Justin Holcomb, PhD

Episcopal Bishop | Seminary Professor 

Dr. Justin S. Holcomb is the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida and teaches theology at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and Reformed Theological Seminary. Justin and his wife, Lindsey, have co-authored numerous books: God Made All of Me: Helping Children Protect Their Bodies; God Made Me in His Image: Helping Children Appreciate Their Bodies; Rid of My Disgrace: Hope and Healing for Sexual Assault Victims; and Is It My Fault?: Hope and Healing for Those Suffering Domestic Violence. He has written or edited over twenty books on abuse, theology, and biblical studies. In addition to GRACE, Justin also serves on the board for HeartSupport and Leaders Collective.

Website: justinholcomb.com
Twitter: @JustinHolcomb

Leanne Mellado, MA

Child Abuse Survivor | Clergy Abuse Advocate

Leanne’s survival of abuse by a retired clergy member as a child led her to serve on the board of a ministry to adult survivors of clergy abuse in the early 2000s. Over a decade later, that experience enabled her to engage as a knowledgeable advocate of several victims of clergy abuse. Her experiences have provided a unique perspective and instilled a passion to help find ways to shed light into the dark places of abuse, especially within the church.

Leanne holds a MA in Global Leadership from Fuller Theological Seminary. She has served in various staff and volunteer roles in churches from 150 to 24,000 in weekly attendance over the last 30 years, including senior leadership roles. She and her husband, Jimmy, have been married for over 35 years. Jimmy is the president of Compassion International, which serves over 2.2 million children living in poverty around the world.

Bettye M. Mitchell, MA

Nationally Recognized Leader on Elder Abuse Prevention | Advocate

Bettye M. Mitchell, MA is a nationally recognized leader in organization and program development with forty-five plus years of experience for older adults, persons with disabilities, in Long Term Care, and victims of abuse and trauma.  Bettye served in every level of direct service and management and was promoted to serve as the Texas State Director for Adult Protective Service, Deputy Commissioner for Long Term Care Programs including Long Term Care Regulatory, Community Care Programs, and abuse within state hospitals and state schools with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services and the Texas Department of Health and Human Services.  Mitchell served as the Director of Professional Development for the Department of Family and Protective Services, having responsibility for the development and training of all staff for Child Protective Services, Adult Protective Services, and Child Care Regulation and Licensing Programs. 

Bettye Mitchell recently retired from the East Texas Council of Governments, serving as Director of the Area Agency on Aging.  Bettye is an advocate and consultant for vulnerable people. Mitchell served as the former President of the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, the founding President of the National Adult Protective Service Foundation, and Vice President of the National Adult Protective Service Association. She currently serves on the Board of the National Partnership of Interpersonal Violence as fund development chair and was recently invited to serve on the Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment. She is a graduate of the University of Texas at Tyler and serves on the Community Advisory Board for the University of Texas Medical School, serving on the admission of candidates for medical school. She has received numerous awards for her life’s work in Elder Abuse Prevention and advocacy within her community. Bettye is married to Gabriel N’Guessan and lives in Tyler Texas. 

Lisa Oakley, PhD

Professor | Author

Lisa is professor of safeguarding and knowledge exchange and deputy program leader for the MSc in Family and Child Psychology in the School of Psychology at the University of Chester in the UK. Lisa has taught in higher education for over 30 years and was the program leader for the only undergraduate Abuse Studies course in the country. She is a chartered psychologist and chair of the British psychological society safeguarding advisory group. She was chair of the church of England Task and Finish Group on Spiritual Abuse, chair of the national working group for abuse linked to spirit possession and abuse accusations, acted as an expert witness in cases and was a core participant to the independent inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. 

Lisa has conducted research into issues of faith, safeguarding and abuse for the past 16 years and has co-authored a number of articles and book chapters on these topics. Her doctorate was on the topic of spiritual abuse and in 2013 she co-authored a book entitled 'Breaking the silence on spiritual abuse'. In 2019 a further book was co-authored with Justin Humphreys from Thirtyone:eight, entitled ‘Escaping the Maze of Spiritual Abuse. Creating Healthy Christian Cultures’.  Lisa has presented on these topics nationally and internationally. Lisa is currently engaged in a cross-faith research project exploring experiences of disclosing abuse that was experienced in a religious context.

Emmanuel Tchividjian

Principal, Markus Gabriel Group

Emmanuel Tchividjian is the Principal and owner of the Markus Gabriel Group, an ethics consulting firm. He was a senior vice president and ethics officer at the public relations firm of Ruder Finn in New York City. Prior to joining Ruder Finn in 1997, Emmanuel worked for the Government of Switzerland organizing special media events on the issue of the Swiss banks and the Holocaust.  He is the past president and ethics officer of the New York Chapter of PRSA (Public Relations Society of America.) He is currently a board member of PRSA’s Board of Ethics and Professional Standards and is a member of the Ethics and Compliance Initiative, the national professional association for managers of ethics and compliance programs. He frequently speaks on ethics, public relations, and crisis communication. Mr. Tchividjian has written articles for numerous publications such as Harvard Business Online, PR Week, PR News, and STRIVE Magazine. He has been a guest on CNN/FN, NY1, WGBH, and New England Cable News.

Website: www.markusgabrielgroup.com
Twitter: @tchivie

Laura Thien, MSW, LISW-CP

Licensed Independent Social Worker of Clinical Practice

Laura Thien is a licensed social worker in clinical practice at a rape crisis and NCA-accredited Children’s Advocacy Center. She has been working with survivors of child abuse, sexual assault, and other trauma for over ten years in a variety of capacities, including adoptions, foster care, and clinical practice. Much of that time has coincided with advocacy work in the faith community for better prevention, education, congregational care, and collaboration with the child protection community.

Laura has a Master’s of Social Work from the University of South Carolina and is a licensed independent social worker of clinical practice. She is trained in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). She has previously served on the board of directors for a rape crisis center and her state’s Network of Child Advocacy Centers. In addition to GRACE, Laura serves as a member of her local Sheriff’s Office Citizen’s Advisory Board. 

Website: www.julievalentinecenter.org
Twitter: @thienangst

Victor Vieth, JD

Director of Education and Research, Zero Abuse Project

Victor Vieth, JD, MA, is the Chief Program Officer for Education & Research for Zero Abuse Project. He is a former child abuse prosecutor who received national recognition for his work addressing child abuse in rural communities. He went on to serve as Director of the National Center for Prosecution of Child Abuse. Mr. Vieth spearheaded the implementation of 22 state and international forensic interviewing courses. Mr. Vieth was also instrumental in developing Child Advocacy Studies (CAST) undergraduate and graduate programs now implemented in more than 90 colleges, universities, law schools, medical schools and seminaries in 30 states. 

Mr. Vieth is a founding board member of GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment) as well as Sacred Spaces, which partners with Jewish institutions to prevent and respond to violence across the lifespan. Mr. Vieth developed the concept of Children’s Advocacy Center Chaplains and has assisted six accredited CACs in four states implement chaplaincy programs to address the spiritual needs of survivors of abuse. He also designed and teaches a seminary course on child abuse at Lutheran seminaries in Iowa and Pennsylvania. 

Mr. Vieth has published numerous scholarly articles related to the investigation, prosecution, and prevention of child abuse and neglect. He is the author of “Unto the Third Generation,” an initiative outlining the necessary steps to eliminate child abuse in the United States within three generations. Mr. Vieth is also a prolific trainer who has taught thousands of child protection professionals from all 50 states and numerous countries. 

Mr. Vieth has received numerous awards including the Victim Rights Legend Award from the United States Department of Justice, the Pro Humanitate Award from the North American Resource Center for Child Welfare, the Heritage Service Award from the National Partnership to End Interpersonal Violence (NPEIV), and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Institute on Violence, Abuse & Trauma (IVAT).  

Mr. Vieth has served on the board of directors of the National Children’s Alliance, the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC), the National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome, and is past president and board chair of the Academy on Violence & Abuse (AVA). 

Mr.Vieth holds degrees from Winona State University, Hamline University School of Law, and Wartburg Theological Seminary. His seminary thesis received highest honors and was later published as a book entitled On This Rock: A Call to Center the Christian Response to Child Abuse on the Life and Words of Jesus.

The GRACE Board shares their heart.

The following video was recorded as part of the Every Church Empowered campaign. It gives a great snapshot into the passion and dedication of our amazing Board members.

Recorded on 11/4/2021