Like many nonprofit organizations, The Child of Divorce, Inc. began with a group of professionals that saw a need in their community.  Founded in April of 2008, The Child of Divorce, Inc. set out to research the growing population of children coming from divorced homes and how that was impacting their community.  Each member brought a unique skill set both professionally and personally that led to the mission of Blended Love.. “bringing hope and camaraderie to the child of divorce through the classroom.”

Our Founding Board Members include:

Honorary Chairman: Dr. Gene Callahan

A native of Big Stone Gap, Virginia, Gene served four years in the U.S. Air Force man Dr. Gene Callahanand administrative specialist at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi.  He earned a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree and a Master’s degree (M.Ed.) at Virginia Tech.  In 1979 he was awarded the Doctor of Education degree (Ed.D.) from Auburn University. His career in public education began as a high school Distributive Education teacher in Virginia Beach, Virginia.  He worked in the Mobile, Alabama public school system and as a Research Associate in the Occupational Research and Development Unit at Auburn University.  He was State Supervisor of Distributive Education at the Alabama State Department of Education in Montgomery, Alabama.  In 1980, Gene began his career in the Oklahoma Career and Technology Education system.  He was a member of the team who developed the Francis Tuttle Technology Center.  In August 1985, he joined the staff as Deputy Superintendent at Tulsa Technology Center and then served as Superintendent and CEO for 20 years.  He concluded a 41-year career in public education when he retired on July 1, 2008. 

A graduate of the Inaugural Class of Leadership Oklahoma and Class XV of Leadership Tulsa, his leadership roles include having served as President of the American Vocational Association, Chairman of the National DECA Board of Directors, and Chairman of the Board for Junior Achievement of Eastern Oklahoma.  Gene's awards include the prestigious Francis Tuttle Career Excellence Award and the Arch Alexander Award.  He was named Executive of the Year by the Tulsa Chapter of Executive Women International (EWI) in 2006.  The Oklahoma Academy recognized him in 2008 for his contributions to the Academy by presenting him a Key Contributor Award.  In June 2009, he received the Paragon Award, presented by Leadership Tulsa to individuals who have provided exceptional community service.  His post retirement activities include serving on the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement of Eastern Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Aquarium Foundation, the Tulsa Tech Foundation and Friends of the Fairground Foundation.  On November 9, 2009, he will be inducted as a member of the Oklahoma Career Tech Hall of Fame.  Gene is married to Ava Callahan, also a retired school administrator.  He has two daughters, Cathy and Leann, and four grandchildren who live near New Orleans.

Favorite quote:  "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - - I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.   Source:  "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost.

Chairman & Co-Founder: Monica Epperson

Co-Founder: Dr. Brian Epperson

President: Michael Willis, MPA

Vice-President(s): Dr. Chris Wright, Allison Starke, Teri Hausam, LCSW

Secretary: Christy Beasley, PA

Assistant Secretary: Stacey Zahn

Treasurer: Todd Grieco

Assistant Treasurer: Brook Grieco

Board of Trustees: Jason Zahn, Steve Bourland, CPA, Andrea Lea, Dr. Nancy Merritt, Tiffany Wright, Lia Constanda, Jim Lea, Betty McFall

Biography of Chairman & Co-Founder Monica Epperson

A native Oklahoman, Monica Epperson grew up taking on leadership roles at an early age.  Her passion for leading led her to Northeastern State University where she received a teaching degree.  Her first year of teaching she recognized her gifting with children of divorce.  That recognition provoked her to write her first book for children of divorce in 2008.  Her book became the first revenue source for creating a nonprofit dedicated to children of divorce.  Dr. Brian Epperson, her husband, agreed to co-found the organization.  In 2009 the organization was up for a Tulsey Award for the efforts made to help children of divorce.  
Epperson is actively involved in the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, Broken Arrow Chamber of Commerce and her church.  She continues to write books for children of divorce and speaks to all types of audiences as the "voice of the child of divorce."  

Favorite Quote:  "Nothing is impossible for those who are loved."

Biography of Co-Founder Dr. Brian Epperson

After serving as a United States Marine, Brian Epperson, came home to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma ready to invest in his education.  Climbing the ladder of degrees, Epperson concluded with his Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership from the University of Oklahoma.  Currently a professor of business and Chief Executive Officer of Human Performance Advisors, he's utilizing a past of business experience at the vice president level and a love for academe that has been present since he returned to his home state.  Epperson speaks regularly on leadership and leadership related topics and fills his calendar with executive coaching clients.  Epperson is also an avid runner and is aspiring to run a marathon in each state before he is six-feet under.  For more information about Dr. Brian Epperson, www.humanperformanceadvisors.com.

Favorite Quote:  "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."  

Biography of President Michael Willis

Michael Willis is a public relations and public affairs professional specializing in government affairs, media relations, crisis management and communications, and strategic planning.  He has been a member of the oldest and largest public relations firm in Oklahoma, where he managed fifteen accounts and served on approximately 25 account teams ranging from energy companies and pipelines to higher education and public sector organizations to staffing firms and management consulting firms.

Willis previously ran his own consulting business specializing in advertising and media relations. Prior to starting his own business, Michael served as the Director of Government Relations for the Mayor’s Office at the City of Tulsa.  In this capacity, he managed government affairs, public education and international relations, while also serving as a member of the mayor’s communication team.

Currently, he also serves as an adjunct professor for the University of Oklahoma.  He also commits several hours per week to the Tulsa Police Department as a Reserve Police Officer.

Community Involvement

A lifelong Tulsan, Michael serves or has served in a leadership capacity to several different young professional and civic organizations.

Some of Willis’ civic involvements include:

- Tulsa Police Reserve Officer
- President of the Board of Directors for Blended Love, Inc.
- Member of the City of Tulsa’s Sales Tax Overview Committee
- Board of Directors, Leadership Tulsa
- Tulsa Area United Way volunteer
- Past Leadership Team member, Tulsa’s Young Professionals
- Past president, Southeast Tulsa Jaycees
- Executive board member, American Society for Public Administration-Oklahoma chapter

Acknowledgements

Named 40 Under 40 by the Tulsa Business Journal in 2009
Named Achiever Under 40 by the Journal Record in 2009

Education

University of Oklahoma; bachelor of arts, public affairs and administration, master of public administration.

Biography of Vice President Teri Hausam, LCSW

Teri Hausam is a practicing psychotherapist working in the out-pt. clinic at Laureate Psychiatric Clinic and Hospital. She has been at Laureate since shortly after the clinic opened in December of 1989.  Teri received her B.S.degree in Social Work from West Virginia University in 1978.  She was awarded my MSW from Boston University in 1986.   Prior to moving back to Tulsa, she worked with severely emotionally disturbed adolescents in residential treatment centers outside of Denver and Boston.

Teri has had a desire to work with adolescents since beginning college.   Most of her professional career has been focused on working with  abused, neglected, and emotionally disturbed adolescents and their families.   The common denominator is almost all of them are from divorced family systems.   Teri is very familiar with the pain experienced by the children and parents of divorce.

The privilage of serving on the board of directors of Blended Love has allowed Teri to share knowledge and resources to support children of divorce thru the school system.   Blended Love has provided her with resources and an expanding awareness of the continued struggles of children of divorce in the twenty-first century.

Favorite Quote: "Don't criticize what you don't understand"

Biography of Assistant Treasurer Brook Grieco

Brook Henry Grieco was born and raised in Tulsa, OK.  Parents divorced when I was 2 – they both subsequently got remarried within a couple of years.  I was a proud Union Redskins from kindergarten through high school.  I chose to attend college at Oral Roberts University.  I graduated summa cum laude with a major in Business Administration and a Government minor in 1997.  After a couple of years exploring other options, I returned to work for my dad’s business, Bert Henry Carpet & Tile.  I worked there happily until we moved to Fredericksburg, VA in 2002.  Soon we started a new chapter (and the best) of our lives, children.  Ava Lucia was born in 2003, but soon after her 2nd birthday we returned to OK where my son, Asher Brent, was born in 2006.    Then our surprise gift came in 2011, Adam Lucas.  Nowadays, I wear lots of hats – wife to the “Italian Stallion”, mother of Ava “Miss Artistic”, Asher “Mr. Sports", & Adam "The Flirt".  I am super busy just keeping  up with the daily responsibilities of a housewife.  I also enjoy working part-time for Patriot Golf Course CFO.  But what I am probably best at is being the organizer; I enjoy organizing weekly play dates with school friends.  It is good for my kids to cultivate relationships and I enjoy the adult interaction!  My hobbies are taking pictures of the kids, following professional tennis, and eating great food with my husband, Todd.

Favorite Quote:  "Making the decision to have a child- it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around on the outside of your body." - writer Elizabeth Stone

Biography of Trustee Jason Zahn

My early years were spent in Kansas City.  I grew up with two older brothers, mainly, but I do have a total of three older brothers and one younger sister.  My parents were separated when I was around 4 years old, and divorced when I was 6.  My mom had to support & raise three boys on a low income and child support.  Since she was at work when we got home from school, my brothers and I pretty much did whatever we wanted to.  We made our own rules.  The problem came, however, when my dad wasn’t there to discipline.  My mom tried, but we didn’t listen all the time.   

My parents were overall good parents, as they would support us in sports, school, etc… However, distance between homes made it hard for continued support.  It was tiring to travel back and forth from mom’s house to dad’s house.  Sometimes we drove, and sometimes we flew.  The amount of quality time spent with family was low.  I also had a big emptiness inside me every time I would spend the night at a friend’s house with a full family.  There was a relationship missing, mostly from my dad and me.  His focus was on business, and making money to support his family.  There was very little “shooting-the-breeze” communications with my dad and me.  When I made the decision at age 12 to live with my dad, my communication with my mom started to drift.  My dad and my communication style stayed the same.  My step-mom tried to communicate with me, but I held resentment towards her for a long time, and didn’t fully let her in.  Needless to say, I felt pretty alone and lost. 

My outlet for sanity was sports, and I felt good in that arena.  I played soccer since I was 4 years old.  It helped shelter me from the dysfunction all around me.  I chose not to play college soccer, as I was getting burnt out.  However, I didn’t realize how much soccer kept me from doing things I shouldn’t do.  When I didn’t play soccer any more, my identity was lost, so I created a new one.  The one I created was very destructive on my soul.  It brought my self esteem down even more than before.  I was lost again.  I carried this for a couple of more years after college, and finally picked up a book that started changing the way I thought.  This book was the bible, and I’ve been reading it ever since.

God started cleaning out my closets, and changing me into the person He wants me to be.  I started going to church all the time, and met my soon-to-be wife at the gym.  We wrapped our dating life around God and the church.  We got married after a couple of years.  We moved into a newer home together a few years after this.  Two years after we moved in, God blessed us with our first child to raise.  Now, we have two kids, a loving marriage, and the precious responsibility to raise our kids in the way they should go! 

I’m thankful, scared, and excited, all at the same time.  I’m thankful, because I don’t deserve any of this.  I’m scared, because this is unfamiliar territory.  I don’t feel as though I had a great family model growing up, and now I have to trust that God will help me develop a good one.  I’m excited, because next to God, my family is the most important thing to me.  My family is what brings me joy, and God has blessed me with two –blood family and church family.  It’s in these families where I believe God has been building me up. May I glorify Him by using what He has given me, to share His truth to non-believers, and believers.      

Favorite Quote:  John 1:12 - But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.

Biography of Trustee Lia Constanda

Lia Constanda was born in Romania. She qualified as a lawyer in Romania and in Scotland, UK. She practiced law for 25 yrs before moving to USA.

In Romania, she practiced as an advocate and represented clients in civil and criminal cases. In Scotland, as a solicitor in private practice, she represented clients in divorce, separation and custody proceedings. She also appeared in criminal cases, civil litigation and industrial tribunal hearings.

She had an interest and desire to work for children in order to ensure their safety and legal protection where this was necessary. Consequently, the latter part of her career was dedicated exclusively to juvenile cases. She dealt with thousands of deprived cases and has seen the worst cases of neglect, physical, emotional and sexual abuse. She understands what being from a divorced family means and the effect this has on a child’s normal development.

She had significant management responsibilities in addition to her case load. She organized the professional training for her colleagues and tailored the program to their needs. She was a member of various working groups, the most prestigious ones being writing guidance for court proceedings and preparing answers to consultation documents proposing changes to child legislation.

Since she came to USA she has done mainly volunteering work for organizations such as Legal Aid Clinic, Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), Domestic Violence Intervention Services (DVIS), & DA’s office.

She is currently a volunteer for “The child of divorce” and is a member of   “The Program Committee”. She is reviewing books from “The child of divorce” reading list and enjoys doing research.

Favorite quote: “The greatest virtues are those which are useful to others.” - Aristotle

Special Tribute to Thomas Hudson, TCOD Original Board Member: In February of 2011, The Child of Divorce lost one of its founding members, Thomas Hudson.  It was a huge loss for the organization as he was not only a proud stepdad to the founder, but also a loud voice raising awareness for children of divorce.  Even in his last days battling cancer, he still wore his t-shirt and told others about the work being done for children of divorce.  We miss you and appreciate your amazing years of service!