Celebrating 30 years of LGBTQIA+ activism in 2022, Clayton Gibson (he/him) is the founder and leader of QWELL, Greater Austin’s LGBTQIA+ community foundation. QWELL works to improve the health and happiness of every single one of the metro’s hundreds of thousands of LGBTQIA+ residents by maximizing access to inclusive healthcare, using technology to provide anonymous life navigation and resource referral services at scale, and building affirming, anti-racist community connections (including multiple LGBTQIA+ community centers and the QTPOC Colors of Pride Gathering). QWELL’s work is grounded in data from its annual QWELLBEING.ORG survey, conducted in collaboration with researchers at the University of Texas at Austin, which is the only ongoing source of local data about this population’s health and wellbeing. QWELLAUSTIN.ORG

Girija Hariprasad, B.S. is currently a fourth-year MD/MS student at Dell Medical School. Prior to medical school, she worked as a 9th grade biology teacher in Dallas, TX. She is passionate about health equity, particularly when it comes to language equity and pursuing antiracism in healthcare.

Nora de Hoyos Comstock, Ph.D., is an entrepreneur, business leader, and pioneer in utilizing social media to build a community for Latinas. Nora believes that education, which translates into hope and opportunity, is the single most important factor that can transform lives.

Nora is the national/international founder of Las Comadres Para Las Americas, and served as organization’s volunteer (unpaid) President/CEO since its founding. She has built the organization to over 20,000 women in about 100 cities, 28 states, Puerto Rico, and Canada. She has since retired but remains on the board and still performs work for the organization.

Her leadership in the Austin community includes chair and member of the Capital Area Workforce Development Board (now Workforce Solutions). Additionally, she has worked with the Long Center for the Performing Arts, Economic Growth Business Incubator, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, and the Austin Museum of Art, to name a few. She currently serves on the board of the Harvard Journal of Hispanic Policy (Cambridge, MA) and Latino Literacy Now (Los Angeles, CA). Comstock was elected to the Austin Community College Board of Trustees in November 2016 for a six-year term.

Comstock served as a Community Health Champion with the 2019 cohort.

Huy Le is currently a fourth-year undergraduate nursing student at the University of Texas at Austin. Throughout his time in college, he has been involved in university advocacy work and served as a Community Health Champions in 2020 cohort. With health equity and structural competency knowledge in mind, he strives to continuously learn from communities and amplify their voices and needs. He believes that everyone deserves affordable, equitable, and accessible quality care, no matter their background.

Shimarah Mehrotra (she/her) is the Public Health Educator for Austin Public Health’s Breathe With Pride program, which aims to reduce tobacco-related health disparities in LGBTQ2IA+ communities in Austin/Travis County. Shimarah is eager to understand the intersections of history, systems, community, and individual identities that impact the health and wellbeing of LGBTQ2IA+ individuals and how we seek and receive healthcare. She earned a Masters in Public Health from Washington University in St. Louis in 2021 with a goal of working to increase access to affirming, quality support and care for marginalized groups.

Vanessa Sarria, MPA, serves as the Chief Program Officer for Cardea, a national, women of color-led organization that provides social impact evaluation, policy advancement, capacity development, and professional learning services to health and human service organizations. Vanessa has 30 years of experience leading public health initiatives and programs at the national, state, and local levels.  Vanessa is passionate about enhancing equity and opportunity and has dedicated her career to improving public health.

Era Steinfeld, M.A., is a public health professional with more than 7 years of experience working to advance LGBTQIA+ health equity. She currently works with Austin Public Health as the Program Coordinator for Breathe With Pride, an initiative that sets out to reduce tobacco related health disparities within LGBTQIA+ communities in Austin, Texas. When she’s not at work, Era enjoys the local queer nightlife scene and spending time with her family.

Brandon Wollerson is a social worker and community advocate, with more than 15 years of experience working primarily in the areas of HIV/AIDS and LGBTQIA+ health. Brandon is deeply committed to addressing HIV, LGBTQ+ and broader health equity issues through his leadership with Austin’s Fast-Track Cities, the Texas HIV Syndicate, and Austin’s LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Advisory Commission. Brandon has been a proud CHEP Council member since 2016 and has helped lead two CHEP initiatives including the HIV testing initiative and more recently the HEI initiative.

Catalina Berry is passionate about inspiring healthy living, community and giving back. Growing up bi-cultural and bilingual and attending the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York has helped shape Catalina into who she is today as she strives to be a positive influence in the Latino community and beyond. After being an active volunteer with the American Heart Association, she began working with them full time as the Community Impact Director for Central Texas where she focuses on collaborating with organizations to create policy, systems, and environmental changes for sustainable impact in the focus areas of controlling hypertension, tobacco and vaping cessation, nutrition security, community response, and reducing risk for women. All of her work is done through a health equity lens and equitable impact is crucial to the work she does. Catalina is on several boards and committees including Con mi MADRE, Hispanic Impact Fund, and LEAD Summit with Austin Young Chamber. She was also a participant in the 2017 class of Leadership Austin Emerge and completed the Hispanic Austin Leadership Program in 2021 through the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Nora de Hoyos Comstock, Ph.D., is an entrepreneur, business leader, and pioneer in utilizing social media to build a community for Latinas. Nora believes that education, which translates into hope and opportunity, is the single most important factor that can transform lives.

Nora is the national/international founder of Las Comadres Para Las Americas, and served as organization’s volunteer (unpaid) President/CEO since its founding. She has built the organization to over 20,000 women in about 100 cities, 28 states, Puerto Rico, and Canada. She has since retired but remains on the board and still performs work for the organization.

Her leadership in the Austin community includes chair and member of the Capital Area Workforce Development Board (now Workforce Solutions). Additionally, she has worked with the Long Center for the Performing Arts, Economic Growth Business Incubator, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, and the Austin Museum of Art, to name a few. She currently serves on the board of the Harvard Journal of Hispanic Policy (Cambridge, MA) and Latino Literacy Now (Los Angeles, CA). Comstock was elected to the Austin Community College Board of Trustees in November 2016 for a six-year term.

Comstock served as a Community Health Champion with the 2019 cohort.

Raul has been CAN’s Executive Director since 2015. He was an Austin City Council member from 2000-2006. He was the City Council representative on CAN’s board during that time, becoming chair in 2004. After serving on the City Council, Raul was elected to serve on the ACC Board of Trustees. He also has served: on the Capital Metro Board; on the Electric Utility Commission; as Chair of the Early Childhood Council; as a member of the Joint Inclusion Committee of the City of Austin; as Co-chair of the Anti-Displacement Task Force; as Co-Chair of the MBK Scholars Program. He is the board president of the East Austin Conservancy an organization working to address displacement of residents in Central East Austin.

After 29 years with the City of Austin, Vince Cobalis retired in 2012 as the Human Services Assistant Director where he became aware of equity and diversity issues in the community.  He led the development of a local Asian American Health Assessment and related equity initiatives for the fastest growing minority in Austin/Travis County.  The diverse cultures within the AAPI community create unique equity challenges.   This work led to the creation of the City of Austin Asian American Quality of Life Advisory Commission in 2014.  That same year, he led a CDC sponsored cross-sectional leadership project “United Against Bullying: Culture Matters”.  Cobalis is past chair of the Commission and he continues as a Board Member.  He is also the President-elect for the Network of Asian American Organizations (NAAO).

Jelina Tunstill began working for Community Advancement Network as Program Coordinator in November 2017.  She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Baylor University in 2013, taught kindergarten for three years in Killeen, Tx, and earned a Master’s Degree in Counseling from St. Edward’s University in August 2019.

Ana Almaguel is a public administration professional with a focus on public health and extensive experience in leadership roles in strategic planning, policy research, program development, project management, group facilitation, and community outreach. I am an articulate, bicultural and bilingual (Spanish and English) communicator and seasoned public speaker adept at motivating others and cultivating cross-cultural relationships.

Nora de Hoyos Comstock, Ph.D., is an entrepreneur, business leader, and pioneer in utilizing social media to build a community for Latinas. Nora believes that education, which translates into hope and opportunity, is the single most important factor that can transform lives.

Nora is the national/international founder of Las Comadres Para Las Americas, and served as organization’s volunteer (unpaid) President/CEO since its founding. She has built the organization to over 20,000 women in about 100 cities, 28 states, Puerto Rico, and Canada. She has since retired but remains on the board and still performs work for the organization.

Her leadership in the Austin community includes chair and member of the Capital Area Workforce Development Board (now Workforce Solutions). Additionally, she has worked with the Long Center for the Performing Arts, Economic Growth Business Incubator, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, and the Austin Museum of Art, to name a few. She currently serves on the board of the Harvard Journal of Hispanic Policy (Cambridge, MA) and Latino Literacy Now (Los Angeles, CA). Comstock was elected to the Austin Community College Board of Trustees in November 2016 for a six-year term.

Comstock served as a Community Health Champion with the 2019 cohort.

Laura Gómez-Horton is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Board-Approved Supervisor through the Texas State Board of Social Work Examiners. She received a Bachelor and Master of Social Work from the University of Texas at Austin in 1996 and 1997, respectively. She is currently the Clinical Director of YWCA Greater Austin whose adopted mission is “eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all.”

Laura has extensive experience providing bilingual services and working with individuals, children, families, groups, and communities in the areas of domestic violence, sexual assault, trauma, depression, anxiety, PTSD, immigration, parenting, cultural identity, inter-generational issues, prenatal/postnatal mental health, grief and loss, self-advocacy, and social justice. She has worked in micro-level and macro-level practice through direct service and administrative capacities in both urban and rural areas.

Previously, as the Social Services Coordinator at the Texas Civil Rights Project, Laura established the social services program for statewide offices and developed the Austin Promotora program, a grassroots self-advocacy group comprised of women who educated the community of their rights through the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Through her career she has worked at the University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work as part of the clinical faculty, provided therapeutic services through SafePlace (now the Safe Alliance), and at Cen-Tex Family Services, providing Head Start services in Bastrop, Fayette, Colorado, and Lee Counties. In addition, she provided therapeutic bilingual services through independent practice and co-founded Within Your Reach/ A Su Alcance a bilingual personal-development program.

Laura has been addressing social injustices and advocating for clients and the community in a variety of capacities for over 20 years. Her experiences have culminated in developing a focus on providing services to marginalized populations including immigrants, English-language learners, and people facing racism and discrimination. Laura has participated in training videos, Facebook live events, and English and Spanish-language radio and television news interviews discussing mental health issues and current events impacting the community. She has provided extensive presentations/workshops and has developed, coordinated, and facilitated various therapeutic and support groups. She currently has been facilitating the monthly dialogues on Issues of Racism and Discrimination at YWCA Greater Austin since its inception in January 2014.

Laura is a Member of National Association for Social Workers (NASW) and served as chair of NASW/Texas Immigration Critical Issue Advisory Committee 2007-2009 and as an advisor of the Race Equity Accountability and Leadership Advisory Committee in 2016-2017. Most recently, Laura was awarded NASW/TX Capital Area Branch Social Worker of the Year 2021.

Board service and various roles include: Board member and Parliamentarian of Deerpark Middle School (August 2021-present); Board member and Registrar of Balcones Youth Sports (August 2020-June 2022); Board member and President (other positions held Secretary and Vice-President) of Wells Branch Elementary PTA (August 2015- 2020); Board member of Lone Star Victim’s Advocacy Project (December 2016 – April 2019); Board member of Sun Dragon Martial Arts and Self Defense (January-December 2018); Board member and Secretary of Salvage Vanguard Theater (March 2016-May 2018); Wells Branch Community Library (2013-2015).

Kacey Hanson is a native Austinite, and both lives in and serves the Austin community.  Ms. Hanson is a public health professional with a Master of Public Health degree in Maternal and Child Health. She works at the Dell Medical School in the Department of Population Health, as a Program Manager and has more than 20 years of research experience working with various populations.  Her research interests are in health equity, social determinants of health and their relationship to health outcomes in vulnerable populations. She joined the CHEP Council in 2018 and recently joined the inaugural Race Equity Committee.

Sharon Ricks is the Director of Health Equity Strategy and Transformation at Dell Medical School where she advances policies, establishes partnerships, and engages in strategic communication to promote the adoption of a health equity mindset and the activation of health equity principles. Prior to this, she had 34 years of federal service including 25 years at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. At HHS, she spent 6 years as a Public Affairs Specialist at 3 institutes within the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD (including the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases; the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; and the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders); 6 years as a Public Health Advisor on Women’s Health for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, in Washington, D.C.; and 13 years in Atlanta, Georgia, where she served as Regional Health Administrator advancing HHS public health programs and strategies on behalf of 65 million Americans within the 8 southeastern states and 6 tribal nations. Prior to this, she worked for 9 years at the U.S. Agency for International Development where she supported efforts to provide developing countries with food and nutrition, population planning assistance, health services, and education.

Kate Garza serves as chief of staff to Travis County Judge Andy Brown. The county judge presides over the Travis County Commissioners Court which oversees the county’s $1.4 billion annual budget, acts as the County’s chief administrator, and serves as the director of emergency management for the county. A lawyer, Kate helps coordinate Commissioners Court meetings, provides counsel to the judge, and works with county executives and elected officials in Travis County as they navigate the development of public policy, program evaluation and implementation, and the political process.

Kate started her career as a second-grade teacher in the Cabrini Green housing projects in Chicago where she saw firsthand how a broken social safety net impacts our communities and can push working families into crisis. She believes that together we can fix it. She has spent the past twenty years working in health, education, and labor policy to give voice and build power to improve the lives of working people, children, and communities of color. Kate helped advance significant education and civil rights reforms while working for the United States Senate Health, Education, Labor, & Pension Committee, House of Representatives Education & Workforce Committee, and Department of Education. Kate served as a senior official in the Obama Administration at the US Department of Labor where she represented the agency against legal attacks brought by a Republican Congress. In Austin, she served as senior counsel to Mayor Pro Tem Delia Garza and then as director of advocacy & external affairs for the Ascension Seton Hospital System where she advocated for increased investments to improve access to healthcare and address social determinants of health.

Kate lives in Austin with her husband José and two young children.

Catalina Berry is passionate about inspiring healthy living, community and giving back. Growing up bi-cultural and bilingual and attending the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York has helped shape Catalina into who she is today as she strives to be a positive influence in the Latino community and beyond. After being an active volunteer with the American Heart Association, she began working with them full time as the Community Impact Director for Central Texas where she focuses on collaborating with organizations to create policy, systems, and environmental changes for sustainable impact in the focus areas of controlling hypertension, tobacco and vaping cessation, nutrition security, community response, and reducing risk for women. All of her work is done through a health equity lens and equitable impact is crucial to the work she does. Catalina is on several boards and committees including Con mi MADRE, Hispanic Impact Fund, and LEAD Summit with Austin Young Chamber. She was also a participant in the 2017 class of Leadership Austin Emerge and completed the Hispanic Austin Leadership Program in 2021 through the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Megha Uppal is born in the Midwest and brought up in Arlington, TX.  She moved to Austin to attend The University of Texas, where she was actively involved in the Multicultural Engagement Center that helped strengthen her ties to, advocate, and serve the Asian American community. Megha is a social-tech entrepreneur that focuses on innovation and building community for the aging population at Aspire to Age, PBC.

Linnea Lemon is a community advocate for health equity. Her health equity focus shows up in her support of health education and community engagement through youth programs. She is currently working on her Master’s degree.

Paul Scott is the CEO of Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM). He is a native of Jackson, Mississippi and received his Bachelor of Arts from Emory University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Georgia. He practiced civil litigation for nine years and then became an advocate for both people with HIV and LGBT persons. He has served in the nonprofit sector for twenty-seven years and as a nonprofit executive for over twenty years.  Paul considers access to affordable and quality healthcare a right for each person and is paramount to people living a successful and healthy life.

Paul previously served as Vice President of Engagement for Vivent Heath, a national HIV health organization. He served as CEO and President of AIDS Services of Austin for ten years prior to its merger with Vivent Health in 2020. Prior to that, he served as the Executive Director of Equality Texas and Equality Texas Foundation, Resource Center of Dallas, and CEMPA (formerly Chattanooga CARES).  Paul currently serves on the board of directors for the National AIDS Memorial and has served on the Board of Directors for the Texas Pride Impact Funds, a statewide LGBTQ community foundation and on the national boards for the Equality Federation, the Equality Federation Institute, Center Link, the national association of LGBT community centers.  More recently, he served on the board for Best Single Source Plus, an Austin collaborative focusing on ending homelessness

He and his husband Scott Simons, a marketing professional and large-format abstract artist, have lived in Austin since 2006. He spends his spare time outside practicing the piano kayaking on the Blanco River with dachshunds Lily and Poppy and experiencing the rich diversity of food and music in Austin.

Patricia V. Hayes, J.D., is a licensed attorney who serves as an executive advisor, career empowerment coach and authentic networking strategist. She guides professionals and entrepreneurs to take empowered action to build sustainable authentic networks and professional relationships as they up level their careers and achieve their professional goals. She is the owner of PVH Consulting Group, LLC, a strategy consulting and leadership development firm.

Previously, she has served in senior leadership roles at the local, regional and state levels, including being a senior advisor to a State Senator, Lieutenant Governor, Commissioner of Education and University System Chancellor. She served as the first African American and female Vice Chancellor at the Texas State University System.

A passionate advocate and community leader, Patricia is committed to issues affecting education, child abuse awareness/prevention, workforce development and women’s empowerment. She has served on numerous community boards and committees. In January 2022, she was elected President of Launch Pad Job Club of Austin, a networking, support, and job lead sharing organization that aids and supports professionals in their job search. She continues to serve in the community as a Board member of the Catholic Charities of Central Texas, Austin Artists Project, on the Impact Austin Strategic Advisory Council and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee of the Girl Scouts of Central Texas.

She is a graduate of Pepperdine University School of Law and the University of Texas at Austin.