Emily lives in Brooklyn, NY with her quirky, bearded, artist husband and her ninja aspiring 6-year-old. Hospitality, to friend and stranger, has always been central to how they do life. Since marriage, Ben and Emily have intentionally pursued family-like relationships with others; sharing homes, hosting guests and welcoming all at their dinner table. Emily graduated from Moody Bible Institute with a desire to love God and serve people. After a year of youth ministry in England, Emily returned to Chicago to pursue a Master of Social Work where her heart for justice and reconciliation took deep root. Since then, she’s worked with youth and at risk populations in Chicago, Indiana, and Brooklyn. For her, Safe Families for Children is the perfect union of ministry and justice.

Laura has lived in Brooklyn, NY for 13 years with her husband and 4 children. Her family has temporarily hosted several children from her block when they were in crisis, including respite foster care. These experiences led to her desire to lead a team to start Safe Families in NYC. Laura is passionate about mobilizing communities into the work of prevention and family stabilization.

Jamie and her husband Rob, moved to Manhattan in 2014 from L.A. where they raised their 4 now-adult children. Jamie is grateful for the opportunity Safe Families provides to draw on her experiences as a pediatrician. She is excited to be part of an endeavor that helps us all better understand God's powerful and inclusive love as we walk with families in NYC who are striving to love and care well for their children but are overwhelmed by hardship, isolation and injustice.

Tia was born in Brooklyn, and raised in the suburbs of New Jersey. As an adult, she could not wait to return to NYC to explore her deep passion for community and justice. After working many years in both city and community organizations focused on the empowerment of women and children (Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender Based Violence, Lutheran Social Services of New York, and CAMBA to name a few), she realized that God was pulling her into more focused areas of equipping His people for the call to action. She’s excited to see how God continues to weave together the seemingly unexpected into what has always been His purpose. Tia loves traveling, baking, Zumba, and meeting new people.

Charisma was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. She is the wife of Reid, the mother of two toddlers and the daughter of Panamanian immigrants. Despite her love and loyalty to the borough of Brooklyn, Charisma ventured south and attended Davidson College in the beautiful state of North Carolina. During her time at Davidson, Charisma's interest in Child Advocacy began to grow, eventually leading her to Hofstra Law School where she obtained her J.D. as a Dwight L. Greene Memorial Scholar. She hopes to live out pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father which means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

Hilary is a native New Yorker, thrilled to be back home after many years living in North Carolina, Indonesia, and Hong Kong, where she worked to provide help and hope to children, women, and families facing difficult circumstances. Hilary believes that a safe and loving family is the best environment for human flourishing and that by keeping children safe and helping families stay together, we can help build a great city. Hilary is happily married to her husband Curt, and they are the proud parents of two awesome adult children.