Honoring the Some of Leaders Who Helped Shape Roots & Resilience

While we relish in the power of last weekend’s conference, we wanted to take a moment to acknowledge some of the people and institutions that made it that way💚

We were deeply honored to have Kelly Crosbie, MSW, LCSW, Director of the NC Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Services, deliver the opening keynote at Roots & Resilience. With over 30 years of experience, Kelly challenged us to build strong partnerships between state systems and communities to break stigma, improve access, and foster recovery across North Carolina. And the inclusion of her own story illustrated the integral role lived experiences plays in care and change done right.

Behind that powerful keynote stood an outstanding team whose dedication helped shape the tone of the conference. We want to recognize Pooja Mehta, who leads AAPI community outreach at NC DHHS, and is not only a public health advocate but also a suicide loss survivor whose voice resonates powerfully in this space. She spoke on the Silent War documentary panel and has built bridges for mental health support in AAPI communities. We’d also like to shoutout James Miller, MPP, MBA, who stepped in last minute during the pre-conference and brought deep commitment and expertise. As a Project & Grant Director at NC DHHS and founder of Salt Water Consultants, he bridges advocacy, public health, and community strategy. And lastly, we want to highlight Jerry Shi, their financial officer, whose steady support strengthens the work of the whole team.

Thank you, Kelly, James, Pooja and Jerry for your leadership, your courage, and your commitment to this work. It was an absolute honor to have you!