Embrace the Transitions of Caregiving:

Brenna M. Galvin is a co-managing shareholder at Maser, Amundson & Boggio, P.A. As an elder law attorney she supports seniors, individuals with disabilities, and their families as they navigate care needs and how to finance them. Drawing inspiration from personal experiences, Brenna understands that planning extends beyond the bounds of a law office and requires clients to have critical conversations about both their life and end-of-life wishes. By building trust she is able to advocate for her clients. In order to provide a truly holistic approach to planning Brenna became an end-of-life doula in 2019 . She is also the co-founder of Inspired Departures. Their mission is to inspire individuals to have open conversations about death and dying and take action to create a meaningful end of life plan. By approaching death differently, we begin to live life more fully.

Brenna is a graduate of the University of Minnesota with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Political Science, and William Mitchell College of Law for her Juris Doctor. When Brenna is not working, you can find her tending to her backyard chicken flock and her dog, reading furiously, exploring the North Shore, rowing on the Mississippi River, roaming farmers markets and art museums, and attending concerts and plays throughout the Cities.

Michelle is the Executive Director of Thrive at Home with Whitney Center. A social worker also licensed as a nursing home administrator, Michelle’s compassionate care and advocacy now benefits Thrive at Home members. She has demonstrated her heart and abilities managing long-term care quality improvement and patient safety projects for the federal government, serving as client and family services director for the Alzheimer’s Association, and serving on the board of the Avila Institute of Gerontology in New York. She is also a Fellow of the LeadingAge Connecticut Leadership Academy.

Pamela D Wilson, MS, BS/BA, CSA, NCG has worked in the field of caregiving, aging, and health since 1999. She supports caregivers and their families through education and support programs about care management, planning and related topics. As Director of Marketing for NinePatch, Inc. she advances discussions about the connection between health, behavioral, mental, and social needs.

Nichole coordinates support groups, recommends community resources, manages caregiver round tables to share information and experiences for fellow caregivers. As a family member caregiver herself, she coordinates the efforts of her family members as they care for her mother, who has COPD.

She has also served as the Program Administrator for The National Alliance to Advance Adolescent Health, which is devoted to education, policy analysis, technical assistance, and advocacy in support of long-term, systemic improvements in comprehensive health care and insurance coverage for adolescents. Prior to that, Nichole serves as the Senior Program Associate for The Arc of the United States, which promotes and protects the human rights of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Nichole has presented webinars on topics such as Tools for Family Caregivers, Finding Time to Take Care of Yourself While Caring for a Child with Significant Health Needs, and Navigating Complicated Emotions as a Caregiver.

Nicole is the Director of Population Health & Integrated Care Management for Care Partners of Connecticut (Point32Health), and the President of The American Case Management Association Connecticut Chapter. As Senior Director of the Care Continuum Integration for Hartford HealthCare, Nicole led the development, delivery and optimization of ambulatory Care Management services while also leveraging technology to support integration across all care continuum access points; acted as a critical member of the HHC's Care Management Cabinet, partnering with the Vice President of Care Management in development of strategic direction for enterprise wide care coordination.

Melissa has been a Resource Coordinator with The Hartford Health Care Center for Healthy Aging for the past 2.5 years. She assists clients with navigating the sometimes daunting resources that are available both in the healthcare arena as well as the community. This includes educating clients on health care options, community and state programs. Melissa is a certified CHOICES counselor, so she is able to assist clients with unbiased information about making informed choices related to choosing a Medicare/Medicare Advantage plan that best meets their needs. She has also earned her certification as a Certified Dementia Practitioner. Prior to her role with The Center for Healthy Aging, Melissa was an Assistant Director of Social Work for Athena Healthcare Systems for more than 22 years . She received her Bachelor's degree in Social Work from Southern Connecticut State University. She has a passion for helping empower people by learning what resources can improve their safety and quality of life.

Founder of Top College Consultants®, Dr. Endlich helps guide families worldwide through the college application process. He serves on the Learning Differences/Neurodiversity and Diversity/Equity/Inclusion Committees of the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA). In 2020, IECA honored Dr. Endlich’s contributions with the “Making A Difference” Award for contributions such as a database of neurodiversity-friendly colleges. In 2021, Exceptional Needs Today Magazine honored Dr. Endlich as a Top Contributor for his article, “7 Things Students With Disabilities Should Do When Starting College.” A writer and keynote speaker, he has been interviewed by Forbes, Money Magazine, College Confidential and U.S. News and World Report. He helped found the Neurodiverse Couples Institute for the Asperger/Autism Network and co-wrote a book on autistic adults. He co-manages a 7,000-member Facebook group, Parents of College Bound Students with Learning Disabilities, ADHD and ASD.

Dr. Endlich is also a licensed psychologist, professional writer and former college instructor. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in English from UC Berkeley, where he was awarded a Regents Scholarship (highest honor) as well as the President’s Undergraduate Fellowship for original research. He went on to earn graduate degrees in psychology from NYU and BU, and a certificate in independent educational consulting from UC Irvine. Dr. Endlich has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in psychology at Tufts University, Suffolk University, Boston College and UMass Boston.

Angel C. Duncan has an extensive background in marriage and family therapy, art therapy and Alzheimer’s disease clinical research. Her doctorate education is in Gerontology. She is the Education and Clinical Trials Manager at Life Molecular Imaging, US Medical Affairs.

Angel served as the Research Associate and Director of Education at the Neuropsychiatric Research Center of Southwest Florida where she was involved in Alzheimer’s and psychiatric disorders research for seven years. Prior to that, she was the Programs Director/Supervisor for the Alzheimer’s Association in Northern California and concurrently served as a clinician at the University of CA-San Francisco. She co-developed and currently co-facilitates Arts in Mind, a virtual art museum and art therapy program for persons living with early onset and early stage dementia at the Yale University Art Gallery. Angel resides on the Board of Directors for the Cognitive Dynamics Foundation and holds council on the Medical Advisory Board for Lorenzo’s House, a national non-profit serving families living with Young On-set Alzheimer’s disease. She was a contributing blogger for The Huffington Post and Linkedin in dementia, health and wellbeing topics in life development. She is a recognized speaker and consultant, working with leading organizations in brain health initiatives across the globe. Angel is a widely published author, some of her contributions include: The Journal of Neurology and Neurological Disorders, The Handbook of Geriatric Neurology, Practical Neurology, Art Therapy and Healthcare, The International Journal of Lifelong Learning in Art Education among others.