As a person with lived experience in behavioral health, Maureen is passionate about reducing the stigma surrounding those with behavioral health challenges. Her commitment is to continue expanding recovery support opportunities and educating others in hopes of reducing the stigma that keeps individuals from seeking treatment and recovery.

These past two years, Dan, alongside his fellow first responders and healthcare workers, has been on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. He has seen firsthand the effects this virus continues to have on the community, but is committed to working diligently in the legislature to help all of us get through this difficult time.

Dan and his wife Megan currently live in Lakewood with their dog Pepper.

As Director of Patient Access and Outreach, Susan plays a critical role in facilitating the admission process for patients while also spearheading outreach efforts for Lakeside Milam. In addition to identifying and mimizing barriers that patients may encounter during the admission process, Susan also manages Lakeside Milam’s Drug and Alcohol Consulting Service (DACS) and develops partnerships within the community to enhance outreach efforts. Overall, Susan’s role is multifaceted, combining administrative oversight with community engagement to ensure that Lakeside Milam effectively serves its patients and the broader community in their recovery efforts.

Prior to serving in public office, Lauren led efforts to pass 2016’s Ricky’s Law, named after her best friend, which created an unprecedented crisis treatment system for youth and adults with life-threatening addiction. In the legislature, Lauren’s work centers on behavioral health treatment and recovery and criminal legal system reform.

Jon came to the Fire Department with a background in nonprofit program management and a focus on disaster preparedness and recovery. He holds a master’s degree in international relations and was a paramedic in Maryland.

A PBS documentary featuring Brett and the street medicine program which he founded, Close to Home: Street Medicine, won an Emmy award in 2018.

Marine Corps veteran and founder of Solace Mind, Sylvia combines her life experiences with diverse healing modalities to promote well-being and foster safe spaces. Sylvia is also the program manager for CIT King County MIDD, where she ensures the program provides consistent and high-quality training to first responders and others, teaching effective crisis intervention strategies while promoting self-care. Sylvia prioritizes the responders’ well-being and psychological safety enabling them to develop the critical skills required to navigate and respond to behavioral health crises with empathy and resilience. Sylvia’s unwavering commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion ensures all voices are heard and valued, building stronger connections between first responders and the communities they serve.

When he’s not at work, you can usually find him on his bicycle!

Chief Maxwell is a nationally known leader, speaking and writing about human factors, performance, leadership, and community paramedicine in the U.S. and Canada.

Aleesia earned her master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from St. Martin’s University and has over 10 years of experience working with people within varying age groups, with differing abilities, who come from diverse ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

She brings her understanding of the important need for transparency, knowledge of the community behavioral health and criminal court systems, contract negotiation and management, stakeholder outreach, the legislative process and bill analysis, and experience with program development and continuity to her role as a co-manager with the City of Tacoma/Fire Department’s Holistic Outreach Promoting Engagement (HOPE) team, which provides in field alternative response independent of, in tandem with, and after a person has had contact with traditional first responders.

You can find out more at https://www.humantogether.us.

Nicole has a huge desire to support Firefighters, Police Officers, and first responders in health and wellness. She supports people in health and nutrition as a personal trainer, exercise instructor, nutrition coach, body builder coach, yoga instructor, Yoga for First Responder instructor, and But yoga instructor.

Dr. Robey is an amateur sawyer and will try to build anything that starts with timbers. Otherwise, he enjoys supporting his kids’ hobbies and interests.

Julie’s strategic focus on de-escalation, risk and safety assessments, needs assessments, and service navigation/resource connection underscores her dedication to holistic well-being. As a certified crisis intervention team coordinator, she demonstrates leadership in fostering critical community partnerships and relationships, addressing the escalating demand for effective community responses to behavioral health crises.

Dr. Rudolf has been practicing pain medicine, addiction medicine, and medical acupuncture at Swedish Pain Services in Seattle since 2004. He is the current chair of the American Society of Addiction Medicine Pain and Addiction Committee, and is the immediate past president of the WA Society of Addiction Medicine. He has won numerous awards and has been featured as one of Seattle’s Best Doctors in both addiction medicine and acupuncture numerous times between 2006 and 2023. He is a clinical associate professor at the University of WA School of Medicine.

Dr. Rudolf is an avid runner, as well as a musician, playing drum set and piano. He enjoys spending time outdoors with his family in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.

At the core of her philosophy lies the belief that empathy, while essential, must be accompanied by healthy boundaries to prevent burnout and ensure sustainable support for both caregivers and those in crisis. Her favorite quote, “Empathy without boundaries is self-destruction,” encapsulates this guiding principle.

Joshua is a fierce advocate for peer services in Washington state because he knows firsthand the incredible impact that a community of peers connected by shared experience makes on increasing the success of long-term recovery.