Liz Thorne, MPH
Matchstick Director she/her
Liz is passionate about creating places where young people are connected by pushing education, health and youth-serving systems to transform their work. Liz approaches working with clients and communities with the values of: integrity, empathy, building on strengths, and openness to new ideas and perspectives.
Liz received her Masters in Public Health from Portland State University. She has held previous positions at Portland State University, Regional Research Institute and the Oregon Public Health Division, Adolescent and School Health Program. Her career has been dedicated to supporting the health and education of young people through research, policy and partnerships. All of her work is grounded in building youth-adult partnerships so young people are engaged in the policies, systems and decisions that impact their lives. Liz sits on the governor-appoint Youth Development Council.
Liz lives in Portland, OR with her husband, two children and two dogs.
Darci Brown, MA
Elementary SEL Specialist she/her
Darci is driven by helping school communities recognize critical areas of social-emotional development and the immense need for targeted skill development that emphasizes emotional regulation and prevention strategies. Darci’s background in developmental psychology and adult mental health strongly underscore her approach to working with schools.
As a school counselor in Oregon for nearly a decade, Darci served districts throughout the Willamette Valley and Portland Metropolitan area. In her role, she assessed and developed individual student interventions and implemented broader scope initiatives focused on school wide social-emotional learning. Building authentic relationships with students, staff, families and community members provided the foundation needed to collaborate and problem solve student and community needs together.
Darci lives in rural Willamette Valley with her husband and two kids. Her passions are history and exploring the natural beauty of Oregon with her family.
Kahae Rikeman, MSW
Statewide Trainer she/her
Kahae has spent the majority of her career as a passionate advocate for youth suicide prevention across the state of Oregon. She is a strong believer in the power of upstream prevention in helping all young people in our state thrive and receive the help they need and deserve.
Kahae earned her Masters in Social Work from Portland State University and previously worked in several different areas of the mental health field, from direct crisis intervention with a variety of populations to working with K-12 schools on their suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention planning. Kahae loves training youth and adults on how to support themselves and others with their mental health and wellness.
Kahae lives in Tigard, Oregon with her wife and dog. In her spare time, she's quite the homebody and loves spending quality time with her chosen family.
Sky Wonders, M. Ed.
Statewide Trainer they/them
Sky received their Master of Education in School Counseling from Lewis and Clark College. For the last 5 years, they served K-12 communities as a school counselor on the Oregon coast and in Portland.
Sky thrives in building trusting and empowering relationships with young people. They foster community and connection among youth and adults. Sky advocates alongside LGBTQ+ youth to create cultures of belonging and acceptance.
In their free time, Sky enjoys making ceramics, gardening, and strengthening connections with their chosen family. They are always seeking to understand themself, people, and the world on a deeper level. They currently live in Portland, Oregon with their roommate and her feisty cat.
Julian Jade Foulks
Statewide Trainer he/they
Julian is passionate and dedicated to expanding support and knowledge to all communities. They are focused on the empowerment of youth. Youth have access to more information, history, and radical social ideas than all the generations before us and Julian strives to help and be a part of creating youth connections. Julian is equipped with understanding, openness, and devotion to sustaining the important work of youth suicide prevention.
Julian earned his Bachelor's of Art in Sociology at Portland State University, although experienced most of his education through community colleges in California and Oregon. Julian spent many years in the service industry as a barista and made efforts to get involved with youth work and homeless services in the Portland metropolitan area.
Julian is a first generation Filipinx person and loves learning and connecting to their community here in Portland. Julian was born and raised in San Jose, CA and has resided in Portland for 5+ years now. They enjoy being outdoors, animals/bugs, films, making music, and being part of their queer community.
Amanda Whitman
Operations Coordinator (she/her)
Amanda started her professional journey in youth development that led to non-profit work through the YMCA. While working at the YMCA of Columbia Willamette, Amanda managed operations, family resources in Washington and Multnomah counties and supported early childhood education through child development centers. She holds an innate desire to aide in the endless efforts to empower positive change, support mental health and well-being amongst most specifically our youth, and extend the outreach and accessibility of care and resources. Amanda enjoys spending time with family and friends who are chosen family and spending time outside. She lives in Beaverton, OR with her husband and golden retriever Benny.
amanda@matchstickpdx.com