Save the Date! The Annual Meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 17 from 6:00 – 7:15 PM on Zoom. Registration for the Annual Meeting is required, so please register below to attend. Connect with affiliates, vote for new board members and bylaws, and discuss organizational matters. Don’t miss this opportunity to contribute and connect! Keep reading to learn more about this year’s Board of Directors candidates.

In order to vote in the election of the Board of Directors you must be a current member of NAMI Massachusetts in good standing with dues paid as of October 4, 2026. Whether you have Open Door, Regular, or Household memberships, you only get one vote. Each eligible member will receive information about the voting process by email on Friday, November 13th and will receive a link to the online voting portal on Monday, November 16th. If you do not receive this link, please first check your spam/junk folder. If you did not receive the email, please contact elections@namimass.org. Voting will open at 9:00 am on Tuesday, November 17 and will remain open until 11pm.

Serving as an In Our Own Voice (IOOV) speaker and Ending the Silence (ETS) presenter with NAMI Mass has been incredibly rewarding. Drawing on my lived experience, Panamanian heritage, and professional background, I hope to contribute to NAMI Mass’s mission as a member of the Board of Directors. One of my primary motivations is to strengthen representation and elevate the voices of the Latinx community, where stigma surrounding mental health conditions remains a significant barrier. Having navigated anxiety, depression, and mania throughout much of my life, and witnessed the struggles of loved ones, I understand firsthand the importance of education, advocacy and support. Through my work as an IOOV presenter, I found purpose in my own experiences and an opportunity to help others. Board service would allow me to further honor those who supported me while contributing my education in neuroscience and professional experience in drug development, including skills in budgeting, financial reporting, communication, and leadership. I would welcome the opportunity to use both my personal and professional experiences to advance NAMI Mass’s mission and expand its impact.

I am a behavioral health leader, independently licensed mental health counselor, addiction specialist, and private practice owner. I currently serve as the Clinic Director of a large, multidisciplinary treatment program providing mental health and substance use services to an economically underserved community. My work focuses on improving access to compassionate, evidence-based care for individuals experiencing addiction, mental health challenges, housing instability, stigma, and other barriers to treatment.

I bring extensive experience in clinical operations, strategic planning, regulatory compliance, quality improvement, workforce development, budgeting, crisis response, program growth, and community partnerships. I also own True Paths Counseling, LLC, a telehealth private practice serving adults and couples.

Drawing from both lived and professional experience with mental health, I understand the importance of accessible, respectful, and person-centered services. As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I am especially committed to advancing inclusive and affirming care and ensuring that historically underserved communities are represented in behavioral health systems and policy discussions.

I hope to serve on the NAMI Massachusetts Board of Directors to contribute to statewide efforts to reduce stigma, strengthen access to services, and amplify the voices of individuals and families affected by mental health challenges. I would bring clinical expertise, operational leadership, thoughtful governance, and a collaborative approach to advancing NAMI Massachusetts’ mission.

My family’s connection to NAMI Mass has been one of the central relationships in our lives. While the link has threaded through most of my life, most recently, it has been an honor to serve on the Executive Committee as Secretary of the Board of Directors and as Chair of the Strategic Direction Committee for NAMI Mass.

During the past term, I am proud to have had the ability to weave my professional MSW skills with my long-lived experience as a family member, my volunteer work on an active NAMI Plymouth Area Board (including co-facilitation of the affiliate’s semi-monthly family support group), and my membership with a NAMI Mass-sponsored coalition successfully advocating for the transition of oversight of Bridgewater State Hospital from the Department of Correction (DOC) to the Department of Mental Health (DMH).  Such efforts ensure that my work on the State Board remains deeply anchored to our grassroots mission.

Simultaneously, I have used my macro social work lens to serve on the Plymouth DMH Site Board, support NAMI Mass’ legislative priorities, and further our organization’s health and endurance in the face of consequential, non-negotiable organizational changes for the state office staff and most local affiliates.

At present, NAMI Mass has a highly collaborative structure. I am seeking re-election to the State Board to ensure continuity in our executive leadership and the continuation of critical structural and advocacy initiatives we’ve undertaken during the past term through implementation.

I respectfully ask for your vote so that we can continue championing a sustainable, respectful, just, and person-centered mental health system in Massachusetts.

My name is Tracey Dooley, and I am a proud mother to two amazing, now-grown men. I have raised my family for the past 26 years in our home located in the Wollaston Beach section of Quincy. I am a history and nature enthusiast, events business owner, and have a wonderful family that I enjoy spending my time with.

Over these past several years, I’ve become quite passionate about walking with those navigating their own personal mental health journeys, more so when my oldest son began experiencing similar mental health issues. This prompted me to become an advocate for ending the stigma surrounding mental health. I take great pride in having earned my Massachusetts Department of Mental Health Certified Peer Specialist (CPS) credential and becoming a Certified Crisis Counselor.

During my time with NAMI Mass, I have worked hard to earn my Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Leader certificate and have greatly enjoyed the feeling of connection while teaching classes. Additionally, I have been honored to share my personal story over the years as an In Our Own Voice (IOOV) speaker, where I have met some of the most wonderful people. Taking advantage of all NAMI Mass has to offer, I’ve been able to complete the Family Support Group (FSG) Facilitator training, and the Ending the Silence (ETS) presentation program, where I have so enjoyed being in the high school setting these past two years.

Prior to gaining my CPS from the Kiva Centers, I became certified through them in Living With Suicide and Trauma Informed Peer Support (TIPS). Believing that peer support can be an essential part of healing, I would like to see more public awareness. This is such an exciting opportunity, and I would consider it an honor to serve alongside my fellow members, believing wholeheartedly that my passion, values, and skills align with the Board’s mission.

I am a physician-scientist, endocrinologist, biopharmaceutical executive, and mental health advocate with lived experience of serious mental illness and recovery. Following an acute mental health crisis that required hospitalization and residential treatment, I gained a personal understanding of the stigma, loss of agency, and barriers to care experienced by individuals and families navigating the mental health system.

Now I draw upon both my professional expertise and lived experience to advocate for accessible, compassionate, and equitable mental health care. My advocacy includes work with the Foundation for the NIH MAP-D initiative, One Mind, The Brookline Center for Community Mental Health, and GBIO’s Mental Health Research Team. I have also worked to advance mental health awareness and systems change through public speaking, writing, filmmaking, fundraising, and policy engagement. In 2025, I ran the Boston Marathon for The Brookline Center and became the highest individual fundraiser in the organization’s history.

I am drawn to NAMI Massachusetts’ commitment to lived experience, personal agency, and support for individuals and families, priorities shaped by my own recovery. I hope to join the Board to bring my leadership experience, policy advocacy, and fundraising skills to an organization whose mission is deeply personal to me: improving the lives of people affected by mental illness and helping them receive timely, compassionate care.

Professionally, I have held senior leadership positions at Pfizer, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Quotient Therapeutics, and Merck Research Laboratories. Most recently, I led early clinical development programs at Pfizer in chronic weight management, aging and frailty, and other cardiometabolic diseases. I am also an Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School.

Earlier in my career, I served as a Principal Investigator and Deputy Branch Chief at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. I have authored more than 400 peer-reviewed publications, was named among Thomson Reuters’ “World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds,” and am an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation.

I am honored to express my intent to run for re-election to the NAMI Massachusetts Board of Directors. Over the past three years, I have felt incredibly fortunate to be part of this board and to witness—and contribute to—a period of significant transformation. I am deeply proud of what we have accomplished together and of the dedication, courage, and passion that so many people have brought to this work.

I am especially proud of my service on the Nominating and Governance Sub-Committee over the past three years. It has been meaningful to help shape the leadership and governance of an organization whose mission I care so deeply about. I have learned a great deal through this work, and it has strengthened my belief in the importance of thoughtful, inclusive, and values-driven leadership.

My commitment to NAMI Mass is also very personal. I identify as a person living with a mental health condition, and having the opportunity to lend my voice and my lived experience to this movement has been incredibly meaningful to me. Being open about mental health, working to challenge stigma, and participating in NAMIWalks Massachusetts have been phenomenal and empowering experiences. They have reminded me again and again of the power of being seen, heard, and connected—and of how much courage it can take to share our stories.

My professional experiences have further shaped my commitment to this work, particularly my interest in crisis services and in supporting people who have experienced housing instability. I care deeply about the people and communities who are often navigating some of the most difficult moments in their lives, and I believe NAMI Mass has an important role to play in ensuring that people are met with dignity, compassion, understanding, and hope.

I would be honored to continue serving on the NAMI Massachusetts Board of Directors. I remain deeply committed to this organization, its mission, and the movement to create a Massachusetts where mental health is treated with the same compassion, urgency, and respect as physical health. I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute, and I hope to continue this journey with NAMI Massachusetts.

I am a health and wellness educator in my 14th year of teaching, dedicated to empowering young people and fostering community well-being. At my school, I serve as an advisor for the graduating classes of 2027 and 2030 and mentor three student organizations close to my heart: NAMI on Campus, HOPE Squad, and Morgan’s Message. Having coached field hockey and lacrosse for eight years, I continue to support student-athletes as a volunteer coach.

My desire to serve on the NAMI Mass Board of Directors stems from both my daily work with youth and my personal lived experience navigating postpartum depression and generalized anxiety. Known for my bubbly personality, deep empathy, and caring nature, I am fiercely passionate about shattering mental health stigma and ensuring individuals and families receive the support they need. I look forward to bringing my background in education, youth mentorship, and personal advocacy to advance NAMI Mass’s mission across the Commonwealth.

I am a proud wife and mother of two young girls. Outside of teaching and advising, I love spending quality time with family and friends, cooking and baking, reading, and recharging at my ultimate happy place, the beach.

I am a PhD neuroscientist, researcher, and dedicated mental health advocate applying to serve on the NAMI Massachusetts Board of Directors. As a long-standing member of both NAMI Mass and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), where I serve as an active committee member, my commitment to transforming our mental health system is deeply personal and professionally driven.

My dedication to this work is rooted in my lived experience as a parent navigating the complex, often arduous emergency psychiatric and inpatient systems with my late daughter. This profound personal journey revealed the critical gaps between current clinical frameworks and the real-world needs of families in crisis. Witnessing these systemic friction points inspired me to write a forthcoming book series that blends our personal story with rigorous neuroscientific perspectives, advocating for an evolution beyond rigid diagnostic categories toward data-driven, AI focused, dimensional approaches like the
Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) to improve patient recovery and the institutional milieu.

Professionally, I leverage my scientific training to build actionable solutions for families. I am currently launching a non-profit organization dedicated to developing open-access digital navigation tools to help families find immediate, appropriate care during acute psychiatric crises. Additionally, I am designing advanced digital and XR-based characterization tools aimed at modernizing how we understand and support individuals through a dimensional lens of mental health.

As a NAMI Mass board member, I hope to bridge the gap between cutting-edge neuroscience, public policy, and the day-to-day realities facing families. I am deeply committed to person-first, stigma-free advocacy, and I hope to use my unique combination of scientific expertise, digital innovation, and profound lived experience to help NAMI Mass expand its reach, support systemic reform, and empower families across the Commonwealth.

My connection to mental health is deeply personal and shaped by my experience as a refugee whose family came to the United States from Iraq. I have lived through my own mental health challenges and have seen how stigma, culture, language, and fear of judgment can make it harder for people in immigrant and minority communities to seek help. Those experiences gave me a sense of purpose and shaped the work I chose to build my career around. I care deeply about making mental health organizations feel welcoming, accessible, and representative of the communities they serve.

For the past three and a half years, I worked as Operations Manager for NAMI’s National HelpLine, where I worked closely with staff and supported a workforce of around 200 HelpLine specialists. NAMI became much more than an employer to me; its mission became deeply connected to the kind of work I wanted to spend my life doing.

My connection to NAMI Massachusetts is especially personal. When someone I love was struggling with their mental health and I was trying to find the right local support, I turned to the Compass Helpline. In that moment reaching out as someone deeply worried about a person I cared about, having a trusted place to turn for guidance and local resources meant the world to me. That experience made my connection to NAMI feel even more personal.

As I transition out of my role at NAMI National to a new position as Senior Manager of Helpline Workforce at Samaritans in Boston, I want to remain part of the NAMI community in a new way. I would be proud to bring both professional and lived experience to the Board and help NAMI Massachusetts continue building a community where people from every background feel welcome, represented, supported, and less alone.

I am asking for your support so that I can continue in my role as Treasurer of the NAMI Massachusetts board for another year.

NAMI Mass saves lives. NAMI Mass changes lives. Mental health is health and I remain committed to making a difference for those that live with mental health issues, the families who support family members living with mental health issues, and to eliminating the stigma.

When my children were little I recognized the signs of anxiety…I too had struggled with anxiety at different times in my life. I had seen many in my extended family struggle with their mental health as well. When my children became teenagers, I saw them struggle significantly with anxiety and depression. The challenges dominated our family’s ability to communicate and function.  We sought out supports for each of us individually and as a family unit. As I spoke to friends and shared our family challenges, I found that they either had their own personal struggles or that their children were grappling with similar issues or both. I also found that people were often uncomfortable sharing and were afraid of others’ reactions and judgment.

While we struggled, we heard of NAMI Mass and my husband and I enrolled in Family-to-Family (F2F). The course was tremendously educational and helpful and our group quickly became a very supportive community. We found NAMI Mass at perhaps the most vulnerable time in our lives.

Professionally, I have advised non-profit institutions on tax matters for more than twenty-five years. I am currently the Assistant Vice President, Taxation for Beth Israel Lahey Health (BILH). In this role I am responsible for network-wide tax strategy, tax issues and tax compliance. I work with both internal and external stakeholders, including but not limited to executive management and senior leadership teams throughout the network, internal and external legal counsel, compliance, human resources, finance and reimbursement, payroll, development and community benefits. I am an attorney and have an undergraduate degree in economics.

For the past several years I’ve had the honor of serving on the NAMI Massachusetts Board and as Treasurer. Serving in this role has allowed me to leverage my professional experience to support NAMI MA and the very important work that we do. During my tenure and in conjunction with my role as Treasurer, I’ve chaired the Finance Committee and served on the Executive Committee. I also currently serve on the Strategic Directions Committee and in past years I have served on other Ad Hoc Committees such as the Interim Executive Director and Executive Director Search Committees.

Having Eliza in the role of Executive Director is, from my perspective, a tremendous asset to NAMI MA. What is also true is that we are also currently operating in a time of significant federal and state budget cuts, government focus on exempt organizations and challenges to the diversity for which we so strongly advocate. We are also operating in a transitional period from the corporate structure perspective with the upcoming changes mandated by NAMI National related to Affiliate As and Affiliate Bs. I am asking you all for the opportunity to continue partnering with Eliza and the Finance Committee and to support NAMI MA in the role of Treasurer.

Thank you in advance for your consideration.