Hallmark Youthcare : : Staff

Staff
Medical Director Mario Gomez, MD joined Hallmark Youthcare in 1993 and has served as the Medical Director since 2010. He is a graduate of Vanderbilt University, Eastern Virginia Medical School and Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. Gomez is Board Certified and specializes in neurodevelopment, trauma, and addiction disorders. He has a special interest in pharmacotherapy and values the history taking and slow medication management for all diagnostic categories. As Medical Director, Dr. Gomez, oversees the medical staff at Hallmark and all assessment and clinical treatment programs. He provides Hallmark staff with sound and clear direction in order to promote best practices while serving the youth with his expertise in diagnosing, pharmacological management and innovative thinking. hmgpsychiatric@gmail.com
Chief Administrative Officer Di Hayes, MS is the chief Administrative Officer of Hallmark Youthcare, serving as the agency's leader since July 2010. Ms. Hayes, a holder of Master's Degrees in both Counseling and Recreation and Undergraduate Degree in Education has been a human-service professional for nearly thirty years. In the course of her varied career, Ms. Hayes has assumed roles of increasing responsibility and complexity, including many years dedicated to work with adolescents suffering from the effects of trauma. As CAO, she brings a wealth of experience, grounded in her training as teacher, clinician, and administrator. She has integrated these skills to become an expert designer and manager of complex systems of care, aimed at assisting youth and families to meet their full potential. di.hayes@hallmarksystems.com
Assistant Administrator Christine Rech, RN is the Assistant Administrator at Hallmark Youthcare. She received her nursing education at Williamsport Hospital School of Nursing and Lycoming College and has been in the nursing field for 40 years (25 of those in Psychiatric/Behavioral care). She has been with this organization for 20+ years, having started her facility career as a unit nurse, transferring to Utilization review 1993 and becoming the Director of that department in 1995; in 2007, she assumed the role of Chief Nursing Officer and in 2011 she became the Assistant Administrator. She has a passion for detail and a vision for every resident to receive exceptional nursing care. christine.rech@hallmarksystems.com
Director of Therapeutic Services Yvonne Campbell, LCSW has over 20 years of experience in the field of Social Work. Since graduating with her Master's degree in Social Work, she has worked with children, adolescents, adults, couples and families. Her experience includes work in a middle school with emotionally disturbed and educable intellectually disabled students, a rehabilitation program for seriously mentally ill adults, counseling with Hanover CSB, private practice, and residential services. Ms. Campbell has been with Hallmark Youthcare for 4 years. She currently serves as the Director of Therapeutic Services. In this role, she directs the provision of individual, case management, group, family, activities, and direct supervision and support of the residents. She chose to focus on this area of social work because of her enjoyment of teenagers and her passion for helping at-risk youth and families overcome difficulties to lead happy and productive lives. yvonne.campbell@hallmarksystems.com
Program Director Gayzelle Eggleston Thomas, BS has over 27 years of experience in Mental Health, Juvenile Corrections and Rehabilitation fields. She has worked in the public and private sectors in residential treatment programs and community-based corrections. Mrs. Thomas began her career as a Juvenile Correctional Officer for the Virginia State Department of Juvenile Justice and has served as a Correctional Rehabilitation Counselor, Special Placement Counselor, Intensive In-home Counselor and an After School Counselor. As the Residential Program Director she focuses her attention to maintaining a safe and structured environment for the residents and helping them to achieve their goals. gayzelle.thomas@hallmarksystems.com
Education Director Lynn Quash, M.ED has served as Education Coordinator/Director for the past seven years She has a B.S. in business education from Norfolk State University and a M.E.d in Curriculum and Instruction – Administration. Prior to joining the team at Hallmark, she served for over 14 years as a teacher and Education Coordinator at a residential treatment center in the Tidewater area. In addition, she has been an instructor at the community college level. Mrs. Quash was educated at Norfolk State University and The George Washington University. Mrs. Quash enjoys being with her students and daily seeks to have them leave the school with some information or understanding that they did not have when they arrived. This is a challenging task that she does not take lightly. She believes it is a pleasure to work with children and be a part of their growth and maturation. lynn.quash@hallmarksystems.com
Activities Therapy Director Sarah Hamner, CTRS received a B.S. degree in Therapeutic Recreation from Longwood University. Ms. Hamner was sure of two things; a desire to work with children and to have fun doing it. For the past 31 years (11 of those at Hallmark Youthcare) she has been able to achieve this. She is a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Therapist and uses her passion for art and creativity to allow the residents to build on their strengths and better cope with tough situations. She finds it rewarding to provide unique and interactive ways to promote positive expression of feelings. She has found that by identifying skills and talents, the residents’ confidences and self-esteem are boosted; therefore, they become better equipped to deal with loss. Sarah encourages the residents in some of the same activities she enjoys; including art, music, cooking, the outdoors, running, and spending time with loved ones. sarah.hamner@hallmarksystems.com
Community-Based Director Valerie Carter-Williams, LCSW received her BS in Psychology from Virginia Tech and her MSW at Virginia Commonwealth University. She credits the School of Social Work with grounding her in the guiding principles of social work practice that she utilizes when working with families and in her everyday interactions with others. Those principles are: non judgmental attitude, acceptance, clients’ right of self-determination, respect for clients’ worth and dignity, uniqueness, individuality, and problem-solving capacities. She is able to relate to clients with empathy and authenticity. Valerie Carter-Williams, has over 20 years of experience working with families and children within the public and private sectors. She believes that each family has unique strengths which should be built upon further. She understands the challenges of today’s youth and families and believes that each family has the capacity to solve their own problems. She earnestly believes that her job is to support, listen to what the family states is most important to them, and to provide guidance when needed. valarie.carter-williams@hallmarksystems.com
Director of Clinical Assessment/Community Relations Julie Plotz, MS is the Director of Clinical Assessment and Community Relations. She has been with the agency since February 1988, and in the Admissions Department since 2002. Ms. Plotz has a Master of Science degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Therapeutic Recreation and Leisure Services from Radford University. Ms. Plotz is an accomplished behavioral healthcare professional with 28 years experience working with children, adolescents and their families in a psychiatric residential setting. In her role, she brings a strong work ethic, strong clinical skills, effective relationship building skills and articulate communication abilities coupled with a passion for serving customers. Her commitment to helping youth is demonstrated in her ability to put incoming residents at ease and facilitate a smooth admission process. julie.plotz@hallmarksystems.com
Business Director Veronica Landrum has more than twenty years experience in the finance industry. She started while in college as a Bankcard Collector for Signet Bank. Fifteen years ago took her financial talents from banking to healthcare when she came to work at Hallmark Youthcare as a Patient Account Representative. After leaving the company for a few years to start her own billing company she returned in 2002 to Hallmark Youthcare to relocate the Business Office from Atlanta to Richmond and has been the Business Office Director since. Veronica enjoys using her business skills to help at risk youth. veronica.landrum@hallmarksystems.com
Director of Human Resources Tiffany Vadella joined Hallmark Youthcare in July of 2010 as the Director of Human Resources. In her current role she oversees the daily operations of the Human Resources and Staff Development departments and serves as a member of the Executive Leadership Team. She has over ten years of experience working in the human resources, human rights and risk management fields in behavioral healthcare, government contract and private industry settings. Her dedication and commitment to the values and beliefs of Hallmark Youthcare along with her skills and knowledge allow for the attainment of common goals that benefit the agency and communities they serve.
Food Service Director Bruce R. Morris is the Food Service Director at Hallmark Youthcare. Bruce started his career by proudly serving in the Military. Bruce was deployed to Iraq in 2006 to 2007 and retired in 2007 with 26 years of service. Bruce was the Food Service Advisor for the Virginia Beach Region. Bruce insures the residents have a variety of healthy foods to choose from and keeps the kitchen in top sanitation shape with zero deficiencies on his health inspections. bruce.morris@hallmarksystems.com
Plant Operations Director Ken Plotz is Hallmark’s Plant Operations Director. During an extensive career in horticulture, Ken was able to learn and practice skills in carpentry, plumbing, electricity and mechanics. As a contractor and owner of two businesses Ken has also worked with developers in management, marketing and sales. ken.plotz@hallmarksystems.com
Marketing Associate Linda Major is a registered nurse with over 20 years of pediatric experience. Linda has worked with children and adolescents in medical acute care, emergency services, and residential treatment and as a liaison between communities, families and providers of mental health services. Linda serves as a marketing associate, specializing in community based service s. In this role Linda seeks to serve families and localities; working together to find help for individuals in need of mental health services. linda.major@hallmarksystems.com
Community Liaison Wendi B. True is a native of the Shenandoah Valley and has many years of marketing experience in residential treatment for children and adolescents. She enjoys serving as a state officer for VJJA and is involved in many community activities. Wendi has a can-do attitude and is dedicated to helping families. Wendi has a passion to assist in helping young people get the treatment they need so they can go on to live productive and fulfilling lives in their communities. She has great communication skills and outstanding customer service with government agencies. wendi.true@hallmarksystems.com