ADMINISTRATION
Lynda Gavioli
Lynda is the Executive Director for the Children’s Coalition. She works with the board of directors to develop the mission and goals for the organization with ultimate responsibility for achieving outcomes in the community.
Lynda’s job includes working closely with community, state and national leadership on issues affecting children and families. She sees her role with the Children’s Coalition as an outgrowth of her commitment to her own family including husband Lou, children–Laura, Lisa and Jesse, Robbie and Lauren, Lindsey and grandson, Coulter.
She loves traveling, entertaining family and friends, cooking, reading and shopping!
E-mail: lgavioli@childrenscoalition.org
Denna McGrew
Denna is the Director of the Family Support Organization, which is part of the new Coordinated System of Care serving children and youth with serious behavioral health problems. Denna provides executive leadership to this new program including human resource, fiscal management, and policy/procedure development. She also works with the Coalition’s Executive Director to support the administration of the Children’s Coalition.
She loves to spend time with her husband, Jim, and their two kids, Ethan and Jenna. She’s also a great cook and an avid reader.
E-mail: dmcgrew@childrenscoalition.org
Andrea Dyer
Andrea is the Director of Grants and Budget. She handles payroll, invoicing, accounts payable and receivable, all banking issues, audits, financial reporting and anything else financial.
In her spare time, Andrea enjoys spending time with her family and friends, traveling, shopping and helping others.
E-mail: adyer@childrenscoalition.org
Kasy Black (Picture coming soon)
Kasy is the Director of Accounting.
Email: kblack@childrenscoalition.org
Michelle McIntyre
Michelle is the Development Coordinator. She handles fund development, marketing, communications, membership development, and public relations activities of the Coalition.
In her spare time, Michelle enjoys spending time with her family, friends, and husband, Andy. She also enjoys entertaining, shopping, traveling, cooking and reading.
E-mail: mmcintyre@childrenscoalition.org
HEALTH CARE
Lindsey Murry
Lindsey is the Healthcare Director for the Coalition. She supervises all healthcare contracts, work and staff.
She is the mother of three: Addison (6), Aydan and Jackson (2) and the wife of Heath Murry. In her spare time, Lindsey enjoys: reading, cooking, scrapbooking, shopping, girls trips, and getting pedicures!
E-mail: lmurry@childrenscoalition.org
Amy Pyles
Amy is the FIMR Nurse Abstractor. She provides health and safety trainings for childcare centers, presentations to the public, car seat checks and education, and coordinating the regional Child Death Review Panel.
In her spare time, when Amy isn’t chasing her two children around, she enjoys reading on her Kindle, watching football of any sort, and going camping in her family’s RV.
E-mail: apyles@childrenscoalition.org
Mary Barrios
Mary is the Child Safety Coordinator for Region 8. She assists with LaCHIP outreach targeting Spanish speaking communities in Region 8 and serves as regional coordinator for the Louisiana Asthma Management and Prevention Program for Region 8.
Mary enjoys traveling, spending time with family and friends, shopping, watching old movies, and reading a good mystery.
E-mail: mbarrios@childrenscoalition.org
Daija Johnson (picture coming soon)
Daija is the asthma regional health coordinator.
Brenda Handy (picture coming soon)
Brenda is a Nurse Family Partnership Nurse. She implements the NFP program, which has 3 goals: 1) to improve the outcomes of pregnancy, 2) to improve infant health and development, and 3) to improve mother’s own personal life-course development. In the service of these 3 goals, the nurses link families with needed health and human services and involve other family members and friends in the pregnancy, birth and early care of the child. The program serves first-time pregnant women, less than 28 weeks gestation, at least below 200% poverty.
Brenda loves her family and being a mom. When she is not working she enjoys riding horses, reading and working with the College Ministry at North Monroe Baptist Church.
E-Mail: bhandy@childrenscoalition.org
Samantha Crawford (Picture coming soon)
Samantha is a pediatric RN with the Nurse Family Partnership program (NFP). NFP is an evidence-based nurse home visiting program that improves the health, well-being, & self-sufficiency of low-income, first time parents & their children.
Samantha enjoys her 2 girls -Kate (3) and Callie Rose (7), traveling with her husband Craig, and spending time with her friends and family. Other hobbies include reading, sewing, exercising, and girlfriend getaways.
Email: scrawford@childrenscoalition.org
Jan Daniels
Jan is the program director for Teen Screen. Teen Screen is a program developed by Columbia University. Jan is responsible for making sure that the Teen Screen team follows the best practice recommendations for implementing the program. She is responsible for setting up the program in each school.
Her favorite thing to do is to spend time with her husband, Derek and watch their son play sports. Her other hobbies are playing tennis and reading.
E-mail: jdaniels@childrenscoalition.org
Sandra Howard ( picture coming soon)
Sandra is the Supervisor for the Family Support Organization. She provides direct supervision of the family support organization staff, coordinates work flow, monitors staff activity and productivity.
In her spare time she enjoys cooking, reading, attending church and singing in her church choir. She is very family oriented and especially loves spending time with her nieces, nephews, God daughters.
Email: showard@childrenscoalition.org
Christel Brown (picture coming soon)
Christel is the Administrative Assistant for the Children’s Coalition and the Family Support Organization. She handles day to day office duties, provides administrative support, and is the billing specialist for the Family Support Organization.
In her spare time, Christel enjoys Church functions, family activities, cooking and traveling! She also has a miniature dachshund, name RED – and he is too adorable.
Email: cbrown2@childrenscoalition.org
Joyce Landrum ( picture coming soon)
Joyce is a Parent Trainer for the Family Support Organization, a program of the Children’s Coalition for NELA. She provides parent education to parents of children with behavioral health challenges who are at risk of out of home placement.
In her spare time, Joyce enjoys reading popular fiction, traveling and baking gourmet-style cupcakes with her two daughters.
Email: jlandrum@childrenscoalition.org
Kelly Lowery (picture coming soon)
Email: klowery@childrencoalition.org
Moira Meredith (Picture coming soon)
Moira is a Parent Support Specialist for the Family Support Organization. Moira is an advocate for the families she serves as they navigate through multiple systems in the Social Services arena.
In her spare time, Moira enjoys hiking, camping and spending time with friends and family. She also enjoys reading and volunteering in the community.
Email: mmeredith@childrenscoalition.org
Lisa Sims (Picture coming soon)
Lisa is a Parent Support Specialist for the Family Support Organization.
Email: lsims@childrenscoalition.org
Jason Strader (Picture coming soon)
Jason is a Parent Support Specialist for the Family Support Organization.
Email: jstrader@childrenscoalition.org
Collins Wade (Picture coming soon)
Collins is a Youth Support Specialist for the Family Support Organization. His job is to help youth stay out of the Juvenile Justice System and Child Welfare. Collins believes every child has a voice.
Collins Wade is a proud co-founder of Broaden Horizons mentor programing partnership with First Baptist Church of West Monroe, he also likes playing basketball, working out, reading, movies, cooking, and loves helping families reach their full optional.
Email: cwade@childrenscoalition.org
Faren Wise (Picture coming soon)
Faren is a Youth Support Specialist for the Family Support Organization. Faren works with at risk youth who have behavioral health issues. Faren believes in advocating and giving a child a voice when they’re not being heard.
Faren Wise loves reading, going to the movies, boxing, volunteering, basketball, making others laugh, and eating red velvet cake balls.
Email: fwise@childrenscoalition.org
PARENT EDUCATION
Gatha Green
Gatha is the Parent Education Director for the Children’s Coalition. Gatha provides certified parenting education programs to families in Northeast Louisiana.
In her spare time, Gatha enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, shopping, comedy, singing and playing with the family pets: Berkley, Esther, Maggie and Red, the hyper dachshund.
E-mail: ggreen@childrenscoalition.org
Gerry Binkley
Gerry is the Child Care Development Specialist in Child
Care Connections, a program of The Children’s Coalition. She works with child care programs participating in Quality Improvement Rating System & new or existing child care programs that would like mentoring to be able to participate in QRIS. She also does training in early care and education for child care providers.
In her spare time, Gerry enjoys spending time with family, her husband, and her many grandchildren, doing home improvement projects, and watching HGTV for ideas.
E-mail: gbinkley@childrenscoalition.org
Chelle Brown
Chelle is the Resource and Referral Director for the Coalition. She assists child care providers in creating and sustaining quality child care programs. She also helps parents find child care to meet the specific needs of their family.
In her spare time, Chelle enjoys spending time with her husband and their three dogs – Major, Maggie, and Lolah. She also likes to shop, watch LSU football, and looks forward to trips to the beach.
E-mail: cbrown@childrenscoalition.org
Dee Cramer
Dee is a Child Care Specialist for the Coalition. Dee provides technical assistance to child care centers and she is also a trainer.
In her spare time she enjoys anything her four children are involved in, cheering her boyfriend on (in work and sports), teaching Pre-K/Kindergarten Children’s Worship, and singing in the choir at Cedar Crest Baptist church.
E-mail: ddeutsch@childrenscoalition.org
Earnestine Dunn
Earnestine is a Child Care Specialist for NELA Child Care Connections. She promotes, develops, and implements training sessions. Mrs. Earnestine is also provides technical assistance for the child care centers.
Earnestine enjoys spending time with her family, especially her grand children. She also enjoys developing activities for the youth ministry, going to see newly released movies and sitting on her patio reading, spending time with God, and or watching television.
E-mail: edunn@childrenscoalition.org
Patti McGilton
Patti is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She is a Mental Health Consultant for the Coalition and works in childcare centers assisting staff with challenging behaviors and providing training on social/emotional development of children.
Patti is married to Brad and they have one son, Paxton. Patti loves to travel, read, and enjoy time with her family and friends.
E-mail: pmcgilton@childrenscoalition.org
Robin Pierce
Robin is the Training Director for Child Care Connections. Robin is in charge of all the training for child care providers in Region 9.
In her spare time, Robin enjoys spending time with her family, camping with her husband Pat, shopping with her daughter Rachel, and watching her son Blake perform with the Golden Band from Tiger land at LSU football games.
E-mail: rpierce@childrenscoalition.org
Romona Reed
Romona is a Technical Assistance for the Coalition. She provides technical assistance to the Family Child Care Home Providers in the Region 9 area.
Romona enjoys spending time with family and reading.
E-mail: rreed@childrenscoalition.org
Misti Thomas
Misti coordinates a life skills program called Al’s Pals: Kids Making Healthy Choices. The lessons use guided creative play, brainstorming, puppetry, original music, role plays, and movement to develop children’s social and emotional competence. Over 1,000 preschool children participate in the program each year throughout Ouachita Parish.
In her spare time, Misti loves scrapbooking and watching movies. She enjoys spending time with her 6 year old son. They love playing board games and cooking supper together. The most important thing to know about Misti is that she finds hope, comfort, and strength in her relationship with God.
E-mail: mthomas@childrenscoalition.org
Carey Tomlinson
Carey works hands-on with child care providers to improve the quality of care they provide. Her job entails anything from helping with paperwork, brainstorming developmentally appropriate activities, to setting up the physical environment in classrooms.
In her spare time, Carey enjoys photography, gardening, and watching almost any sport!
Renae Williford (picture coming soon)
Renae is the Northeast Louisiana Child Care Connections Administrative Assistant. She is responsible for general clerical and receptionist duties for Child Care Connections.
Renae is new to Louisiana. She and her family recently relocated from North Carolina. In her spare time, she enjoys date nights with her husband, Jon and spending time with their three children Andrew, Noah and Chloe. She loves to read, shop, travel and meet new people.
E-Mail: rwilliford@childrenscoalition.org