Cara brings an impressive array of professional, educational and personal qualifications to our organization anchored by her ten year tenure as the Director of Operations for First Congregational United Church of Christ, located in the middle of the downtown park blocks. A self described operations nerd, Cara’s passion for service is augmented by her meticulous attention to detail and dedication to people first management.

She holds a bachelor's degree in business with an emphasis in nonprofit organizational behavior and management from Portland State University and has over fifteen years of volunteer and peer support experience in addition to professional experience at Volunteers of America’s Addiction Prevention Services Program and De Paul Treatment Center.

Contact Information

cara.rothe@beaconvillagepdx.org

(971) 285-0545

Rahana has called the Pacific Northwest her home for over 13 years. She has a Bachelor's of Science in Human Development from Warner Pacific University, and she has worked in the social services field throughout her career.

Working with all populations from adolescents to elders, she feels that her experience and education has given her an opportunity to see the importance of building self-healing communities which can improve the health and wellness of all.

She feels that life moves in an ebb and flow process, so her hope is that we can all find the tools to support us on navigating the journey that we call life.

Contact Informaoin:

rahana.bear@beaconvillagepdx.org

(971) 425-1759

Brian is a family man who has dedicated his life to helping the less fortunate. He has many years of expereience in the fields of recovery, houselessness, substance use disorders and mental health. Brian enjoyes the outdoors and gym in his free time.

Contact Information:

brian.crabtree@beaconvillagepdx.org

(971) 425-1760

Americo Hernandez was born and raised mostly in Los Angeles, California. His family and he moved to Portland during his high school years where he graduated from Reynold High School, Class of 2009. Soon after he joined the Army as a forward observer and served overseas for 2 combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. After completion of active duty Americo joined the Washington National Guard and served a combined 12 years of service.He started his career with Do Good Multnomah helping houseless Veterans. This is where he gained a passion to serve and help. He spent 5 years with Do Good as a director. Where he was able to learn the ins and outs of developing programs and understanding the complexity of the houseless system. Now he brings his wealth of experience to Beacon Village driven to continue to help those in need.

During his free time Americo enjoys spending time with his daughter and 2 dogs Copper and Kirby. He thoroughly enjoys spending time at home, relaxing quietly and spending time with family and friends.

Contact Information:

amerco.hernandez@beaconvillagepdx.org

(971) 425-1762

Patrick has called Portland home with his wife, Spring, since the fall of 2019. He has been part of the Beacon Village team since January 2024. Prior to joining Beacon Village, he managed the day-to-day operations of a global non-profit organization. He brings with him over 11 years of non-profit operations and financial oversight experience. He has a passion for taking care of the operational details so others in the organization can accomplish their mission driven goals as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Patrick has two adult children and he and Spring are proud cat parents to Mike and Maddie. Mike even has his own Facebook page. In his spare time, Patrick loves to enjoy all the PNW has to offer with its many hiking trails and camping spots.

Contact Information:

patrick.mcwhorter@beaconvillagepdx.org

(971) 425-1761

Emily has lived in Portland since 1981. She earned a BSN from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC. She practiced clinical nursing for 12 years in Intensive Care Units and Operating Rooms. Following a two-year period in OR management, she completed a Master's in Computer Science at Portland State University, after which she worked as a clinical data researcher for 12 years, building and implementing specialized electronic medical record systems, architecting and managing data warehouses, and using natural language processing for free text analysis. She earned a PhD in Biomedical Informatics in 2009 from Oregon Health & Science University. She spent 12 years working in Clinical Informatics Management until her retirement in November of 2021. She has a passion for detail, honest communication, kindness, and healthcare for all.

Emily and her husband William have lived in southeast Portland since 1985. They appreciate all Oregon has to offer; enjoying hiking, camping, and especially rafting. Since retiring, Emily has been volunteering for Multnomah County Emergency management, performing qualitative data analysis and knitting sweaters for her nieces and nephew.

LeiLani is a versatile communications professional with extensive experience as a strategist in communication and public relations. Currently working in the public sector, she leads strategic communications initiatives centered on affordable housing development across Oregon.

With more than 20 years of experience, LeiLani has led marketing and communications for a nonprofit focused on increasing access to one of Oregon’s premier parks, directed public relations and crisis communication strategies for artisanal food and beverage clients, and produced newscasts in three Northwest television markets—earning two Emmy Awards for her storytelling and editorial expertise.

Originally from Montana, LeiLani has called Portland home for nearly two decades. She enjoys exploring the Pacific Northwest outdoors with her husband and two young children, running trails, and savoring the Willamette Valley's vibrant culinary scene.

As a board member, LeiLani is dedicated to leveraging her diverse communications background and passion for community advocacy to support Beacon Village’s mission.

Jeff graduated from Grove City College in 1980, with a degree in accounting. His first job was with a regional public accounting firm as a staff accountant. During the last 20 years of his career Jeff acted as the CFO of varying sizes of global companies in many different industries, overseeing Accounting and Finance, Human Resources, Technology and Facilities. Jeff and his wife, Lori, moved to the Portland area in September of 2016, to be closer to grandchildren.

Jeff has served on different nonprofit boards through the years including several related to swimming, two that supported animals and their needs, two for Washington County (Oregon) and one for his local church.

Other philanthropic endeavors that Jeff and Lori support include an equestrian therapy center for disabled youth in Southern California and two separate perpetual scholarships for each of their alma maters.

Jeff enjoys spending time with his two grandsons, traveling with his wife and grandsons, helping those in need, mentoring others, and spending time with their two dogs.

Paige (she/her) has spent the last decade working in HR, including 4 years working with healthcare nonprofits. Most of her career has been in the Recruiting/Generalist realm but she recently started a role as a Benefits Administrator for a local healthcare organization. She is very excited to support her community and work with Beacon Village. 

Paige holds a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certification, MA’s in both HR Management and Creative Writing, and am a Notary Public. On her off hours, she is most likely crafting, wine tasting, trip planning, or just hanging with her clutter of cats.

A retired research psychologist, Polly has lived in Portland since 2004. Since retiring, she has served as a volunteer at NAMI Washington and Multnomah Counties, as well as the Multnomah County Department of Community Justice. Through NAMI, she currently leads a monthly self-care group and presents her story of recovery from mental illness and addiction to various audiences, including law enforcement. For the past year, Polly has been a member of Recovery Café Roseway, where she volunteers as grants writer.

In her leisure time, Polly likes to play mahjong with friends, paint, visit family in the Seattle area, play piano, and commune with her beloved poodle mix, Arlo.

Janelle's career spans over two decades in government and nonprofits straddling roles focused on social impact, environmental policy, and program implementation. She is an accomplished facilitator in personal and team dynamics through her experience as a yoga teacher and more recently a Co- Active Leadership Coach.

After moving to Portland, having her second child, and learning through the pandemic, her work and life are now optimally more integrated. She is actively building her leadership and facilitation business, supporting executives, parents, and leadership groups in 1:1 coaching, team dynamics and improving workplace culture through co- active principles and integrated somatic practices.

Originally from the Southside of Chicago, Janelle spent most of her adult life in San Francisco where she had the privilege of aligning with housing activists working for TODCO (Tenants and Owners Development Company) and contributing to the stability and wellness of thousands of tenants through supportive low-income housing. She launched programs aimed at housing stabilization through community building, mental health improvement, and partnerships to expand resource access and earth based immersive experiences (growing gardens, engaging with the natural landscapes, and creative arts). She has served as founder and Board Member of an Urban Farming Project (HayesValleyFarm.org) as well as Cooperative Childcare (NCCDC)and PTA(PPS).

Jordan brings personal and professional level knowledge of housing services needs. Growing up, her family ran an adult care home for men with mental health disorders on parole from prison. Seeing firsthand how stable housing, a community to be a part of, and genuine respect for each other no matter your background, creates true hope for change laid the foundation for her path to social services.

From her time as a high school student in Las Vegas, NV to an undergrad at Northwest Christian University (now known as Bushnell University) in Eugene, OR, she expanded her education with several study-abroad trips. In gaining a worldly perspective, she further developed a sense of meeting people where they are in their personal journey.

After her time in college, Jordan began working for the United Methodist Church along with starting a career in property management. After relocating to Portland, she transitioned into the nonprofit world of working in homeless shelters and now assisting case managers with housing needs across Oregon and in Vancouver, WA.

When not working you can be sure to find Jordan playing, coaching or overall enjoying the sport of Rugby.

Charles is a relatively new comer to PDX,. He has been in the Portland area since late 2021. Charles has spent the last 10 year supporting the people side of business operations as an HR professional, and has supported mission driven organizations looking to make an impact from the earliest parts of his career. 

Charles has his B.S from the University of Florida, M.S in Business in Administration from Wake Forest, and an MAC in Forensic Accounting and Business Valuation from Florida Atlantic University. 

Cameron grew up in Portland and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Southern Oregon University in 2017. During college, he gained valuable marketing experience in the welding, healthcare, and software industries. After graduating, he returned to Portland to work at Rogers Machinery, where he developed his skills in sales, marketing, and project management. 

Brant has lived in Portland since 1979 and has been a general contractor for 26 years. He's also been a lead carpenter, construction trainer, math teacher, and wrestling coach. There are two quotes he always shares. One defines vocation as "where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet", by Frederick Buechner in Wishful Thinking. The other is, "The material and the craftsman's thoughts change together in a progression of smooth, even changes until his mind is at rest at the exact instant the material is right", by Robert Pirsig in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.