Chris Bobbitt
Board President
Chris joined the board in 2010. She has 27 years’ experience working in probation in San Bernandino and Merced Counties. She approved and monitored the 52 week Batterer’s Treatment Programs in San Bernandino County and became passionate about domestic violence and other victim safety issues. Chris lives in Merced and works as a Program Manager at the Merced County Human Services Agency. She is commited to public service and is active in her community.
Kathy Delaney
Vice President
Kathy is a retired Prevention Sprecialist and Mariposa Safe Families Executive Director. As a stakeholder in the early development of Intimate Partner Violence services for Mariposa County, she was inspired by founder, Candy O’Donel-Browne. She joined the board of directors to support the work of MCS and encourage community prevention efforts.
Candy O'Donel-Browne
Secretary
was involved in the domestic violence movement of the 1970’s, and has been active in various organizations ever since. She served on the original board of the Jersey Battered Women’s Service in Morris County, New Jersey, and was on the first executive committee of the New Jersey Coalition for Battered Women. After moving west, she was a founding member of Mountain Crisis Services in Mariposa, California, and a strong advocate for establishing the Valley Crisis Center in Merced, California. She and her family owned the Yosemite Mariposa KOA Campground and RV Park in Midpines, California for over a decade. After it was sold, she became the Executive Director of the Mariposa County Economic Development Corporation. She is now retired. She is an experienced volunteer board member, having been involved for 37 years in many civic organizations ranging from healthcare, economic development and the arts to public transportation. She has always been deeply concerned about the welfare of victims of interpersonal hostilities, and has been active in developing services that improve their lives.
Wayne Eisenhart
Treasurer
Wayne resides in Merced and is a retired attorney. From 1989-2008, he was the Public Defender of Merced County. He has had a lengthy committment to issues of domestic violence and sexual assault and served on the Board of Directors of Friends of Battered Women of Merced (1984-1989) and A Woman’s Place of Merced County (1989-1996). He is serving his second year as the President of the Alliance.
Father Stephen C. Bulfur
Father Stephen was ordained a priest in 1973. He served in Porterville, Bakersfield, CSU Fresno St. Paul Newman Center, former Pastor of St. Patrick’s, Merced; St. Mary’s, Fresno. He is currently Pastor of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, Mariposa since 1994. His hobbies are motorcycle riding, kayaking, sailing, and X-C skiing. His favorite food is popcorn. His best place on vacation is Sir Francis Drake Straight, U.S. and British Virgin Islands. Father Bulfur is from Fresno, California and he has 59 first cousins on his father’s side alone!
Lisa Rhudy
Lisa is a retired Public Health Nurse with the Mariposa County Health Department, have lived for forty years in the community of El Portal at the entrance to Yosemite National Park, and have been privileged to serve on the board for the Alliance For Community Transformations for more than fifteen years. The agency’s capacity for effecting positive change in Mariposa and Merced Counties continues to astound her. Besides spending time in volunteer activities, Lisa enjoys hiking and backpacking in the park, playing music, writing fiction, and traveling to foreign countries.
Carrie Jenkins
Carrie moved to the mountains in 1989. She graduated from Yosemite High School in 1991, and Mills College in 1995. She worked locally for 10 years with Sierra Tel before spending 8 years on the Big Island of Hawaii where she began her photography career. She loves her life in Ahwahnee and her two daughters study at Fresno State, her youngest music and her oldest Pre-vet. Carrie is a Rotary member, a CASA Advocate, has served on parent boards at YHS and will be running for the school board in the fall. Carrie is passionate about being in service in her community, advocating for children and also works in FAS/FASD education with her mother, who is a retired RN.
Aurora Segura
Aurora Segura is a passionate and dedicated nurse with over twelve years of nursing experience. She has six years of experience in Medical-Surgical Nursing at Mercy Medical Hospital and six years of experience in Public Health Nursing at Merced County Department of Public Health. She received her Master of Science in Nursing degree from Holy Names University in May of 2020. She is enjoying her new nursing role as a nurse educator and is passionate about health education and teaching the next generation of nurses. She is motivated by the mission to help others and to positively affect the well-being of the entire community.
Claudia Noemi Juarez
I was born and raised in Watsonville, CA. I went to UC Davis and earned my BA in 2001. I had a double-major in English and Spanish and a minor in History with an emphasis in Latin America. I moved to Merced after graduating UCD. I have three children—a daughter (Alyssa, 19) and two sons (Daniel, 17 and Elijah, 15). We have resided in Atwater since 2003. Since moving to Merced County, I have worked as a teacher’s aide, a substitute teacher, and an advocate for A Woman’s Place. In 2005, I was hired at Merced Superior Court, and continued to work there while going to law school in 2016. I attended San Joaquin College of Law in Clovis, CA and graduated in 2020. I passed the bar in January 2021 and was promoted by the Merced Superior Court as a Staff Attorney. I also sit on the board for the Merced County Law Library.
Lori Newman
Lori is a native of Merced County, first growing up in the sleepy town of Dos Palos. She currently resides in Atwater with her husband of 27 years. Lori has 24 years’ experience in the Substance Use Disorder Treatment field and specializes in Trauma Informed Services for women and women with children ages 0-12 years old. Lori has a long history as the Executive Director of a local non-profit 501 (c)(3). Lori’s passion for helping others shows in her various state-wide and local commitments to organizations.
Pattama Ulrich
Pattama Ulrich is a nurse officer in the United States Public Health Service (USPHS). She has been assigned to serve as the Health System Administrator at Yosemite National Park since February 2022. She has dedicated her career for public service in the past 26 years with the most recent seven years at National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as a program manager for the World Trade Center Health Program. She applies primary health and net positive models to link and maximize the benefits of public, private, NGO and academic programs to provide holistic physical and mental health well-being for underrecognized populations. She considered herself a social safety net philanthropist and investor. She advocates for children and victims of abuse and violence through preventative measures, diversity, equality, and inclusion. She is a champion for removal of stigma by promoting neutral spaces for people to connect and work together toward common goals in prevention, treatment and recovery of physical and mental health, and substance use disorders.
Rev. Luna-Garza
Rev. Luna-Garza holds a Bachelors in Business Management Organizational Behavior, (BSBM), a Master of Divinity, (M.Div.), and is a Fellow of Pastoral Leadership and Public Life at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary.
Rev. Luna-Garza has extensive experience working in advocacy and social change for grass roots organizing, community development, and access for the underserved community populations.
She is collaborating in leadership with Journey for Justice, Faith in the Valley, the National Plan for Hispanic/Latino Ministries of The United Methodist Church, the Center of Vision Enhancement (COVE) and the Literacy Coalition of Merced County.
Pastor Ella has most recently advocated and worked in support of compassionate immigration reform, access for Mental Healthcare, healthcare for all, the Merced Union High School Black Parallel School Board, Pride Merced, the LGBTQ Alliance, and various other initiatives. She is actively engaged with the faith, educational and civic communities of Merced. One of her passions is working against food insecurity. She has led UMC Merced’s Food Pantry to serve Merced, Mariposa and Madera Counties in feeding over 200,000 families in the past 18 months in and through pandemic.
Rev. Luna-Garza has worked with at-risk children and youth, the homeless and transitional housing populations, and other-abled communities. She has helped to develop and provide community linkages for holistic address of social issues, access and services. She has worked in advocacy and service of the blind, deaf, and other-abled communities, as well as for persons with Autism. She has extensive experience working with multicultural, multiethnic, multilingual constituencies, persons of color and diverse populations.
She has held and holds various offices at district, conference and national levels of The United Methodist Church, and current serves on the Executive Board of The National Plan for Hispanic Latino Ministries of The United Methodist Church.
Pastor Ella enjoys spending time with her sons, AJ and Diego, and husband, Rene. She thrives being in the company of friends, sharing faith, and engaged in community, especially in sharing faith, culture, history and hope and facilitating positive change.