Board of Directors
Stacy Watkins
President
Mrs. Watkins is the Vice President of Administration at the non-profit Open Door Community Health Centers (ODCHC). She began her career in healthcare in Humboldt County over 30 years ago. She has been a part of ODCHC for over 23 years.
Mrs. Watkins joined the board sharing her extensive knowledge in healthcare operations, administration, and information technology.
Nancy Starck
Vice President
Brian Mistler
Treasurer
Brian Mistler (PhD) is a healthcare administrator with experience managing large budgets, capital projects, and compliance for private, public, and non-profit organizations including as a COO/CFO, Chief Human Resources Officer, and Senior Vice President for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. Former Executive Director of the Student Health Center at Cal Poly Humboldt and President of palliative-care-focused ResolutionCare.
Dr. Mistler is principal consultant with Mistler & Associates working with rapidly growing entities to support sustainable growth. Formal education includes a MA in Conflict Resolution, Postgrad Cert. in Financial Management, Lean Six Sigma Cert. and a PhD in Counseling Psychology with a focus in Organizational Change.
Ms. Starck brings a strong background in legislation and public policy to the board. She works as the Legislative and Policy Manager for Humboldt County’s Department of Health and Human Services, focusing on Medi-Cal, social services, behavioral health, and public health.
Ms Starck has volunteered on a number of non-profit boards including Mobile Medical Offices, Six Rivers Planned Parenthood, North Coast Health Information and Improvement Network and currently serves on the board of Partnership Health Plan.
The vision of Hospice of Humboldt inspires her to more deeply
serve our community.
Alannah Smith
Secretary
Ms. Smith works as the Director Operations for the California Center for Rural Policy at Cal Poly Humboldt. She received her B.A. in International Development Studies from UCLA, and is currently pursuing a masters degree in Healthcare Administration with an emphasis in project management.
Ms. Smith was born and raised in Humboldt County and has extensive knowledge of our rural community and the healthcare services Humboldt has to offer. She joined the Hospice board to share her knowledge of healthcare administration and population health, and is committed to helping improve the overall healthcare system and access.
Lisa Ayers
Ms. Ayers joins the board with an extensive background in critical care, specializing in advanced heart failure, cardiology, cardiovascular surgical care, and palliative care, and she continues to work in Critical Care.
She holds her Masters in Nursing and is currently enrolled in a Doctorate of nursing program. Ms. Ayers is also an active member of the American Association of Critical Care and is on the Board of Directors. She has maintained her cardiac and critical care certifications throughout that time.
Joanne Conzelmann
Ms. Conzelmann began her social work career as a volunteer for Hospice when she was a student at Humboldt State University in 1980. She worked for 26 years at the Humboldt Senior Resource Center, most recently as the director of Adult Day Health and Alzheimer’s Services. She has over 30 years of experience in developing and managing social service programs and leading inter-disciplinary teams in the healthcare setting.
Ms. Conzelmann currently volunteers as chair of the mission committee for the Humboldt Walk to End Alzheimer’s and as a Hospice of Humboldt board member is dedicated to supporting the mission of Hospice to promote high quality and compassionate end of life care.
Lauren Correll
Ms. Correll is the Director of Operations for the ERV Community Center Foundation, who owns and operates the Gene Lucas Community Center In Fortuna.
She worked at Hospice of Humboldt for eight years before leaving to earn her MSW from Cal Poly Humboldt .
Ms. Correll has a deep connection to the nonprofit world and brings her expertise of organizational processes, programs and community building to the board of directors.
Jack Irvine
Dr. Irvine is a retired Internal Medicine Specialist and has over 55 years of experience in the medical field. He graduated from the University of California at San Francisco in 1968.
He has vast range of experience serving on a variety of boards including Humboldt County Resource Center, Humboldt Library Foundation, and Humboldt County Historical Society.
Dr. Irvine has been committed to the values and mission of Hospice of Humboldt since its beginning in 1979 and recognizes the importance of continuing to provide the services that are vital to our community’s well-being.
Jamie Jensen
Ms. Jensen is an Assistant Professor and currently serves as the Chair for the Department of Social Work at Cal Poly Humboldt. She earned her BASW and her MSW from Cal Poly Humboldt and has been a member of the faculty since 2008. She also holds a MA in Human Development and a Ph.D. in Human and Organizational Systems.
Ms. Jensen brings to the board experience as an independent consultant focused on organizational development, program development and evaluation. She is deeply involved in the community and has served on many coalitions that address community health needs.
Danny Kelley
Mr. Kelley is a devoted father and business development coach. In 2017, he founded a public benefit corporation that has inspired positive change and improved the human condition by establishing businesses in industries as diverse as technology, healthcare, small manufacturing, and land management.
Mr. Kelley is committed to education policy and student success which is reflected in his membership on state and national committees, Regional Coordinator for the National Association of Community College Trustees, and College of the Redwoods Board of Trustees/Foundation Board.
Mr. Kelley joins HoH’s board with a deep commitment to inspiring positive change and he hopes to contribute to the organization's goal of helping patients maintain their dignity and quality of life during their final days.
Ann Lindsay
Dr. Lindsay was Humboldt County Public Health Officer from 1993 to 2011. She and her husband, Alan Glaseroff MD, shared a family practice in Arcata for 28 years and raised their two children in Humboldt. They were recruited to Stanford University in 2011 to establish a primary care clinic for Stanford employees and dependents and their families who have multiple chronic health conditions. The clinic was able to improve care, lower costs, and achieve top rankings in patient satisfaction with the adoption of a new model of team care.
The lure of life in Humboldt brought them back north in 2017.
Since 2019, Dr. Lindsay has been working with others locally on developing Life Plan Humboldt, a non-profit mixed-income senior life plan community to be located in McKinleyville. There is no such community within 200 miles.
Laura Middlemiss
Ms. Middlemiss, a financial advisor at Edward Jones, joins the board with a deep appreciation for the impact Hospice of Humboldt has in our community.
She has a proven commitment to community services leadership experience with the Arcata Elementary School Board, Soroptimist International of Humboldt Bay, and Humboldt Sponsors. Her non-profit board experience includes Mad River Youth Soccer and Six Rivers Planned Parenthood.
Ms. Middlemiss also brings to the board a well-developed group dynamic, organizational leadership, and fundraising skills.
Eddie Morgan
Mr. Morgan is Executive Director of Tri-County Independent Living and has demonstrated a 30-year dedication to community service and leadership, holding diverse positions in nonprofit Public Health, serving as Site Director for Easter Seals, Clinic Administrator, and Administrative Analyst specializing in infant and child mortality cases in Humboldt County.
Meanwhile, in his military career rising from Private to Major, he completed six deployments to the Middle East and the Balkans, serving as a Casualty Assistance Officer when stateside and cultivating partnerships with NATO and allied forces as a Liaison Officer on several deployments.
Mr. Morgan brings to the board extensive knowledge in healthcare operations, administration, and information technology.
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Kimberly Perris
Dr. Perris is a registered nurse and has worked in Humboldt County for over 25 years. She received a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University of San Francisco. In 2019, she became the director of the RN-to-BSN program at Cal Poly Humboldt University, where she had previously worked as a nurse in the Student Health Center from 2004-2016.
Before her return to HSU, she was the Population Health Nursing Director at Humboldt Independent Practice Association (IPA). Dr. Perris has served on the Six Rivers Planned Parenthood Board and currently serves on the local Sigma Theta Tau Nursing Honor Society Board of directors.
Dr. Perris brings to the board a passion for improving healthcare systems, patient education, and access to care.
Elle Yeates
Ms. Yeates is the Chief Mission Integration Officer for Providence and comes to the board with 22 years of experience in serving non-profit organizations. She is new to Humboldt County and was drawn here by the beauty of the environment and the warmth of the community.
Ms. Yeates holds master’s degrees in education and health care mission, as well as certification in Clinical Pastoral Education and trauma intervention.
Her passions include a love of people from diverse cultures and backgrounds and travel.
Ms. Yeates is dedicated to the mission of hospice and brings to the board an enthusiasm for access to care, partnership, education, and a desire to serve her community.