Jess Bedard, Program Planning and Performance Director
Jess supports the MECASA team in planning and evaluating our programming. She also provides support to member program directors and helps us use the EmpowerDB database. Jess is passionate about making sure our programming aligns with our values and the needs of centers. Feel free to reach out to chat with her about all things planning and evaluating! When she’s not at MECASA, Jess enjoys hiking, traveling, and snuggling her cat.
David Casavant, Finance and Operations Director
David (he/him) provides primary oversight of MECASA’s finances and works with the Executive Director, outstanding MECASA colleagues, and many dedicated service providers throughout Maine. David is a licensed attorney and CPA with an MBA in non-profit management and over twenty years of experience in non-profit organizations working with grants. He also served ten years as a Title IX Coodinator. He and his spouse were born in Lewiston, live in Hampden, have four children, and are deeply devoted to Maine and its people.
Sarah Firth, Human Resource & Compliance Director
Sarah coordinates compliance and quality where she helps Maine’s sexual assault support centers figure out how to offer services and develop their workplace in ways that also satisfy the regulations. She conducts site visits and trainings on these issues, and also works on projects to develop consistent statewide services like text/chat and support group facilitator training. She lives with her family in Vienna.
Carlie Fischer, Systems Advocacy Coordinator
Carlie (she/her) works with advocates and community partners as they support survivors in complex systems, including the criminal justice system, the civil legal system, schools, and healthcare settings. She also works with human trafficking service providers across the state to make Maine's response increasingly survivor-centered and trauma-informed. Outside of MECASA, Carlie enjoys playing outside with her dog, cooking, reading, and tending to her (one too many?) houseplants.
Quinn Gormley, Equity & Access Coordinator
Quinn Gormley (she/her) works to support our systems and partners to improve access to survivor services for underserved communities. Quinn is dedicated to lifting up marginalized people through empowerment practices and the deconstruction of systemic oppression. She loves work which encourages communities to embrace their diversity and interdependence, and supports people and communities through times of challenge to work towards personal growth and systemic change. Outside her role with MECASA, you’ll find Quinn buried in seminary homework, working as a chaplain in the Maine Health system, playing percussion at the back of an orchestra, or spending time with her husband, kid, and menagerie of animals in and around Auburn.
Jessica Gorton, Communications Coordinator
Jessica (she/her) works to support centers in developing effective messaging to promote the amazing work they do and to inform survivors and their loved ones about the resources available to them. She also thinks a lot about how to change the conversation around sexual violence and how to craft MECASA’s messaging to have the most impact on individual actions, public policy, and the larger culture. When she is not trying to make the world a little better, she is probably either gardening, reading, or playing with her husband, son, and puppy on their homestead in Readfield.
Kayce Hunton, Intervention Coordinator
Kayce delivers training, provides program support, and connects advocates to resources related to services for survivors of sexual violence to Maine’s sexual assault support centers and related partners. This position is charged with supporting core services that support people who have been impacted by sexual violence such as helpline, support groups and one-to-one services. Kayce enjoys hiking, traveling and being in nature for restoration, rejuvenation, and individual sustainability.
Marion Hylan Barr, Public Policy Specialist
Marion joined MECASA after working for many years at the Maine Legislature as a legislative analyst for the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee and as director of the Office of Policy & Legal Analysis. During her time at the Legislature, she worked with MECASA and many other organizations and stakeholders drafting legislation, working with study commissions to draft various reports and supporting the work of legislators in developing law and policy. Marion has always had great respect for the leadership and mission of MECASA and is excited to use her legislative and public policy experience to support the MECASA team.
Melissa Martin, Public Policy and Legal Director
Melissa manages the public policy and legislative work for MECASA by advocating for legislative changes to support survivors of sexual violence. Melissa also represents survivors in appellate cases before the Maine Supreme Court and will also address matters related to sexual violence through amicus briefs. Prior to working at MECASA, Melissa worked representing survivors in civil cases and Title IX matters for several years at Pine Tree Legal Assistance. Melissa enjoys eating and cooking new foods, gardening, and traveling near and far.
Hyde Nichols, Training Coordinator
Hyde (they/them) helps provide trauma informed trainings about sexual violence and related topics to our direct service centers as well as community partners. They also maintain MECASA’s high quality trainings and support the rest of the team with their training needs. Hyde’s previous work includes advocacy and mentorship of youth from many different backgrounds including LGBTQ2IA+ and CSEC. When Hyde isn’t working you can find them hiking, reading about dinosaurs, and caring for their 4 cats and over 30 houseplants.
Lisa Rävar, Prevention Director
Lisa strives to support the impactful work of local centers’ prevention efforts by ensuring preventionists can access tools, resources, and partnerships that deepen and connect their work in communities. Her role seeks to address primary prevention in the communities in which we all live, play, and work to allow for the most sustained social change. When Lisa isn’t thinking about fundamentally shifting social norms, she’s attempting to read as cats or a dog are competing for lap space or she’s adventuring and eating her way across our beautiful state with her partner.
Brittany Ross, Operations Coordinator
Brittany (she/her) oversees, manages and maintains general office functions and supports all MECASA staff. Brittany has always had a passion for people, a deep empathy for others and a heart to serve. She is beyond excited to be a part of MECASA and Maine’s sexual violence advocacy community. Outside of her role with MECASA, Brittany can be found bartending in Hallowell, gaming at home, hanging with her cats, taking long drives and exploring things with friends!
Jess Russo, Children's Advocacy Center Network Coordinator
Jess (she/her) is dedicated to supporting the children of Maine by improving the statewide response to child sexual abuse. Jess comes from working with children as a social worker and is excited to continue that work through her role at MECASA. Outside of the office, she enjoys spending time with loved ones (most notably her dog), art, and spending time by the ocean.
Kristin Wollenberg, Finance Coordinator
Kristin (she/her) brings many years of experience with her from the private sector. As a former teacher, she has a strong interest in social justice and is thrilled to be part of the amazing team at MECASA. In her free time, she enjoys attending concerts, traveling, and curling up with a good book. She resides with her family in Brunswick, ME.
Elizabeth Ward Saxl, Executive Director
Elizabeth has overall strategic and operational responsibility for MECASA’s staff, programs, expansion, and the execution of its mission to end sexual violence in Maine and to support high quality sexual violence prevention and response within Maine’s communities. In addition, she focuses on initiating and advocating for victim-centered public policy at the State House and in other policy arenas.
You can reach any of our staff by filling out our contact form.
Jess supports the MECASA team in planning and evaluating our programming. She also provides support to member program directors and helps us use the EmpowerDB database. Jess is passionate about making sure our programming aligns with our values and the needs of centers. Feel free to reach out to chat with her about all things planning and evaluating! When she’s not at MECASA, Jess enjoys hiking, traveling, and snuggling her cat.
David Casavant, Finance and Operations Director
David (he/him) provides primary oversight of MECASA’s finances and works with the Executive Director, outstanding MECASA colleagues, and many dedicated service providers throughout Maine. David is a licensed attorney and CPA with an MBA in non-profit management and over twenty years of experience in non-profit organizations working with grants. He also served ten years as a Title IX Coodinator. He and his spouse were born in Lewiston, live in Hampden, have four children, and are deeply devoted to Maine and its people.
Sarah Firth, Human Resource & Compliance Director
Sarah coordinates compliance and quality where she helps Maine’s sexual assault support centers figure out how to offer services and develop their workplace in ways that also satisfy the regulations. She conducts site visits and trainings on these issues, and also works on projects to develop consistent statewide services like text/chat and support group facilitator training. She lives with her family in Vienna.
Carlie Fischer, Systems Advocacy Coordinator
Carlie (she/her) works with advocates and community partners as they support survivors in complex systems, including the criminal justice system, the civil legal system, schools, and healthcare settings. She also works with human trafficking service providers across the state to make Maine's response increasingly survivor-centered and trauma-informed. Outside of MECASA, Carlie enjoys playing outside with her dog, cooking, reading, and tending to her (one too many?) houseplants.
Quinn Gormley, Equity & Access Coordinator
Quinn Gormley (she/her) works to support our systems and partners to improve access to survivor services for underserved communities. Quinn is dedicated to lifting up marginalized people through empowerment practices and the deconstruction of systemic oppression. She loves work which encourages communities to embrace their diversity and interdependence, and supports people and communities through times of challenge to work towards personal growth and systemic change. Outside her role with MECASA, you’ll find Quinn buried in seminary homework, working as a chaplain in the Maine Health system, playing percussion at the back of an orchestra, or spending time with her husband, kid, and menagerie of animals in and around Auburn.
Jessica Gorton, Communications Coordinator
Jessica (she/her) works to support centers in developing effective messaging to promote the amazing work they do and to inform survivors and their loved ones about the resources available to them. She also thinks a lot about how to change the conversation around sexual violence and how to craft MECASA’s messaging to have the most impact on individual actions, public policy, and the larger culture. When she is not trying to make the world a little better, she is probably either gardening, reading, or playing with her husband, son, and puppy on their homestead in Readfield.
Kayce Hunton, Intervention Coordinator
Kayce delivers training, provides program support, and connects advocates to resources related to services for survivors of sexual violence to Maine’s sexual assault support centers and related partners. This position is charged with supporting core services that support people who have been impacted by sexual violence such as helpline, support groups and one-to-one services. Kayce enjoys hiking, traveling and being in nature for restoration, rejuvenation, and individual sustainability.
Marion Hylan Barr, Public Policy Specialist
Marion joined MECASA after working for many years at the Maine Legislature as a legislative analyst for the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee and as director of the Office of Policy & Legal Analysis. During her time at the Legislature, she worked with MECASA and many other organizations and stakeholders drafting legislation, working with study commissions to draft various reports and supporting the work of legislators in developing law and policy. Marion has always had great respect for the leadership and mission of MECASA and is excited to use her legislative and public policy experience to support the MECASA team.
Melissa Martin, Public Policy and Legal Director
Melissa manages the public policy and legislative work for MECASA by advocating for legislative changes to support survivors of sexual violence. Melissa also represents survivors in appellate cases before the Maine Supreme Court and will also address matters related to sexual violence through amicus briefs. Prior to working at MECASA, Melissa worked representing survivors in civil cases and Title IX matters for several years at Pine Tree Legal Assistance. Melissa enjoys eating and cooking new foods, gardening, and traveling near and far.
Hyde Nichols, Training Coordinator
Hyde (they/them) helps provide trauma informed trainings about sexual violence and related topics to our direct service centers as well as community partners. They also maintain MECASA’s high quality trainings and support the rest of the team with their training needs. Hyde’s previous work includes advocacy and mentorship of youth from many different backgrounds including LGBTQ2IA+ and CSEC. When Hyde isn’t working you can find them hiking, reading about dinosaurs, and caring for their 4 cats and over 30 houseplants.
Lisa Rävar, Prevention Director
Lisa strives to support the impactful work of local centers’ prevention efforts by ensuring preventionists can access tools, resources, and partnerships that deepen and connect their work in communities. Her role seeks to address primary prevention in the communities in which we all live, play, and work to allow for the most sustained social change. When Lisa isn’t thinking about fundamentally shifting social norms, she’s attempting to read as cats or a dog are competing for lap space or she’s adventuring and eating her way across our beautiful state with her partner.
Brittany Ross, Operations Coordinator
Brittany (she/her) oversees, manages and maintains general office functions and supports all MECASA staff. Brittany has always had a passion for people, a deep empathy for others and a heart to serve. She is beyond excited to be a part of MECASA and Maine’s sexual violence advocacy community. Outside of her role with MECASA, Brittany can be found bartending in Hallowell, gaming at home, hanging with her cats, taking long drives and exploring things with friends!
Jess Russo, Children's Advocacy Center Network Coordinator
Jess (she/her) is dedicated to supporting the children of Maine by improving the statewide response to child sexual abuse. Jess comes from working with children as a social worker and is excited to continue that work through her role at MECASA. Outside of the office, she enjoys spending time with loved ones (most notably her dog), art, and spending time by the ocean.
Kristin Wollenberg, Finance Coordinator
Kristin (she/her) brings many years of experience with her from the private sector. As a former teacher, she has a strong interest in social justice and is thrilled to be part of the amazing team at MECASA. In her free time, she enjoys attending concerts, traveling, and curling up with a good book. She resides with her family in Brunswick, ME.
Elizabeth Ward Saxl, Executive Director
Elizabeth has overall strategic and operational responsibility for MECASA’s staff, programs, expansion, and the execution of its mission to end sexual violence in Maine and to support high quality sexual violence prevention and response within Maine’s communities. In addition, she focuses on initiating and advocating for victim-centered public policy at the State House and in other policy arenas.
You can reach any of our staff by filling out our contact form.
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Member Advisory Council Erin K. Flood, Sexual Assault Response Services of Southern Maine Arian G. Clements, Sexual Assault Support Services of Midcoast Maine Meg Hatch, Sexual Assault Prevention & Response Services Fatuma Hussein, Immigrant Resource Center of Maine Tamar Mathieu, Rape Response Services Julia Miller, AMHC Sexual Assault Services Donna Strickler, Sexual Assault Crisis & Support Center |
Board of Directors Erika Lichter (Chair), Brunswick Stephanie Brock (VP/Secretary), South Portland Matt Ruel (Treasurer), Sidney Brooke Berard, Augusta Maulian Bryant, Indian Island Katie Kondrat, Portland Julia Miller, Hampden Meryl Poulin, Falmouth Julia Russell, Biddeford Donna Strickler, Winthrop |
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