Authors

April Abrahamson is the chief operations officer at Colorado Access. In her role, she focuses on people and the business operations of the company. Her passion is helping people trust and leverage their inner wisdom to forge a life path that is true to themselves. April is a Colorado native, a twin, an irrepressible Broncos fan, and a total coffee and sunrise addict.

Bryce Andersen is a Colorado native, nurse of 18 years, and a learning and development specialist at Colorado Access. He has the honor of being able to support, train, coach, evaluate, measure, and develop learning tools for his peers at Colorado Access.

Kayla Archer is a learning and organizational development specialist at Colorado Access. She is passionate about people, education, communication, mental health, film, dance, and neuroscience. Kayla is a proud Colorado native who loves to participate in community theater (you know, when you could go to the theater).

Jason Beard is the web manager at Colorado Access. A weather, technology, music and outdoor nerd, Jason spends his free time backcountry snowboarding, climbing Colorado’s 13ers and gaming. He has a cat named Zelda who he spoils like an only child.

Gabriel Bigger has been working in the cybersecurity space for 12 years now, with three and a half at Colorado Access, and has experience in all realms cybersecurity-related. He loves training in mixed martial arts and coaching his three boys in the same sport.

Kimi Bingaman is a learning and development coordinator at Colorado Access and has been with the company since 2020. She spends her time with her husband, toddler, their two cats, and two dogs. One of the things that brings her the most joy is taking her son on adventures and letting him experience new things. She loves learning new things, crafting in all forms, true crime and horror stories, animals, playing video games, and spending time with friends.

Mallory Bowers is the senior communcations specialist at Colorado Access. She is passionate about her family, professional and collegiate sports, and fitness. She lives in Denver, CO with her husband, their two children Henry and Romy, and their puppy Pluto. In her free time, she enjoys quick trips to the mountains with her family or attending any live sporting event.

Eric Brettillo is the director of marketing & communications at Colorado Access. When he’s not in the office, he loves spending time with his family and being the dad of two daughters. He enjoys running, camping, hiking, traveling, and cooking. Currently he's trying his best to recreate a number of his NaNa’s traditional Italian meals.

Lexxus Brown is a practice facilitator with the practice support team at Colorado Access. Lexxus supports pediatric, family, and reproductive health providers to make meaningful changes designed to improve health outcomes.

Lexxus holds a Bachelor of Science degree from The Ohio State University and a Master of Public Health degree from Northeast Ohio Medical University. In August of 2021, Lexxus left her home state of Ohio and relocated to Colorado. In her free time, Lexxus enjoys exploring Colorado, traveling, going to coffee shops, and cheering on the Ohio State Buckeyes during football season.

Ana I’I Brown-Cohen, MPH is the director of health programs at Colorado Access, and leads her team in the design, implementation, and evaluation of the company’s population health programs including digital engagement and direct mail campaigns for members. This work is instrumental in ensuring delivery of whole-person care and specifically, that the right intervention is delivered to the right population, at the right time. Ana received her Master’s degree from the University of Colorado’s School of Public Health. Prior to coming to Colorado Access, Ana worked in the hospital, providing Medicare application assistance, state corrections, a mental health center, and substance use recovery program. In her free time, Ana enjoys spending time outdoors camping and hiking with her fiancé and two dogs, traveling, playing volleyball (when not injured), and reading.

Jessica Cabral is a behavioral health utilization service coordinator at Colorado Access. She has lived in Colorado since 2012 and is married to a Colorado native. Jessica loves spending time outside and going on adventures with her husband and German shepherd, Titan. On her days off from work, she spends several hours a day walking Titan and listening to audiobooks. Jessica loves traveling, cooking, baking, reading, yoga, and spoiling her dog. She hopes to serve in the Peace Corps again someday with her husband.

Brian Cichon is a business intelligence analyst at Colorado Access. He’s also new here, so please set your expectations accordingly. Brian is a native of New Jersey and moved to Colorado 10 years ago after meeting his wife, a Colorado native, in the Peace Corps in Peru. Now he spends a lot of time chasing two small children around and eating their leftover quesadillas for dinner.

Elise Cooper is a Colorado native with a passion for making a positive impact on health care delivery. She delights in convening stakeholder groups to tackle complex problems. In her free time, you can find her chasing two little boys, baking sweet concoctions or with her nose deep in a book. She has worked in health care for more than 10 years and currently works on the practice support team at Colorado Access.

Lindsay Cowee is the director of utilization management and pharmacy at Colorado Access. She spends most of her time outside of work with her husband and two little minions, ages 5 and 2. Any leftover time is spent cooking, traveling, or cheering on the St. Louis Cardinals or Mizzou Tigers (yes, even during the rough seasons).

Sarah Dart is part of the behavioral health utilization management team at Colorado Access. She has lived in Colorado since 2004 and been a licensed therapist since 2011. She is passionate about the mission of Colorado Access and the community it serves. Sarah began working at Colorado Access in 2011, made a short job change in 2015 after having her second child, and was so happy to rejoin the utilization management team in 2018. Her work as a therapist has focused on those struggling with chronic mental illness, who are widely underserved. She believes that her role as a therapist is to help others know that they are valued and cared for, and to help provide access to the resources they need to heal and grow. She loves reading, deep conversations with close friends, learning, and spending time with her husband and two sons.

Emily DeFrancia is a manager of care management at Colorado Access. She has worked in the mental health field since 2013 as a youth counselor, therapist, and program specialist. Emily’s mission is to create positive change in behavioral health care and support Colorado Access staff and members to reach their goals. She is from Colorado and loves spending time outside with her two dogs, riding her horse, and shredding the ski slopes with her family.

Dr. Evelyn DeLaCruz-Jiron is a licensed marriage and family therapist and a licensed addictions counselor. Evelyn holds a doctorate in education, with a strong emphasis on organizational psychology. She has worked in a variety of clinical settings including crisis intervention, trauma hospitals, intensive outpatient and private practice. Evelyn is a telebehavioral health clinician with AccessCare Services, the telehealth subsidiary of Colorado Access, and is able to provide short-term counseling and complex care management to patients. She specializes in psychotherapy for children, adolescents, families and couples and is certified in experiential, CBT, ACT and DBT interventions.

Danielle DeUrso Viglucci is a senior marketing coordinator at Colorado Access. She grew up an hour north of New York City and moved to Colorado in 2018 with her now-husband. In her free time, Danielle enjoys reading as many books as possible, going to concerts and hockey games, and exploring new hiking trails.

Charlee is the care management auditor at Colorado Access. She is also a reiki master who loves her family, friends, vegan food, yoga, being outdoors, and writing poems.

Erin Gael Friedman is a mom, an outdoor enthusiast, and a jazz vocalist with Zizania Music. She is passionate about public health and community care, with a special emphasis on health equity and plain language.

Kevin Gentilcore is a graphic designer at Colorado Access. When not at work he loves spending time with his lovely wife and two, weirdo, little dogs, and his ever-growing pile of unread books. Currently he's working at learning the guitar, poorly.

Shawnette Gillespie is a native of Colorado and has been with Colorado Access for nearly 10 years. She is a mother of three children who are her pride and joy. She enjoys interior design, her community, and having an open door to her home for anyone to drop by and enjoy a meal and perhaps play a little game of Connect 4.

Stephanie Glover is the senior policy analyst for Colorado Access. She spent nearly a decade in Washington, DC working on federal health policy. She happily moved to Colorado in early 2019. Stephanie, her husband, and her hound dog, Remy, are thrilled to be living in such a beautiful state. In her free time, Stephanie enjoys cooking, reading, hiking, and taking her dog to the park.

Will Harnar is a program analyst on the practice support team at Colorado Access. Outside of work, Will is a self-proclaimed craft beer snob who loves to devour books, ponder big philosophical questions, and watch baseball.

Sara Hartsell is a senior learning & development specialist at Colorado Access. A life-long learner, Sara has applied her love for learning in many different ways. A self-proclaimed “nerd,” Sara has had a long-standing association with history and the theatre, which she has combined in her later years into re-enactment. A life-long learner and lover of living history, Sara travels the country with her husband on vacations she calls “period-dress opportunities.”

JD Hatter, MBA, serves as budget manager for Colorado Access. In addition to a broad range of experience in the insurance industry, he has taught college business and finance courses, and has served as a treasurer and cross-country coach for a homeschool sports organization. His lifelong passions are faith, guitar, running, and the outdoors. He plays in a church worship band, runs regularly on trails in the south Denver metro area, and enjoys traveling and hiking with his wife and their dog. He and his wife are the parents of adult twin daughters.

Charlotte Hill-Ridge is the QA and release manager at Colorado Access. She is a Colorado native, mother to three amazing adult children and ten of the cutest grandchildren ever born (she might be a little biased). She tends to be a bit of a rebel who likes to rock the boat in a positive way (a trait she learned from her father). Her goal is to always try and make a difference and leave her little corner of the world better than she found it, so to speak. In her free time, she loves to bake for family and friends.

Kisii Hosack is a health programs specialist at Colorado Access. As a somewhat recent transplant to Colorado and a newbie snowboarder, she enjoys the active living that is promoted throughout Denver and Colorado. Her passion for health is what drove her to receive a master’s degree in public health and pursue a profession in the health care field. She is also a lover of adventure; her constant need for excitement has caused her to love to travel within the US and abroad.

Jenny Jackson is a pharmacist at Colorado Access who helps to manage the Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) line of business and answer medication-related questions within the organization. In her free time, Jenny loves to practice yoga, hike, bake, and spend time with her fur babies - she is a cat mom of three!

Marty is a senior director at Colorado Access, working extensively with communications and programming. A native Coloradan, Marty grew up enjoying Colorado’s standard slate of outdoor activities and continues to do so whenever there’s time—but prefers to camp in a Holiday Inn, these days, as opposed to sleeping on the ground. Marty’s proudest moments come as a father, husband, son, brother, and friend.

Jess Kelly is a compliance specialist at Colorado Access. Aside from her position at Colorado Access, she is also a concert photographer. Before COVID-19, she was covering anywhere from three to five shows a week. Music has been a part of her life from an early age, and to no surprise, her friends and colleagues say the same.

Shelby Kiernan is the director of provider support and services. She is a licensed marriage and family therapist and has been with Colorado Access in various capacities since December 2012. As the mother of three children, she spends much of her time outside of work acting as their biggest fan, as she can often be seen at swim meets, football games, basketball games, baseball games, and various music recitals. When she is not “mothering,” she loves to go on adventures with lifelong friends and take Jeep rides with her husband, whom she warmly refers to as her “Jersey Cowboy.” Along with family and friends, Shelby also loves Broncos football, is a musical theater “geek,” enjoys binge-watching period dramas, and still has a “secret” crush on Sting.

Karen is originally from Rapid City, South Dakota and has been a resident of the Denver, Colorado area since 1992. Her career in human resources and as an executive assistant has included working for real estate and property management companies in the Denver area. She spends her free time with her husband, two daughters, and three grandchildren. Her interests include camping, hiking, and enjoying the outdoors.

Bobby has served more than 25 years in high-tech, municipal government, and health care executive roles within the areas of people services operations; diversity, equity, and inclusion; cultural competency; and training and organization development. Bobby has a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from Tennessee State University and holds a Master of Arts degree in organization management from the University of Phoenix. He currently serves on the board of directors for GlobalMindEd, the White Bison Foundation, and the LIV Project. He is a lifetime member of the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. He is also a 2022 recipient of the Denver Business Journal Inaugural Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Leadership award.

Kirstin is a program manager at Colorado Access, and has a background in public health, journalism, and skeining yarn (but that’s a story for another time). Kirstin has called Colorado home since 2007. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with friends, cooking, seeing live music, traveling, and struggle cuddling her cats.

Molly Markert has been challenged and inspired by careers spanning the alphabet, from “mr,” “Arc” and “dd” to “MH,” AuCMHC and “HRSA,” “MCPN” and “TCHD,” “TAP” and “CCMU;” as well as two stints as an elected official at both the state and local levels. She is proudest of her two young adults who keep her challenged and inspired with hope for the future. However, nothing has captured her heart as completely as Cloud, her wise old Saluki who delights in telling her what to do to keep him happy, as pictured in the photo.

Steve Mazzini is a business advisor for Colorado Access in the corporate strategy department. He graduated from Colorado State University with a degree in business finance and minor in economics. He has followed this passion for business by devoting more than 13 years of reading and further study of business, finance and economics. Steve is an avid tennis player, investor and enjoys finding a little fun in any situation.

When Annie Medina isn’t supporting her fantastic customer service team, she can be found around town bringing joy and energy wherever she goes. As a licensed cosmetologist and makeup artist, she has inspired many to feel celebrated in the skin they are in. As a professional femcee she can be seen along the Front Range at Choctober Fest, Cat Fest Colorado, The Unicorn Festival, alongside local bands like Devotchka, as well as hosting charity events like Food for Thought’s yearly Rock-A-Belly fundraiser.

Callista is the manager of financial analysis at Colorado Access. She’s lived in Colorado since 2009 and spends most of her time outside of work with her husband and two kids, hiking, biking, and playing violin in the Denver Philharmonic Orchestra. She is one of those “annoying Peloton people,” and enjoys craft projects like knitting and cross-stitch as well.

Kate Myers is a health programs specialist in the population health & quality department. She joined Colorado Access after earning her MPH emphasizing community and behavioral health at the University of Colorado, Colorado School of Public Health. She has a background in public health, specifically HIV/AIDS programming and comprehensive sexuality education programming. Kate currently serves at the president of the board of directors of a nonprofit in Cusco, Peru called Chaska. Their aim is to break the cycle of poverty by providing education and addressing gender inequality. Kate is interested in mental health and well-being and anti-oppression theory, and she enjoys riding her bike, working on passion projects, and bartending in Denver on the weekends.

Brittany is a supervisor of customer service with Colorado Access who works with Children’s Hospital in the psychiatric emergency department and also with The Delores Project. Brittany is a proud Colorado native and a huge Colorado Avalanche hockey fan. She enjoys painting, going on adventures with her dog and playing board games.

Wivine’s professional background is in medical and public health research, health programs management, community engagement, and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. However, her passions and experiences center around addressing racial disparities for Black/Indigenous/People of Color (BIPOC) populations. These include her work and collaborations with the Colorado Sickle Cell Treatment and Research Center, the Center for African American Health, the Colorado Public Health Association, the Denver Justice Project, and local community-empowerment groups. She has authored and co-authored publications centering health equity in medical education and has current interest in pursuing a PhD tract in psychology to offer therapy among populations experiencing systemically removed access to behavioral health resources. Her proudest achievement is leveraging her gained knowledge and privileges around sickle cell health care to help get her sister cured from the invasive disease in 2020.

Stan is the manager of facilities at Colorado Access. He has worked in the facilities environment for more than 20 years and takes pride in being a knowledgeable resource regarding safety and emergency preparedness. Stan was born in Texas but does not consider Texas his home, as he has lived most of his adult life in Colorado and Wyoming. As with many Coloradoans, Stan enjoys outdoor activities, especially skiing, though he does not get the chance to do much of the latter anymore. He loves to travel and is always looking for the next big adventure.

Jen Recla is an adventurer and life-long learner. She started working as the director of learning and development at Colorado Access in June 2019. In her role, she focuses on providing a holistic approach to learning for all employees. When not chasing after tiny humans, she spends time with her hubby, reads way too much, spends as much time on her feet and outdoors as possible, and loves a good horror movie.

Lauren Resnick is the senior marketing coordinator at Colorado Access. She is a fourth generation Colorado native and loves everything Colorado has to offer. Lauren enjoys gardening, searching for the best french fries in the state, and spending time with her husband and two little boys.

Travis Roth is the manager of credentialing and provider data at Colorado Access. She could write a book about the stories of having a traditionally boys name. She has enjoyed watching many band and orchestra concerts involving her two young adult sons who have grown up involved in music, playing the trombone, trumpet, piano, guitar and drums. Her favorite things besides her boys are spending time with family, her kitty, and listening to U2.

Kellen Roth is the director of member affairs and has been with Colorado Access since 2013. He is a proud Colorado native, and dad to two amazing kids. He is passionate about the member experience and making sure all voices are heard. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time in the mountains, cooking, and working on his house.

George Roupas is the senior manager of telehealth programs at Colorado Access. He loves reading, playing ultimate Frisbee, spending time with his 11-year-old daughter, and good humor in all its forms. He once sued an airline after it lost his luggage. Sadly, he lost his case.

Daniela is a lifelong learner. It’s no surprise that she landed in talent and organizational development. She is currently serving as a trustworthy strategic partner at Colorado Access, creating meaningful learning experiences that enable customers to meet their individual and business goals. She strives to be a positive influence on all (some days she does better than others). Daniela stays busy mommy-ing her daughter and two fur babies. She works out to avoid having to shop for new clothes, thinks of cooking as a necessary evil, loves traveling and photography, and feels most at peace outdoors (in the woods or by the water) while listening to podcasts and music.

Georgia Silver is the manager of physical health and pharmacy utilization management at Colorado Access. She loves spending time with her family, baking, and reading. She is a devoted servant to her two dogs, Roscoe and Ruby.

Jason is a senior provider network contractor at Colorado Access. Jason grew up in New Mexico and enjoys mountain biking, hiking, and exploring, which made Colorado an easily adaptable place to call home. Colorado has been Jason’s home since 2007, and yes, that includes being an avid Broncos fan. He served as a United States Navy Corpsman from 1991-1998 and has worked in the medical and health care fields since 1998.

Cassidy Smith is senior program director for Colorado Access overseeing its Health First Colorado programs. She has more than 20 years of health care and public health experience within nonprofit organizations, government agencies and academic institutions. Originally from Arkansas, Cassidy moved to Denver via Chicago in 2006. She enjoys spending time at home and hiking and camping with her husband, daughter and two dogs.

Andrea joined Colorado Access in 2022 as a health strategy reporting manager, where she works to communicate the company’s programmatic impact. Andrea has previous experience working in health care and community-based organizations and has an educational background in public health and epidemiology. Andrea enjoys spending her time baking pies or bread, reading a good book, snuggling with her dog Petey, and taking any opportunity to get outside and enjoy the sunshine. She is an aspiring gardener and has yet to figure out how to keep plants alive in the heat of a Colorado summer.

Anne Taylor works in the provider contracting department. She is the very proud mom of two adult sons. She is a Colorado native, but spent her formative years in Ohio. Her other loves are her rescue Corgi mix, Scout, painting, the outdoors, volunteering and participating in the overall wellbeing of our community. As a Reiki Master, she is passionate about helping others find their own ability to heal and a path to meditation.

Kinsey Tedford is a utilization service coordinator at Colorado Access. She spends most of her self-care time walking while listening to oldies or podcasts. She has been a licensed mental health professional for over five years and has worked with a variety of different ages and groups. She also rocks the “favorite aunt” title amongst her gaggle of nieces and nephews.

Dustin spends his days at Colorado Access breaking software (so you don’t have to) fueled by coffee. When he leaves work, he is usually running, hiking, biking, climbing or yelling at the other cars in traffic. Maybe that’s the coffee... He spends most of his time with his family, which includes a wife, two kids and a mixed herd of pets.

Nancy Viera is the community engagement program manager for the community engagement team at Colorado Access. She coordinates and participates in external stakeholder groups. She has a ten-year-old son, and together they travel the world, go on hikes, and have lively debates.

Tim Wagner is a health programs specialist at Colorado Access. He grew up in Michigan and moved to Colorado in the spring of 2021. In his free time, Tim enjoys hanging out with friends, playing sports, and exploring the great outdoors in Colorado with his pup, Mya.

Heidi Warner is the senior manager, marketing & communications at Colorado Access. She enjoys words and culture, which led her to earn her Master of Arts degree in International & Intercultural Communication from the University of Denver. Heidi is an avid runner and brings a unique perspective having served as a small business development volunteer in the Peace Corps in Peru.

Dr. Bill Wright couldn’t decide what area of medicine he liked best, but being a generalist resonated with his values. After leaving Oklahoma and completing his residency in Colorado, his first job was with Denver Health in the Globeville area of town. He then went to work for Kaiser Permanente and after about 10 years of practice, began to notice that many of the issues affecting his patients' health had little to do with the “exam room” and much more to do with their work, race, economics, and families. He then pursued a Masters in Public Health degree and became even more convinced that these issues of “social determinants” (even though he didn’t know that was what they were called) had more impact on people’s health than any prescription he could write. Coming from a supportive family and having an incredible life partner with which we share three kids and six grandkids (to date…) he understands the importance of “health.” It is about being free from the stress and worry of medical issues so that all are able to pursue their dreams. We all deserve this basic human right.

Mitchell Zephier is a facilities coordinator at Colorado Access. He is an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in his home state of South Dakota. Mitchell enjoys live music (especially at Red Rocks), hiking and spending time with his wife, four boys and their Rhodesian Ridgeback dog, Zion.