NMGA 2022 Virtual Symposium
"Family Matters in Guardianship"
Presenters
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JOYCE MCHUGH, BSW, is a Professional Legal Guardian and Colorado Mediator working in Boulder, Colorado. She started with Advocate Care Services twelve years ago and is now an agency co-owner. She is passionate about advocating for and working with protected populations. Joyce is currently working to improve the awareness of the role of a guardian with the State of Colorado, local facilities, hospitals, and medical providers. In addition to working full-time, she is currently a Master's Candidate and is working on a book about Legal Guardianships.
GAELLE MCCONNELL, JD, is a sole practitioner concentrating in the areas of estate planning, probate, elder law, guardianship/conservatorship, and business planning. She graduated magna cum laude from the University of New Mexico and received her juris doctor with honors from the University of New Mexico. She is an elected Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel ("ACTEC"). Ms. McConnell is listed in The Best Lawyers in America in the category of Trusts and Estates and has a Martindale-Hubbell "AV" (highest) rating from her peers and colleagues. Ms. McConnell served on the ad hoc Supreme Court Adult Guardianship Study Commission and as chair of the Ad Hoc Guardianship Rules Committee. She is a board member of the New Mexico Guardianship Association.
LAURIE A. HEDRICH, JD, is a shareholder with Hedrich Law, P.A., in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Her law practice concentrates on estate planning, probate, post-mortem and trust administration, guardianships and conservatorships and general business planning. Laurie earned her B.A. degree from the University of Colorado and her J.D. degree from Golden Gate University School of Law. She has participated in public service workshops and presented at seminars on wills, trusts, post mortem administration, ethics and advance health care directives, and has spoken before professional and civic groups on various aspects of estate planning, probate, post mortem and trust administration and litigation. Laurie serves on the Supported Decision Making Task Force. She is a President of the New Mexico Guardianship Association. Additionally, Ms. Hedrich has served on the board of the Elder Law Section of the State Bar of New Mexico When not working, Laurie can usually be found knitting, fly fishing or watching a baseball game.
BRIDGET MULLINS, JD, represents clients in the areas of Guardianships and Conservatorships, Probate, Estate Planning, Special Needs and Medicaid Planning, Elder law, and Family law with a focus on working with Spanish-speaking clients. In addition, Bridget has a strong trial background after spending many years prosecuting domestic violence, child abuse, and human trafficking cases for the District Attorney's and Attorney General's Offices. Bridget has also worked on consumer protection issues and taught Financial Literacy classes to help community members learn about debt, investing, and credit. Due to her unique combination of practice areas, Bridget has developed a specialty in cases involving both guardianship and divorce, or death during divorce cases. She often presents on and writes about those topics.
GREGORY W. MACKENZIE, JD, is a director and shareholder at Hurley, Toevs, Styles, Hamblin & Panter, P.A. and has worked as a litigation attorney since 1993. Greg is a graduate of the Syracuse University College of Law and was admitted to practice before the New Mexico courts in 1993 and has been working as a litigation lawyer since that time. Since 1997, Greg has devoted virtually all of his practice to representing clients in probate, estate and trust litigation. This includes representing clients who are contesting or defending the validity of wills, trusts and other estate planning documents and those who are involved in litigation over the administration of estates and trusts. His cases frequently involve allegations of breach of fiduciary duty and the construction of controlling instruments such as wills and trusts. Greg also frequently handles litigation in contested complex guardianships and conservatorships. Greg is a board member of the National Guardianship Association.
NATALIE CHAVEZ, MSW, LCSW, CHP-SW, is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and has completed her Advanced Certification in Hospice and Palliative Social Work (ACHP-SW). Mrs. Chavez obtained a Bachelor of Social Work degree (BSW) in 2012 and went on to receive her Master of Social work degree (MSW) in 2013, both from New Mexico Highlands University. Natalie's professional organizational membership and affiliations include: National Association of Social Workers (NASW), and Mental Health First Aid (MHFA). Mrs. Chavez's passion for helping people has been prevalent since she started her career over ten years ago with a community-based organization that specializes in the humanitarian development of children, youth and families. Mrs. Chavez has extensive training and knowledge in advocate care managing all levels of treatment from assessment through aftercare to resolution of treatment and is currently a Medical Social Worker with Hospice of New Mexico managing psychosocial services to hospice patients and families in home or residential settings. Mrs. Chavez's professionalism, good judgment, empathy and caring nature is highly valued in the field and respected among her colleagues and clients.
MARY GALVEZ MA, CMC, NMG, CSA is a Nationally Certified Master Guardian (NMG), Certified Senior Advisor (CSA) and Certified Manager of Care (CMC), Mary has been providing guardianship and care management services in New Mexico for over 20 years. She has extensive professional experience serving the elderly and disabled population in New Mexico. She owns and operates Guardianship and Care Management Services LLC, a local agency which serves as Guardian, Court Visitor, Care Manager, and Healthcare Power of Attorney. Mary is also a trained mediator. Mary serves on the boards of the New Mexico Guardianship Association and the Alzheimer's Association. She is the New Mexico Affiliate Representative to the National Guardianship Association and also serves as a Board Trustee for the Center for Guardianship Certification. She is the recipient of The Center for Guardianship Certification's 2019 National Master Guardian Star Award.
GAIL JORALEMON, M. DIV., has been an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ for over 40 years, and a Bioethicist for over 30 years. Her educational background includes degrees from Pacific School of Religion and Boston University, a certificate from the Kennedy Institute of Bioethics at Georgetown University. She has been an Adjunct Faculty member in the Philosophy and Religion Departments in the School of Communications, Humanities and Social Sciences, at Central New Mexico Community College (CNM) since 1997 where she has taught Biomedical Ethics, Business Ethics, Ethics and Society and Living Religions of the World. She has taught additional courses, given seminar presentations, and published in the field of bioethics in NM and nationally. She has served on the Bioethics Committee at the UNM Hospital as well as on ethics committees and institutional review boards around the state. Her areas of expertise in the field of bioethics include end of life issues, human research, reproductive issues and health care reform.
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MARGARET J. NOLAN, MD, is a board-certified physician in both Internal Medicine as well as Hospice and Palliative Care. Originally from California, she obtained her medical degree from University of California, San Francisco. Arriving in New Mexico for a one-year internship with plans to further her training in Chicago, she fell in love with New Mexico and its people, and never left. After completing her residency in Internal Medicine at UNM she practiced Primary Care Internal Medicine for 11 years. She then began a focus in Hospice care and pursued specialty certification in Hospice and Palliative Medicine. She had a house call practice for the homebound elderly, and worked directly in hospice care and later became part owner of Hospice of New Mexico for over 8 years. Since arriving in New Mexico, she met and married her husband, raised children, deepened her roots, and never looked back.
ANGELA WALKER, MBA, NCG, CMC, Ms. Walker received a Bachelor's degree with an emphasis in Art Therapy in 1985 and a Master of Business Administration degree in 2009. Since 1987 she has served in many areas of health care including Care Management, Court Appointed Guardian, Care Manager, Healthcare Power of Attorney, Day Program Administrator, Home Health Care Assistant Administrator, Community Living Program Manager, Client care provider and Medicaid Waiver Care Manager. She has developed and performed quality assurance and improvement programs and has extensive experience training caregivers and staff within social service delivery systems. Individuals she has served range from persons having Intellectual Disabilities, Mental Illness and persons suffering with cognitive impairment. In 2014 she founded Executive Senior Care Management specializing in services provided to the disabled and wiser population in Guardianship, Care Management, Court Visitor and as Health Care Power of Attorney.
WENDY YORK, JD, sat as a Second Judicial District Court Judge in the Civil Division from 1997 until 2005. As a result of her judicial experience, for the last seventeen years she has worked as a mediator, special master and arbitrator. She has mediated over 3000 cases and has been named a SuperLawyer in the area of Alternative Dispute Resolution and has spoken nationally on mediation. Among numerous other awards, she is the recipient of the Distinguished Alumnus award from the University of New Mexico, Department of Economics and the Distinguished Achievement Award from the University of New Mexico Law School. She received the Henrietta Pettijohn award from the New Mexico Women's Bar for advancing women in the legal profession. The New Mexico Supreme Court appointed her as chair of the Uniform Jury instruction Committee and as chair of the Adult Guardianship Study Commission.
CARRISA TASHIRO, JD, graduated from University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in 2012. She has spent her entire career in disability law, working with the Protection & Advocacy agencies in both Nevada and New Mexico. Her practice focuses on behavioral health, access, and supported decision making.
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ALICE LIU MCCOY, JD, Executive Director at New Mexico Developmental Disabilities Council. Ms. McCoy graduated from The University of Texas School of Law in 2010. Since coming to New Mexico, she has served as Disability Rights Attorney at Disability Rights New Mexico. Before becoming the Executive Director at NMDDC, she served as the Cabinet Secretary for New Mexico Aging & Long-Term Services Department.