I was adopted along with 3 other siblings (Kim, Alice Michael) by Warren and Eileen Dalton.  Our mother, 42 y.o., passed away when I was 10. My father, 54 y.o., died when I was 14. My mother had Lupus and suffered a stroke. My father had several heart attacks. Both of them smoked. I remember they took a lot of medication and seeing them in the hospital. This was an unforgettable impact seeing them and other people with various illnesses. My siblings and I lived with our guardians thereafter.

   As a teenager, I wanted to help people stay healthy. I wanted to be a doctor. My first job was at McDonald's which now I think is ironic. I moved out  on my own at 17 to Stony Brook University. I received a state grant that helped pay for college. I had to go on welfare for a short period. My 2nd job was an aerobics instructor at Lucille Roberts while I attended college. I loved it! At the time, I worked in the Cancer Research Laboratory at Stony Brook Medical Center working towards my goal of becoming a medical doctor. I realized I could not be in a laboratory for the rest of my life. There were usually no windows and at the most 3 people in the lab. I became a teacher's assistant in a weightlifting course at the university. It was my calling!

   At the end of my junior year, during the summer, I was riding my bike to work. A car with brake failure hit me.  I was in a coma diagnosed to be paralyzed from the neck down. I had suffered a skull fracture, concussion and a sub-dural hematoma ( a blood clot to the surrounding brain tissue). I was lucky to come out of the coma after 3 days. I was told that I suffered brain damage and needed extensive rest from strenuous activities and to take a semester off from Stony Brook. I was  diagnosed with mild Dyslexia and suffered from headaches which were painful especially around high pitched sounds. I had frequent loss of movement in my right leg in the morning dropping to the floor when I tried to get out of bed. I spent many hours for testing and care. The only doctor that helped me significantly was a chiropractor, Dr. Reiter. He was the only doctor that sat down with me to explain why I felt the way I did and how to rehab and care for my condition. My next step was recovery! I made sure I went to the gym to rehab myself even though it was NOT SUGGESTED by the medical doctors.

   I had volunteered for a physical therapist in the interest of becoming one. I noticed the majority of the patients did not seem to be health conscious prior to surgery or injury. I was also interested in Chiropractic. I saw the difference in the type of patients. Most of them seemed fairly healthy but did not function properly. I thought if I could continue teaching aerobics and personal training along with Chiropractic, I could keep people healthy or healthier!

  Benefitness was created to design health programs for corporations and communities. A example of one program was at day care center within a corporation.  The staff was provided with proper lifting techniques of children /infants and exercises to strengthen the employees' bodies. This program involved basic education of the muscles at use , preventative care,  and what to do when you are injured. Benefitness programs fit the needs of the employee. In turn, this yields higher productivity levels and reduces workers compensation cases and sick days. As the founder, I have provided educational tools and time to my staff and along with their own expertise, they have been able to provide the highest quality of service.

I hope this website will give a better understanding of the passion I have for this field as well as an inspirational tool. Stay Fit & Have Fun!