Meet our Staff
CHRISTA WIENS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
As an educator and a mother, Christa Wiens has a heart for young people. She sees prevention as the key and is proud to have been working with Central Valley Justice Coalition for years as Education Coordinator before taking on the senior leadership role. Christa is the author of our Understanding Human Trafficking series of classes and has contributed to multiple publications. In 2022, Christa earned a master’s degree from Fresno Pacific University Biblical Seminary. As a member of North Fresno Church, she is passionate about spreading awareness to the faith community.
TIFFANY RICHARDS, YOUTH ADVOCATE
Tiffany is a passionate advocate for youth, seeking to empower them to find and use their own voice. Her experience creating teen workshops focusing on injustices in the Bay Area and an after school math program for disadvantaged youth led to an invitation to speak to the California Senate regarding California Youth Authority’s policies toward adolescents. Tiffany has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Anthropology from UC Berkeley and completed her Masters of Science in Clinical Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling at CSU Fresno.
Her other interests include the creative arts; designing clothes, writing stories, dissecting movies, and going to museums and theaters.
KIM CONTRERAS, TRAUMA HEALING SPECIALIST
Kim Contreras responded to the Lord’s invitation to urban Fresno while a student at John Brown University. She joined the World Impact team in 1993 and the Central Valley Justice Coalition Prevention volunteer team in 2017. During her years in Fresno, it has been a deep honor to learn about the city and be changed by that experience through the Lord and her neighbors and friends in the Lowell and Hidalgo community. As Trauma Healing Specialist, Kim focuses on equipping the church and community to understand trauma and experience their own healing journey, along with an invitation to participate in outreach to survivors of human trafficking. Two of the accessible tools she utilizes are the Clear-Thinking Solutions method and Trauma Healing Institute healing groups. She can be found with her husband Manuel and their two children, Ian (18) and Sophia (13) sharing an Anaconda burrito from Yareli’s, enjoying good coffee on the steps with their dog Shadow and playing with their cats, Fuego, Sombra, and Rosa.
CHRISTY SEEBER, EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT
Christy has a background in Education with a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education and a Masters of Education degree from Anderson University. Christy taught in North Philadelphia, PA and in New York City. Since leaving the classroom to raise her three young children and looking back on her time as an educator in under-resourced communities, she sees the importance of educating on human trafficking and prevention, so trauma and vulnerabilities are not overlooked.
Christy lives in a beach town in New Jersey and enjoys beach days with her family and friends, reading a good book, and doing arts and crafts with her kiddos.
Meet our Board of Directors
Ivy Huff, MFT – President
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Expressions Counseling Center
Avery Culbertson, PhD – Secretary
Assistant Professor, Agricultural Leadership, CSU Fresno
Trevor Barbeau, CPP – Treasurer
Director of Operations, Payality Inc.
Dr. Rev. Lauran Bethell, Board Member
Global Consultant, International Ministries
Lois Hansen, Board Member
Meet our Advisory Council
Rev. Dr. Randy White, Director, Center for Community Transformation at Fresno Pacific University
Randy White, D.Min., has been an urban activist and practitioner for more than twenty years, in some of Fresno’s most vulnerable neighborhoods. He was the Founder of the Fresno Institute for Urban Leadership (FIFUL), and for the last several years has led the global doctoral degrees of Bakke Graduate University, training leaders for city transformation on five continents. He is the author of books such as The Work of Our Hands and Encounter God in the City among others, as well as many articles on urban mission.
Alan Doswald, Director, ESA/Love Inc.
Alan is the Founder and Executive Director of Evangelicals for Social Action/Love INC.ESA/Love Inc’s mission is to mobilize Christian churches to transform lives and communities in the name of Christ. Alan was raised in Fresno and graduated from California State University, Fresno, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology. Alan worked at Youth for Christ in Fresno from 1970 – 1982. From 1982 to present he has been the Founder/Director of ESA/Love Inc. He is also an ordained minister. Alan is one of the most knowledgeable leaders in the Christian community concerning the resources churches have to offer. He knows the history of the city well and has invested countless hours into relationships with local pastors and ministry leaders. He joined CVJC’s Advisory Council in 2013.
Clinton J. Olivier, former Council Member, City of Fresno, District 7
Councilmember Clinton J. Olivier was elected by an overwhelming majority to represent Fresno’s Seventh District in June of 2010, and he was sworn into office in December of that year. Olivier is on the Council Finance and Audit Committee as well as the Infill Development Committee. As part of his duties, he also serves on the board of the Fresno-Madera Agency on Aging.
He partnered with Council President Lee Brand to find savings in the 2011 budget and use it to fund a Prostitution and Graffiti Prosecutor position within the City of Fresno. Also as part of his ongoing campaign to clean up the Seventh District and other affected areas, Olivier worked with the Fresno Police Department to implement such ground-breaking programs as “Operation Reveal.” Read full bio here..
David Plassman, Social Work Supervisor, Child Welfare (Retired)
David Plassman, a former Social Work Supervisor, has worked for Fresno County Department of Social Services for 29 years. During the last 10 years, he has been working on Outcome Evaluation and System Improvement and California Partners for Permanency.
Tina Maldonado, Fresno Police Chaplaincy, Project STEALTH Director
I was born and raised in Fresno and moved to Selma 8 years ago with my husband and son. My relationship with the Fresno Police Department began in 2012 when I volunteered to be a C.O.P. (Citizen on Patrol). This experience opened my eyes to see the needs in our community and also to witness all that our officers were doing on a daily basis to meet those needs. In 2014 I was hired by the Fresno Police Chaplaincy. I began as a report writer for runaway youth, but quickly became the Director for Project STEALTH. I found more than an amazing job; I found my passion! I currently oversee Project STEALTH, host the Teen Police Academy and am a Fresno Police Explorer Advisor. I am blessed to have found my passion in working with youth. My job is both fun and rewarding and I get to work with amazing people in the Chaplaincy as well as law enforcement officers and detectives.
Melissa Gomez, PACT Project Coordinator, Child and Family Policy Institute of California
Melissa Gomez, previous Co-Director at CVJC, directed the Central Valley Against Human Trafficking program for three years in Fresno. Melissa has extensive experience in Women’s Advocacy and mission work. She served on staff in YWAM San Francisco and Amsterdam, and in Modesto, CA as an Advocate for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Melissa brings fifteen years of work within the human trafficking field locally and abroad. She now directs the Preventing and Addressing Child Trafficking Project, working with ten counties across the state of California.
Sarah Johnston, Project Coordinator, Central Valley Against Human Trafficking
Sarah is a victim advocate and community leader. In her current role as the Program Manager for Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission’s Central Valley Against Human Trafficking project. and Chair of the Central Valley Freedom Coalition, she leads the Anti-Trafficking movement in the Central Valley of California. During her 3 years with the project she has served as both the Outreach Coordinator and Case Manager providing comprehensive trauma-informed client services, advocacy, outreach, training, public awareness to a six-county region including: Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Merced and Tulare counties. Sarah was instrumental in facilitating and launching the 2019 Fresno City Mayor’s Initiative to Combat Human Trafficking to address trafficking through a collective impact project and serve as the backbone agency facilitator. Sarah has experience in providing comprehensive services to victims of trafficking and has facilitated training and education on human trafficking related issues. Prior to joining Fresno EOC, Sarah worked with the HOPE Anti-Human Trafficking Program at the International Rescue Committee in Sacramento. She has a passion for eradicating human trafficking and developing a community wide trauma-informed response to address the injustices in her community, especially those suffered by women and girls. Sarah was named Fresno EOC Community Action All Star 2018 and is a Rise Up Gender Equity Initiative Fellow. Sarah has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and International Relations and a Minor in Human Rights from the University of California, Davis. Sarah is passionate about creating local and regional partnerships and firmly believes it is only through collaboration that we can end trafficking.
Detective Belinda Anaya, Fresno Police Vice Unit – Not Pictured
Detective Belinda Anaya began her career with the City of Fresno, Police Department in 2002. She worked patrol assignments in the Central and Southeast Policing District. Her assignments after Patrol included the Northeast Policing District’s Crime Suppression Team, the Bulldog Tactical Team, and the Violent Crime Impact Team. Her assignments allowed her to develop her investigative, interview, and informant development skills. She is currently assigned to the Vice Unit focusing on human trafficking, prostitution activity, and massage parlor compliance. She has used her skills and hard work to gain the trust of victims in her human trafficking investigations.
