the 8118 team in Austin in October 2024. She has been in dentistry since 2019 and says, “I enjoy helping and educating others within my community on their dental hygiene practices and overall oral health”. So, it comes as no surprise that one of her proudest achievements is graduating from hygiene school!

In her free time, Megan enjoys hiking in the hill country, playing video games, reading, and hanging out with her cat, Pippin, her partner Jerrad, and his daughter. She also has some other special people in her life who live a little further away: her younger brother, who is a musician in Nashville, TN, and her parents, who own a BBQ restaurant back in her hometown.

Besides her family’s BBQ, she loves Asian food (Japanese is her favorite), and she won’t say no to some good ol’ Mac-n-cheese.

Schedule a visit and let Megan get your smile squeaky clean.

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