Board of Directors
Stacy Watkins
President
Ms. Watkins is the Chief Administrative Officer at the non-profit Open Door Community Health Centers (ODCHC). She began her career in healthcare in Humboldt County over 25 years ago. She has been a part of ODCHC
for over 18 years.
Mrs. Watkins joined the board sharing her extensive knowledge in healthcare operations, administration, and information technology.
Nancy Starck
Vice President
Peter LaVallee
Treasurer
Mr. LaVallee is served as Mayor of Eureka from 2002 to 2006 and comes to the board with over 25 years of non-profit experience with Redwood Community Action Agency. He is retired and lives in Eureka.
Mr. LaVallee brings experience in public policy, fiscal management, and administration to his role as a Hospice board member.
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 a Program Manager for the California Center for Rural Policy at Cal Poly Humboldt University. 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.
Though new to board experience, Ms. Smith was born and raised in Humboldt County and has extensive knowledge of the community and the various 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.
She holds her Masters's 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 for over 40 years. 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 with expertise in communication, change management, and agile development methodologies. 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's community involvement is demonstrated through his active participation on the Redwood Region Economic Development Commission (RREDC) Board, providing economic development opportunities to businesses that have been denied traditional commercial loans. Additionally, his commitment to education policy and student success is reflected in his membership on state and national committees, including the California Community College Trustees (CCCT) board and the Advisory Committee on Legislation. As a Regional Coordinator for the National Association of Community College Trustees and a member of the College of the Redwoods (CR) Board of Trustees and Foundation Board, Danny strives to enhance college education for all students.
Mr. Kelley joins this board with a deep commitment to inspiring positive change and improving the human condition. By supporting Hospice of Humboldt's mission, 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 senior life plan community. 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.
Brian Mistler
Brian Mistler (PhD) is a healthcare administrator with experience managing multi-million-dollar 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 currently consults with small-businesses, universities, hospitals, and top executives to support meaningful growth.
His formal education includes a Master of Arts in Conflict Resolution from the University of Bradford, Postgrad Cert. in Financial Management from Cornell, Lean Six Sigma Cert. from McGill, and a PhD in Counseling Psychology/Organizational Change from the University of Florida.
Dr. Mistler brings to the board over 10 years of experience in the healthcare leadership. He values services that support individuals’ quality of life.
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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.