Team Profiles

Dawn Katz serves as the Communities That Care Manager for TCHNetwork and has over two decades of experience working with children and families in San Miguel County. Throughout her 28 years in Telluride, Dawn primarily worked as an early childhood educator and director. Dawn believes that the collaboration, dedication, and hard work of a village are essential in creating a stronger community, particularly for our youth. In Dawn's downtime, she enjoys traveling, hiking, camping and spending time with friends and family at the lake.

As a Bilingual Community Programs Systems Navigator, Donna offers essential support to English and Spanish-speaking community members, assisting them with health insurance matters and various program needs. Before joining her current role, Donna gained valuable experience in Property Management and Corporate Translating, and most recently served as a Latino Liaison at the Lone Cone Library. During her four years in Property Management, she witnessed the challenges faced by the Latino Community, which fueled her passion for advocacy and community support. Driven by the belief that intention and energy are important in her work, Donna's passion for helping others is a family value. She firmly believes that every positive action will carry forward, benefiting others and creating a better world. Donna enjoys various outdoor activities in her free time, such as hiking, mushroom hunting, and relaxing by the river. She also enjoys watching movies and spending quality time with friends, creating lasting memories together.

Heidi is our Community Programs Referral and Intake Specialist. Her role at TCHNetwork acts as the front-line communicator for our wide range of clients and referrals. She assists our community program partners when they provide us with their referrals, as well as helping current and new clients in the beginning stages of working with TCHNetwork. Heidi is a true Colorado native, graduating from Olathe High School and growing up in the Pea Green area. She achieved her business degree from Colorado Mesa University, Montrose Campus, and was a peer tutor at CMU, offering tutoring sessions for all undergraduate courses. Heidi has spent years volunteering for different organizations in our communities. The most rewarding for her was volunteering as a table hostess for the Altrusa organizations with her Grandmother. Heidi is another Spanish-speaking member of our team, which is very helpful. One thing is for sure, Heidi truly loves helping people. She considers herself a true local, a blessing to us as she knows our Tri-County area well. She is already bringing ideas and passion to TCHNetwork organization.

As Tri County's Human Resources Administrator, Jackie is responsible for recruiting, hiring and retaining team members. She is also responsible for compensation and benefit administration, training and development, performance management and employee engagement. Jackie also oversees the VISTA Team members, the volunteer program and serves as the acting Telluride office manager as well as performing some finance and accounting duties. Jackie has many years of experience working in human resources, town and county government and ski area management. She also has a strong sense of community and has volunteered for many festivals, served on local boards including the Town’s Planning & Zoning Commission, Rainbow Preschool Board President, was a KOTO community radio volunteer DJ as well as participating in TCHN’s Communities That Care. When not working, Jackie loves to travel, read, watch films, play Mah Jong and be in our amazing outdoors.

Jamie Hurst is the Education and Awareness Programs Administrator for Tri-County Health Network. She has worked for the past three years at a crisis walk-in center on the Western Slope, serving our communities through direct client care & management. In addition to community mental health & crisis work, Jamie has experience working with domestic violence advocates and Habitat for Humanity. She obtained an honors degree in Psychology and a minor in English from the Ohio State University. Jamie is honored to work with the Advocacy Team at TCHN and is looking forward to growing in the field. In her downtime, she enjoys reading, playing games with family & friends, and exploring with her husband.

Julia joins Tri-County Health Network as the Communities That Care Latinx Parent Advisor and the Cultural Navigator for San Miguel County. Julia immigrated to the United States from Mexico in 2010 and has lived in the Telluride area ever since. She is a mother of four young children, and she has worked for the Telluride school district as a paraprofessional and a substitute Spanish teacher. She is currently taking classes to earn a license in Education Science. Julia is passionate about serving Telluride’s Latinx community, and in her new role, she will work to engage Latinx parents in initiatives to promote a healthy lifestyle for Telluride’s youth and advocate for their interests in the school system and the Communities That Care Coalition. Julia enjoys attending morning classes at Telluride CrossFit in her free time.

Juanita is the Medicaid Care Coordination Lead. She Coordinates care to better support the needs of her community. Juanita has 3 years of experience supporting the community. She previously worked at River Valley Family Health Centers as a Patient Health Navigator educating patients on chronic diseases as well as giving resources to patients. Juanita’s passion for helping others has driven her to be an Adult Wrap Around Care Coordinator to be able to assist the community needs in Delta County. She likes to spend her free time with her family and her pets.

Kaisa is the Health Equity Advocate in Delta County for Tri-County Health Network. They have grown up in this Delta and Ridgway, and worked with the Delta, Montrose, and Ouray communities. During Kaisa's time in nonprofit work, they have put on large community gatherings such as Partners Palooza Music Festival, Ouray County Pride in the Park, and more. Kaisa started their work in health equity with the Colorado Collective Leadership Initiative where they spent a year working with a team across the state to design programming to make communities safer for rural LGBTQ+ Coloradoans. Kaisa believes in liberation for all through equitable action, leading with compassion and curiosity, and thinking outside the binary. In Kaisa's downtime, they enjoy being with loved ones on the water, gardening, and trying out new crafts.

As an Enrollment Specialist based in Delta. Kimberly Meraz enrolls English and Spanish-speaking clients in insurance programs and assists with other emergency program applications. During her time in this industry, she has helped many community members find the assistance and services they need. Being bilingual in this industry has allowed her to reach a wider range of people, breaking down barriers and allowing people to feel more confident and comfortable. In the long run, she wants to be able to build strong relationships and earn the community's trust. On her down time, Kimberly enjoys spending time with her family and being active, such as running and playing volleyball.

As the Immigrant Affairs Advocate, Laura leads the administration of TCHNetworks’s immigration legal services program. Laura represents TCHNetwork on statewide and local coalitions seeking to advance racial and health equity in Colorado. Before taking this position, Laura worked with UPS, Mountain Village Gondola and most recently at the Uncomphagre Medical Center as a Medical Interpreter and Latinx Outreach lead. Having lived and worked in the immigrant community, Laura understands the complexities of the immigration system. Laura loves spending time with her daughter, her husband, Chris, and two grandchildren. She enjoys hiking, kayaking, swimming, bonfires, and wine in her free time.