Team Profiles

As Executive Director, Lynn provides overall leadership to TCHNetwork. Prior to this calling, she held executive positions in the health insurance and multi-specialty medical group fields. Lynn and five peers created a successful start-up Medicaid managed care plan, which currently serves over one million people. Yet her proudest and most challenging role to-date is raising three boys to be responsible, engaged, and independent. Lynn’s dedication and devotion to rural healthcare is grounded in the belief that rural communities should have the same rights as their urban counterparts. Lynn believes that through collaboration the Tri-County region can be a model for systems of improved access, outcomes, and patient experiences for all health related services. When work gets too serious Lynn decompress by skiing, playing hockey, and enjoying Colorado’s beautiful outdoors with her hubby and kids as well as watching her favorite Pittsburgh sports teams – the Steelers and Penguins!

As Director of Strategic Initiatives with TCHNetwork, Rasa oversees program evaluation, grants, and marketing for TCHNetwork. She also provides direction to several of our programs designed to address the social determinants of health and improve health and wellbeing for residents in our rural region. Rasa received her B.A. from Michigan State University and her Master of Public Administration from the University of Colorado. Involved in the non for profit sector since 2007, her past experience includes program evaluator at the Center for Policy Research and Director of Program Support at Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains. A perk to Rasa’s job is showing program staff, who can sometimes get caught up in the day-to-day, how their work is making a difference in people’s lives using findings from our program evaluations. Rasa is obsessed with the Michigan State Spartans and loves hiking, road biking, and backpacking.

As the Program Manager for Behavioral Health Paul is excited to work to reduce stigma around mental health, to expand access to care in the communities we serve, and provide opportunities to educate our communities on mental health issues. Specifically, Paul works on the following initiatives: He is a trained Youth Mental Health First Aid Instructor, a program to educate those who work with youth ages 12 to 18; Implementing new solutions in mental health through tele therapy; Implementing TCHNetwork’s Behavioral Health Strategic Plan for San Miguel County; Facilitating and coordinating the Telluride community’s efforts to implement the Communities That Care prevention planning system to reduce teen substance use and improve outcomes for all teens in our community. Paul has lived in Telluride since 2001 where he and his wife have raised 5 children. Paul serves on the Telluride School District Board of Education and the Colorado Association of School Boards, and he is a board member for the Center for Mental Health.

As the Community Programs Manager, Erich oversees innovative programs that help our rural communities access important health and social services. He is currently leading the Skippy+ Dental Program, Insurance Navigation, Non-Emergent Medical Transportation Partnership with Lyft and the Senior Services Program. Erich believes that healthcare is a human right and enjoys working to implement solutions that he believes are correcting decades worth of inequities. Work often takes him around the Western Slope and he enjoys the opportunity to explore the region he now calls home.
Outside of work Erich likes exploring the Western Slope through hiking, skiing, biking or paddling. What he likes best about the region are the 300+ days of sunshine (the opposite of where he grew up).

As Community Outreach Manager, Kody is charged with setting the strategic vision of the Tri-County Health Network’s multicultural initiatives. Unfortunately, significant barriers prevent our diverse population from accessing basic health and human services. Kody’s job is to identify service gaps and introduce targeted interventions to fill those gaps, utilizing community engagement, organization, and empowerment strategies. To prepare for this role, Kody spent several years in the Middle East where he served as a university lecturer teaching Spanish and intercultural communication courses. He also served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala (’06-’08), and returned to Guatemala in 2014 to found Mujerave, a nonprofit dedicated to women’s empowerment. Kody enjoys all things outdoors, but if you catch him inside he is probably reading or listening to Bob Dylan records and trying new recipes in the kitchen.

As Community Health Programs Manager, Adrienne is committed to expanding health equity and addressing health related social needs for rural Coloradans. She works on population health projects focusing on chronic disease prevention, social determinants of health and care coordination. Adrienne received her B.A. from the University of Colorado at Boulder and developed her passion for public health during a semester abroad studying community and public health in Durban, South Africa. Adrienne was born and raised in Denver, Colorado and has lived on the western slope for 5 years. She is passionate about the outdoors, and enjoying all that Colorado has to offer with her friends, family and dog Gus (the cutest golden doodle in all the land).

As Behavioral Health Program Coordinator, Julia is responsible for coordinating and facilitating the behavioral health programs administered by Tri-County Health Network. Julia oversees all aspects of the existing teletherapy program in area schools and in the community, including developing new venues for delivering teletherapy services in schools and the communities, and recruiting and managing the therapists providing teletherapy services. She delivers education and outreach programs in the community including, but not limited to, Mental Health First Aid, SafeTALK, and NAMI programs, to adult and youth populations, facilitates ongoing NAMI support groups, and will be developing a NAMI chapter in the area. In addition to coordinating & facilitating the efforts of community coalitions and stakeholders to support youth in the Norwood School District. After graduating from the University of Kansas with a B.S. in Strategic Communications and a minor in Psychology, Julia traveled to Southern Goa, India to study Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga. After India, she traded in the Arabian Sea for the San Juan Mountains. Julia is a local yoga teacher who loves sharing her passion for movement meditation. If she’s not in the office, or at a yoga studio, you can find Julia meandering the mountains and enjoying a world without walls with her dog Scout and fiancé Mark.

As Behavioral Health Outreach Coordinator, Sami is responsible for coordinating and facilitating the behavioral health programs administered by Tri-County Health Network. Sami works to support the education outreach of TCHNetwork related to mental health and wellness, including supporting community and youth coalitions, delivering evidence-based educational programs, and conducting outreach activities and presentations. Some of these programs include Communities that Care, Mental Health First Aid, NAMI Family-to-Family, and an annual Out of the Darkness Suicide Prevention Walk. After earning her B.S. in Sustainable Technology from Appalachian State University, she traded the Blue Ridge Mountains for the San Juan Mountains surrounding glorious Telluride, CO. Outside of the office, you can find Sami on her yoga mat, dancing to live music, hiking, paddle boarding, or baking something chocolatey.

As Cultural Navigator, Marlen provides insurance enrollment, immigration services, and general navigation services for clients, including housing applications, educational opportunities for youth, and arranging and interpreting during client meetings with lawyers and law enforcement. Marlen Olivas Romero arrived in Telluride in 2003 after spending her childhood in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, on the west coast of Mexico. There, she earned a technical degree in Tourism and spent three years at the University of Sinaloa working towards a degree in Communication Sciences. Upon arriving in Telluride, she continued to study and advance her career in the tourism industry, becoming a licensed esthetician and earning teaching certificates in Zumba and Pilates, courses she continues to teach each week at the Wilkinson Public Library. Marlen enjoys challenging herself and learning new skills and putting them into action, and she spends her free time hiking and cycling the mountainous terrain around Telluride.

Alexis’ time in Telluride began in April 2016 when she joined the TCHNetwork team as an AmeriCorps VISTA. Originally from Northern Virginia, she fell in love with the mountains and wide open spaces that make the Western Slope a gem. In college Alexis earned a degree in environmental science from the University at Albany. She continues with TCHNetwork serving the community as a Regional Health Connector working to build relationships between medical providers and community partners and a Health Coverage Guide in San Miguel and the Westend of Montrose counties. In her spare time you can catch Alexis playing outdoors, reading, eating spaghetti, or petting cats (in a perfect world she’d be doing all at once).

As the Community Programs Coordinator, Lily will be helping to expand TCHNetwork community programs, including the Skippy Dental Program, our on-demand transportation services, and various outreach activities. Lily understands the importance of an integrative healthcare system and she is passionate about connecting individuals with services to improve their overall health. She received her B.S. in Biology from the University of Puget Sound. Lily moved to Colorado to serve as an AmeriCorps member within Community HealthCorps and she most recently managed a cardiovascular clinical research site. Originally from Montana, Lily is happy to be back living in the mountains. She is excited to explore the Western Slope through skiing, hiking, fishing, and rafting. When not outside, you can find her watercolor painting or baking pies.

As Health Equity Coordinator, Marisa will lead the development of TCHNetwork’s health and racial equity advocacy efforts and support health equity initiatives internally and throughout the region. One component of this work includes developing an immigration legal assistance program. Before taking this position, Marisa served as an AmeriCorps VISTA with the Telluride Foundation focusing on rural economic development in the West End of San Miguel and Montrose counties. Marisa earned her undergraduate degree in philosophy, with a concentration in public service and ethics, from Boston College. Marisa traded the ocean for the mountains by moving to Telluride, after having grown up on the South Shore of Massachusetts in Scituate.

Leveraging health data to improve patient care and to provide actionable insights for our network members is the core of Matt’s role at TCHNetwork as Data Analyst. He also acts as the point person for all IT related matters for the organization. Originally trained in economics, Matt has a strong background in data modeling, forecasting, and statistical analysis, as well as extensive experience in data visualization. He has a passion for the power of good data analytics to inform decision making and improve people’s lives. Matt has a Master’s in applied economics from John’s Hopkins University, and a Bachelor’s in economics from the University of Colorado – Boulder. When he’s not wrangling data in the office Matt can be found outside hiking, camping, fishing, or snowboarding with his wife and daughter – enjoying all the beauty and adventure that our region has to offer.