Board of Directors
Mel Johnson - Vice President
Eumelia "Mel" Johnson, P.E. was born in the Philippines and grew up in Pittsburgh, PA. She moved to Henderson in 1991. She is the founder and Principal of CEEC, Inc., a minority owned business firm that specializes in providing construction management and environmental mitigation implementation services for mainly heavy highway construction projects and has been in business for over 18 years in Southern Nevada. Mel resides with her husband Michael. Her daughter, Gabriela (Gabie) 25 is on the Spectrum, diagnosed at age three with echolalia and aggression, and resides in an ISLA waiver home with a roommate, and has lived on her own since she turned 21. She also has a son Dante 27 who passed away in 2019. Mel"s favorite hobbies are working out, playing with her dogs and tortoise, and chasing snakes. Mel currently facilitates the monthly FEAT Adult Support Group Meetings.
Jennifer Strobel - Executive Director
Jennifer Strobel is an avid supporter of families impacted by Autism in Southern Nevada. Jennifer was a FEAT board member for over five years and has been the Executive Director for FEAT over 12 years. Jennifer resides with her husband Mike and has three children Taylor 25, Peyton 24 and Brenden 12. Jennifer's daughter Peyton was diagnosed with autism at the age four and began ABA therapy shortly thereafter along with Speech, Occupational Therapy and Social Skills Programs. Jennifer is a 2019 NVLend Graduate, Zappos for Good Advisory Board Member, Smith Center Sensory Friendly Advisory Board Member and a newly appointed Advisory Board Member for SEAC (Special Education Advisory Council) for the State of Nevada. It is Jennifer's goal to help educate through trainings and speaking engagements throughout Las Vegas on Autism, and be a meaningful resource for families that need support, encouragement and hope through FEAT of Southern Nevada.
Chris Humes - Board Member
Chris Humes grew up in Las Vegas and graduated from Green Valley High School. He has a bachelors in ASL Sign Language Interpreting from Western Oregon University, a masters in special education from Portland State University and a JD from UNLV School of Law. He was in the Army National Guard for 6 years and a special education teacher for 9 years (5 in CCSD) teaching students with visual impairments (braille, assistive tech, accomodations). He is currently an attorney at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP. Chris is thrilled to be a board member for FEAT of Southern Nevada and looks forward to help improve the lives of individuals affected by autism.
Teresa Isgriggs - Board Member
Teresa is a mother and wife to two children Drew and Miles who is on the Autism Spectrum. Her and her husband Randy have resided in Las Vegas for over 15 years. She has a performing background graduating from UNLV with a BFA in dance. Currently she works choreographing in the local community theater in Las Vegas. She enjoys creating and teaching the love of dance and music to all ages and abilities. Sharing the love of the arts is one of her greatest joys in life. Teresa now primarily stays home to work with her son Miles and help him with therapies, education and anything he needs. Projects she does work on always involve Miles as it helps him learn amazing social skills and experience his love for music and singing. Thanks to FEAT Miles has been able to access incredible resources in helping him progress, especially with speech and the IPAD 4U Scholarship. She is very grateful to be a part of raising more awareness of Autism to our community and help bring families more much needed resources and guidance.
Haley Duarte - Board Member
Haley Duarte is originally from the East Coast but has lived in Las Vegas for the past 8 years. She is the business owner of Snip-its Haircuts for Kids and has two locations in the Las Vegas valley. Snip-its is a children's salon where they offer haircuts, braiding, hair color, ear piercing, manicures, pedicures, birthday parties and more! One of the things that Haley really liked about the Franchise was that all of the stylists, in conjunction with Autism Speaks, receive special training to meet the needs of children with autism. They were one of the first to provide this unique training for their stylists so coming to Snip-its is a positive experience for children with autism! Prior to becoming a business owner she worked in Corporate Human Resources within the Lottery and Gaming industry. Haley went to college at Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts then received her Masters in Human Resources Management from Emmanuel College in Boston, Massachusetts and a MBA from the University of Massachusetts. Haley was a Board Member for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Rhode Island for four years. She enjoyed being part of the team and giving back to the organization on various levels. Haley has been a Board Member for FEAT since 2020 and believes in the mission and support they provide to the community.
Dana Zumbo - Board Member
Dana was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA - grew up in Miami, FL - and is living her best life in Las Vegas, NV! Her entire career of over 25+ years has been in retail merchandising and when she moved to Las Vegas she took a break from retail and went back to school at UNLV for Special Education. During that time Dana started the first Adaptive Swim class at a local community center which ultimately connected her to the autism community which she has been supporting ever since. She started working for Zappos, an online retailer based in the Las Vegas area in 2009 and now leads the Zappos Adaptive team focusing on providing shoes and clothing that is both functional and fashionable for people with disabilities. Originally from Pittsburgh, she is a crazy Steeler fan and has become an avid Vegas Golden Knights fan as well! She enjoys traveling, music festivals and concerts. Dana is also very close to her family and spoils her nieces with lots of love! My Why "To sense and respond to the needs of others so they feel supported in a way that helps them contribute to their highest potential"
Joshua Carter - Board Member
Joshua Carter is originally from Sarasota FL, and he is on the Autism spectrum. His background is in Culinary Arts and he's a graduate of Suncoast Technical College in Sarasota, FL. He is currently going to school for Criminal Justice with a focus on Human Services and Advocacy. He's a proponent for early intervention, and believes patience and understanding is key to big and small successes. Joshua has cooked for homeless shelters, mental health centers and volunteered in food banks. His drive is his dedication and service to others. Josh wants to bring his lived experiences to F.E.A.T. in order to help others better understand those living on the Autism spectrum. "Success is the sum of small efforts - repeated day in and day out". Robert Collier
Kate White - Board Member
Kate White is currently a Vice President of IT at Penn National Gaming, one of the largest regional gaming operators in the US. Kate grew up in Las Vegas and graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno with a business degree and an emphasis on Information Technology. Kate's passion for digital innovation led her to a position at a local Las Vegas ecommerce startup called Vegas.com where she spent over 10 years across multiple functions. Today, Kate leads multi-million dollar projects related to operational technology platforms and omni-channel digital transformation. Alongside her career, Kate is also heavily involved in her non-profit community. She currently serves on the Global Gaming Women Board of Directors as well as many other advisory committees. She is the proud mother of an autistic son who she notes is her hero and everyday strength.
Michael Becker - Board Member
Neil Braunstein - Board Member
I have been active in the Las Vegas community since we moved here in 2006. I am married with two children ages 18 and 15. At the age of 12, my son was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Right after his diagnosis, I discovered Families for Effective Autism Treatment and started attending the monthly family group meetings. My family and my son benefitted tremendously from the support and knowledge that we learned from FEAT. We learned how to advocate for him with schools and resources. FEAT also introduced us to Sport Social and their services including their vocational training program. Our son has recently graduated high school with honors, has a job and will be attending University in the fall.
Mike Adams - Board Member
Michael Adams is a multi-tasking maniac. Mike is the President of Port of Subs' Southern Nevada Advertising Co-op, a Port of Subs Franchise Field Consultant, the current owner of three Port of Subs restaurants (soon to be 4), and the proud dad of Bree and Grayson. Mike has been a Franchise Field Consultant with Port of Subs for over 12 years. He works with franchisees to ensure they comply with brand operations standards and to help them maximize business opportunities in their neighborhoods. After years of assisting others in building their businesses, Mike took a leap of faith and purchased his stores; he currently owns three Port of Subs restaurants and is in the process of acquiring a fourth. As President of the Southern Nevada Advertising Co-op, Mike leads the executive team and co-op franchise owners' marketing and business growth efforts. It can sometimes be challenging with 33 stores in Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Henderson, and Pahrump. Still, Mike's years of experience working with franchisees and his experience operating his stores helps him execute his role pragmatically. One of Mike's key responsibilities is developing and maintaining relationships with community organizations like FEAT (Families for Effective Autism Treatment) and the Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation. As a born-and-raised Las Vegas native, Mike is committed to improving the community. He and his leadership team actively support these organizations and others in the greater Las Vegas area by participating in events, donating meals, and hosting co-op-sponsored fundraisers. While much of his time is focused on business, Mike is a devoted father to his family. In his "me" time, he enjoys hopping on Harley Road King for a bit of R&R. If you ask him how he balances his busy life, he'll smile and say, "God first, family second and the rest will fall into place."
Yasadora Cabrerra - Executive Assistant
Allen Glatts - Board Member / Event Specialist
Living in Las Vegas since 1992, Allen seems to know everyone due in part to his many years managing local nightspots and the University bar scene. If you need anything He literally "has got a guy" and he's a bit of a historian of the Vegas Valley. Al loves classic cars and is a big time VW enthusiast, you can often find him at one of the local car shows. He is also a master chef of Vegan BBQ, (yes, that exists!) and is a champion of the special needs community. He has volunteered and managed dozens of programs and fundraisers benefitting children and their families here in Nevada and beyond. His heart truly is too big as he is always looking for new ways to be in service to others. However, his greatest accomplishment is being a loving husband to his wife Jenn and a father to his two fantastic children Jamie and Joselyn.
Kathy Kingston - Secretary
Kathleen Kingston is a native Nevadan who graduated in 1989 from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. She currently has 24 years of success working for Clark County Public Works as a civil engineer on roadways and flood control projects. Kathleen is the mother of a wonderful young adult son, Jack, who has a developmental disability due to tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and autism; thus Kathleen is a volunteer for several organizations so that she can advocate for her son as well as others with developmental disabilities. In 2007, Kathleen established and became the first chairperson of the TS Alliance of Nevada, which is a volunteer group that works closely with the national TS Alliance to support the mission of "finding a cure for TSC while improving the lives of those affected." In this role, Kathleen helps in supporting Nevada families, increasing awareness, raising revenue and meeting with Nevada Representatives and Senators to advocate for continued medical research funding. Kathleen has chaired six "Step Forward to Cure TSC" fundraising walkathons (2007, 2008, 2016-2019). She has coordinated conference calls with experts for the TSC community as well as the autism community. As a 2015 graduate of the Nevada Partners in Policymaking Class, Kathleen became an appointed volunteer member of the Nevada Government Council for Developmental Disabilities and is currently serving in her second term on the council. Kathleen's participation in Toastmasters helps her bring awareness of TSC to our community, support families, and increase her advocacy skills for her son and for others who have disabilities.
Chris Bache - Advisory Board
Christopher Bache is the founder of Logomix.com, a technology driven website helping business owners create a brand for their company. Logomix.com designs more than 1 million logos per month in 150+ countries. Chris is also a partner in Red Carpet VIP and Limitless Management Group, Las Vegas' largest and longest running nightclub hosting and management company. Chris is a Board Member and Camp Director for the Torino Foundation, a non-profit that conducts summer camps for children with autism and heart challenges. He has been President of FEAT for one year and is looking forward to expanding the organization to serve more families who have a child on the autism spectrum.
Dr. Ashley Hoban - Advisory Board
Dr. Ashley Hoban is a Las Vegas native where she attended Las Vegas Day School, Bishop Gorman HS and UNLV School of Dental Medicine. She has also attended and graduated with degrees from California Lutheran University and Baylor College of Dentistry. Dr. Hoban is a board certified pediatric dentist and owner of Summerlin Pediatric Dentistry. She is married with 2 children: Nathan 5 yrs and Charlotte 1 yr. Dr. Hoban loves helping where she can and spreading the word about our great organization.
Jessica Loggins - Advisory Board
Jessica Loggins is a Las Vegas native and attended the University of Nevada Las Vegas and graduated with a Business Management degree. She is currently the Co-owner and Operations Director of an ecommerce business specializing in seasonal depression medical devices. She also serves as the Volunteer Director for Torino Foundation, a local Las Vegas non-profit that holds summer camp programs for children with special needs. She enjoys spending time with her husband and three children.
Phil Cooper - Advisory Board
As Chief Executive Officer at Encore Productions for over twenty years, Phil brings strength, vision and years of experience to the Encore line-up. His major in Cinematography and Theater Arts at Ohio State University initially led him into feature film and commercial production; however, after he moved to Las Vegas, he shifted his focus to convention and trade show production. Phil has since overseen Encore's rapid growth, as well as producing hundreds of shows for a wide range of clients including IBM, Sony, and General Motors. Phil's technical expertise and production expertise are widely recognized and highly regarded throughout the industry. He is often asked to speak at conventions and gatherings related to event and presentation technology.
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