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WHO
WE ARE
Staff
Board of
Directors
Megan Brown
Co-Founder, Board President, & Executive Director
meganbrown@hopefoundnea.org
Currently serves as the co-founder, board president and executive director of Hope Found. She is a Jonesboro native who graduated from Arkansas State University and is a Licensed Social Worker. In 2009 while living in Nashville, she first learned about human trafficking and then began working for Free for Life International and interned with End Slavery TN. She returned to Jonesboro in 2011 and served as the NEA Area Representative for PATH (Partners Against Trafficking Humans) until 2015. Megan is a frequent speaker on human trafficking awareness and prevention to churches, schools, civic and non-profit groups in NE Arkansas. She continues to work with law enforcement, social service providers and other nonprofits to develop a strategic response to the human trafficking occurring in NEA. Her dream is to one day provide a safe house for survivors of human trafficking. Megan is married to Ralo Brown and they have 3 children, Jude, Ruby Rae, and Raleigh.
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Kyleen Taylor
Survivor Advocate
kytaylor@hopefoundnea.org
Kyleen Taylor is the Survivor Advocate at Hope Found of NEA. She provides holistic services to survivors as well as engages in community outreach. As a graduate of Intercultural Studies from Southwest Baptist University, Kyleen enjoys helping people of all nationalities, religions, and backgrounds. She enjoys hiking with her husband, thrifting, and making pottery in her free time.
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Erica Parker
Community Educator
info@hopefoundnea.org
A Jonesboro native, Erica is a proud graduate of Arkansas State University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Strategic Communications with a double minor in Marketing and Graphic Design. Her background in media and public outreach will equip her to build compelling awareness strategies.
She has held several titles within the Miss Arkansas Organization and promotes her platform, VIP: Volunteering is Priceless, to encourage youth service across the state. Outside of work, Erica is a long-time volunteer and wish granter for Make-A-Wish, enjoys creating art, exploring the outdoors, and spending time with loved ones. She’s passionate about making a difference and proud to be part of the Hope Found team.
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Lindsey Spencer
Marketing Consultant
lindsey@storybrandingstrategies.com
Lindsey discovered Hope Found when covering a story for a local magazine and has been a supporter ever since. Lindsey ran cross country and track at Arkansas State and graduated with a degree in Creative Media Production. She enjoys using her passion for telling stories to help build strong brands - whether that's coordinating events and building emails or making posts and interacting with followers on social media. When she's not making reels, snapping photos, or sitting behind the computer designing logos and promotional graphics, she's probably traveling or floating down a river with her husband, their son, and two dogs.
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Board of
Directors
​Kassidy Murphy-Reeves
Board President
Kassidy Murphy-Reeves is a Territory Manager for AAA Cooper Transportation. She is originally from Malden, MO she moved to Jonesboro 11 years ago to attend Arkansas State University & since has enjoyed calling Jonesboro her home.
Kassidy has been married to her husband Kyle for four years, and they have a son, Kreighton.
Kassidy enjoys the lake, hiking, being with her family on their farm, baseball, cooking, & volunteering & advocating for her community as much as she can.
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​​​​​​​​​​Kimber Boone
Vice President
Kimber is the Behavioral Health Consultant and adjunct faculty member at the UAMS NE family medical residency program in Jonesboro, AR. She grew up in Wisconsin as a child but graduated high school from Mountain View, AR. She graduated from Arkansas State University, obtaining her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work. She holds and maintains an LMSW in Arkansas and has a vast knowledge of working with children, adults, and DCFS. Kimber, her husband, and her daughter Ava attend church at First Baptist- Trumann. Kimber enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter and fur baby and enjoys spending her time serving the community by volunteering with Together We Foster, Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund, and Hope Found, being outside, and traveling.
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Clara Barnes
Board Secretary
Clara Barnes is the newest member to the Board of Directors for Hope Found. Clara was born and raised in Poinsett county, graduating from Marked Tree High School. She received her degree in Radiology from Arkansas State University along with her Masters of Sciences Health Sciences, emphasis in Education and Administration. She is currently the Practice Manager at Pain Treatment Centers of America for the Jonesboro & Blytheville clinics. She was a Make A Wish Granter for 16 years and has been a board member for Court Appointed Special Advocates of the 2nd Judicial District (CASA) for 7 years. She is a member of Central Baptist Church in Jonesboro. Serving and encouraging others has been a life long passion in all seasons of her life. In her free time, she loves family time, spending time with friends, reading, going to concerts and travel, lots of travel. She is excited to be asked to serve Hope Found and bring awareness to our community.
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Paige Pickering
Board Member
Paige Pickering is the Marketing Director at Life Strategies Counseling. She has been there since November 2015. She is originally from Searcy, AR but moved to Jonesboro to pursue her social work degree. Paige has been married to her husband, Anthony, for five years, and they have a daughter, Finlee, and one more little girl on the way! They attend church at Southwest Church of Christ and have two fur babies. Paige enjoys the beach, concerts, football, and yummy restaurants and advocates for mental health in her personal and professional life.
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Whitney Eldridge
Board Member
Whitney serves as the Marketing Director for Cross Bank headquartered in Wynne, Ark. A graduate of Ouachita Baptist University, she holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications, and has worked in Marketing and Communications for more than 14 years. Thanks to her career in marketing, she has been able to support and volunteer with a number of local nonprofits through the years, including Hope Found. She is passionate about supporting local organizations making a difference in our community and is honored to be a part of Hope Found's mission to provide support, care and education about human trafficking to the community. Whitney is a native of Jonesboro and still calls it home with her husband, Tony, and three boys.
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Heather Southard
Board Member
A native of northeast Arkansas, Dr. Southard attended the University of Arkansas for her undergraduate studies. She graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry in 2002. Dr. Southard is a proud mother of two children, Brandon and Blakely. In 2011, Dr. Southard completed a mini-residency in orofacial pain at the University of Kentucky. She is currently working toward her fellowship in a year-long program with the American Academy of Craniofacial Pain. Dr. Southard is a member of the American Dental Association, the Arkansas State Dental Association, the American Academy of Craniofacial Pain, and the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine.
She feels very blessed to be practicing general dentistry in this wonderful town. She is excited to be on the Hope Found of NEA’s Board to help make a difference and help fight to end human trafficking!
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Christopher Drost
Board Member
Christopher Drost is a Property Book Officer with the Arkansas Army National Guard and brings over 21 years of military service to his role on the Hope Found NEA Board of Directors. A lifelong advocate for service and community, Chris supports the organization’s mission to end human trafficking through awareness, education, and survivor care.
Raised in Northwest Arkansas, Chris values strong community ties and believes deeply in giving back. He and his wife, Brittney, are proud parents of two kids and two dogs, and their family life reflects his commitment to supporting those around him.
Chris brings strategic thinking and servant leadership to Hope Found, helping expand education efforts, strengthen survivor support, and build lasting partnerships across Northeast Arkansas. He and his family enjoy traveling, trying new things, and making the most of their time together. His vision for Hope Found includes acquiring property and growing the organization’s financial foundation to ensure its long-term impact.
Teresa Clark
Board Member
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Teresa resides in Bono with her husband, Tommy, and their weenie dog, Slinky. They have several cats and many chickens. They have two children and three grandchildren, who they love spending time with.
Teresa has been in nursing since 1991. She currently works full-time at Arkansas State University, where she teaches a BS in nursing. She is also adjunct faculty for the FNP program. She works one day a week at the Jonesboro Church Health Center, providing medical care for the uninsured population. Teresa serves as a member at large for the Arkansas Nurse Practitioner Association. She is a member of Central Baptist Church and serves on the medical response team.
In 2023, Teresa underwent training for Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) through UAMS in Little Rock. She is now contracted through Family Crisis Center to perform sexual assault exams. She is passionate about bringing awareness of human trafficking to NEA and looks forward to serving as a board member for Hope Found.
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Catrina Lucio
Board Member
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Dalton Hodges
Board Member
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Advisory
Board
Sherrie Mitchell
Sherrie serves as an advisory board member. She is a Senior Casework Manager for Congressman Rick Crawford’s District Office. She hopes to see an improved relationship with area law enforcement so that each officer is aware of the resources Hope Found provides in the community. As a result, law enforcement will increase the number of victims they refer to Hope Found.
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Natalie Gatlin
Natalie Gatlin, LMSW was a Stipend student and worked for the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) cumulatively for 6 years, serving as front-line staff and supervisor of front-line staff. Professionally she continues to work for the Title IV-E Academic Partnership in Public Child Welfare at ASU in which she has currently serviced 6 years as Field Trainer, Program Coordinator, and Interim Program Director. She received her bachelor’s degree in Social Work, master’s in social work and Certificate for Addiction Studies from ASU. She is currently working on a doctorate degree in Social Work. She has also worked as a school-based case manager and therapist and serves as a volunteer board member for Hope Found of NEA. She continues her passion for children and families, with a focus in substance use disorder, and supporting of those in recovery.
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Morgan Garner
Morgan is currently a Senior at Williams Baptist University where she is playing softball and obtaining a degree in Business Finance. She is very active member of the Fifth and Pine Church of Christ Youth Group, enjoys traveling, going to the lake, educating people on human trafficking, and spending time with family and friends. As the Miss Teen Arkansas International, she was able to take her platform, "Human Trafficking, People are not for Sale," to the national level!
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Amanda Pulley
Amanda Pulley (Casey) has seven years of experience working in anti-trafficking. As a survivor of human trafficking herself, she began her career as an advocate for those still in the life. She quickly realized her passion for impacting lives. Her strategic insight into typical advocacy methods led her to build greatly improved Advocacy and Outreach programs for ten different organizations. Writing programs, building out policies and procedures, training staff and volunteers, and seeing clients sparked her interest in practical training. Eventually, Amanda's work ethic, insights, presentation skills, and curriculum writing ability led to her desire to train human trafficking advocates in her methodology - moving the academic knowledge into practical application.
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Sarah Burnett
Sarah is a Jonesboro native who graduated with a bachelor's in Criminology and Sociology from Arkansas State University in 2016. She has worked at the Craighead County Prosecutor's Office since 2017 and since 2019 she has served as a Victim/Witness Coordinator with the Craighead County Prosecutor's Office. Sarah is very passionate about victim advocacy and victim's rights. Sarah feels most fulfilled in her career when she is helping others. When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her family, friends, and dog Scout. She wants people to have the knowledge and the passion to stop the growing problem of Human Trafficking. The first step to a solution is to know that there is a problem and then to do our best to advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves.
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Founding
Members
Audra King
Audra is one of the co-founders for Hope Found. She serves as an advisory board member. She and her husband have been married for 15 years and have two beautiful girls, Collins & Charlie. They own a local bakery in Jonesboro called Southern Confections. As an organization, she hopes Hope Found’s notoriety within the community continues to increase as a reliable organization regarding information about human trafficking and that they continue to make connections with other organizations that will help us better serve future victims.
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Mary Sellers
Mary is one of the co-founders of Hope Found of NEA She is married to Chris Sellers and has five amazing daughters and four grand babies. She is the General Manager of HoneyBaked Ham here in Jonesboro. She wants to see Hope Found expand into surrounding communities and increase awareness and education in these areas.
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Miranda Ballard
Miranda is one of the co-founders for Hope Found. She is married to Tanner Ballard and lives here in Jonesboro as a Mortgage Banker at Encore Bank. She hopes Hope Found can continue to grow into a bigger footprint to help educate more communities on human trafficking.
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