Volunteer Opportunities
Em Radek (They/Them)
Newsletter Coordinator & Blog Writer
Em has personally been through estrangement and has found great comfort in the TE community.
They are hoping that they can help others find the same through increasing community engagement, outreach, and creating more resources on navigating estrangement.
They have a background in writing, art, communications, and marketing.
J. Hila Peterson (Any pronouns)
Advice Columnist & Media Representative
Hila is the advice columnist for the Together Estranged newsletter. They have been happily estranged for a number of years, and now live with their chosen family and beloved, silly dog in rural Canada. They have a background in mental health, peer support, writing and journalism. Outside of work, Hila can be found recreating desserts from The Great British Bake Off, running on the beautiful trails near their home, singing show tunes, and learning to knit.
Jen Maher
(She/Her)
Content Creator
Jen is the proud black sheep of her family of origin. Her own journey with family estrangement has been informed and supported through ongoing academic learning and vastly imperfect application within the area of social/emotional intelligence. Jen is grateful for the support found within the community of Together Estranged and its offered events and programs. She has a background in marketing, communication and is on the content creation team at TEwriting and is actively working towards breaking the cycle of family dysfunction with her own amazing child and families of creation and choice. “The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb.”
Sheena Sharma
(She/Her)
Blog Writer
Sheena Sharma is a Canadian native who has been residing in Arizona over the past 8 years. She lives with her wonderful husband and her 2 busy, fun-loving, and energetic kids. She loves running, traveling, reading biographies, and writing. She is passionate about destigmatizing estrangement and has released a children's book delving into this subject earlier this year.
Thomas Bentz (He/They)
Peer Support Group
Facilitator
Thomas was able to make sense of his estrangement and find support from others going through similar experiences. He hopes to provide the same sense of mutual understanding and support for others in our community by co-facilitating the TE monthly peer support group and moderating the TE private Facebook group. They have a background in peer support development and facilitation and are in school to become a counseling psychologist."
Steiger Bryke (he/him)
Peer Support
Group Facilitator
Steiger is a life and career coach with a PhD in human attention and perception. His focus is on helping individuals get unstuck in life. This involves understanding the different parts of our personalities—their stories, intentions, and how they influence our actions, leading to greater acceptance of both ourselves and those around us. Steiger will contribute to the special projects team
Erin(She/Her)
Peer Support
Group Facilitator
Erin has a Master's degree in Child and Family Therapy and began working as a Family Therapist over twenty years ago. In her own journey, Erin has found it inspiring and healing to connect with others who have experience with family estrangement. In her role, she is proud to be part of the Together Estranged community, where we support and uplift each other on our paths toward creating a meaningful life. Erin enjoys learning about neuroscience, human nature, and communication in general.
Beth Bentley
(She/Her)
Events Manager
Beth has been navigating family estrangement since she was 17, officially moving in with her supportive grandparents at 18. Her journey, marked by resilience and self-improvement, saw her through university without contact with her mum. With a keen focus on her mental well-being and personal goals, Beth has built a strong foundation for herself. With a background in psychology and sales, she's now stepping into a new role on the social media team. Beth is dedicated to breaking the cycle of family dysfunction and deeply values the family she's chosen and created.
Gaia Artemisia (She/Her)
Research/Special Projects
Gaia is a graduate student, researcher, and clinical social worker with a personal and professional interest in studying family estrangement. Her research experience includes developing a trauma screen for use in primary care and as a research assistant for a study exploring the experiences of indigenous students in higher education. With 15+ years in community mental health, she is passionate about counseling services which directly support marginalized or stigmatized groups of people. Her research currently focuses on clinicians who provide counseling services to estranged adult children. She is delighted to support Together Estranged with research and special projects.
Britt Johnsen (She/Her)
Facebook Moderator
Britt is personally and professionally interested in family estrangement, and she is a passionate member of the Together Estranged community. She is currently pursuing her master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling, with a somatic counseling emphasis, from Prescott College, a remote program that she participates in from her home state of Minnesota. Britt began her career as a journalist, where she worked for mostly community newspapers. She has won more than a dozen awards and honors for her work. In her free time, Britt loves spending time with loved ones, reading and writing poetry, studying astrology, being in nature, going to cafes and cuddling her sweet cats, Mittens and Jupiter.
Chloe Quinn (She/Her)
Facebook Moderator
Chloe grew from a spirited, red-headed, green eyed little girl into an individual determined to break free from the cycles of generational trauma and codependency. Through navigating the pain of estrangement, separation, grief and loss she discovered her purpose; to sit with others in their darkest moments and help them find their way to healing. Now pursuing a degree in Mental Health Counseling, Chloe is passionate about empowering others to uncover their authentic identities. Chloe aims to help others reclaim their stories.
Camille (She/Her)
Facebook Moderator
From three years of age, Camille has been exposed to and been a pawn of estrangement due to her family members' choices-completed suicide, abandonment, relocation to countries, grudges, deliberate alienation, immaturity, stubbornness, greed. She has become a counsellor, but family estrangement continues over the generations despite her best efforts- people don’t communicate, ignore each other's pain, and consider that their own trauma trumps others’. Her conclusion: Children are very forgiving, but teenagers remember and so parents need to keep working on themselves. This group is for people who struggle with the emotional pain of parental estrangement, whether they chose to close the door or it was slammed in their face.