Briana Evans, President, Heart & Soul Board of Directors

Briana sees health, wellness, and choice as foundational. As an Equity Design Strategist with Reflex Design Collective, she works with governments and other organizations with a social mission to build a society in which each person can contribute their best to their community. Briana’s commitment to equity and the daily work of inclusion stems from a deep appreciation for the diversity of stories and experiences within any community. Outside of her work at Reflex, Briana coaches and facilitates in Stanford Graduate School of Business Interpersonal Dynamics course, an experiential leadership development program. An anthropologist by training, Briana enjoys reading, listening to stories, and exploring.

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Calvin Shelton, Interim Chair and Vice President

My name is Calvin Shelton and I was born and raised in San Francisco.

While in High School I had something to look forward to. The Draft was in full force.

Because of the Vietnam War, a lot of people's lives would change. During this conflict, I was able to acquire a Merchant Marine Document from the United States Coast Guard. I shipped out as a merchant seaman for many years with the Military Sea Transport Service as a Civilian crew member. 

 

Many years later I suffered a major psychiatric breakdown. With the help of the San Mateo County Behavioral Health system, I was able to embrace the Recovery Model. I was able to make the journey into the Broader Community. I was able to work for the Rehabilitation Agency named Caminar for many years which is located in San Mateo County.

 

I am presently employed by the National Alliance for Mental Illness. NAMI was formed to advocate for families. With this, I can bring my knowledge of the predicament experienced by families to my work with Heart and Soul.

 

Along the way, I was able to participate in putting together the structure of Heart and Soul. There has to be a beginning and I was there at the beginning.

 

I am at present the interim Chair and Vice President of the Heart and Soul Board. I support Heart and Soul because of its mission to help folks who are dealing with psychiatric disabilities. We offer a stigma-free environment at our various drop-in centers - where people can grow. I can Help Heart and Soul because I have lived the client culture. I have made the journey through the stages of recovery and I can share that journey with the people we are striving to help. I can help our CEO and Board in a way that we can enhance our mission. I feel good giving back.  Because of my Lived Experience and empathy, I feel I can really contribute to our cause.

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Monica Sim, Board Treasurer

Monica was born and raised in Toronto, Canada, and has resided in the United States since studying for her MBA at the Wharton School of Business in Philadelphia. She relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband 6.5 years ago. As luck would have it, they both are working at Google within the same product area of Google's first-party devices and services, where Monica currently leads the Go-To-Market Strategy for Google Services. Monica joined Heart & Soul in 2020, and was impelled to do so having had her own experiences with mental illness, helping support individuals in her immediate family who have struggled with severe diagnoses. Monica and her husband have recently welcomed a new baby boy, Asher, into their family. Monica hopes to set a positive example for her son through philanthropy, by working with organizations that help the most vulnerable in our communities.

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James Gordon
James is originally from the UK having relocated to the United States 5 years ago. He works as a business operations program manager for LiveRamp, a marketing technology company, responsible for improving the customer experience. James joined the Heart & Soul Board in 2018, spent two years as the Board President, and is now responsible for recruitment and board development. He joined as an opportunity to give back to the community, contribute his skills and experience to a vitally important organization, and get away from the Silicon Valley bubble. James lives with his wife Anna, and two young sons Jack and Milo, and enjoys exploring the Californian outdoors, BBQing and music.

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Not Pictured:

Jill Eskenazi & Deborah Wright