Meet the SHERC Community Expert Board
Kalvina Belin, Tribal Liaison, First Things First
Kalvina Belin is of the Living Arrow Bitterwater clan and was born of the Coyote Pass clan. The Tangle people are her maternal grandfather and Bitterwater are her paternal grandfather. And that is how she identifies as a Dine (Navajo) woman. Belin currently serves as the tribal liaison for First Things First Tribal (FTF). Her main role at FTF is to ensure effective partnerships with Arizona’s tribes to better support young children and their families.
Belin continues to promote the field of public health, Navajo first culture, and health research among Indigenous high school students, and she previously worked as the lead contact tracer and trainer for the Navajo Nation. She received her Bachelor of Science in Public Health with a minor in Indigenous Health Studies and earned her Master of Public Health in Health Promotion–Indigenous Health Track from Northern Arizona University.
Amanda Guay, MPH, MBA
Amanda Guay has expertise in community outreach and public health programming in content areas ranging from maternal and child health, behavioral health, cancer screening, HIV/HCV, substance use disorder/harm reduction, diabetes, sexual assault, domestic violence, healthcare for individuals experiencing homelessness, rural health outcomes, and access to local resources, among others. She has worked in the public health arena with multiple stakeholders from governmental agencies, local officials, community organizations, and health departments to educational institutions to conduct health outreach to targeted populations and develop policies to achieve improved health outcomes. She has over 27 years of experience working with minority and underserved populations and is a native of Flagstaff.
In her previous role as director of Community Health at North Country HealthCare, Amanda Guay oversaw and developed community health and behavioral health programming for specific target populations in a community health center setting. Prior to working at North Country, Guay worked with affected communities on efforts to mitigate health impacts of environmental contamination at the state health department in Portland, Oregon. She also worked in a county health department and a school district to pass tobacco policy. Her current interests focus on identifying strategies to improve health outcomes by engaging the community, social isolation, elder care/dementia, and the housing-healthcare interconnection. She serves on the board for Housing Solutions of Northern Arizona and previously served on the boards of the Flagstaff Leadership Program and the Coconino Regional Partnership Council for First Things First.
Gerilene Haskon, MPH, Tribal Liaison, Arizona Department of Health Services
Gerilene Haskon is a tribal liaison at the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS), responsible for serving as a liaison between ADHS, Tribes, Indian Health Services, Urban Indian Organization, and supporting the Office of Health Equity initiatives.
Prior to joining ADHS, Haskon was the tribal relations coordinator at the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona (BCBSAZ), serving as the liaison between BCBSAZ, tribes, Indian Health Services, Urban Indian Organization, and supporting the Foundation for Community and Health Advancement initiatives.
Previously, she was the Block Grants Program manager at ADHS managing federal funding for statewide maternal and child health program implementation and overseeing contracts with community-based organizations, counties, and Arizona’s tribes.
Jon Meyers, Executive Director, Arizona Developmental Disabilities Planning Council
Jon Meyers became the executive director of the Arizona Developmental Disabilities Planning Council in March 2022 after serving as executive director of The Arc of Arizona starting in 2013. Meyers’ background in non-profit sector spans more than 30 years and ranges from the arts and education to social services and animal welfare.
Throughout his career, he has held executive and development positions with, among others, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society; Arizona State University/ASU Foundation; Thunderbird School of Global Management; and Ronald McDonald House Charities.
He began his professional career in the External Relations Office at NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California. Meyers is a graduate of Santa Clara University with degrees in theater arts and history. He and his wife live in Phoenix, Arizona. They have three grown sons.
Floribella Redondo-Martinez, CHW, BS, President & CEO, Arizona Community Health Workers Association
Floribella Redondo-Martinez began her journey as a promotora (CHW) in the early 1990s where she educated her farmworker peers on HIV and STDs in the agriculture fields of Arizona and California.
She is co-founder, president and chief executive officer of the Arizona Community Health Workers Association (AzCHOW), a state-appointed CHW advisory board member for the Arizona CHW Voluntary Certification, co-chair of the Arizona CHW Coalition, co-chair of the national CHW Core Consensus (C3) Project Advisory Council, member of the National CHW Common Indicators project team, founding board member for the National Association of CHWs, and American Public Health Association CHW section chair.
Redondo-Martinez is the lead faculty for the CHW Occupational Certificate Training Program for Arizona Western College. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in health and human services from the University of Phoenix in 2012.
She is nationally recognized as a leader in public health and most recently for her efforts in advocating for and leading a voluntary certification path for CHW workforce in Arizona. She has more than 30 years of experience as a promotora and more than 25 years in training, developing, and implementing bilingual and bicultural CHW programs. One of Redondo-Martinez’s biggest passions is working and developing programs that build opportunities and strengthen the leadership of women in rural and underserved communities.
Beya Thayer, Executive Director, Yavapai Justice & Mental Health Coalition/ Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office and Director, Behavioral Health Services, Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office
Beya Thayer is a systems advocate supporting enhanced collaborations among multi-disciplinary teams and enjoys the opportunity to work as the director of Behavioral Health Services for Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office as well as the Executive Director of the Yavapai Justice and Mental Health Coalition.
Ms. Thayer works to develop and implement strategies that lead to the long-term and sustainable involvement of community institutions, organizations, and individuals within the intersections of justice and behavioral health—with the goal of addressing partnership and systems change.
Ms. Thayer’s career has given her the opportunity to create partnerships and collaborations with diverse communities, health professions, and agencies throughout Arizona to affect policy and change on both the micro and macro levels. She has a master’s in social work from Arizona State University and has worked extensively in the social services arena for over 25 years.
Jay Young, Executive Director, Southwest Fair Housing Council
Jay Young, the Executive Director of the Southwest Fair Housing Council, is a passionate civil rights advocate. Currently, he serves on the National Fair Housing Alliance board, the Arizona Governor’s Interagency and Community Council on Homelessness and Housing, the City of Tucson Commission on Equitable Housing and Development, and the Living Streets Alliance board. Jay holds a BA in History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He was a Peace Corps Fellow at the University of Arizona, where he earned an MS in Planning.