Team

Dr. Joanne Cacciatore is a bereaved mother and the founder of the MISS Foundation, an international NGO that serves families whose children have died. She is also a tenured research professor and senior Wrigley Institute of Sustainability Scholar at Arizona State University, spearheading the Graduate Certificate in Trauma and Bereavement. Her best selling book, Bearing the Unbearable: Love, Loss, and the Heartbreaking Path of Grief, is a national award winning best seller that has helped revolutionize the way our culture thinks, and feels, about grief. She works with and counsels families from all around the world who have experienced catastrophic deaths. Dr. Jo, believing that current practices around food production are a social, ethical, and environmental justice issue, is a vegan and hasn’t eaten meat since 1972.  She also teaches meditation, mindfulness, and compassion and ahimsa practices to students and clients from around the world.  If you’re a provider seeking supervision or consultation, please contact us.

View Joanne’s complete bio and vita please click this link.

Dr. Gorman is a geographer and professor at Exeter University in the UK with particular interests in health, care, and medicine, and how these intersect with human-animal relations and more-than-human worlds. Rich’s research at present has involved exploring the dynamic interrelations between health and place, particularly, the roles of animals within various caring and health-promoting practices, seeking to understand how human-animal relations can affect people’s and animals’ capacities to thrive and flourish.

Roshi Genmitsu holds a Swiss masters degree in Adult Education, is certified in Psychosomatic Counseling and is a certified Provider in Compassionate Bereavement Care. She is an esteemed meditation teacher and specializes in Pastoral Counseling, mindfulness practices, and rituals.

Paul has provided 30 years of leadership in NY and NJ developing quality, hospital-based and free-standing mental health programs for underserved populations. He was appointed as a team member to write treatment standards for the State of NJ on co-occurring conditions of mental illness and addiction. For the past 25 years he has had a private practice in psychotherapy specializing in trauma, and also is certified in Compassionate Bereavement Counseling. Additionally he is a pioneer in Zen Buddhism, known as Roshi Paul Genki Kahn, a Buddhist priest, a lineage holding Zen Buddhist teacher,  and co-founder with his wife, Roshi Monika Genmitsu Kahn, of the Zen Garland Order.

Dr. Kara Thieleman received her B.A. in sociology/anthropology from Lewis & Clark College in 2005, her MSW and Certificate in Trauma and Bereavement from Arizona State University in 2011, and her PhD in social work from ASU in 2019. She completed the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program with Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach in 2022.

Kara has prior experience as a hospice social worker, grief counselor, and Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families group facilitator. She currently works for the REACH Foundation on programs for bereaved families and is an Instructional Professional with the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences at ASU.

She has been conducting research on traumatic bereavement and holistic approaches to grief since 2010. She is currently a member of the research team at the Selah Carefarm. She also offers remote postvention care for visitors to the Selah Carefarm and supportive counseling for Carefarm and MISS Foundation staff.

Dr. Langridge is a volunteer who discovered Selah Carefarm after the loss of her teenage daughter Hilary, who was a student at ASU.  She has dedicated her career to supporting communities and organizations in creating sustainability programs.  She founded Sustainable Synthesis Limited as a public benefit corporation to facilitate collaboration to meet sustainability goals.  In addition, she is an active in a number of environmental and educational organizations.  Her time supporting Selah helps with her healing, and is personal validation of Dr. Jo’s work.

Specializing in Counseling, psychology and expressive Art Therapy, JoAnn is a graduate of Prescott College, Prescott, AZ. and has been providing client centered compassionate care to those challenged by addictions, mental disorders, trauma, and grief for decades. She believes that traumatized people are capable of restoring themselves and their lives to one of inner peace and harmony.

JoAnn combines her love of nature, animals, music, art therapy, ceremony, rituals, and energy work as pathways into the wounded heart. Holding each client and their trauma as sacred and individually personalized, she gently guides one through their pain, helping them to bring a new sense of balance and wholeness to their body, mind, emotions and spirit.

Missy received her Master of Social Work from Loyola University at Chicago specializing in clinical mental health. Her intense love for animals and experience with their therapeutic benefits in trauma healing drove her pursuit in finding Selah Carefarm. Missy is experienced in research, counseling, and community organizing. She is also a licensed massage therapist and myofascial release therapist for humans, horses, and animals big and small.

Alicia came to the MISS Foundation in 2010 after the death of her identical twin boys. She began her grief work as a support group member to learn how to hold space for her own grief. After a few years of participating in support groups, Alicia began volunteering for the MISS Foundation, co-facilitating a sibling group for bereaved siblings. Throughout her time with the Foundation, Alicia has organized events such as the Candlelight Memorial held at the end of the year, facilitated support groups in the Phoenix area, and has served as a MISS Foundation HOPE Mentor. Because of her passion in working with our MISS Foundation community, Alicia went on to earn her Master of Mental Health and Wellness with an emphasis in Grief and Bereavement degree from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. She re-careered from teaching to become a grief and bereavement counselor. Alicia is certified through the MISS Foundation as a Compassionate Bereavement Care Provider. She believes in the power of community, finding great joy in facilitating the online Selah Carefarm support groups. Her mission is to hold space and tenderness for our bereaved community. Alicia adopts a vegan lifestyle, uses contemplative practices for continued self-work, and enjoys spending time in nature.

Dr. Joanne Cacciatore is a bereaved mother and the founder of the MISS Foundation, an international NGO that serves families whose children have died. She is also a tenured research professor and senior Wrigley Institute of Sustainability Scholar at Arizona State University, spearheading the Graduate Certificate in Trauma and Bereavement. Her best selling book, Bearing the Unbearable: Love, Loss, and the Heartbreaking Path of Grief, is a national award winning best seller that has helped revolutionize the way our culture thinks, and feels, about grief. She works with and counsels families from all around the world who have experienced catastrophic deaths. Dr. Jo, believing that current practices around food production are a social, ethical, and environmental justice issue, is a vegan and hasn’t eaten meat since 1972.  She also teaches meditation, mindfulness, and compassion and ahimsa practices to students and clients from around the world.  If you’re a provider seeking supervision or consultation, please contact us.

View Joanne’s complete bio and vita please click this link.

Dr. Gorman is a geographer and professor at Exeter University in the UK with particular interests in health, care, and medicine, and how these intersect with human-animal relations and more-than-human worlds. Rich’s research at present has involved exploring the dynamic interrelations between health and place, particularly, the roles of animals within various caring and health-promoting practices, seeking to understand how human-animal relations can affect people’s and animals’ capacities to thrive and flourish.

Roshi Genmitsu holds a Swiss masters degree in Adult Education, is certified in Psychosomatic Counseling and is a certified Provider in Compassionate Bereavement Care. She is an esteemed meditation teacher and specializes in Pastoral Counseling, mindfulness practices, and rituals.

Paul has provided 30 years of leadership in NY and NJ developing quality, hospital-based and free-standing mental health programs for underserved populations. He was appointed as a team member to write treatment standards for the State of NJ on co-occurring conditions of mental illness and addiction. For the past 25 years he has had a private practice in psychotherapy specializing in trauma, and also is certified in Compassionate Bereavement Counseling. Additionally he is a pioneer in Zen Buddhism, known as Roshi Paul Genki Kahn, a Buddhist priest, a lineage holding Zen Buddhist teacher,  and co-founder with his wife, Roshi Monika Genmitsu Kahn, of the Zen Garland Order.

Dr. Kara Thieleman received her B.A. in sociology/anthropology from Lewis & Clark College in 2005, her MSW and Certificate in Trauma and Bereavement from Arizona State University in 2011, and her PhD in social work from ASU in 2019. She completed the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program with Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach in 2022.

Kara has prior experience as a hospice social worker, grief counselor, and Resilient Parenting for Bereaved Families group facilitator. She currently works for the REACH Foundation on programs for bereaved families and is an Instructional Professional with the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences at ASU.

She has been conducting research on traumatic bereavement and holistic approaches to grief since 2010. She is currently a member of the research team at the Selah Carefarm. She also offers remote postvention care for visitors to the Selah Carefarm and supportive counseling for Carefarm and MISS Foundation staff.

Dr. Langridge is a volunteer who discovered Selah Carefarm after the loss of her teenage daughter Hilary, who was a student at ASU.  She has dedicated her career to supporting communities and organizations in creating sustainability programs.  She founded Sustainable Synthesis Limited as a public benefit corporation to facilitate collaboration to meet sustainability goals.  In addition, she is an active in a number of environmental and educational organizations.  Her time supporting Selah helps with her healing, and is personal validation of Dr. Jo’s work.

Specializing in Counseling, psychology and expressive Art Therapy, JoAnn is a graduate of Prescott College, Prescott, AZ. and has been providing client centered compassionate care to those challenged by addictions, mental disorders, trauma, and grief for decades. She believes that traumatized people are capable of restoring themselves and their lives to one of inner peace and harmony.

JoAnn combines her love of nature, animals, music, art therapy, ceremony, rituals, and energy work as pathways into the wounded heart. Holding each client and their trauma as sacred and individually personalized, she gently guides one through their pain, helping them to bring a new sense of balance and wholeness to their body, mind, emotions and spirit.

Missy received her Master of Social Work from Loyola University at Chicago specializing in clinical mental health. Her intense love for animals and experience with their therapeutic benefits in trauma healing drove her pursuit in finding Selah Carefarm. Missy is experienced in research, counseling, and community organizing. She is also a licensed massage therapist and myofascial release therapist for humans, horses, and animals big and small.

Alicia came to the MISS Foundation in 2010 after the death of her identical twin boys. She began her grief work as a support group member to learn how to hold space for her own grief. After a few years of participating in support groups, Alicia began volunteering for the MISS Foundation, co-facilitating a sibling group for bereaved siblings. Throughout her time with the Foundation, Alicia has organized events such as the Candlelight Memorial held at the end of the year, facilitated support groups in the Phoenix area, and has served as a MISS Foundation HOPE Mentor. Because of her passion in working with our MISS Foundation community, Alicia went on to earn her Master of Mental Health and Wellness with an emphasis in Grief and Bereavement degree from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. She re-careered from teaching to become a grief and bereavement counselor. Alicia is certified through the MISS Foundation as a Compassionate Bereavement Care Provider. She believes in the power of community, finding great joy in facilitating the online Selah Carefarm support groups. Her mission is to hold space and tenderness for our bereaved community. Alicia adopts a vegan lifestyle, uses contemplative practices for continued self-work, and enjoys spending time in nature.

Grace Jackson, M.D. is a board-certified psychiatrist who graduated summa cum laude from California Lutheran University with degrees in political science and biology, as well as a Masters in Public Administration.   She earned her medical degree from the University of Colorado in 1996, followed by specialty training in psychiatry while serving in the U.S. Navy. For more than eighteen years, Dr. Jackson has approached her work from the perspective of a clinical toxicologist in recognition of the harmful effects of prescription drugs.   An avid researcher and occasional writer, she is the author of Rethinking Psychiatric Drugs: A Guide for Informed Consent and Drug Induced Dementia: A Perfect Crime. Dr. Jackson’s professional experience has included national and international testimony as an expert witness, as well as clinical service in a wide variety of treatment settings.   As the interim director of the inpatient behavioral health unit at Verde Valley Medical Center in Cottonwood, Az, she acquired invaluable experience in geriatric psychiatry and dementia, experientially confirming the benefits of her philosophical approach known as PharmARRU: Pharmaceutical Avoidance, Reduction, and Responsible Use.  Dr. Jackson currently provides hospital and ER consultations to a wide range of healthcare systems across the country.

Gabor Maté, M.D. has worked in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside with patients challenged by hard-core drug addiction, mental illness and HIV, including at Vancouver’s Supervised Injection Site for more than twelve years. With more than 20 years of family practice and palliative care experience and extensive knowledge of the latest findings of leading-edge research, Dr. Maté is a sought-after speaker and teacher, regularly addressing health professionals, educators, and lay audiences throughout North America. He has written several bestselling books including the award-winning In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction; When the Body Says No: The Cost of Hidden Stress; and Scattered Minds: A New Look at the Origins and Healing of Attention Deficit Disorder. He is the co-founder of Compassion for Addiction, a non-profit that focusses on addiction. Dr. Maté  received the Hubert Evans Prize for Literary Non-Fiction; an Honorary Degree (Law) from the University of Northern British Columbia; an Outstanding Alumnus Award from Simon Fraser University; and the 2012 Martin Luther King Humanitarian Award from Mothers Against Teen Violence. He is an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Criminology, Simon Fraser University.

Beth DuPree, M.D., F.A.C.S., A.B.O.I.M., is a board-certified general surgeon specializing in diseases of the breast, with additional board certification in integrative medicine. She is a nationally recognized breast cancer expert who has chosen to bring her 26 years of experience and surgical expertise to the Verde Valley. Dr. DuPree earned her medical degree from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia and her undergraduate degrees in behavioral neuroscience and the history and philosophy of science at the University of Pittsburgh. Her first book, “The Healing Consciousness: A Doctor’s Journey to Healing,” was released in 2006 to excellent reviews by Christiane Northrup, M.D., and Bernie Siegel, M.D, among other well-known experts in the women’s health field. She has traveled throughout the United States and globally to train countless physicians in breast surgical oncology techniques.Her numerous honors include the Clara Barton Humanitarian Award from the American Red Cross for her ongoing contributions to the treatment of breast cancer. She was selected by her peers for Philadelphia Magazine’s TOP DOCS in Surgery in 2016 and 2017.

Sarah, bereaved mom of Noah, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and a practicing school social worker.  Sarah received her B.A. in English from the University of Vermont in 1997 and her MSW from Smith College School for Social Work in 2000. For the past 20 years, Sarah has worked with children, adults, groups, and families, in a variety of settings, providing therapeutic intervention, crisis response and support.  In her therapeutic work with those she serves, Sarah integrates expressive arts, mindfulness, and meditation.  Sarah has been a facilitator and volunteer for the MISS Foundation for several years and in 2014 became a Certified Provider of Compassionate Bereavement Care.  Sarah facilitates a MISS Foundation support group in Arizona for bereaved parents and grandparents.

Terri Waibel, MSW, LCSW is a licensed psychotherapist and a certified provider of Compassionate Bereavement Care®.  She has been working and volunteering in the field of social work for more than 14 years. As the founder and owner of the private practice Center for Compassion, LLC she specializes in providing therapeutic support to individuals, children and families enduring traumatic grief after a sudden, unexpected, or out of order death of a beloved family member. She is simultaneously honored and heartbroken to be present with grievers and proud to call herself a grief activist. In October 2018, Terri was recognized with the prestigious Athena award in the Young Professional category with the Greater Phoenix Chamber, being honored for her commitment to leadership, community service, and mentorship. Terri’s civic engagement and volunteerism extend to several local community organizations as she is an integral volunteer with the MISS Foundation serving bereaved parents and families, Justa Center as an Executive Board member, and ASU School of Social work as a Community Advisory Board Member. She also teaches advanced direct psychotherapy practice courses at ASU. She is a bereaved mother and bereaved sister and facilitates a MISS Foundation support group in Arizona.

Matthew Klein, D.O. is a psychiatrist specializing in adolescent and young adult well-being. After graduating from medical school at the Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Dr. Klein completed a residency and fellowship from the Maricopa Integrated System in Phoenix in adult, child, and adolescent psychiatry. Prior to medical school, Dr. Klein worked for years in a youth substance abuse treatment center. During this time, he experienced the profound healing power of relationships and learned of the significant role relationships play in recovery and wellbeing. He continues to learn about and has become involved in integrative and alternative medicines to be able to provide as wholistic approach to care as possible.

Grace Jackson, M.D. is a board-certified psychiatrist who graduated summa cum laude from California Lutheran University with degrees in political science and biology, as well as a Masters in Public Administration.   She earned her medical degree from the University of Colorado in 1996, followed by specialty training in psychiatry while serving in the U.S. Navy. For more than eighteen years, Dr. Jackson has approached her work from the perspective of a clinical toxicologist in recognition of the harmful effects of prescription drugs.   An avid researcher and occasional writer, she is the author of Rethinking Psychiatric Drugs: A Guide for Informed Consent and Drug Induced Dementia: A Perfect Crime. Dr. Jackson’s professional experience has included national and international testimony as an expert witness, as well as clinical service in a wide variety of treatment settings.   As the interim director of the inpatient behavioral health unit at Verde Valley Medical Center in Cottonwood, Az, she acquired invaluable experience in geriatric psychiatry and dementia, experientially confirming the benefits of her philosophical approach known as PharmARRU: Pharmaceutical Avoidance, Reduction, and Responsible Use.  Dr. Jackson currently provides hospital and ER consultations to a wide range of healthcare systems across the country.

Gabor Maté, M.D. has worked in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside with patients challenged by hard-core drug addiction, mental illness and HIV, including at Vancouver’s Supervised Injection Site for more than twelve years. With more than 20 years of family practice and palliative care experience and extensive knowledge of the latest findings of leading-edge research, Dr. Maté is a sought-after speaker and teacher, regularly addressing health professionals, educators, and lay audiences throughout North America. He has written several bestselling books including the award-winning In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction; When the Body Says No: The Cost of Hidden Stress; and Scattered Minds: A New Look at the Origins and Healing of Attention Deficit Disorder. He is the co-founder of Compassion for Addiction, a non-profit that focusses on addiction. Dr. Maté  received the Hubert Evans Prize for Literary Non-Fiction; an Honorary Degree (Law) from the University of Northern British Columbia; an Outstanding Alumnus Award from Simon Fraser University; and the 2012 Martin Luther King Humanitarian Award from Mothers Against Teen Violence. He is an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Criminology, Simon Fraser University.

Beth DuPree, M.D., F.A.C.S., A.B.O.I.M., is a board-certified general surgeon specializing in diseases of the breast, with additional board certification in integrative medicine. She is a nationally recognized breast cancer expert who has chosen to bring her 26 years of experience and surgical expertise to the Verde Valley. Dr. DuPree earned her medical degree from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia and her undergraduate degrees in behavioral neuroscience and the history and philosophy of science at the University of Pittsburgh. Her first book, “The Healing Consciousness: A Doctor’s Journey to Healing,” was released in 2006 to excellent reviews by Christiane Northrup, M.D., and Bernie Siegel, M.D, among other well-known experts in the women’s health field. She has traveled throughout the United States and globally to train countless physicians in breast surgical oncology techniques.Her numerous honors include the Clara Barton Humanitarian Award from the American Red Cross for her ongoing contributions to the treatment of breast cancer. She was selected by her peers for Philadelphia Magazine’s TOP DOCS in Surgery in 2016 and 2017.

Sarah, bereaved mom of Noah, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and a practicing school social worker.  Sarah received her B.A. in English from the University of Vermont in 1997 and her MSW from Smith College School for Social Work in 2000. For the past 20 years, Sarah has worked with children, adults, groups, and families, in a variety of settings, providing therapeutic intervention, crisis response and support.  In her therapeutic work with those she serves, Sarah integrates expressive arts, mindfulness, and meditation.  Sarah has been a facilitator and volunteer for the MISS Foundation for several years and in 2014 became a Certified Provider of Compassionate Bereavement Care.  Sarah facilitates a MISS Foundation support group in Arizona for bereaved parents and grandparents.

Terri Waibel, MSW, LCSW is a licensed psychotherapist and a certified provider of Compassionate Bereavement Care®.  She has been working and volunteering in the field of social work for more than 14 years. As the founder and owner of the private practice Center for Compassion, LLC she specializes in providing therapeutic support to individuals, children and families enduring traumatic grief after a sudden, unexpected, or out of order death of a beloved family member. She is simultaneously honored and heartbroken to be present with grievers and proud to call herself a grief activist. In October 2018, Terri was recognized with the prestigious Athena award in the Young Professional category with the Greater Phoenix Chamber, being honored for her commitment to leadership, community service, and mentorship. Terri’s civic engagement and volunteerism extend to several local community organizations as she is an integral volunteer with the MISS Foundation serving bereaved parents and families, Justa Center as an Executive Board member, and ASU School of Social work as a Community Advisory Board Member. She also teaches advanced direct psychotherapy practice courses at ASU. She is a bereaved mother and bereaved sister and facilitates a MISS Foundation support group in Arizona.

Matthew Klein, D.O. is a psychiatrist specializing in adolescent and young adult well-being. After graduating from medical school at the Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Dr. Klein completed a residency and fellowship from the Maricopa Integrated System in Phoenix in adult, child, and adolescent psychiatry. Prior to medical school, Dr. Klein worked for years in a youth substance abuse treatment center. During this time, he experienced the profound healing power of relationships and learned of the significant role relationships play in recovery and wellbeing. He continues to learn about and has become involved in integrative and alternative medicines to be able to provide as wholistic approach to care as possible.

Carrie Ostroski is the Executive Director of The Dorrance Family Foundation, a three-generation family foundation with presence and grantmaking in Arizona, California, and Hawaiʻi. The mission of the Foundation is to work to improve the quality of life in the community by supporting education and natural resource conservation. The Foundation launched the Dorrance Marine Conservation Initiative in 2022 to improve ocean health through the recovery, restoration, regeneration and protection of marine habitat and diversity, with a focus on coastal and nearshore ecosystems and the imperiled species they harbor.

Carrie grew up in rural Iowa, is an Arizona State University graduate and lived in Phoenix, Arizona for over 25 years. She now resides and works in Hawaiʻi with offices on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi and Scottsdale, Arizona.

Carrie has over 22 years of executive-level experience in the philanthropic and not-for-profit business sectors. She has directed and managed teams of high-level and executive leaders, philanthropists, and community volunteers in strategic, business, and event management and planning, as well as high-level fundraising and board development. She has led the development of multiple strategic grant programs, including models for family engagement and decision-making for three generations and several multi-location foundation grantmaking initiatives and programs.

Carrie thoroughly enjoys and is passionate about her work and is dedicated to strategic philanthropy and relationship development that achieve results and positively impact the critical issues and organizations with which The Dorrance Family Foundation supports and is involved and invested. Carrie grew up with conservation and natural spaces as significant influences in her life and is personally engaged and supports many efforts in these areas and other community service interests.

Carrie’s professional and community affiliations past and present include; National Center for Family Philanthropy, Mission Investor’s Exchange, Southern California Grantmakers, including FFIX3 Family Foundations group, Biodiversity Funders Group, Hawaii Community Foundation Environmental Funders Group, Valley Leadership (Class XXIV), Central Phoenix Women, Arizona Endowment Building Initiative, Planned Giving Roundtable of Arizona, Madison United Preservation Committee, and the University of Arizona Master Gardener program. Carrie served as a board member of Soldier’s Best Friend for seven years and is currently a 21/64 certified advisor, a board member of the Literary Society of the Southwest, and volunteers in an advisory capacity for several non-profit and community organizations in Hawaiʻi and Arizona.

Shawna Devlin is our sanctuary manager and carefarm guide who has extensive experience in the field. She has worked in hospice, addiction treatment, and medical assistance for more than ten years. Shawna has lived in the Verde Valley most of her life and enjoys being outdoors, hiking, camping, and spending time with family.

Terri DeMontrond is our amazing HOSPITALITY COORDINATOR. She is the owner of DeMontrond Wellness and Consulting, has been supporting others in their journey toward a balanced wellbeing for over 20 years. The skills she has accumulated include Life Coach training with Martha Beck and studying Holistic Nutrition with Clayton College. She is a Yoga Therapist trained by Phoenix Rising and has extensive experience with DBT practices.  Terri recently completed the certification for Compassionate Bereavement Care. Her personal experience as a bereaved parent has led her to passionately endeavor to repurpose her own traumatic loss and grief into a source of presence, love and support for other families on that same journey. Terri is also a Hope volunteer within the MISS Foundation. Personally, Terri continues to seek awareness for wellness and spiritual growth. She loves her daily yoga practice, painting and writing. She is an avid reader, hiker and traveler. Most of all she loves to be inspired by people and their life experiences and to share inspiration with others. If you are traveling to Selah Carefarm and would like help planning your visit, please contact Terri.DeMontrond@MISSFoundation.org

Carrie Ostroski is the Executive Director of The Dorrance Family Foundation, a three-generation family foundation with presence and grantmaking in Arizona, California, and Hawaiʻi. The mission of the Foundation is to work to improve the quality of life in the community by supporting education and natural resource conservation. The Foundation launched the Dorrance Marine Conservation Initiative in 2022 to improve ocean health through the recovery, restoration, regeneration and protection of marine habitat and diversity, with a focus on coastal and nearshore ecosystems and the imperiled species they harbor.

Carrie grew up in rural Iowa, is an Arizona State University graduate and lived in Phoenix, Arizona for over 25 years. She now resides and works in Hawaiʻi with offices on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi and Scottsdale, Arizona.

Carrie has over 22 years of executive-level experience in the philanthropic and not-for-profit business sectors. She has directed and managed teams of high-level and executive leaders, philanthropists, and community volunteers in strategic, business, and event management and planning, as well as high-level fundraising and board development. She has led the development of multiple strategic grant programs, including models for family engagement and decision-making for three generations and several multi-location foundation grantmaking initiatives and programs.

Carrie thoroughly enjoys and is passionate about her work and is dedicated to strategic philanthropy and relationship development that achieve results and positively impact the critical issues and organizations with which The Dorrance Family Foundation supports and is involved and invested. Carrie grew up with conservation and natural spaces as significant influences in her life and is personally engaged and supports many efforts in these areas and other community service interests.

Carrie’s professional and community affiliations past and present include; National Center for Family Philanthropy, Mission Investor’s Exchange, Southern California Grantmakers, including FFIX3 Family Foundations group, Biodiversity Funders Group, Hawaii Community Foundation Environmental Funders Group, Valley Leadership (Class XXIV), Central Phoenix Women, Arizona Endowment Building Initiative, Planned Giving Roundtable of Arizona, Madison United Preservation Committee, and the University of Arizona Master Gardener program. Carrie served as a board member of Soldier’s Best Friend for seven years and is currently a 21/64 certified advisor, a board member of the Literary Society of the Southwest, and volunteers in an advisory capacity for several non-profit and community organizations in Hawaiʻi and Arizona.

Shawna Devlin is our sanctuary manager and carefarm guide who has extensive experience in the field. She has worked in hospice, addiction treatment, and medical assistance for more than ten years. Shawna has lived in the Verde Valley most of her life and enjoys being outdoors, hiking, camping, and spending time with family.

Terri DeMontrond is our amazing HOSPITALITY COORDINATOR. She is the owner of DeMontrond Wellness and Consulting, has been supporting others in their journey toward a balanced wellbeing for over 20 years. The skills she has accumulated include Life Coach training with Martha Beck and studying Holistic Nutrition with Clayton College. She is a Yoga Therapist trained by Phoenix Rising and has extensive experience with DBT practices.  Terri recently completed the certification for Compassionate Bereavement Care. Her personal experience as a bereaved parent has led her to passionately endeavor to repurpose her own traumatic loss and grief into a source of presence, love and support for other families on that same journey. Terri is also a Hope volunteer within the MISS Foundation. Personally, Terri continues to seek awareness for wellness and spiritual growth. She loves her daily yoga practice, painting and writing. She is an avid reader, hiker and traveler. Most of all she loves to be inspired by people and their life experiences and to share inspiration with others. If you are traveling to Selah Carefarm and would like help planning your visit, please contact Terri.DeMontrond@MISSFoundation.org

Sarah Hauer graduated from Bellarmine College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology, and attained her Masters of Science in Oriental Medicine from Southwest Acupuncture College.

She has earned a Diplomate in Oriental Medicine, a National Board certification in Acupuncture and Chinese Herbs.  This board certification is awarded by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine or NCCAOM.  Sarah is also licensed by the State of Arizona to practice acupuncture. Sarah has been practicing traditional Chinese medicine for more than 20 years. She has owned two successful practices and has been practicing in Sedona, Arizona for the past 16 years.  She treats each person individually, using well honed skills of pulse and tongue diagnosis. Sarah has been voted “Best” by her community in both practices.  With 20 years experience and more than 18 years in private practice, she offers in depth, thorough, professional and caring treatment. The herbal pharmacy includes custom formulas, tablets, capsules, and granules. With over 1000 hours in Chinese herbal study, Sarah prescribes effective formulas that treat the branch (symptom) and the root (cause) of imbalance. In-depth interviews and follow-ups with herbal modifications are vital to continued healing. She practices with her husband of 33 years, Sig Hauer. They are an integral part of their community.  They volunteer! Mental health clinics, veteran centers, geriatric communities. They traveled to India and treated in Tibetan refugee camps, and developed a non profit to support their work.  Their experience is extensive.  Sarah and Sig are passionate about their work and helping people!

Karla, bereaved mom of Theo, is a licensed professional counselor (LPC), internationally certified yoga therapist, (C-IAYT), registered yoga teacher (RYT), award winning author, and a certified Compassionate Bereavement Care Provider.  Counseling and supporting those living with traumatic grief and bereavement is her main focus of work. Her book, Yoga for Grief & Loss, is a wonderful adjunct to any practice. Karla has taught the Compassionate Bereavement Care-Yoga provider certification course with Dr. Cacciatore several times. She facilitated the MISS Foundation’s Richmond VA support group for grieving parents for many years.

Jesse studied Human Development at Cornell University, and is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant.  She has spent the past decade working with babies and their parents, helping moms and dads enter into parenting feeling confident and supported.  Jesse also has masters degrees in both Non-Profit Management (Hebrew Union College) and Public Administration (USC). Her early career life was spent working within the Jewish community, strategizing and fundraising for numerous non profit and community organizations. Of all of her experiences, none has taught Jesse more about herself or the world than the sudden and tragic death of her youngest son, Gidi, at age 5.  Jesse lives in Los Angeles where she shares her life with her wonderful husband, her incredible two living children, and beautiful Gidi’s magical spirit.

Erin practiced as a primary care provider for 10 years and did her Physician Associate training at Yale University School of Medicine. She has a master’s degree in Integrative Medicine and is a former professor of health sciences and director of clinical education for a top PA Program.

An internationally certified mindfulness instructor who has been creating and teaching mindfulness based interventions since 2009, Erin is currently on the faculty of UMass Medical Center’s Center for Mindfulness. She developed content for an App which provides mindfulness meditations to healthcare providers.

Erin is a national speaker, retreat leader, workshop facilitator, and consultant on mindfulness topics, interconnection and compassion. She is passionately dedicated to the alleviation of suffering, especially among the most vulnerable. Her compassion practice and a growing awareness of the link between food production, social justice, and the climate crisis led her naturally to veganism and the mission of Selah House.

You can often find her gazing at the night sky, wandering slowly out in nature or dancing up a storm.

Karla, bereaved mom of Theo, is a licensed professional counselor (LPC), internationally certified yoga therapist, (C-IAYT), registered yoga teacher (RYT), award winning author, and a certified Compassionate Bereavement Care Provider.  Counseling and supporting those living with traumatic grief and bereavement is her main focus of work. Her book, Yoga for Grief & Loss, is a wonderful adjunct to any practice. Karla has taught the Compassionate Bereavement Care-Yoga provider certification course with Dr. Cacciatore several times. She facilitated the MISS Foundation’s Richmond VA support group for grieving parents for many years.

Sarah Hauer graduated from Bellarmine College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology, and attained her Masters of Science in Oriental Medicine from Southwest Acupuncture College.

She has earned a Diplomate in Oriental Medicine, a National Board certification in Acupuncture and Chinese Herbs.  This board certification is awarded by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine or NCCAOM.  Sarah is also licensed by the State of Arizona to practice acupuncture. Sarah has been practicing traditional Chinese medicine for more than 20 years. She has owned two successful practices and has been practicing in Sedona, Arizona for the past 16 years.  She treats each person individually, using well honed skills of pulse and tongue diagnosis. Sarah has been voted “Best” by her community in both practices.  With 20 years experience and more than 18 years in private practice, she offers in depth, thorough, professional and caring treatment. The herbal pharmacy includes custom formulas, tablets, capsules, and granules. With over 1000 hours in Chinese herbal study, Sarah prescribes effective formulas that treat the branch (symptom) and the root (cause) of imbalance. In-depth interviews and follow-ups with herbal modifications are vital to continued healing. She practices with her husband of 33 years, Sig Hauer. They are an integral part of their community.  They volunteer! Mental health clinics, veteran centers, geriatric communities. They traveled to India and treated in Tibetan refugee camps, and developed a non profit to support their work.  Their experience is extensive.  Sarah and Sig are passionate about their work and helping people!

Jesse studied Human Development at Cornell University, and is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant.  She has spent the past decade working with babies and their parents, helping moms and dads enter into parenting feeling confident and supported.  Jesse also has masters degrees in both Non-Profit Management (Hebrew Union College) and Public Administration (USC). Her early career life was spent working within the Jewish community, strategizing and fundraising for numerous non profit and community organizations. Of all of her experiences, none has taught Jesse more about herself or the world than the sudden and tragic death of her youngest son, Gidi, at age 5.  Jesse lives in Los Angeles where she shares her life with her wonderful husband, her incredible two living children, and beautiful Gidi’s magical spirit.