Senior Leadership Team
Jon Morris
President & Chief Executive Officer
Email: JonM@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (540) 389-5468
Jon Morris grew up in Pearisburg, VA, where he graduated from Giles High School in 1990. Jon went to Ferrum College, where he received a BS in Psychology and a minor in Criminal Justice. After several years in the workforce, Jon returned to school and received his MA in Management from Regent University in 2008, with a concentration in Non-profit Leadership.
After graduating from Ferrum, Jon’s first job was at the Virginia Baptist Children’s Home, where he worked in Emergency Care. Jon then moved on to positions at the Roanoke City Health, Department and Total Action for Progress (TAP), where he led programs for young fathers and ex-offenders. In 2001, TAP received one of six national demonstration grants from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, which allowed The Reaching Out to Adolescent Dads (ROAD) and the Fathers at Work programs to grow to be the largest fatherhood program in the state of Virginia. As a result of this work, Jon’s first book, “The ROAD to Fatherhood,” was published by Morning Glory Press in 2002.
In 2004, Jon was hired as the Executive Director of Support to Eliminate Poverty (STEP), Inc. STEP, Inc. provided a wide array of services for Franklin and Patrick Counties’ low-income residents. Programs included Head Start, Early Head Start, Project Discovery (college access programs for first-generation students), ex-offender services, homeless programs, Section 8, Housing and Weatherization services, Meals on Wheels, Indoor Plumbing, and Rehabilitation programs, a Private Day School named LIFES Academy, and more. During Jon’s tenure, STEP doubled the number of employees, annual revenue, clients served and increased their service area to include 3 more counties and two more cities.
In late 2013, Jon went to Family Preservation Services as an Assistant State Director and was named CEO/State Director in June 2014. Family Preservation Services, one of the largest private providers of mental and behavioral health services in the state of Virginia, provides programs such as Therapeutic Day Treatment (TDT), Mental Health Skill Building (MHSS), Intensive In-Home Services, Autism Services, Psycho-social Rehab, Therapeutic Mentoring, Outpatient Therapy, and much more. FPS provided services to more than 5,000 unduplicated clients annually through more than 700 employees serving 85% of Virginia localities through 21 regional offices.
Jon is very active at Shiloh Baptist Church in Salem, VA, where he has served as a Deacon since 2003. In addition to his role as a Deacon, he also teaches Sunday school and the weekly Men’s Bible Study, and serves as Chairperson of the Budget Committee and the Personnel Committee.
In his spare time, Jon enjoys playing golf, watching the Washington Nationals and the Virginia Tech Hokies, and spending time with his family. He’s happily married to his wonderful wife Katrina and they are the proud parents of Ameer, Nina, and Lyla.
Randi Paxton
Vice President & Chief Operations Officer
Email: Randi.Paxton@hopetreefs.org
Phone: (540) 389-5468
Ms. Paxton serves as Vice President and Chief Operations Officer. In this role, she is responsible for leading the agency’s programs and services lines that include Therapeutic Foster Care, Therapeutic Group Homes, Developmental Disabilities Ministry, HopeTree Academy, and Family Centered Treatment. In addition, she works with countless internal and external teams to improve and implement changes to increase efficiency and productivity.
A Roanoke native, Paxton holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Social Work from James Madison University. She previously served on the Board for the National Alliance on Mental Illness for six years, and on the Board of Directors for the Virginia Association of Community Based Providers for a total of eight years. Passionate about advocating for those who cannot advocate for themselves, Paxton believes it takes everyone’s involvement to change the landscape of human services to ensure that vulnerable populations have the resources needed to be successful in life.
Lisa Lambrecht
Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Email: Lisa.Lambrecht@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (540) 389-5468
Ms. Lambrecht currently serves as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer where she oversees the Business Office and the financial operations of the Agency. She holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Old Dominion University and an M.B.A. with an Accounting Specialization from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University. Ms. Lambrecht comes to HopeTree with 23 years of accounting and executive leadership experience in the credit union industry with her most recent role being Executive Vice President of ValleyStar Credit Union.
Originally from Chesapeake, VA., Ms. Lambrecht spent 13 years in Richmond before settling in Franklin County in 2019. Her spare time is spent with her husband, two children, and friends and enjoying activities like camping, hiking, riding ATVs, and kayaking.
Lisa Clause
Chief Advancement Officer
Email: Lisa.Clause@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (540) 389-2112
Ms. Clause serves as Chief Advancement Officer. In this role, she oversees strategic planning and execution for advancement, marketing, and communications. Critical to the position is board and donor relations. She is happy to join the team and share her knowledge and experience to benefit HopeTree’s mission.
Previously, she served as Senior Director of Marketing and Philanthropy, Public Information Officer at Richfield Living. Ms. Clause has over 25 years of marketing, sales, communications, and fundraising experience. Currently, she serves on four boards and has successfully chaired the Annual Campaign for the YMCA for two years. She holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Liberty University and a BS in Marketing Management from Virginia Tech. She resides in Salem with her husband where she likes to garden, read, and travel.
Dr. Challen Mabry
Chief Clinical Officer
Email: ChallenM@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (540) 389-5468
Dr. Challen Mabry is a licensed professional counselor in the state of Virginia. She holds a BA from Hollins University in Psychology and Sociology, a MA.Ed in Counselor Education from Virginia Tech, and Doctorate of Philosophy in Counselor Education from Virginia Tech. Her professional experience has been focused on providing community based behavioral health services to predominately Medicaid populations. Dr. Mabry has served in various leadership roles to include Director of Quality Assurance and Clinical Director for over 5 years. She has significant experience working alongside regulatory bodies throughout the transition to managed care in Virginia. Dr. Mabry has additional focused training and certifications in Applied Behavior Analysis, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Equine Assisted Psychotherapy. She also serves as an Assistant Professor in departments of Psychology & Human Services and Counseling Education at Bluefield College. Dr. Mabry is passionate about training behavioral health professionals to provide empathetic, evidenced-based, trauma and culturally responsive interventions. Her research interests include issues of social justice and furthering counselor competencies of evidenced informed practice.
Dr. Mabry is a wife and mother to two small girls who keep her on her toes. She is an avid outdoors enthusiast and is most happy when spending time with her immediate and extended family on their shared family property. Additionally, she enjoys ministering to others through acts of kindness, often through preparing a meal.
Dr. Mabry is very excited to join the team at HopeTree! The mission of the organization deeply resonates with her personal goals of serving others first in all that she does. The opportunity to be a servant leader for an organization that also values service to others through exceptional clinical services, is an ideal fit. She is eager to meet staff and clients over the next several months and be a resource for the remarkable work that is already occurring.
Shannon Updike
Chief Compliance Officer
Email: ShannonB@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (804) 201-9006
Shannon Updike joined HopeTree in 2005 and currently serves as HopeTree’s Chief Compliance Officer. In this role, she is responsible for the agency’s compliance, risk, quality, and privacy efforts to include compliance with HIPAA laws. In addition, Ms. Updike oversees HopeTree’s accreditation processes and the performance, training, and outcomes of the Electronic Health Record.. Ms. Updike has held several positions in her eighteen years with the agency, including Case Worker, Foster Care Supervisor, Associate Director of Foster Care, and Director of Foster Care. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from Longwood University, a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University, and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.
Ms. Updike has served as adjunct faculty at Virginia State University in the Social Work Department and currently serves as the Co-Chair of the State and Local Advisory Council, SLAT, where she represents Private Providers.
Ms. Updike has dedicated her career to supporting children and families involved with the child welfare system through foster care. She is committed to lifelong learning, teaching, and serving others. When not working, she enjoys adventures with her husband of fifteen years and spending time with her nieces and nephew.
April Estrada
Director of Foster Care
Email: April.Estrada@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (540) 389-4941
Ms. Estrada currently serves as Director of Foster Care & Adoptions where she is responsible for ensuring the Foster Care program operates in accordance with all licensing and best practice regulations and must ensure that all offices have consistent practices led by leaders who embody the mission and core values of HopeTree. Estrada works with internal and external teams to improve and implement changes for HopeTree’s Foster Care program with a focus to increase efficiency and productivity.
Estrada holds a Master of Science degree in Clinical Psychology from Radford University. She has served as past president of the Virginia Association of Licensed Child Placing Agencies, along with serving as a member of Governor Youngkin’s Safe and Sound Task Force, the Floyd County Family Assessment Planning Team, and the Piedmont Region Child Fatality Review Team.
Dr. Laurie McCracken
Director of Education
Email: Laurie.McCracken@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (540) 389-4941
Dr. Laurie McCracken currently serves as the Director of Education for HopeTree Family Services. In this position she serves as the primary administrator at HopeTree Academy and is responsible for cultivating an environment that is focused on our student’s educational, clinical, and physical needs to ensure students can leave HopeTree Academy with the tools and support needed to be successful.
Dr. McCracken comes to HopeTree with over 2o years of experience in public and private school education. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management and Development from Bluefield College, a Master’s of Education degree in Special Education from Liberty University, and an Educational Specialist and Doctorate degree in Educational Leadership from Liberty University.
Dr. McCracken is a wife and a mother of four children. She is actively involved in the community through a local church she co-founded with her husband in Salem, Virginia, where she has served as a Youth Director, Mission Director, AWANA Commander and Sunday School teacher throughout the years. Please help us welcome Dr. McCracken to HopeTree!
Brandon Rose
Director of Therapeutic Group Homes
Email: Brandon.Rose@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (540) 387-4993
Brandon Rose serves as HopeTree’s Director of Therapeutic Group Homes. In this role, Rose is responsible for working with the therapeutic group homes team to enhance the development of the daily living program within each group home cottage while ensuring that the residents’ needs are met.
A Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Rose has more than 10 years of client centered practice and management experience in a clinical setting. Throughout his career, Rose has a proven ability to forge sustainable relationships with education professionals, community partners, and the most vulnerable populations. Prior to joining HopeTree, Rose was a Regional Clinical Program Coordinator with Intercept Health where he assisted in building and developing teams, improved on and implemented program policy, assisted with managing multiple community based programs, supported and nurtured staff, clients, and other management team members. In addition, he has experience with developing electronic health records, training crisis prevention and intervention, and as an outpatient therapist.
Rose is a graduate of James Madison University, earning a Bachelor of Social Work degree, and the University of South Carolina, where he earned a Masters of Social Work. Currently, Rose is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker through the Virginia Board of Social Work and certified for the Board of Social Work Approved Licensure Supervisor, as a Crisis Prevention Intervention-Instructor (CPI), Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), and Therapeutic Options TOVA.
Kristen McPherson
Director of Developmental Disabilities Ministry
Email: KristenM@HopeTreeFS.org
Phone: (540) 389-5468
Ms. Kristen McPherson joined HopeTree Family Services Developmental Disabilities Ministry (DDM) in 2018 and currently serves as the Director of DDM. She has served as an Area Coordinator and Associate Director before accepting the role of Director in 2022. Ms. McPherson holds Bachelor’s Degrees in Public Policy & Community Services, Political Science and French Language & Literature from Emory & Henry College. She also obtained a Master’s Degree in Human Services Counseling with a focus in Executive Leadership from Liberty University and is currently on track to receive a Graduate Certificate in Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA).
Ms. McPherson has worked in Human Services in several positions, including Child Protective Services Worker and CPS Supervisor before joining the DDM Team. She is currently a certified Therapeutic Options Instructor and Red Cross CPR/First Aid/AED Instructor. Dedicated to providing premier services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Kristen enjoys coaching, teaching and mentoring DDM team members to provide person-centered supports and to strive for excellence.
Maggie Cox
Director of Family Centered Treatment
Email: margaret.cox@hopetreefs.org
Phone: (540) 389-5468
Maggie Cox currently serves as Director of Family Centered Treatment (FCT). In this role, she is responsible for growing the FCT program and its reach across Virginia through collaborative work with the different Departments of Social Services, CSA localities, and referring organizations.
Cox is a graduate of Liberty University, earning a Master of Arts in Human Services Counseling. She has worked for Pulaski County Department of Social Services as well as most recently at Intercept Health as a Treatment Foster Care Supervisor. In addition, she has volunteered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.