Taking Care of Each Other!
Meet the LEadership TEAMS!
What a TEAM! Big thinkers, community connectors, detailed planners, lift-off strategists, experienced peer specialists, several generous donors, and community collaborators.
the Founders of LOM!
Amy Falk Weinberger, MSEd - Co-Founder/Donor
Amy Falk Weinberger, MSEd - Co-Founder/Donor
Amy Falk Weinberger, MSEd - Co-Founder/Donor
Amy is a community change agent bridging education and mental health wellness. She creates relationships with students, community leaders, and promotes creative supportive problem solving. She has taught or mentored 8500+ students in her 35+ year career. Her passion is to heal education in our local communities and beyond through relation
Amy is a community change agent bridging education and mental health wellness. She creates relationships with students, community leaders, and promotes creative supportive problem solving. She has taught or mentored 8500+ students in her 35+ year career. Her passion is to heal education in our local communities and beyond through relationship building, creative conversations, and intentional listening. Amy has had enjoyed a full career as an educational entrepreneur, mentor, and community builder. She and her husband hail from St. Thomas, USVI after Hurricane Hugo and have been married 34 years. They have three grown children and 2 adopted dogs! They currently live in Costa Rica.
Jordan Stonecypher, Co-Founder/ Donor
Amy Falk Weinberger, MSEd - Co-Founder/Donor
Amy Falk Weinberger, MSEd - Co-Founder/Donor
Jordan has been a student/mentee of Amy's since she was 8 years old while she was a student in the Sarasota County Public Schools system. She has earned her B.S. in psychology from Lynn University, and she is currently completing her M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Lenoir-Rhyne University. Her passions are art, connecting wit
Jordan has been a student/mentee of Amy's since she was 8 years old while she was a student in the Sarasota County Public Schools system. She has earned her B.S. in psychology from Lynn University, and she is currently completing her M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Lenoir-Rhyne University. Her passions are art, connecting with nature, and helping students find their voices so they can feel inspired and hopeful. Jordan resides in Asheville, North Carolina.
Bob Cohn, Donor
Amy Falk Weinberger, MSEd - Co-Founder/Donor
Bob Cohn, Donor
Amy met Bob, our funder, at the community mental health event (One Thing I Wish You Knew) at the Jewish Federation in 2018. During their conversation, Bob asked Amy if she could create a mentor program in the school setting. Amy enthusiastically responded, "Yes, I can do that." Because of Bob, The Lean on Me Project has grown exponentiall
Amy met Bob, our funder, at the community mental health event (One Thing I Wish You Knew) at the Jewish Federation in 2018. During their conversation, Bob asked Amy if she could create a mentor program in the school setting. Amy enthusiastically responded, "Yes, I can do that." Because of Bob, The Lean on Me Project has grown exponentially to take the lead in bridging the gap between education and mental health. You never know who you will meet!
LOM & NAMI Leadership Team!
Jordan Stonecypher, Director of LOM Innovation
Vanessa Miller - LOM Manager for School-Based Programs
Vanessa Miller - LOM Manager for School-Based Programs
Jordan has been the backbone to creating sustainability projects for LOM in the schools and in the local communities. Her lived experiences, academic training, and
growth mindset has propelled the
Lean On Me Project where it is today.
Vanessa Miller - LOM Manager for School-Based Programs
Vanessa Miller - LOM Manager for School-Based Programs
Vanessa Miller - LOM Manager for School-Based Programs
Vanessa is passionate about creating supportive communities and has found Lean On Me to be a beautiful expression of that. With a background in trauma informed yoga, peer support, and their own lived experience with a mental health condition, Vanessa is eager to share with the students she works with as she learns. Vanessa is a student at
Vanessa is passionate about creating supportive communities and has found Lean On Me to be a beautiful expression of that. With a background in trauma informed yoga, peer support, and their own lived experience with a mental health condition, Vanessa is eager to share with the students she works with as she learns. Vanessa is a student at USF working towards their bachelor's in psychology. Vanessa is an amateur gardener, a book lover, and someone who loves finding new outlets for creative expression.
Emily Haywood
Vanessa Miller - LOM Manager for School-Based Programs
Emily Haywood
Emily graduated from Florida Southern College with a B.S. in Psychology and hopes to use lived experiences to connect with and empower those who need a helping hand. Born and raised in Sarasota, Emily has personal experience navigating the local school system and understands first-hand the mental health challenges associated with K-12 and
Emily graduated from Florida Southern College with a B.S. in Psychology and hopes to use lived experiences to connect with and empower those who need a helping hand. Born and raised in Sarasota, Emily has personal experience navigating the local school system and understands first-hand the mental health challenges associated with K-12 and beyond. Emily believes that motivation can be found in even the most unexpected of places and that everyone deserves someone to support them through their mental health journey.
Emily Lapaca
Sarah Miller, CRPS – Family Peer Navigator
Emily Haywood
Emily is a graduate of New College of Florida with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and plans to continue her education in mental health counseling. Emily uses her own lived experience to model recovery, support others struggling with mental illness, and to advocate for accessible mental health care. Because of her passion for education
Emily is a graduate of New College of Florida with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and plans to continue her education in mental health counseling. Emily uses her own lived experience to model recovery, support others struggling with mental illness, and to advocate for accessible mental health care. Because of her passion for education and mental health, Emily is excited for the opportunity to work with the Lean On Me program and she hopes to help students balance their academics and mental health, be a healthy role model, and act as a support system for children and young adults.
Sarah Miller, CRPS – Family Peer Navigator
Sarah Miller, CRPS – Family Peer Navigator
Sarah Miller, CRPS – Family Peer Navigator
Because the Barancik Foundation believes in supporting a Family Navigator for Sarasota County, we have the remarkable opportunity to assist her with families that need academic support during mental health non-crisis and crisis moments.
LOM Support Team!
Taylor Walker, MA (Social Work)!
We are thrilled to be partnered with NAMI of Sarasota/Manatee so that Taylor Walker can continue to lead the Lean on Me Student Café Initiative while fulfilling her NAMI role as Youth Program Coordinator. She brings her innovation in youth programming, human services collaborations, mental health community connections, and originality to the LOM Project.
Kelly Boucher (Peer Support Specialist)
Kelly holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Criminology. Her heart is for individuals living with mental health conditions she has her own lived experiences with Depression, Anxiety, PTSD, OCD and addiction. Kelly's intention is to use her experience along with her education to assist those in need.
