Meet Our Founders

Dr. Paris Ayala Keighley is a family medicine physician who is passionate about gender affirming care, mental health, and holistic wellness. They have a specific focus on the needs of LGBTQ+ and immigrant communities and speak fluent Spanish. Dr. Ayala Keighley is dedicated to advocacy—for the specialty of family medicine and communities for whom the medical system wasn't built—serving on the board of their union's political activism committee. They are also an artist, husband, and cat parent.

Dr. Michael Zito is a family medicine nurse practitioner with a specialization in gender affirming care and HIV care. He has been serving the LGBTQ+ community of New Jersey for nearly 2 decades and strives to bring the inclusion and representation deserved by our community to the medical space. He is a proud former Mr. NJ Leather title winner, husband, and father to his chosen family.

Michael and Paris met while Paris was in residency—they were immediately inspired by his open, playful, dedicated approach to LGBTQ+ care—and knew they wanted to follow in his footsteps. When it came time for Paris to graduate residency, they wanted to build a new system—one that would allow them to care for their community and others who have been left out of an equal shot at wellbeing in a way that was actually effective and human centered. They knew they couldn't build it without the mentor that inspired them the most, and, of course, he was instantly on board. And that is how our co-founders, Michael and Paris, came together to bring EmbodyWell to the community.