board of directors
Officers
Lauren Baynes
Board ChairVice President of Operations
Bounce Imaging
Erin M. Moss, LMHC
Vice ChairOwner
Erin M. Moss Mental Health Counseling Private Practice
Alexander J. Vandenbergh, CPA
TreasurerSupervisor, Assurance Services
Dopkins and Company, LLP
Christina Pearl
SecretaryDirector of Corporate Communication
Horizon Corporations
Members
Jeffrey L. Anker, M.D
Assistant Professor of PsychiatryDept. of Psychiatry
SUNY Buffalo School of Medicine
Melinda C. Dubois
Executive DirectorMental Health Advocates of WNY
Elizabeth Woike-Ganga
President and Chief Executive OfficerBestSelf Behavioral Health
Donna Gatti, R.N.
DirectorECMC
Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program
Christopher Kerr, M.D.
Chief Executive Officer and Chief Medical OfficerHospice and Palliative Care Buffalo
Christine Langenfeld
Director of Marketing & OperationsAmherst Chamber of Commerce
Mark Laurrie
Superintendent of SchoolsNiagara Falls City School District
Magdalena Nichols
Chief Officer of Administration & Strategic PartnershipsJericho Road Community Health Center
Kyle W. Mack, J.D., Pharm.D.
Special CounselPhillips Lytle
Jennifer Picone
Corporate Wellness ManagerIndependent Health
Pete Rizzo
Vice PresidentGEICO
Melissa Spikes-Archer
Project CoordinatorBuffalo Urban League
Stephen Tyrpak
Director, Quality, Clinical & Regulatory AffairsGarwood Medical Devices LLC
Jun Wang-Tiedemann
PresidentChinese Club of Western New York
Agency Staff
Administrative Staff
Melinda C. DuBois
Executive Director(716) 886-1242 x314
mdubois@mhawny.org
Ted Zientek
Director of Finance and Administration(716) 886-1242 x317
tzientek@mhawny.org
Margaret Silvestri
Accountant(716) 886-1242 x315
msilvestri@mhawny.org
Amy Szefel-Starck
Director of Development(716) 886-1242 x334
astarck@mhawny.org
BEST (Basic Emotional Skills Training)
Mary Lou Montanari
Director(716) 886-1242 x338
montanari@mhawny.org
Brandi Harvey
Education Specialist(716) 886-1242
bharvey@mhawny.org
Sara Perdue
Education Specialist(716) 886-1242 x339
sperdue@mhawny.org
Child & Family Support Program
Stacie Dziwulski
Director of Family Peer Advocates(716) 886-1242 x337
sdziwulski@mhawny.org
Jan Ables-Register
Family Support Partner-ECMC
jables-register@mhawny.org
Earvetta Bizzell
Family Support Partner-ECMC / Compliance Coordinator
Cynthia Brauer
Family Peer Advocate(716) 884-1242 x316
cbrauer@mhawny.org
Susan Fleming
Family Support Partner-ECMC
sfleming@mhawny.org
Joyce Orlowski
Family Support Partner-ECMC
jorlowski@mhawny.org
Ljupka Palavestra
Family Support Partner- ECMC
lpalavestra@mhawny.org
Toddie Rogers
Family Support Partner- Outreach(716) 886-1242 x319
trogers@mhawny.org
Sabrina Timm
Family Support Partner- Intake(716) 884-1242 x346
Dawn Tisdale
Family Peer Advocate(716) 886-1242 x321
dtisdale@mhawny.org
Leslie Wexler
Family Support Partner- ECMC(716) 886-1242 x332
lwexler@mhawny.org
Milton Williams
Family Peer Advocate(716) 884-1242 x332
mwilliams@mhawny.org
Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA)
Jodi Johnson
Director(716) 886-1242 x318
johnson@mhawny.org
Adrienne Linger
Volunteer Supervisor(716) 886-1242 x328
alinger@mhawny.org
Bridget McNally
Case Manager(716) 886-1242 x347
bmcnally@mhawny.org
Legal Services
Ed Martnshin
Director(716) 886-1242 x324
emartnshin@mhawny.org
Kevin C. Condon
Attorney(716) 886-1242 x322
kcondon@mhawny.org
Heather Kuhn
Attorney(716) 886-1242 x351
hkuhn@mhawny.org
Nicole Blackwell
Lead Paralegal(716) 886-1242 x330
nblackwell@mhawny.org
Louis Mueller
Paralegal(716) 886-1242 x348
lmueller@mhawny.org
Jo Evelyn Smith
Paralegal(716) 886-1242 x320
jesmith@mhawny.org
Marketing Communications and Outreach
Carol Doggett
Senior Director of Marketing Communications and Outreach(716) 886-1242 x350
cdoggett@mhawny.org
Kelly Miskovski
Director of Community Outreach and Information & Referral(716) 886-1242 x326
kmiskovski@mhawny.org
Melissa Bellanca
Social Media and Marketing Assistant(716) 886-1242 x311
mbellanca@mhawny.org
Operation COM (Children Of the Military)
Mary A. McParlane
Director(716) 886-1242 x310
mcparlane@mhawny.org
Sara Applin
Facilitator(716) 886-1242 x310
sapplin@mhawny.org
Robin Shipman
Facilitator(716) 886-1242 x310
rshipman@mhawny.org
Youth Programs
Karl Shallowhorn
Director of Youth Programs(716) 886-1242 x315
kshallowhorn@mhawny.org
Peg Barrett
School Advocate(716) 886-1242 x323
pbarrett@mhawny.org
Doug Hahn
Youth Peer Advocate Coordinator(716) 886-1242 x345
dhahn@mhawny.org
Julianna Hill
Youth Peer Advocate Coordinator(716) 886-1242 x 345
jhill@mhawny.org
Katie Bernard
Youth Peer Advocate(716) 886-1242 x345
kbernard@mhawny.org
Joshua Cuillo
Youth Peer Advocate(716) 886-1242 x345
jcuillo@mhawny.org
Ava Kuty
Youth Peer Advocate(716) 886-1242 x345
akuty@mhawny.org
Renata Peiffer
Youth Peer Advocate(716) 886-1242 x345
rpeiffer@mhawny.org
Jillian McDowell
Youth Peer AdvocateYouth Peer Advocate
jmcdowell@mhawny.org
Do You Need Help?
Information & referral specialists are available M-F, 8:30am-4:30pm to help link you to community resources, providers, or treatment services.
Call (716) 886-1242.