Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs (ADVA) Commissioner Kent Davis has appointed three Veterans and a highly-skilled Veterans advocate to serve on the Veterans Mental Health Steering Committee.
Paulette Risher has been appointed to serve as the Vice Chair of the Committee. Dr. John Duffey, Jason Smith, and Kathleen Saucier have also been appointed to serve on the 20-member committee, which includes ADVA Veterans Well-Being Program Manager Sissy Louise Moore serving as an ex-officio, non-voting member.
“The Veterans Mental Health Steering Committee provides a unique opportunity in our state and we are thrilled to have these four partners involved and advocating for Alabama’s 400,000 Veterans,” Commissioner Davis said. “We will remain cautiously optimistic as the steering committee develops its comprehensive plan and will continue promoting the Veterans well-being services already doing a great job serving our nation’s heroes.”
Risher is a retired Major General in the U.S. Army and retired civilian Organizational Psychologist with the U.S. Air Force. With 34 years of active and reserve service, she was the first woman to serve in U.S. Special Operations Command as a flag officer. Upon leaving active duty, Risher has championed numerous service-based efforts and initiatives, including being the President/CEO of Still Serving Veterans in Huntsville. She currently works through her sole-practitioner consulting practice, Learning for the Journey, LLC, which helps individuals, organizations, and businesses to understand the bright spots and shadows of their situations and then to craft actionable strategies to create and nurture impact, connection, and well-being.
Dr. Duffey is a U.S. Army Combat Veteran and founder of the Alabama Institute of Behavioral Health. He is a devoted clinical mental health provider and human behavioral researcher and has dedicated both his life and career to the treatment and investigation of improved treatment modalities and enhanced quality of life for America’s Veteran population.
Smith is a retired Master Sgt. in the U.S. Marine Corps. with an extensive background in team building, leadership development, program management, and technical training to foster a healthy, safe, and productive work environment to accomplish goals. He is Certified Peer Recovery Support Specialist and currently serves as a Resilience and Risk Reductive Coordinator with the Alabama National Guard.
Saucier has more than 15 years of experience advising Veterans, service members, and first responders in trauma recovery, suicide prevention, and substance use, as well as utilizing new innovative, holistic healing strategies. She is co-founder of Samson’s Strength Sustainable Veterans Project in Lineville, where she provides case management to Veterans struggling with homelessness and joblessness. Since 2017, she has provided Telemental Health utilizing her mental health licenses in three states, with a strong focus on working with individuals with depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, trauma recovery and other stress related disorders. She is the daughter of a WWII Navy Veteran, mother of a service-connected disabled Navy Veteran, and the wife of a disabled, medically retired Navy/Army Veteran.
The Veterans Mental Health Steering Committee was established through Senate Bill 135, commonly called the Veterans Access to Care Bill, which went into effect June 1. The committee was established to develop a comprehensive plan to address the behavioral health needs of Alabama Veterans. The first meeting will take place prior to September 1 and meetings will be held no less than quarterly. The developed comprehensive plan is scheduled to be submitted to the Alabama State Legislature by April 1, 2025, where it will be presented by ADVA and the Alabama Department of Mental Health to the House and Senate Veterans committees for review and input. The plan is to be submitted to Governor Kay Ivey by June 30, 2025.