239.470.2733

239.470.2733

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239.470.2733

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Meet the Better Together Team

Under the leadership of Megan Rose – and with the help of an amazing volunteer force – this small, yet deeply dedicated, team connects families and job seekers to the help they need.

MEGAN ROSE

Chief Executive Officer

LORA BOSTICK

Director of Development

ISIS LAROSE

Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Market Development

Brittnie Steinmetz

Lee County Family Coordinator

Mellissa Foster

Executive Director of Church Relationships

GISELA WEIGEL

Better Jobs Project Manager

Pamela Hayford

Marketing & Communications Manager

Vanessa Estrada

Program Administrator

JESSICA BRAEMER

Sarasota and Manatee County Church Engagement Director

Lisa Perry

Tampa Bay Region Family Care Coordinator

Dawson Jordan

Creative Director

Amanda Colafrancesco

Amanda Colafrancesco

Sarasota/Manatee Home Study Specialist

Yohana Resto

Southwest Florida Executive Director

Ruth Davidson

Ruth Davidson

Southwest Florida Church Engagement Director

Katie Malloy

Katie Malloy

Northeast Region Home Study Specialist

Barbara Mendez

Family Care Coordinator

Alexis Marriott

Family Care Coordinator

Daniel Heath

Northeast Florida Executive Director

Our team is dedicated to helping people help themselves. We empower them to find employment and provide a loving, safe and supportive foundation for their children.

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HEADQUARTERS

15275 Collier Boulevard
Suite 201-284
Naples, FL 34119
Tel: 239.470.2733
info@bettertogetherus.org
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Better Together Team
Megan Rose
Chief Executive officer
Megan came to understand the value of empowering families with support and resources through her own journey. When she was young, her father went through recovery and the family was split apart. He was able to get healthy, while strangers came alongside her family and showered them with support. Soon, her parents and family reunited. Those powerful lessons of compassion were the early inspiration for a life and career dedicated to the calling of strengthening families and reminding people of their dignity, worth, and value.

In addition to her passion for her helping families, Megan has a wealth of education, over ten years of dedicated experience in social services. She holds an undergraduate degree from Liberty University in Psychology and a Master’s in Human Services with a dual concentration in Executive Leadership and Family and Group Dynamics. After college, Megan worked abroad as a nanny, then returned to Florida where she worked for four years as a child welfare case manager before becoming director for a foster care agency. In 2015, she joined Safe Families for Children, then branched off in 2018 to start her own organization, Better Together.

Megan was the recipient of the Manhattan Institute Civil Society Award in 2018 and was accepted into their Fellowship in 2020. In October 2020, Megan was featured on the cover of Grandeur Magazine for her work at Better Together and also earned the Cape Coral Community Foundation’s Rising Organization of the Year Award.

Family is everything to Megan, and she counts her husband Mason and their three precious children, Brady, Ellie, and Emma, as her greatest blessings in life. Megan and her family approach this ministry together, and routinely host children in their home. They are a team, and her family continually supports her wonderful adventure as the leader of Better Together. She feels blessed to have her family’s support behind her and to be a part of a team of talented, passionate individuals who love people and want to help equip the faith community to grow the Better Together mission.

Better Together Team
Lora Bostick
Director of Development

Lora and her husband, Chris, were first drawn to Better Together when they heard about the organization at church. They immediately signed up to become a host family and get involved. Lora’s passion for helping others and her love for children eventually led her to a full-time role with Better Together as the director of development. Lora holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from West Virginia University.

Lora and Chris have three children: Jay, Nia and Olivia. They look forward to continuing to serve families in their community through this ministry and showing their kids the value of helping others.

Better Together Team
Isis LaRose
Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Market Development

Isis started on the team as outreach director in 2018 and was promoted to the Better Families executive director role in early 2020. Prior to joining Better Together, Isis worked in the medical field for 16 years. She has always had a passion for helping others, but it wasn’t until being introduced to Better Together, and becoming a host family in 2017, that she realized her passion for helping families in need.

Over the last four years, her family has hosted 21 children. Her husband, Danny, and children, Asher and Ayden, are just as committed as she is in this ministry and share in the joy of being able to care for children while their families maneuver through crisis. Better Together is a way her whole family serves together and she’s thankful to have the support of her family in this mission.

Better Together Team
Brittnie Steinmetz
Lee County Family Coordinator

As a former foster child herself, Brittnie holds inherent love and empathy for the children and families that Better Together serves. She brings years of experience to the Better Together team, having worked as a Child Protective Investigator with the Department of Children and Families. This invaluable experience helps her to understand the crucial delineation between government and non-profit sectors and gives her an appreciation for the “neighbor-helping-neighbor” model. Brittnie is passionate about Better Together’s drive to keep children out of foster care as well as prevent its need entirely. Brittnie holds dual bachelor’s degrees in Social Work and Sociology as well as a master’s degree in Social Work.

Mellissa FosterBetter Together Team
Mellissa Foster
Executive Director of Church Relationships

Mellissa has a heart to serve and love people exactly as they are and to connect them to a local body of Christ for encouragement and relational support. She comes to the Better Together team with a background in marketing and development and uses these skills along with her passion to serve and love others. Prior to joining the Better Together team, Mellissa worked in ministry for over ten years serving local churches in the Family and Children’s Ministry. She also serves at her local church in Jacksonville, where her husband, Jonathan, works as the Associate Design & Media Director.

Mellissa, her husband, and her children Jad, London, and Barrett have served as a host family and mentors for several Better Together families and look forward to continuing to do this as a family unit. Mellissa is passionate about the Better Families program because of the life changes she has seen by helping families in crisis. Mellissa believes serving as a family gives her children the opportunity to learn to love others with action in a tangible way.

Better Together Team
Gisela Weigel
Better Jobs Project Manager

Gisela was born and raised in Southwest Florida, so naturally, she has a strong passion and desire for helping people in this community. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Florida Gulf Coast University. She previously worked in the non-profit sector supporting foster children but then decided to pursue a corporate career. Gisela quickly learned that her heart belonged to serving those in our community through non-profit work, and this led her to Better Together. Gisela is excited to join the Better Together team and help lead our mission of keeping families together and children out of foster care.

Gisela loves spending time with her husband, and her precious dog Obi. When asked, others would describe Gisela as thoughtful, optimistic, and persistent. When Gisela is not in the office, she enjoys volunteering, watching the Hallmark Channel/reruns of her favorite shows, and making memories with her family and friends.

Better Together Team
Pamela Hayford
Marketing & Communications Manager

Pamela is a storyteller. In more than 25 years as a journalist, she worked as a writer, reporter, editor and page designer. She’s interviewed politicians and a celebrity or two but spent most of the last 15 years among Southwest Florida’s families as editor of Southwest Florida Parent & Child magazine. That’s how she first learned of Better Together and became excited to tell the stories of its mission, its families and its staff.

Pam grew up in Northeast Ohio and earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism at Bowling Green State University. Falling head over heels for her husband and her work eventually brought her to Florida. They’ve been living in Cape Coral since 2000 and have two teenage children, four if you count her spoiled pups.

Vanessa EstradaBetter Together Team

Vanessa Estrada
Program Administrator


Vanessa’s journey with Better Together began a few years ago as she volunteered assisting with fundraising events. Now, we are thrilled to have Vanessa on staff and for her contribution in this key role. She has previously worked in the non-profit sector for 7 years, serving children and families in foster care and at-risk youth. As a previous Program Manager, she is able to bring many years of administration experience on all levels. Vanessa’s strong faith and passion to help children and families in need are both evident by her commitment and willingness to always go the extra mile.

Vanessa was born in Fort Myers, Florida, and raised in Houston, Texas. Along with her husband Fabien and their two daughters, Arianni and Alyson, Vanessa now lives in Naples, FL. Vanessa loves spending time with her family and friends, mentoring at-risk youth, dancing, and event planning.

Jessica Braemer Sarasota and Manatee County CatalystBetter Together Team

Jessica Braemer

Sarasota and Manatee County Catalyst


Jessica has worked in the non-profit sector through building and serving women and children, and families in her community. Jessica has a deep desire to do the Lord’s will in her life, and feels privileged to share her testimony of overcoming to bring hope into the lives of others. She has a passion to walk alongside those who are yearning for a better life. Jessica also works hand in hand with those struggling in addiction, domestic violence, human trafficking, and any life controlling issues. She lives a lifestyle of cultivating community. Jessica is excited to be part of the Better Together family by bringing resources and compassion to families in crisis.

Jessica and her husband Joshua share a beautiful blended family of 6 and have a powerful testimony of what the Lord can do in someone’s life. They have a passion to serve God, their family, their community, and are blessed to do together.

Lisa PerryBetter Together Team
Lisa Perry
Tampa Bay Region Family Care Coordinator

Lisa started with Better Together as a home study specialist and, in 2022, moved into the role of family care coordinator in the Tampa region. Prior to working with families in crisis, she was a kindergarten teacher for 20 years. After teaching, she became a certified child protection investigator. She worked and advocated for foster families, including as a resource specialist who assisted families and children in need. Lisa also holds a certificate in infant family mental health from the University of South Florida and volunteers at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in the NICU.

Lisa and her husband of 34 years have two grown children, C.J. and Jessica. They enjoy spending time with them and their four grandchildren as well as fur babies Ricky and Lucy — high energy, Frisbee-catching miniature Aussies.

Dawson JordonBetter Together Team

Dawson Jordan
Creative Director

Dawson is an exciting addition to the Better Together Team. Since graduating college in 2015 from Florida Gulf Coast University with his bachelor’s degree in Business Management he has managed to create a successful career for himself as a self-employed freelance videographer/photographer. He has recently relocated back to his hometown in SWFL and is excited to join the team as the Creative Director to help us tell the Better Together story. Dawson is passionate about telling stories through a creative lens, especially when it comes to seeing families stay together and for individuals to thrive and become the best version of themselves. When Dawson is not in the office he likes to hang out with his friends, workout, and watch sports.

Amanda ColafrancescoBetter Together Team

Amanda Colafrancesco
Sarasota/Manatee Home Study Specialist

Amanda was born and raised in Rhode Island and moved to Florida in 2016. She earned her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Science degrees in administration of justice from Salve Regina University. Upon graduation, she began a career in child welfare, specifically toward a goal of preventing children from entering the foster care system. Amanda brings diverse experiences in serving children and families in their home environments to her work with Better Together as a home study specialist. She is also a certified child welfare protective investigator through the Florida Certification Board and has over six years of child welfare experience. In her spare time, Amanda enjoys visiting with family and friends.

Better Together Team

Yohana Resto
Southwest Florida Executive Director

Yohana brings to Better Together 15 years of experience working in child welfare. She has served in various roles, including case manager, clinical services specialist, relative search specialist, foster family recruiter, and most recently a role conducting comprehensive assessments for children in foster care or relative care. Yohana has a heart and passion for serving children and families, and she brings to the organization a wide breadth of knowledge and experience. A graduate of Southeastern University and Nova Southeastern University with a bachelor’s in psychology and Master of Science in counseling, Yohana has a caring and compassionate heart to support families in need.

Yohana loves spending time with her husband, Miguel, and their four children—Isabela, Natalia, Jaxon and Jayden. You can frequently find them at a soccer game, as their girls enjoy playing competitive travel soccer. Yohana credits her relationship with God and personal salvation as the motivating force behind her desire to continue to serve her community.

Ruth DavidsonBetter Together Team

Ruth Davidson
Southwest Florida Church Engagement Director

Ruth has a passion for serving others. She believes strongly in giving back to the community and paying it forward. She loves to share her personal story of how, with God’s help, she was able to overcome past hurdles. Growing up in rural Kentucky in a large family that faced many struggles, she knows firsthand how God’s love can heal and restore broken families. She has the gift of hospitality and enjoys communicating with others with the hope that she is never meeting strangers, only making friends.

Ruth comes to Better Together with over eight years of ministry experience. After moving to Fort Myers from Fort Lauderdale in 2016, she served as an outreach coordinator for a nonprofit faith-based recovery program for more than five years. She was also an administrative assistant to her directors, scheduling events and successfully developing and establishing relationships with several businesses and churches in Southwest Florida. She has a relaxed way of making others feel comfortable, possessing a servant’s heart and loves outreach and missions.

Ruth currently resides in Naples and enjoys traveling, dining out, cooking, entertaining and serving in her community. She has two grown children, Martin and Annie, and one grandson, Drew, who loves to visit with his Nana.

Katie MalloyBetter Together Team

Katie Malloy
Northeast Region Home Study Specialist

Katie was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, and attended the University of Mississippi, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Katie has been working with children and families in the foster care system in Duval County since 2015. Her passion is advocating for children in care and helping build strong and healthy families. During Katie’s childhood, her church community was a great support system for her and her family. She’s a firm believer that the more people who love a child, the better.

Better Together Team

Barbara Mendez
Family Care Coordinator

Barbara has always enjoyed working with people. After graduating from Florida State University in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in international affairs, and a minor in public administration, she started her career as a family service counselor and then an adoption specialist, where her passion for serving families grew. Serving children and families felt like a calling and seeing various family situations that led to child welfare getting involved made her realize that sometimes parents just need a support system. Barbara felt drawn to Better Together’s mission to help families and keep children out of foster care while empowering the church to be Jesus’s hands and feet. 

In her free time, Barbara enjoys traveling and hanging out outdoors with her two fur babies, Henna and Theo.

Better Together Team

Alexis Marriott
Family Care Coordinator

Alexis brings to the Better Together team 20 years of experience working with children and families, mental health, and adult case management. After taking time off from college, Alexis completed her bachelor’s in psychology at Columbia College in Jacksonville in 2013. Throughout those years, she built her experience and knowledge working with children in foster care. Alexis has a passion for helping others and bringing out the best in people, no matter how big or small the change. She’s excited to be a part of the Better Together team and dedicated to serving her community.

When Alexis is not working, she loves to spend time with her husband and two boys. She loves to travel, shop, and hangout with friends.

Better Together Team

Daniel Heath
Northeast Florida Executive Director

Daniel comes to Better Together with 15 years of experience working in child welfare and addiction recovery, as well as having served in pastoral ministry for five years. He has a passion to serve those in need, particularly those struggling with life-controlling issues that stem from abuse and addiction. Daniel has always had a heart for families in crisis, with a desire to walk alongside these families, helping them restore their family systems and ultimately recognizing their true value and worth through their identity in Christ.

Daniel has an undergraduate degree from Jacksonville University in psychology and business management, and a master’s in mental health counseling from Nova Southeastern University with emphasis in substance abuse and trauma-informed care.

Daniel lives in Jacksonville with his wife and high school sweetheart, Brandi, and their three children, Trey, Evan, and Ella. In his spare time, when not at high school football or basketball games or dance recitals, Daniel enjoys reading, camping, and fantasy football.

 

Cammara OvertonBetter Together Team

Cammara Overton
Collier County Family Care Coordniator

Cammara worked in the international nonprofit sector and served as a missionary overseas for 10 years before joining Better Together as the Collier County Family Care Coordinator. She earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work from Florida Gulf Coast University. She has a heart for building relationships and serving women, children and their families and sharing the hope and love of Jesus Christ with everyone she meets. Cammara is passionate about coming alongside those seeking life change and helping them achieve all that they desire to do for themselves and their families. Cammara is very excited to be a part of the Better Together family by providing recourses and extending love and compassion to families in crisis.

Cammara and her husband, Dan, enjoy spending time playing volleyball and hanging out with friends and their Italian pup, Harley. They both have a passion for serving the Lord and being the hands and feet of Jesus in their community.

Jennifer MoffittBetter Together Team

Jennifer Moffitt
Tampa Bay Region Home Study Specialist

Originally from Massachusetts, Jenn moved to Florida in 1993 to be closer to her parents, who had left the snow behind the year before. In 1996, she graduated from the University of South Florida with a bachelor’s degree in social work.

Jenn started her career working in private adoptions as a birth parent worker. After two years she was drawn to child welfare. For the next 19 years, she worked as a child protection investigator for the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office. In 2019 she began working for the Office of the State Attorney, 6th Judicial Circuit, as a child abuse specialist. She assisted prosecutors with interviewing child victims of abuse and neglect and served as a liaison with the Department of Children and Families and their local community providers.

Jenn and her husband, Shawn, were married on Christmas Day in 1999, and they have two boys, ages 12 and 20. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, shopping, taking day trips, visiting the beach, and vacationing in the mountains of North Carolina.