Jennifer Battle – Co-chair of Committee, Vice President of Community Access and Engagement, The Harris Center for Mental Health and IDD
Alexander J. Rulon – Organization and Title: Talbert House, Director II
Alexander Rulon (he/him/his) started his career in social services in 2009 at Talbert House as a Case Manager on the Intensive Team working with adults who struggle with Mental Health and Addiction. Alexander was promoted to supervisor of the Intensive Case Management team in 2011 and served in that role until 2013. In 2013, Alexander was promoted to a Manager position within the Community Care service line which focuses on Community-Based Prevention Efforts, where one of the programs he oversaw was Talbert House’s Suicide and Crisis Lifeline which has been in existence for over 40 years. Alexander oversaw local crisis response through Talbert House’s crisis Lifeline and also the NSPL contract as well. In 2019, Alexander traveled to Florida to become an ASIST Trained Trainer at a workshop hosted by Vibrant. In 2020, Talbert House became a National Backup center with Vibrant and served as a National Backup center until 2023. Talbert House is the 988 provider for Greater Cincinnati and also serves as the State backup provider for 988 across the State of Ohio.
Bethany Billham – Shift supervisor, 988 Digital/The Trevor Project
Bethany Billham (she/her) has been with 988 since it became operational. First on the lines as a Digital Crisis Counselor and later as a Shift Supervisor, Bethany has over a decade of non-profit experience having worked for a local animal shelter as the coordinator of the cat program, managing nearly 100 volunteers. Bethany feels privileged to be able to be a part of 988 and helping folks in crisis.
Emily Blomme – Foundation 2 Crisis Services, Chief Executive Officer
Emily (she/her) has a Bachelor of Science degree in human development and family studies from Colorado State University and for the last 25 years, much of her work has been in crisis response, suicide prevention, and social justice initiatives. Since 2018, she has been a Crisis Accreditation Program Examiner with the American Association of Suicidology seamlessly blending her passion for policy and practice with a dedication to delivering high-quality services. In her role, Emily leads a dedicated team of 200 who provide transformative and life-saving services through various channels, including crisis phone, chat, text, in-person interactions, school-based programs, and co-responder collaborative initiatives with law enforcement. Emily and her team provide support across the state as a 988 provider, Your Life Iowa (statewide crisis line) contract holder, and various other independent lines. Emily is a strong advocate for the expansion of mental health support in rural communities and working to ensure front-line staff have the tools and training they need to make a meaningful impact in their roles.
Jill Smith, LMSW, CAADC – Common Ground-MiCAL, Senior Director
Jill Smith (she/her/hers) is a Licensed Master of Social Work and Certified Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor with 24 years of leadership experience in crisis mental health services in the State of Michigan. She has spent the majority of her career committed to the delivery of public mental health and substance use disorder services. Jill is currently the Senior Director of Michigan Crisis and Access Line at Common Ground where she is collaborating with the state of Michigan to deliver comprehensive crisis and referral services using best practice models.
Justin Chase, LMSW, MBA, FACHE – CEO at Solari Crisis & Human Services
Justin Chase LMSW, MBA, FACHE, (he/him/his) is Chief Executive Officer of Solari Crisis & Human Services. Justin is a nationally recognized subject matter expert in crisis systems, recovery-oriented systems of care, human services, non-profit organizational leadership, and development. His expertise also includes developing sustainable, effective, and efficient healthcare programs and systems. He has served as a behavioral health administrator, executive, network/program developer, direct practitioner, and project manager within the public behavioral health, human service, and child welfare systems for more than 20 years.
Justin earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Social Work from Arizona State University, a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and holds a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Duke University. Justin is a Licensed Master Social Worker in the State of Arizona, Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality, Certified Six Sigma Green Belt, Certified Peer Support Specialist in the State of Arizona, and a Fellow with the American College of Healthcare Executives. Justin also serves on the Board of Directors for the International Council for Helplines and Board President for Lifeline International.
Karishma Sheth, MPH – EveryMind, Chief Program Officer
Karishma Sheth (she/her/hers) is the Chief Program Officer at EveryMind. Ms. Sheth has been with EveryMind for 20 years. In her current role as Chief Program Officer, which she has held since February 2016, she leads all EveryMind’s programs, services, and community education efforts. Karishma provides strategic vision and direction for EveryMind, leading programmatic growth and expansion, as a key member of the executive leadership team. Karishma has a master’s degree in public health and a bachelor’s degree in psychology and Spanish, both from The George Washington University. Karishma is fluent in Spanish, Hindi, and Gujarati (a dialect of Hindi). Karishma is a native Washingtonian and currently lives in Rockville, Maryland.
Nick Christian – Program Director
Nick Christian (he/him) currently serves as the Program Director for a 988 Call Center in Indiana. Nick has been involved with 988 since September 2022. Prior to this, Nick worked as a Special Investigator for a Prosecuting Attorney, specializing in criminal acts against endangered adults. This position followed his retirement from a successful career in law enforcement. In his law enforcement career, Nick held various rewarding positions, including Patrol Officer, Detective, Administrator, HIDTA Federal Task Force Member, Major Crimes Task Force Member, Field Training Officer, and Law Enforcement Training Officer. Throughout Nick’s time in law enforcement, he focused his continued education and training efforts on training facilitation and leadership development.
Ralph Nieder-Westermann – Wyoming LifeLine, Executive Director
Ralph (he/him/his) came to suicide prevention late in his professional life. His previous background was always in travel, specifically working for Lufthansa German Airlines for 26 years and one month. When Ralph retired at the end of 2014, he was looking for something more than just working for a global corporate entity. As a person with lived experience, Ralph found my calling in doing this work.
The Wyoming LifeLine was established in 2020 by Ralph, his husband Jeff Henne, President and CEO of The Henne Group and Waller Hall Research, and Karen Sylvester, the former Big Horn County prevention specialist. Jeff and Ralph were both new to this work, though Jeff has spent the last 35+ years working in market research in the healthcare space.
Initially, there was no funding other than self-funding through Waller Hall Research. The group then started out covering only the 4 counties located in the Big Horn Basis and then only from noon to 4:00 PM. Slowly they were able to expand coverage so that they were statewide by the end of October 2020. Then, because of funding from the Episcopal Foundation of Wyoming, they were able to expand their hours. Now, they are under contract with the State of Wyoming, and together with Central Wyoming Counseling Center, they cover the entire state, splitting the state into 2 12-hour shifts.
Shari Sinwelski, MS/EdS, LPCC, NCC – Didi Hirsch Suicide Prevention Center, Vice President of Crisis Care
Currently, as Vice President of Crisis Care at the Suicide Prevention Center (SPC) at Didi Hirsch, Ms. Sinwelski (she/her/hers) oversees all suicide prevention programs, including individual, family, and group counseling services, the SPC Contact Center, and Teen Line. Previously, Shari served as the Vice-President of National Networks for Vibrant Emotional Health where she held the role of Deputy Director of the National Suicide Prevention Hotline and played a key role in bringing 988 to fruition nationwide. Shari has directed several hotlines that are part of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline including the Suicide Prevention Center in Los Angeles, Vialink in New Orleans, and 211 Big Bend in Tallahassee.
Shari works diligently to raise the voices of lived experience in the Suicide Prevention Community. She created the Didi Hirsch Survivors of Suicide Attempts Support group curriculum for individuals who have survived a suicide attempt and later co-authored a facilitators’ manual and training to bring this support group to individuals nationally and around the world. She helped to develop the National Action Alliance’s document The Way Forward: Pathways to Hope, Recovery, and Wellness with insights from Lived Experience and authored A Journey Toward Health and Hope: A Handbook for Recovery After a Suicide Attempt.
Shari has trained thousands of individuals in crisis intervention and suicide prevention and is a Training Coach for Living Works Education. She has provided subject matter expertise, consultation, and mental health support for many national publications, social media companies, major television networks, and Broadway productions.
Shari Sinwelski is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor in the State of California. She holds a BS in Psychology and Master’s and Educational Specialist degrees in Mental Health Counseling from Florida State University. She has nearly 30 years of experience in mental health, rape crisis, domestic violence, crisis intervention and suicide prevention.