About Me

I live in Cincinnati with my husband Danny. We have three grown children and an amazing granddaughter. We love to travel around the country and the world, by camper or cruise ship or plane - or all three! 

I've spent the majority of my career working with groups and in teams. I love facilitating ("making the way smooth"), whether that is with a family and their Wraparound Team, a unit at an agency, a multi-system collaborative group, a coalition or a large group of community members. There is power in bringing people together to solve complex problems and I am energized and inspired by that process. 

As someone who has been working in social services for many years, I enjoy supporting young professionals as they begin their journey. The energy and enthusiasm of the college students I teach and mentor rekindle my love the work I do. As a first generation college student myself, I know the value of having someone to help navigate the professional world.

The longer I have worked in social services, the more I have come to value the power of prevention. As a former children's services worker, I am passionate about child abuse and neglect prevention through promotion of initiatives, such as respite care, that build protective factors in vulnerable families. As a suicide survivor, I collaborate with others to support suicide prevention initiatives and teach QPR whenever I can. 

I am excited to build initiatives and programs that support families and children. Some of the programs I have helped bring to the community include: Butler County Community Wraparound, Parent Peer Support, Pause for Parents Play for Kids, and Mobile Response and Stabilization Services.  Collaborative initiatives include: No Wrong Door, Little Free Libraries, Handle with Care, Community Resource Cards, and workforce development.

Finally, I love nerdy stuff like  data collection and analysis, needs assessments, logic models, grant writing and budgets! 

Take a look at my resume to learn about the work I've done over the years. Reach out if you have any questions!

Ohio Licensed Independent Social Worker

Ohio Certified Prevention Specialist

Trainer: 

• Search Institute's 40 Developmental Assets Framework

• Search Institute's Developmental Relationships Framework

• QPR Question Persuade Refer

• Strengthening Families Framework

• High Fidelity Wraparound Facilitation

• Strengths-Based Practices

• Social Work Ethics

• Group Process and Facilitation

National Association of Social Workers

Ohio Prevention Professionals Association

Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation