The Roy Williams Foundation Meeting Minutes, Meeting 17

 

Date of Meeting 1/10/2021 2:00pm MST

Type of meeting: Live, Internet, Zoom
 

Roll Call:

Chairman: Zach Crevier- Present

Vice Chairman: Dave Newton- Present

​

Board Members:

Zach Krause- Present

Alhaji Bangura- Present

Kit Steimle- Present

​

Alternates:

Matthew White- Absent

Matthew Anderson- Absent

 

Secretary/Treasurer:

Bret Collyer- Present
 

Assistant Secretary:

Hailey Steimle- Absent

 

Guest:

Dr. Michelle Flores- Present

Call to Order.

Chairman Crevier began the meeting by welcoming Dr. Michelle Flores to the
group and invited her to tell everyone a little bit about herself. Dr. Flores stated that She is a
Doctor with Angel Wings Community Medicine a non-profit that is designed to work with
military and first-responders, people who work with trauma. She is also a firefighter, paramedic
and used to be a cop. She also used to train special forces and military in close-quarter, edged
weapons combat. Crevier congratulated her on her extensive ‘rap-sheet’ and thanked her for
her interest in our organization. She replied that she was honored to help.
 

Additions, Deletions or Changes to the Agenda?

Secretary Collyer noted that he had made a
clerical error on the agenda with regard to the adoption of minutes. The meeting mentioned on
the agenda was meeting 15, but it should have read as meeting 16. Correction noted.
 

Adoption of Meeting Minutes, Meeting #16 held on 12/13/2020
Crevier made motion, seconded by Steimle, third by Krause. Vote was unanimous.
 

Old Business:
*CIT Training for group-defer to Michelle Flores for training options as a group via online:
Chairman Crevier asked Dr. Flores to elaborate about training options available online for our
group. Flores responded that her CIT training comes from a law enforcement, forensic
psychology background and can provide some training from that direction. If we were looking
for some other kinds of training from another direction depending on the perspective you are
looking for. She is not aware of online training available, so we may need to look elsewhere for
that, but she does have materials and can provide us with training from a law enforcement
perspective. Most of her available training comes from the forensic psychology side. Crevier
replied that he thought that (perspective) would be suitable, noting that it (CIT material) would
most likely all be uniform stuff dealing with people who are going through a hard time. It would
likely be the same steps involved when dealing with Veterans, Paramedics and Law
Enforcement. Dr. Flores agreed and suggested that we set up some sort of platform where she
could post short training sessions online. Perhaps chapters or ‘bite-size pieces’ accessible on

demand where members could work on it as their time allows. Secretary Collyer suggested that
we started with Dr. Flores to see what she could offer and that we can also involve Sol-Vista
Health to fill in the gaps and assumed that Dr. Flores was probably familiar with them to some
extent. Dr. Flores responded that she was not too familiar with them. ‘Not so much, not here’,
she replied that she is more used to working with the Texas CIT teams and that the interaction
between her and Sol-Vista has been minimal so far. She is interested in seeing how they may be
able to help us out, noting that they may be a great resource to us based on the counseling side
if we could refer clients to them to help de-escalate a situation to the point where it is safe for a
mental health worker to be there.
 

*Roving Phone Number Acquisition- Director Steimle
Chairman Crevier asked Director Steimle where he was as far as acquiring a phone number for
our hotline? Steimle replied that we just need to get a google phone number. But we needed to
determine what area code we wanted to use. Crevier asked, ‘can we just pass the number off
as needed and is there an app we need to download? Steimle replied no app is needed, they
are free and he will take care of it.
 

*Begin Outreach efforts to partner with other non-profits and Mental Health Agencies.
Crevier began by noting that we have already began these efforts by forming a partnership with
Angel Wings, represented by Dr. Flores. He continued that we were also going to reach out to
Sol-Vista Health to see if they could help us with training. Dr. Flores noted that they would
probably bring a different perspective to our approach than she has, adding that the diversity in
perspectives/approaches can only be a benefit to what we are trying to accomplish.
 

*Identify and apply for available grants

Crevier asked Dr. Flores if she could help us identify and
apply for grants that may help us. Flores replied that unfortunately, she does not have much
experience with grants, but mentioned a few people she knows (broken audio) that may be
able to help. This topic will be an ongoing discussion.

 

New Business:
*Allocate funds to hire contractor to create database of Veteran and First Responder oriented
non-profits and mental health resources nationwide. Database to include: mission, contact info,
website, phone number, organize by State/alphabetize:
Chairman Crevier asked Director Steimle if we hired the individual to create our crisis
intervention resource spreadsheet? Steimle replied, yes, she is working on it now, but he told
her that she can’t charge over $500.00 to complete it. Secretary Collyer asked for her name.
Steimle replied, her name is Mary Cloud, a local friend that is working on her Masters Degree
and needed a little bit of work. Crevier asked Steimle if he had a projected completion date?
Steimle replied, she should have it done by the end of the month, but will check in with her this
week to see how she is doing.

 

*Consider adding two new positions to Board of Directors by:
1) Promoting Alternate Anderson to Director position.
2) Adding Dr. Flores to Director Position.
3) Seeking out two new Alternate Members. From Law Enforcement, Fire, Ems, Veteran?
Final Decision will require an update to our Bylaws.
Chairman Crevier began the discussion by reviewing the plan as presented in the agenda.
Crevier asked Secretary Collyer if he presented the process correctly, to which Collyer replied
that he did, stating that “You guys discuss it, and if somebody makes a motion and it receives a
second, there will be a vote and we’ll see if it passes”. Crevier then asked the Board what their
thoughts were. Director Steimle stated that he was ‘All for it’ with Director Krause concurring
by stating that Dr. Flores was ‘well qualified and brings a lot to the table and we are lucky to
have her’. Director Bangura began, ‘I am not all for it, but I am for it’; clarifying that he is
concerned based on Dr. Flores’ background and where we are as a group at this point. We need
more knowledge and you (Dr. Flores) needs to teach us. We need to be sure that every step of
the way, we are doing the right thing and we are not putting ourselves in a situation where we
are not doing what we have built the organization for. Where we are not doing what we say we
are going to do. We don’t want to make any mistakes along the way. That is my only concern,
now that you’ve heard it, I’m all in’. Director Newton added, ‘I’m with Al, I’m not opposed to it,
but I think we need to move cautiously because we don’t even have a roadmap yet. We are
trying to get to point C and we are still at point A and we don’t even know how we’re getting to
point B in between. We are still in the crawl phase and I don’t think we need to jump to the run
phase anytime soon. Like the roving phone number, what are we going to do with that?
Because right now, Dr. Flores is the only one who can talk to anyone (clients). Crevier replied:
‘Ok, I see where you’re coming from. Newton: Like we talked about the other day, we need to
crawl, walk, run. We are still in the crawl phase and we don’t yet know how to get to the next
phase. We just know where we want the end-result to be. Director Steimle spoke: ‘I think Dr.
Flores can help us get to the next phase. The standing up and walking phase, by teaching us
with her wealth of knowledge. Director Bangura added: ‘The risk is that she’s the only one with
the expertise to do what that number requires. Director Steimle asked: ‘What expertise do you
need to make referrals? We’re not talking people down, we are referring them. Bangura: ‘That
is true, however, the only person who can do that right now without any recrimination in the
future is Dr. Flores. If I (Bangura) refer somebody to some other number and something goes
wrong with the intervention. Then the client can say that the first person they spoke to from
the RWF wasn’t even qualified to talk to me during crisis. So how can we do a referral? Dr.
Flores interjected: ‘We can set up a peer support aspect. I can find someone more qualified
than myself who can train everybody to be the first line. Acting as a peer, on equal ground with
them, not trying to be the counselor, or expert. You are just with them along the way so they
don’t feel alone. Secretary Collyer asked: ‘Kind of like an advocate for them’? Dr. Flores: ‘Yes’.
Director Steimle: ‘What kind of certification do you need to answer the phone? That is what I’m
trying to get at’. Bangura: ‘Dr. Flores is giving us the answer we need to do what we say we are
going to do without getting us in a bind. So I like that peer support aspect, in my mind, it sounds

better than I imagined it. So we can move forward. My objection is not with Dr. Flores, I don’t
want her to feel like we are wasting her time because we are not where we’re supposed to be.
Now that it looks like we will be in a position where we can walk; that’s awesome!’ Crevier: Ok,
let’s get the Google phone number assigned, but we’ll hold off on publishing it until we get the
peer support aspect figured out and we all get basic CIT training and our referral spreadsheet
completed. What do you all think about ‘pumping the brakes on going fully active until we get
the basic training? Does that make sense?’ Dr. Flores: ‘It does’. Secretary Collyer: As of now,
Steimle and Flores have proper certifications, I wouldn’t expect the phone to start ringing off
the hook tomorrow, it’s going to take some time to get the name recognition and do all of the
outreach necessary. Once we get the right classes lined up, it shouldn’t take us too long to get
certified. Dr. Flores: The peer support training is where people will reach out first and Crisis
Intervention will be a last resort, once spreadsheet is complete, if we want to go live, we just
need to make sure that we are very clear with the caller that we are a ‘referral clearing house’
coming from the position of peer support. But you will need to have the spreadsheet
completed and ready beforehand. Bangura: ‘The list, how are we going to vet it? What metrics
can we use to ensure that these other organizations are qualified counselors? Dr. Flores: ‘Good
question, I have also been thinking about that. You have to be careful, because now, these
organizations are trending and we have to make sure that they are not going to make things
worse for the client. We do have to come up with some matrix to ensure that they are
qualified. She went on to give an example of a recent client who went to a counselor who was
assigned by his agency. His story was so disturbing that it ended up traumatizing his counselor
so badly that she needed to fire him as a client and ended up needing counseling herself,
because of his stories. So we need to be particular as as to who we refer people to. We need to
ensure that they come from backgrounds that will allow them to listen and understand. A lot
more people are coming into counseling than ever before. We need to check out their
education and social media; almost like a background check. To vet them to make sure that
they are not saying ‘Hey I want to be a therapist and help the police and first responders’, but
then their social media posts say ‘Defund the police and shoot them all’. So, these are some
simple things we can do. We almost need to vet them as if we are going to hire them for the
military or a first responder organization’. Secretary Collyer: ‘Well said Dr. Flores, great
information. Great question Bangura’!
 

Chairman Crevier: Ok, back to the question of adding Dr. Flores and promoting Anderson. If we
do that, we will need two more alternates. I have someone in mind (Travis), but since the
military is well represented, we should consider bringing in more first responders. Since Kit and
Dr. Flores are the only ones with Law Enforcement backgrounds. What do you all think?
Director Krause: I think that a big part of what to consider isn’t so much their background, but
who’s passionate about it. We need someone with a clean background, but like Dave and Al
said, it’s more important what they bring to the table, which is why I think we’re on the right
track with Dr. Flores. Somebody like Travis would be good even though he may not check all of
the boxes, but he’s passionate and willing to learn. Director Steimle: I’ve got a guy who was

injured by an IED in Iraq, he healed up, then he became a Police Officer. After that, he went to
the border patrol for awhile and is now a Police Officer again for a large department. He is very
passionate about it. His name is Dexter Pitts and is currently writing a book. He would be a
good asset if he would be interested. Chairman Crevier: Can you reach out to him for us?
Steimle: Yes, would we want him to submit a bio? Secretary Collyer: I would say that anybody
you guys think would be a good candidate, have them write a letter of interest and bio and we
can consider them at future meetings. Dr. Flores: I like the idea of having representatives from
all of the different professions that you guys are targeting. That is a good approach. Chairman
Crevier: So, Anderson (absent) is ok with being moved to a Director position, is that correct?
Secretary Collyer: Yes, I was communicating with him earlier about it. Chairman Crevier: Ok, I
will make a motion to promote Alternate Anderson to a Director position as well as adding Dr.
Flores to a Director position. Director Steimle: Second Director Krause: Third.
Vote was unanimous
 

All members welcomed Dr. Flores to the team.
 

Financial Update: Chairman Crevier: Noted that in addition to the $934.51 that was received
through his online fundraiser, that there should be another $1300 “Or so” forthcoming from
the fundraiser that his sister set up. He was not sure how to set an end date for the second
fundraiser, so he wasn’t sure if the company would close it out automatically at some point or if
they would send money periodically. He may call the company to inquire. Crevier then asked
Secretary Collyer to relay the finances to the group.
 

Collyer: noted that ‘All in all, we are doing very good, we are building our reserves, which has
been one of our goals. We have allocated $500.00 to pay Steimle’s friend to create our resource
spreadsheet, which falls very comfortably into our ability to pay. The following balances
reflected the donations Crevier just mentioned with the deposits placed into our savings
account. Our one expenditure for the month, totaling $378.00 was paid to the Mountain mail
newspaper for advertising our in-person meeting, which is also reflected in the balances as
follows:
Checking Balance: $1,024.02
Savings Balance: 4,143.12
Total monetary assets: $5,167.14
 

Other Business:
Secretary Collyer to write donation receipts to donors that gave $250.00 or more during 2020.
Any lesser amounts will receive a receipt if requested. Chairman Crevier asked Secretary
Collyer how many receipts and letters went out? Collyer responded that three letters in total
went out, with one going to Mr. Zachary Ledford, one to High Country Bank and one to
Pavement Maintenance Services. Director Krause Said that he has been in communication with
Mr. Ledford who will continue fundraising efforts for us. Secretary Collyer added that about
one year ago when we first started this endeavor, the world was a much different place. Now
with Covid-19 and the civil unrest, things are much more difficult, making this more of an uphill

battle than we first anticipated. Director Flores added that our mission seems even more
important now with all of those things happening.
 

Crevier Announced: Our PO box service is moving at the end of February, mailing address will
change to:
9996 US Hwy 50
Unit #1145
Salida, Co. 81201
Secretary Collyer commented that at least our old address was not placed on our business
cards, so it shouldn’t affect us that much.
 

Anything else? Secretary Collyer will reach out to Sol Vista Health to see what kind of group
training they could facilitate for us. Crevier: Do we want to set a deadline for completing our
training and getting us all certified? Director Flores: I will check with some people that I work
with to help us set up some peer support training. Crevier: Ok, lets put together a plan for
training and see what we can get lined up, then consider a deadline to get us all certified.
Flores: If someone can set up a platform, I can begin to assemble some training materials to
place on it for us to get started. Crevier asked members of the group if they were familiar with
the ‘Microsoft Teams’ platform, a few members of the group were. Crevier went on to note all
of the different benefits of the platform and said that he will send out links to everybody to join
the “Team” which will become our platform for our training efforts and maybe eventually, hold
all of our meetings there.
 

Next Meeting:
January 24 th @ 1400 MST

 

Meeting Adjourned:
2:45 pm MST