About Worried About a Veteran (WAV)

Marianne Goodman, M.D., is a Professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Associate Director of the Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 2 Mental Illness, Research, Education and Clinical Center, located at the James J. Peters VA (Bronx VA). For the past 23 years she has provided clinical care to high-risk suicidal Veterans and conducted clinical research in suicide biomarkers, novel suicide treatment development and family approaches to suicide prevention. She has been an integral member of the family website project from its inception and involved with all aspects of its creation.

Kristen Vescera, Ph.D., MPH is a combat Veteran having served overseas in Afghanistan in 2012-2013. She spent ten years enlisted in the United States Army Reserve as a Psychological Operations Staff Sergeant and Instructor. Dr. Vescera is currently working at the Department of Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention in Canandaigua, NY as the Associate Director of Education focusing on developing, disseminating, and evaluating national training and education programs aimed at preventing and reducing Veteran suicide.

Catherine Barber, MPA, is a senior researcher at the Harvard School of Public Health’s Injury Research Center and president of CALM America, Inc (Counseling on Access to Lethal Means). She and Elaine Frank were lead writers for the original version of Worried About a Veteran. She is the founding director of Means Matter, a hallmark of which is bringing gun owners and suicide prevention groups together to collaborate on local solutions to reduce suicide. She was a founding member of the original Gun Shop Project, wrote the nation’s first suicide prevention curriculum for firearm instructor’s classes, and has helped spread these types of collaborations across the country.

Dev Crasta, Ph.D. is a Research Investigator at the Department of Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention and a Senior Instructor at the University of Rochester Medical Center Department of Psychiatry. Dev has been working with Veterans since 2012 and has worked with their families since 2017. His current work focuses on helping family members support one another through mental health challenges. He joined the WAV team to give input on effective communication skills and family resources.

Stephanie Gamble, Ph.D., is Executive Director of VA’s Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention and an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Rochester Medical Center. Dr. Gamble leads VA’s Behavioral Health Autopsy Program (BHAP)–a national initiative to identify the factors and contexts surrounding Veterans’ suicides. Findings from BHAP are used to inform VA’s suicide prevention efforts and to promote the health and well-being of Veterans and their families.

Daryllee Hale is a communications professional with experience across the nonprofit, government, public health and higher education sectors. In addition to her role at WAV, she currently serves as the Program Director of Content Marketing at the University of Maryland Alumni Association. Daryllee's work encompasses communication strategy, writing and editing, graphic design, and much more. A lifelong Maryland native, her degree is in strategic public relations and marketing from Towson University. Daryllee is passionate about this project, supporting Veterans and the people who care for them.

Kat Hargrave is a graphic designer with over 15 years experience across agency, non-profit, and global brand design and marketing work. She was formerly a Creative Director at Getty Images as well as a Senior Designer with Carnegie Hall and currently supports various innovative organizations in a consulting and freelance capacity. Other clients include Unilever, Nike, Red Bull, Wild Bird Research Group, and the Council for Economic Education.

Garra Lloyd-Lester is the Coordinator of Community and Coalition Initiatives for the Suicide Prevention Center of New York State (SPCNY). As Coordinator, he works with State and County partners, local governmental units, local coalitions, and other systems to build capacity to help reduce suicides across the lifespan. He also facilitates the lethal means safety workgroup as part of the Governors Challenge to Prevent Suicide among Service Members, Veterans, and their Families (SMVF). He does project management for a statewide initiative to address suicide prevention among first responder disciplines and facilitated the statewide taskforce to develop recommendations on addressing suicide prevention among rural communities in NYS. Garra has developed content to support local suicide prevention coalitions and partner agencies in the areas of prevention, postvention and coalition development . He has 30+ years of experience in the field of social services including working with the developmentally disabled, working in the child welfare system and within the mental health system.

Shelby holds a bachelor's degree in psychology with a minor in social welfare and is passionate about improving the lives of Veterans and their loved ones. She began her career as a Clinical Research Assistant at the Department of Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention, where she supported research initiatives aimed at increasing Veteran care and health outcomes. Shelby brings this passion to Worried About a Veteran (WAV), where she helps build partnerships, expand resources, and offer practical guidance for the Veteran and caregiver community. She is committed to advancing mental health, fostering resilience, and ensuring members of the military community feel empowered during every step of their journey.

Raphael Rosalin has over a decade of experience in marketing and communication, working most recently as a communications specialist for the Office of Research, Innovation & Economic Development at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He has also served as a communications coordinator for the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland, in addition to his freelance work where he specializes in social media and search engine optimization strategies. Rosalin's background encompasses strategic communications and brand development, digital and print marketing, graphic and web design, photography and videography, and content writing. He has lived in California, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Maryland before settling in Kentucky, and holds a degree in communications from Tulane University.