Our Plant Powered Team
Paul Chatlin - Founder
Paul was born in Detroit, Michigan and has lived in West Bloomfield, Michigan since 1971. He is currently 63 years old and in May of 2013, was diagnosed with Heart Disease. One artery was 100% blocked and two others were 65% blocked. Add to that leaky valves, an enlarged heart, the thickening of the right side of his heart, a left bundled branch block and heart murmur, he was in seriously bad shape. They performed a heart catheter procedure, and a heart transplant was ruled out, thankfully but he needed triple bypass surgery. His cardiologist gave him two options: bypass surgery or try “Plant Based Nutrition”. He chose nutrition and the rest is history.
After just 3 weeks, thanks to Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, his angina disappeared, his cholesterol levels dropped from 347 to 127 and today, it is at 100. He has lost 65 pounds, and has kept it off and feels great!
He attended a Plant Based Cooking Class hosted by the Esselstyn’s. The cost was $975.00. He tried to have Blue Cross/Blue Shield reimburse him but he was denied. He thought, “Hey, this is what I can do to give back”! So for the next 3 months he tried to work with BC/BS with no luck. After escalating to the highest level he was denied because they did not have a pay code assigned for cooking classes, and they suggested he work with the legislature for any hope of future change. He pointed out the absurdity of their being willing to cut a check for $125,000 for bypass surgery rather than reimburse him $975.00 so he can learn how to cook Plant Based and ensure he never needed surgery. It was then he realized how broke the system was and he needed a bigger voice. Plant Based Nutrition Support Group was born.
Robert Breakey, MD - Chairman
Dr. Robert Breakey has over 20 years of experience in family medicine, developing special interest in nutrition, preventive medicine, patient education and positive wellness.
“I like to put the “Care” first in health care, and believe in service excellence, high quality medical care and employing a partnership approach to health care with each patient that I have the pleasure of serving. By employing a coordinated, team oriented approach, we can design a customized plan of care that emphasizes positive wellness, self sufficiency, and, when necessary, guidance in navigating our larger and very complex health care system.”'
Hospital Affiliations: St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor & University of Michigan Hospital
Marion Treece - Director of Operations
Marion Treece joined the PBNSG team in July 2019. “I began as a volunteer with the group, felt welcome from the first day, and love being involved with a passionate group dedicated to a mission of helping others achieve optimal health.” Marion has lived in southeast Michigan since 2007. She holds a certificate in plant-based nutrition from T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies, Cornell University, and a bachelor’s degree in sociology. Marion enjoys lifelong learning, cooking, advocates for plant-based nutrition, and has been a volunteer and/or board member of nonprofit groups for over 30 years. She also has a background in computer and special education fields.
Marion has had an interest in healthy food and cooking most of her adult life, and began following a mostly vegetarian diet in the early 2000s. In 2014, she changed to a vegan diet, and then to a whole food, plant-based lifestyle. This decision was made after taking human nutrition and health courses, researching plant-based physicians and topics, understanding more about food- and lifestyle-related disease prevention and reversal, and seeing more and more family and friends developing chronic disease and being prescribed multiple medications. Marion also has a strong interest in social behavior, diet, and factors that influence food choices.
Gardening and being outdoors are simple pleasures that Marion enjoys, as well as taking walks with her husband and their dogs, reading and collecting plant-based nutrition books, and creating and adapting recipes. She and her husband have three children and love spending time with them and their spouses as often as they can. She looks forward to helping PBNSG continue to grow and spreading plant-based knowledge to help others improve their health. “I envision a future in our society where active centenarians are commonplace from having a healthy lifestyle that includes whole plant foods.”
Brett Nyquist - Director of Technology
Brett Nyquist became the Director of Technology for PBNSG in November 2017. He has a long history of IT & Digital Marketing experience, with a degree in Network Systems Administration.
He has a deep passion for Plant Based Nutrition! In September 2015, he stumbled upon veganism after seeing the film Cowspiracy. This began his journey into learning more about the lifestyle and the works of Caldwell Esselstyn, T. Colin Campbell, and Dean Ornish. He then started moving in the direction of a whole food plant-based lifestyle, alongside his partner Nicole. They never looked back! He loves to cook and prepare meals for others as well as connecting the world with this lifestyle!
Megan Bert - Director of Support Groups
Megan Bert became Director of Support Groups for PBNSG in November 2020. Holding a bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University and Masters in Education from University of San Diego, Megan has spent the last 15 years as a middle and high school science teacher. Her experience as an educator has helped her develop a skill for taking complex concepts and simplifying them for others to understand. Coupled with her passion for plant-based nutrition, Megan enjoys helping others understand the power behind our food choices. "Not only do our food choices heal and prevent illness, but they also allow our bodies to perform and feel how nature intended; vibrant and full of energy. Her goal is to help others learn about the nutritional benefits of a whole foods plant based diet and also to provide guidance on meals, products and easy "power food" recipes.
Megan met Paul Chatlin, founder of PBNSG, while blogging for her "Walker's Way, Plant-Based Warrior" website, where she guides and supports families with plant-based nutrition. After interviewing him for her blog, she immediately recognized that PBNSG is where she belonged. Megan is certified to teach biology, chemistry and nutrition, and her pastimes include hiking, traveling, plant-based cooking and spending time with her active plant-based toddler, husband and two dogs.
One of her favorite quotes is, "Anyone who hasn't made a mistake hasn't tried anything new" by Albert Einstein. She believes this applies to all facets of life and in particular transitioning to a plant-based lifestyle. We need to support each other and recognize that there is no such thing as perfection, only progress!