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Care for the Healer (CFTH) is an organization built by Healers to stand as an advocate for ourselves, our colleagues, and our communities.
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Healers strive to mend something broken - from spirits, minds, bodies, and ecosystems, to relationships, cultural paradigms, and experiences. A Healer is an individual that has the ability and willingness to create sustainable, positive change on behalf of others.
Meet our Board
Casara Andre | Founding President | Veterinary Community Advocate
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Dr. Casara Andre is a Healer consistently motivated by her desire to help all mammals of all species (human and veterinary) repair and sustain their health and wellbeing. A veterinarian by education and training, Dr. Andre’s day-to-day mission is creating a safe-haven and incubator-for-ideas opportunities within medical communities. By leveraging the power of cooperation, creating a supportive community, and encouraging creative solutions, she works to support entrepreneurship among Healers that have a vision for positive change in the world.
Dr. Andre is dedicated to providing practical education and harm reduction training to the emerging fields of veterinary cannabis and psychedelic medicines to ensure that veterinary practitioners and animal caregivers have access to science-backed, clinically-applicable, and patient-focused information with these emerging areas of medicine. Dr. Andre believes that unashamed curiosity will always lead to unexpected and exciting discoveries, but that scientific scrutiny, rigor, and precision must never be neglected. |
Jane Roach | Treasurer
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Jane provides bookkeeping services and financial counseling to the Colorado community through her business, Chandra Services. She loves work with small business and non-profits with a vision for positive change. Jane provides her clients with solid accounting services in a timely manner, strategically blending flexibility and deadline awareness to suit each individual accounting and business need.
Jane's ability to communicate effectively with all levels of an organization (clients, vendors, contractors, employees as well as board members) makes her an invaluable team member within any organization. Jane is an avid animal lover and supporter of wellbeing within all Healer communities. She also currently serves as the Treasurer for the Human Animal Bond Trust. |
Erin Coleman | Secretary
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Erin has is a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from the University of Colorado, Colorado School of Public Health graduate. Since graduating in 2020, she works as a Professional Research Assistant at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.
As a Colorado native, Erin enjoys hiking and backpacking in the Rocky Mountains. She lives in Denver with her husband and three cats, Panthro, Luz and Linus. She also volunteers as a foster for the Colorado Feline Foster Rescue and serves as the Secretary for the Human Animal Bond Trust. |
Emily Engelman | Board Member | Veterinary Community Advocate
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Emily grew up in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and moved west after high school to earn her BA in Biology from Colorado College. She aspired to a career in Wildlife Biology and volunteered for several wolf-centered projects from Yellowstone to the north and central Midwest. Although weeks-long excursions through the Boundary Waters and around Isle Royale National Park were rewarding and invigorating, she eventually opted for less subsisting out of a backpack with freeze-dried meals in favor of more predictable… everything.
Emily completed the course of study at Bel-Rea Institute in Denver in 2013 and was hired to the Intensive Care Unit at a prominent veterinary specialty hospital in Denver. After an almost career-ending experience at another specialty practice, she left the world of corporate medicine to focus on her own wellbeing and practice in a field where she could work closely with patients and their owners to promote long-term health for all. Emily earned her certification as a Canine Rehabilitation Veterinary Nurse in the summer of 2016 and is an aspiring entrepreneur in the field. She has been a valued member of the Cultivate Wellbeing community since 2019 and enjoys brainstorming new ventures in her spare time. She lives in Englewood, CO with her husband and their zoo of kids and pets. |
Flor Ortiz | Board Member | Veterinary Community Advocate
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Flor es originaria de la Ciudad de México, en donde creció y en donde actualmente vive. Es médica veterinaria zootecnista egresada de la Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (FMVZ-UNAM), y está certificada como Veterinary Cannabis Counselor. Actualmente se enfoca en la investigación de los usos y aplicaciones del cannabis medicinal en medicina veterinaria y humana.
Una de sus pasiones es hacer búsqueda de artículos científicos sobre el cannabis de uso medicinal para después leerlos, resumirlos y transformarlos en información que pueda ser utilizada para educar médicos, así como pacientes y/o cuidadores de animales para ayudarles a mejorar su calidad de vida. Además, Flor gusta de recopilar esa información para respaldar la creación de productos seguros para los pacientes humanos y animales, y de esa forma reducir posibles riesgos para ellos. Read more about Dr. Flor here. |
Meet our Program Teams
Compassion Program
Michelle Castle | Resiliency & Wellbeing Support Specialist
Michelle Castle | Resiliency & Wellbeing Support Specialist
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Michelle is a resilient survivor of a catastrophic brain injury and is a dedicated disability awareness advocate. She finds inspiration in the world around her - a world that comes to life through her photography and community projects.
Michelle has a 28 year career that spans her experience as a military medic, through her career as a veterinary technician, to her current role as a board-certified chaplain. Michelle facilitates wellness & resiliency through education, practical skills, & support. You can learn more about Michelle by watching her Welcome-to-the-Team interview!
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Curiosity Program
Steve Kruzeniski | Connection Coordinator
Steve Kruzeniski | Connection Coordinator
Innovation Program
OPEN | Research Coordinator
OPEN | Research Coordinator
- Community Mourning as a Novel Solution for Professional Grief in Veterinary Professionals
- Toolkits for Resiliency to Professional Grief in Veterinary Professionals
- Safety & Efficacy of MDMA in Canine Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (cPTSD)
