staff
"Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much."-Helen Keller
meet our team
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richard grahamexecutive directorRichard came to JIFF as Executive Director on March 24, 2014, after serving six years on the Executive Board of JIFF as Secretary. His professional background has been in national account sales and management. For three years he served on the East Memphis Board of Young Life. He and his wife, Frances, have been married for 30 years, and have two wonderful daughters, Natalie and Katelyn. Richard’s passion is to give youth a chance, seeing they are not the problem, but the solution to transforming change in families.
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Keusi donaldprogram directorKeusi Donald is the Program Director *. He has worked in youth development for many years. Keusi was formerly employed by the Memphis Leadership Foundation as the Program Manager of MARRS (Mediation Restitution Reconciliation Services) - which merged into JIFF and became the Early Intervention Program. He and his wife work alongside each other to serve the youth in the community.
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kaitrin valenciaoperations and process managerKaitrin Valencia came to JIFF in July, 2018 after serving on our Board. She is a licensed attorney in Illinois and Tennessee, an author, worked for 18 years in Chicago’s juvenile court as a top administrator, and also has a plethora of ministry and Christian non-profit management experience. She is passionate about and has expertise in juvenile justice reform, including juvenile detention alternatives and the implementation of evidence based programming. As an expert in female responsive programming, she volunteers much of her time combatting human trafficking both locally in Memphis and nationally. She and her husband, Emilio, have three children and enjoy mentoring. writing, and teaching.
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shelia medlinfinance managerShelia serves as JIFF’s Finance Coordinator with well over 20 years experience in handling the bookkeeping needs of JIFF. She has been married to her husband, David, for over 43 years. They have two children, a daughter, Cristi, and a son, Matthew. They are the proud grandparents of 8 grand-children (4 girls and 4 boys) and one great-grandson. Shelia counts it a privilege to serve God through the ministry of JIFF standing alongside a dedicated team of HIS servants.
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hannah mcdanielmarketing managerHannah comes to us from Knoxville, Tennessee. She attended the University of Tennessee and graduated with her degree in Sociology and Criminology. Hannah is passionate about advocating for our youth and uses this passion to share their stories through social media, events, marketing, and communications. Hannah and her husband, Mark, live Downtown, and they love being involved in their community and working together to create the best Memphis there can be.
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jefferson walkerassistant program managerJefferson Walker is our Early Intervention Assistant Program Manager. He graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a degree in Early Childhood Education. He comes to JIFF from Memphis Athletic Ministries where he was a middle school youth coordinator and Up2Us coach. Prior to that, he served for 4 years at Kids Across America, an urban youth sports camp located in Missouri.
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ronald frazierlead case managerRonald has been fully committed to serving the greater Memphis community since arriving in 2005 from the south side Chicago. Faith, character and integrity have been his driving force while serving in the mental health arena, providing an insurmountable amount of time, energy, and effort into community service projects, and fundraiser initiatives via fraternal relations (Prince Hall Masons). Ronald came over to JIFF in late 2015 as a case mentor, and has been on absolute fire for the JIFF mission of bringing an end to "the destructive cycle of juvenile crime”.
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grady turnerlead case managerGrady Turner has been a case manager since 2012. He graduated from Wooddale High School, and is currently studying Criminal Justice at Lemoyne Owens College. He has always had a passion for working with youth. He spent six years coaching baseball and now uses his passion as a dedicated life coach for the youth at JIFF.
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case managers
james austinJames grew up in Memphis with seven siblings. He loves to play sports (football and basketball) and was star athlete growing up. James got into some trouble early in his teen years and in the process received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Now God has set him on the to help others not make the same mistakes.
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nick butlerA proud native of South Memphis, TN, Nick attends Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church and is the gracious father of Jieret Butler. He is a Prince Hall Affiliated Mason of Robert J.Spraggins #163. His passions include change, growth, and discipline.
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sheamus coxSheamus is a mentor and proud father of seven children. He comes to JIFF after extensive experience working with at-risk youth. After accepting Christ and leaving a life of violence, crime, and drugs, Sheamus found his purpose is pouring faith, hope, and wisdom into youth. He believes in helping hopeless lives become productive and prosperous lives.
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DIONYSUS SISSON"Coach D" - as he is known - has been transformed from a life of pain, violence, and crime as a direct result of an ever-growing relationship with Jesus Christ. Having a history both on the street and behind bars allows him to mentor youth from an understanding, strong, and loving perspective.
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Stephen mcdowellStephen was born and raised in the Indianapolis area before moving on to pursue his dreams of playing college basketball. Stephen completed his college career at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga graduating in 3 years with a degree in Finance. He completed his basketball career with many awards and championships which led him to a European Professional league. Each summer, he would return to his hometown of Indianapolis and host basketball clinics in an effort to give back. Stephen's mission is to fuse his passion for educating the community on financial literacy with his athletic background to encourage each person he connects with to develop the seeds God's placed within them, dominate their area of gifting, and do so in a manner that brings glory to God’s Kingdom.
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Willie dixon
case managerEarly Intervention Program and Education Program
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dorothy jonesfamily care coordinatorDorothy is a native Memphian. She attended The University of Memphis and graduated with a degree in Organizational Leadership. Dorothy was formally employed by Americorps to work with high school students at an alternative school. She was also a long time volunteer at St.Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the Child Life Specialist area. She and her husband, Andre, have two children and are committed to doing their part to make Memphis a better place.
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kesha mcclurefront desk receptionistKesha serves us at the front reception desk. She has been with JIFF for over two years. She is often the first voice you hear when you call and the first face you see when you visit JIFF. Kesha enjoys working at JIFF because of the friendly interactions with fellow employees. It is also enjoyable because of the impact that JIFF has on the young adults they serve.
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david medlinfacility maintenance SUPERVISORSince retiring from BellSouth after 30 years of service, Dave now stays quite busy handling the repair and maintenance needs around the JIFF building. His background includes serving in the Air Force and Air National Guard as well as many years at the phone company. Come by and you might just see Dave on the roof changing air-conditioning filters, out back checking the oil in one of JIFF’s vans, or dressed-out in his coveralls painting one of our many offices. He always has a smile on his face while he works to keep JIFF in tip-top shape!
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sheryl millerchef, culinary arts trainingSheryl is our Chef in our Culinary Arts Department. She also serves as the in-house manager of Sweet LaLa’s Bakery. Chef stays smiling while feeding large amounts of people in many different settings and remains patient and understanding while teaching her young culinary students.
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becky pearceadministrative assistantBecky has lived in Memphis her entire life and is dedicated to serving her community. Her professional background includes working as a teacher at Treadwell, an officer for the Memphis Police Department, and a Probation Counselor in Juvenile Court for 33 years. As an Administrative Assistant, Becky assists the Program Manager and keeps records for Juvenile Court. Becky has two sons and is a very proud "Nana" to her granddaughter.
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Tonya watsonvolunteer coordinatorTonya Watson joined our team as JIFF's Volunteer Coordinator with over ten years of experience in Shelby County's Juvenile Court working with opportunity youth. Tonya has three kids, and she is passionate about equipping our most marginalized populations with the tools they need to follow a positive path.
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