Get to know the Speakers
Town Hall Two

Mr. Almazar has many years of experience as direct care provider, administrator, organizational and clinical consultant, trainer, and speaker.  Prior to working as full-time consultant in 2009, he served as Deputy Director for the State of Illinois Division of Mental Health.

 

He is presently the Senior Public Policy Advisor at the National Association of State Mental Health Program Director’s Center for Innovations in Behavioral Health Policy and Practice. He provides consultation and technical assistance for large systems like California Department of State Hospitals, Ohio Department of Mental Health, Crestwood Behavioral Health, etc. He also serves as Subject Matter Expert for SAMHSA’s Transformation Transfer Initiative. He served as Senior Consultant to SAMHSA’s National Center for Trauma-Informed Care and Promoting Alternatives to Seclusion and Restraints through Trauma Informed Practices. He provides consultation, training and technical assistance to organizations and large systems and communities in the areas of leadership, workforce development, consumer empowerment, organizational planning and changing organizational cultures to effect systems transformation. He has expertise in working with youth and adult serving, institutional and community based, publicly and privately –funded programs across service systems.

​

Contact Info: Raul.Almazar@nasmhpd.org

Cherene Caraco is a trauma survivor and person in recovery from related mental health challenges.  In 2006, Cherene founded Promise Resource Network (PRN), a peer-run agency that supports the healing and recovery of others experiencing complex trauma, mental health, substance use, homelessness, LGBTQIA, domestic violence, former gang involvement, and/or prior incarceration.  PRN is nationally ranked among the top 10 Best Non-Profits in the country to work for in 2018, 2019 and 2020.  Most recently, PRN was awarded a federal SAMHSA grant to incubate and launch the NC statewide movement of people with lived experience, Peer Voice NC (PVNC), that is mobilizing to impact social justice, policy and practice change and advance the integrity of peer support. Cherene has established three technical assistance centers; Work4Recovery, Peer Academy and Recovery University, has served as a national and international consultant, and has written numerous curricula.   

​

Contact information: ccaraco@promiseresourcenetwork.org

Vesper Moore is a community activist, survivor, trainer, and writer. They have been a part of the Kiva Centers for several years and have been instrumental in the Kiva Centers’ growth as an organization. They have brought the perspectives of survivors to national and international spaces. They have experience working as a consultant for both the United States government and the United Nations in shaping strategies around trauma, intersectionality, and disability rights. They gave an address on “Intersectionality as a Human Rights Issue” for the UN’s Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). They have been at the forefront of legislative reform to shift the societal paradigm around mental health.
Vesper concentrates on building social movements and public knowledge to facilitate and sustain systems change. They are a skilled certified trainer of Intentional Peer Support and the MA Certified Peer Specialist Training. They have supported the development of peer-run organizations in different parts of the world. They have been a lecturer for many universities and institutions across the United States. They are a very well-known leader in peer support and are known as a powerful advocate. Vesper is also a skilled chess player and enjoys the late 80s/early 90s goth fashion, music, and film.

 

Contact Information: vmoore@kivacenters.org (Source of Bio): https://kivacenters.org/about/our-team/

Mary Ferreri is the Executive Director of the Emerald School of Excellence, the Carolinas 1st Recovery High School.   Mary Ferreri has been an educator for over 15 years with her first 11 teaching and coaching in Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools. Her leadership roles and creative ways to keep students engaged have been her strengths. The more experience she acquired, the more she was able to assess what really helps students learn, stay motivated, and stay eager to be successful. She was raised in New York where she was influenced by some incredible family members who are/were coaches, professional athletes, community/family-oriented, and faith-based people. Her genuine passion for helping students thrive and become lifelong learners has led her down this path to help students in recovery from substance use and mental health struggles. She is personally in recovery from an eating disorder, depression, and self-harm. She has lived experience, is a sibling of someone who has been in and out of recovery for over 15 years, and understands the impact that this all has on a family system. 

Emerald opened with 2 students and 2 staff members back in September of 2019. Since then, we have been able to support over 60 families since we opened in 2019. Our school is designed to have a family feel in maintaining a 1-10 teacher-to-student ratio.  We have the capacity to support 50-60 students in the current space that we are in. We just had the largest group of students in this previous school year which hovered around 30 students. We graduated 17 and have an alumni group of 28! Our goal is to grow to our current capacity, and then grow to 75-80 students in the next few years.  As we grow, we want to support other counties across the state. 

 

Contact Information: maryf@emeraldschool.org

Rich Hollett is the Division Director of Recovery Support Services & Director of Recovery Cafe Lowell. Rich played an instrumental role in building the recovery coach program at LHATR and bringing Recovery Cafe to Lowell. Rich largely attributes his skills to his personal and professional life experiences - most significantly connecting to and building relationships with those seeking self-transformation. Rich's experiences have informed him that love and it’s restorative impact is his most valuable resource.  He recognizes the profound benefits of being known, valued, and loved and the suffering that comes from their absence. He is an advocate for continued change within the field of addiction treatment and recovery so that perspectives evolve, biases fade, and services are delivered with the love, compassion, and respect that every human being deserves. 

 

Contact Information: rhollett@lowellhouseinc.org  
(Source of Bio): https://www.lowellhouseinc.org/administration