At Children’s Bereavement Center of South Texas, our staff is dedicated to providing hope and healing to the community. Take a look at the wonderful people who are the heart of our mission!
It may be hard to find someone with a heart to match Marian’s. Always an advocate ensuring that every child has a fair chance in life, Marian leads by example in showing love and compassion to every family that walks through our doors. When she’s not at the Center, you can usually find her spending time with her family and her Great Pyrenees, Jack.
While she can’t sing or play a single instrument, Kristina has an almost obsessive love of music. A former client of the Center, Kristina is passionate about the work we do and feels privileged to be a part of such a rock star team. Her little known talent is her ability to communicate only using movie quotes “so I’ve got that goin’ for me, which is nice.”
Marcella is ready to monkey around! After over 20 years of moving with the military, Marcella now calls our “military city” home. Marcella loves the entire process of serving our families - from the moment they walk in and feel the warmth of our living room to the final days of therapy in one of our many counseling suites. Every day brings a new opportunity for Marcella to support our families and she is always ready to heal hearts.
A San Antonio native, Sylvia has had quite a career in the countdown city. At the Center, Sylvia helps ensure every dollar and donation is accounted for. Her role ultimately helps us continue to fuel our mission of hope and healing. We’ve got our runners-up for her job well done! Meep, Meep!
The community created at the center can be hugely attributed to the imagination and creativity of Tami! Always one for decorating and dressing up, Tami can be found planning out her Halloween costumes when she isn’t seeing clients and managing our team of counselors. Although she doesn’t have a favorite book or movie, Tami will happily share a list of her favorites.
Whether she is in the office with a client or soaking up the sun with her family, Lisa always wears a kind and welcoming smile that makes everyone she meets feel comfort and compassion. You are most likely to find her in our drama room guiding children through play therapy to express their grief.
When Emily came to the Center as a volunteer she knew right away that this special place would be her home away from home. Now as our Camp Coordinator, she helps make each session of Camp Heroes an unforgettable experience for our children. Emily loves all things Christmas and if she could, she’d leave our Christmas tree up in the living room all year long!
As a true Ravenclaw, Madison is intelligent and always desires to learn more. Serving as an Associate Counselor means that Madison works directly with families helping them to carry their heartache after losing a loved one. When she isn’t working she can be found right down the street at Sabor Mexican Concina enjoying a dinner with friends and family. Safe to say she’s never too far from work!
Anything is paw-sible with Mario on our team! As one of our Program Therapists, Mario enjoys guiding clients through their own personal grief journey. While he loves all of our therapy rooms, the art room seems to call his name the most seeing as he enjoys drawing. When he’s not at the Center he can be found at home with his wife, maybe wrestling with his doggo, or watching lip sync battle - got a favorite song y’all can sing together?!
Lauren has chosen to do work that honors those she loves most. After her own personal experience with grief and loss, Lauren chose to pursue a career in mental health which ultimately led her to the Children’s Bereavement Center. Once a volunteer, Lauren knew it was in her heart to serve our grieving families and we are so lucky to have her. When she is not at the Center, she enjoys spending time with her pug Yoda and her cats Sylvester and Binx watching reruns of her favorite TV shows.
Our resident superhero Kayla is on a mission to heal hearts through our school-based program. Kayla enjoys bringing the magical spirit of the Center to her clients and aims to ensure they find hope and healing on their grief journey. We are so lucky to have Kayla on staff, we think you’ll agree she’s “Marvel”-ous!
Keaton is really raising the “barre” at the Center! This professional tap dancer is now working as one of our school-based counselors helping children through their grief and giving back to the community that helped her as an adolescent. Let’s hope she can tap dance her way into the hearts of her future clients!
Meet our newest Swiftie to join the team, Sharol! Sharol’s journey started as a student intern and facilitator when she realized her appreciation for grief counseling. As a member of our school-based counseling team, Sharol prides herself on making mental health services accessible to students. Armed with an iced coffee, Sharol can accomplish anything!
Our staff baker Shannon is sure to make you “loaf” so hard with her extra cheesy jokes! Serving as one of our school-based counselors, Shannon creates spaces filled with compassion and care. With a love for art therapy, Shannon helps children dealing with unimaginable loss find their smiles again.
Life at the Center sure is sweet with Paola! Serving as a licensed professional counselor for our school-based program, Paola’s work provides a safe place for children and teens to process their grief. When she isn’t working, Paola can be found “mixing it up” in the kitchen, baking! We are hoping we can taste-test her next tasty creation.
After spending time as an intern at the Center, Lizette knew she wanted to be a part of the team. We are so grateful to have her as one of our School-Based Counselors, working to provide services directly to students during the school day. When she is not working she can be found spending time with friends, reading a book, or watching her cactus grow. You grow girl!
Diego is stirring up lots of fun at the Center as one of our school-based counselors! When he isn’t listening to Taylor Swift (yes a true Swiftie) he’s dedicating time to supporting clients through very difficult situations. When he’s not at work you can catch him watching Netflix with a sweet tea in hand!
Much like Gonzo the Great, we think Kristy is pretty fantastic! As one of our Intake Coordinators, Kristy understands the pain and grief families are feeling when they first connect with us. It’s like compassion that has guided her to the Center. While Kristy believes the Center to be the happiest place on earth, one day she may pack her bags and move to the second happiest place on earth (in her opinion) Disney World!
Anita loves nothing more than being such a vital part of our work at the Center. As Intake Coordinator, she is tasked with welcoming families as they begin their grief journey. Originally from Corpus Christi, Anita loves Selena and feels the music in her soul even while at work. She definitely adds a little “bidi bidi bom bom” to our space!
Despite retiring in January 2022, we knew we had to have Brenda on our team in Uvalde. Her invaluable experience helps ensure all runs smoothly for our staff and grieving families in Uvalde. It is Brenda’s belief that people often do not know how to grieve, but guiding them can help them heal in ways they never thought they could. While she loves being in the office, she's got lots of travel plans so her bags are always packed!
I’m sure that Liz can attest to the positive effects of a breath of fresh air. At home with her family and her horse, Liz loves nothing more than the great outdoors. She’s critical to our mission as she is the friendly face that greets our families when they enter our building.
When she’s not in the carpool line, Julia is at the Center bringing with her endless amounts of positive energy. Although an office on the beach might be a dream come true, she believes that she is living the dream being part of a team that feels like a family. At work, you can usually find her buried under a pile of sponsor forms and silent auction items!
Born and raised in San Antonio, Chloe is a diehard Spurs fan and is always ready to cheer on the silver and black. You can usually find her walking around the Center, iced coffee in hand and ready to advocate and talk about all of the amazing work that happens in our beautiful space. In her spare time, Chloe is an avid true-crime podcast listener. Ask her for a recommendation!
Always up for an exciting adventure, Michelle is not one to sit still for long. Whether she’s hiking, gardening, or dancing, she definitely likes to stay active and have fun with her little family. A true free spirit, Michelle brings a ray of sunshine into the center that adds to our positive, healing atmosphere. The Center would not be the same without her!
Our professional Pickleball player Ben is ready to play ball! Coming from a family of nonprofit professionals working at the Center was a natural transition for this Texas State Bobcat. As our Community Engagement Manager, Ben is tasked with finding meaningful ways for individuals to get involved with our mission. Much like Spiderman, Ben knows that with great power comes great responsibility, and he’s up for the challenge.
At the center of the work we do, there’s Connie - making sure everything is smooth sailing! Through all the hustle and bustle, Connie manages to keep it cool and collected and complete a seemingly endless to-do list. Outside of the office, her role as a grandma helps form the loving atmosphere she helps to create at the Center.
Meet Yolanda, the friendly face at our front desk! She loves to find ways to make people smile and ensures our lobby is warm and welcoming. You will likely catch her juggling many tasks at once, but she always handles these situations with grace. Yolanda is so loved and we are grateful that she is able to contribute to our atmosphere of “healing hospitality”.
Our avid soccer player Bridget sure is "goal"-oriented! As one of our receptionists, Bridget juggles it all. Whether she is answering the phones, welcoming families, or helping our staff she does it all with a smile. When she isn't in the office doing a million things at once, Bridget enjoys relaxing with family and reffing soccer - GOOOOOOOAL!
205 W. Olmos Drive San Antonio, TX 78212
210-736-4847 (HUGS)
Business Hours
Monday–Thursday: 8:30am–5:00pm
Friday: 8:30am–3:00pm
Weekends by appointment only
