AWARE Facilitator

Fawn Preston our Founder and visionary, has been in behavioral health since 1998. She loves what she does and it shows! She's traveled all over the nation helping people and organizations offer truly trauma informed approaches to service delivery and crisis intervention. Fawn has helped thousands of people in recovery revamp and improve their lives through advocacy, support, workforce development, and multiple pathways to wellness. Fawn is a national facilitator of eCPR (Emotional CPR), an organizational trainer in IPS (Intentional Peer Support), and is certified in WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plans), PATH (Personal Action Towards Health), SOAR (Social Security Outreach Access and Recovery), Crisis Intervention, and Trauma Informed Care. 

Fawn assisted in the development of the Trauma Informed Care curriculum for Network 180 Kent County Behavioral Health in Grand Rapids, Michigan during the MI/SUD integration; the integration of mental health and substance use services federally. She has also developed and delivered other powerful curriculum that promote peer-oriented systems. She has over a decade of experience in grant writing, obtaining funds that enhance services and improve the quality of the systems we use. She specializes in relationship building, workforce development, trauma informed care, cultural humility, inclusive practices, as well as holistic options to wellness and food as medicine. 

Fawn believes recovery is not only possible it is PROBABLE, and sometimes all you need to succeed is someone to believe in you; when you are having a really hard time believing in yourself. She loves making new connections in the community and collaborating on how she may bring more information and AWARE to you. Feel free to say hello!

"UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." 

-Quote from The Lorax Photo credit: Kerri Rueda Photography

Joan is an LCSW master’s level Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CADC III) and a Certified Recovery Mentor who uses a peer perspective with a focus on evidence-based practices and interventions. She is the brainchild behind Lowering Barriers, a 12-week program for individuals on supervision that are struggling with chronic recidivism, substance use disorder, chronic relapse and mental health issues. Lowering barriers is an excellent program for those that don’t fit in a typical clinical setting.

Joan is a triple felon with lived experience in incarceration, mental health and drug abuse. She has come out of the darkness and uses her successful recovery process to mentor, lead and guide those she serves. All clients are referred through community corrections.

She has a tender heart for corrections officers, people who have been incarcerated and believes that adequate TraumaAWARE peer support nurtures successful transition to freedom, and creates opportunity for all involved in the criminal justice system. She seeks to change the clients relationship with their corrections officers, from adversary to ally through willing compliance and collaboration

Co-author Forensic Peers Best Practices

Check out Joan's awesome board game!

Ali Marie Koch is a yoga teacher (RYT500), Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, and co-owner of Plant Based PNW. She studied Cultural Anthropology and Business at the University of Oregon and has since dedicated her career to supporting nonprofits, including 3 years working as a peer support specialty in psychiatric emergency settings. She worked internationally as Public Relations Director for an organization that partnered with Nobel Peace laureates and has extensive international and  laureates and has extensive international and cross-cultural experience.

Ali believes that food, movement, and healthy daily routine can either be the simplest, most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison. Her company, Plant Based PNW, offers fun, educational plant based cooking classes and workshops to educate people on how to use food as medicine. As a yoga teacher and wellness coach, Ali uses yoga and Ayurveda to educate, inspire, and empower others to live their best and most healthful life. She’s currently completing a 3-year, 800 hour clinical yoga therapy and Ayurvedic Health Counseling program at the Sarasvati Institute of Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy.

Ayurveda, which translates means "the science of life", is a 5,000 year old holistic medical system from Indian based on the mind-body-soul connection. Often referred to as the sister science of yoga, Ayurveda includes the use of yoga, breathing, meditation, diet, herbs, and lifestyle practices to promote health and vitality. It is a natural system of healing that believes all healing begins with self-love, self-compassion, and connection with nature.

Find her on Instagram @theayurvedicyogi

Braunwynn Franklin has worked in the field of Mental Health for over 13 years and is a trained Peer Support Specialist in 3 States. She is a passionate, resourceful, dependable, and driven visionary. She has worked hard in her life to overcome challenges from being Black, a Woman with Childhood trauma, a Returning Felon, and the single mother of Black sons and a daughter. She has consistently advocated for the mental health population, the prison population, and those experiencing racial injustices within the multiple systems by speaking on Peer Run Respites and at the Prisoner’s Family Conference in Dallas. She has trained over 200 Peer Wellness and Peer Support specialists, she is a Train the Trainer for NAMI’s Peer to Peer Workshop, a Trainer the Trainer in Stanford’s Chronic Disease Self-Management (Personal Action Towards Health), a Second Chance Reentry Master trainer, and an eCPR facilitator.

Braunwynn helped develop and grow the Peer Wellness program at Cascadia Behavioral Health for over 6 years and helped develop a curriculum at NAMI Multnomah on Gender Based Violence for Peer Supports. She was a member of the Oregon Consumer Advisory Council for 4 years and Co-championed the Trauma Informed Committee. Braunwynn currently sits on the Board of Directors for Operation Nightwatch (Portland) as the only Black and Peer; the Board of Directors for Folktime (Portland); and the Board of Directors for the National Coalition for Mental Health Recovery. She is also an active member of the Michigan Peer Recovery Coalition and Surviving Race: Intersection of Injustice, Disability, and Human rights.