Rochelle “Shelley” Poerio

ABOUT – TEAM

Living Free Health & Fitness was founded to help people in recovery stay there! Our approach promotes positive change via cognitive and behavior modification, regular exercise, healthy eating, & planning to succeed. Our principles are founded on evidence-based, clinical practices and are designed to improve the skills, knowledge and abilities of our clients.

We are a group of individuals devoted to helping people get into recovery and stay in recovery.

OFFICERS & CONSULTANTS

Chief Executive Officer & Founder

Shelley founded Living Free Health & Fitness (LFHF) in 2013 after researching – and observing – the benefits nutrition and exercise can have on helping people stay stopped.

It has worked for many people, including Shelley herself (sober date: September 5, 2001). Shelley has been a clinician since 2009.

Her previous business experience has been as a securities brokerage principal, and a principal in several small (<$10MM) businesses in the Washington, D.C. area. Shelley is the author of the book, “Rebalancing the Addictive Mind: Beating Addiction with Exercise and Nutrition.”

Shelley is credentialed as a licensed alcohol and drug counselor-supervisor, master addiction counselor, and certified fitness trainer. Shelley has an M.A. in professional counseling from Liberty University and a B.A. in Communication from Stanford University.

Frank Troisi

Treasurer

U.S. Air Force, retired. Frank served as a pilot in the Vietnam War before returning home to continue serving his country, this time for 25 years as a San Diego County Sheriff.

Frank retired at the rank of Captain. He has spent time on numerous non-profit organization boards of directors. Frank currently runs a property management business in Pahrump.

His assistance was critical in the build-out, renovation and other improvements in Living Free’s office and transitional living facilities.

Dina Williamson-Erdag

Secretary

Dina LOVES Pahrump, and gives of her time and talent to numerous community service organizations. She is a charter member of the League of Women Voters of Pahrump Valley, serving as a past President, Vice President, and Treasurer.

Dina joined the Valley Electric Association Ambassador program in 2010. She became Co-Chair then Chair of the Membership Sub-committee. She was awarded the distinction of being the 2013 Ambassador of the Year, and was then elected to the Ambassador Executive Committee in June 2014, then again in June 2015 and 2016. Dina finds her association with and service to VEA and their Ambassadors to be one of the most rewarding experiences of her life in Pahrump.

Dina fills her time with volunteer work for many other Pahrump organizations. She was a Court Appointed Special Advocate Case Volunteer of the 5th Judicial District Court, graduating as a member of the first class of the Pioneer Territory CASA, and at the end of her two-year CASA term she was elected to their Board of Directors. She is also a supporter of Nathan Adelson Hospice, Pahrump Holiday Task Force, Friends of the Library, Pahrump Museum, Pahrump Arts Council, Pahrump Veterans Memorial Advisory Committee, Amargosa Conservancy, and the Death Valley Natural History Association. She served two terms on the Pahrump Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and was the proud recipient of the Pahrump Chamber’s 2010 Community Volunteer of the Year Award. And she is currently President of the Nye Communities Coalition Managing Board.

In 2016 she was appointed by the Department of Energy to a six-year seat on the Nevada Site-Specific Advisory Board (NSSAB) as a community representative for Environmental Management legacy clean-up at Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) and Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR).

She is an active member of Soroptimist International Pahrump Valley, and the Pahrump Valley Rotary Club where she a Paul Harris Fellow, and was recipient of their 2013-2014 Rotarian of the Year, and Rotary International District 5300 Foundation Club Member for the years 2013 & 2015.

Catherine “Casey” Jones

Business Adviser

Casey got involved with LFHF in 2014 to learn more about the challenges people face when in recovery. She is an experienced entrepreneur, having been in 7 start-ups, ranging from semiconductor design automation, semiconductor intellectual property, speech recognition and most recently pharmaceuticals. After spending more time with LFHF, she now contributes to the content and program development we offer to help people develop more traditional and satisfying – and sober – lives.

MS/MBA, The Tepper School, Carnegie Mellon University BA/MA, Stanford University

Willi Baer

Consultant

Willi Baer is a non-profit and donor consultant. In 2018 she retired as Executive Director of Pioneer Territory CASA, Inc. (Court Appointed Special Advocates) in Pahrump, Nevada and was the face of that organization since it’s inception.

Willi retired in 2005 as President/CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Nevada where she worked since 1993. From 1982 until 1996 Willi taught classes at UNLV Continuing Education on various topics relating to non-profit operations and management. She has also taught Board Training to prospective board members within United Way’s Blueprint classes. Willi is a past chair of the Better Business Bureau and for four years sat on the Las Vegas Chamber’s Business Council Board of Directors. She was a recipient of the Las Vegas Chamber’s Circle of Excellence Award in February 1998 and was featured in Distinguished Women of Nevada for four consecutive years. In 1998 she chaired the Chamber’s annual Customer Service Luncheon and prior to that the Chamber’s HERO Awards luncheon for two consecutive years. In 2005 Willi chaired the Board of Directors of the then-newly formed National Association of Non-profit Organizations (NANO). In 2004 Willi was named one of 25 Notable Women of Las Vegas by Distinguished Publishing Company as well as one of the many women who helped shape the first 100 years of Nevada. A banner to that effect hangs in the Library of Congress in Washington D.C.

Since moving to Pahrump, Nevada Willi helped to steer a club of Soroptimist International Sierra Nevada Region to charter in March 2006 and became charter president of the SI of Pahrump Valley.

Board of Directors

Catherine “Casey” Jones

Business Adviser

MS/MBA, The Tepper School, Carnegie Mellon University BA/MA, Stanford University