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Guest Speaker Series
Join us on the 1st Thursday of the month at 6:30pm via Zoom for our NAMI Boston Guest Speaker Series.
In collaboration with NAMI Boston, the MBRLC hosts guest speaker events each month via Zoom. Our inspiring and enlightening guest speakers are people with lived and living experience who showcase their knowledge, offer mental health resources, and share their journey and experiences of healing.
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The meetings are free and open to the public. All are welcome!​​​
Learn more about the NAMI Boston Guest Speaker Series, including our past speakers at
https://namiboston.org/events/category/speaker-series
Our Guest Speaker Series uses the same Zoom ID each month:
Join our Zoom Meeting
​Meeting ID: 969 8487 4345
Upcoming Guest Speakers
April 3rd, 2025
Vesper Moore, CPS
Chief Operating Officer, Kiva Centers
We Are the Evidence:
Certified Peer Specialists and the
Commitment to Community-Based Services
This session will explore the role of Certified Peer Specialists (CPS) in shaping and sustaining community-based behavioral health services in Massachusetts. As the commonwealth continues to advance its commitment to accessible and person-centered care, it is crucial to recognize the momentum behind these efforts and ensure the continued expansion of peer-led and peer-run initiatives. This presentation will highlight the significance of the Certified Peer Specialist profession as well as the state credential and training program that equip individuals with lived experience to support others, and the integration of CPS professionals into behavioral health teams, including Mobile Crisis services.
The discussion will also focus on the growth and development of peer-run centers and respites, essential spaces that foster recovery, autonomy, and community support. By centering the voices of those most impacted, peer-run services provide an effective approach to behavioral health care that prioritizes dignity and self-determination. Through this presentation, participants will gain insight into how Certified Peer Specialists contribute to a more equitable and person-driven system, reinforcing the commonwealth’s commitment to transforming behavioral health care through community-based solutions.
Vesper's Biography
Vesper Moore serves as the Chief Operating Officer at Kiva Centers. As an Indigenous activist and leader, Vesper is deeply committed to promoting mental health and disability rights through activism, leadership, organizing, public speaking, and education. Their work focuses on cultivating social movements and raising public awareness to foster lasting social change.
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Vesper has contributed to the establishment of mental health organizations worldwide and has been an advocate for civil rights in the United States. Through their advocacy, they have brought the perspectives of people with mental health challenges and disabilities to both national and international platforms.​
Collaborating with the United States government and the United Nations, Vesper helps shape strategies around trauma, intersectionality, and disability rights. They have been featured on NBC News, PBS NewsHour, Politico, and at The White House. Vesper is at the forefront of legislative reform, striving to shift the societal paradigm surrounding mental health.
For more information go to mbrlc.org/guest-speaker-series or namiboston.org/event/psan-recovery-speaker-series-vesper-moore
Past Guest Speakers
Christopher Laureano will be sharing his recovery story and discussing his work as the Director of the Recovery Education and Learning (REAL) Program at Bay Cove Human Services, which offers both in-person trainings at the fifth floor of Center Club, and online trainings through the Zoom app with the purpose of preparing people for the workforce in human services. Christopher will also be sharing information on expansion developments of the REAL Program.
Christopher's Biography
Christopher Laureano is a Certified Peer Specialist and Director of the Recovery Education and Learning (REAL) Program at Bay Cove Human Services. Christopher is an autistic person who has also experienced anxiety and trauma through various life situations due to having trouble with reading social cues and learning differently from others. He is passionate about both making peer support trainings and the REAL Program equitable and accessible for all, and including neurodiversity in peer support. Chris will be speaking about the importance of 'breaking the cycle' when overcoming anxiety, trauma, and life challenges with living as an autistic person, along with the importance of 'self-evolvement' in recovery.
December 5th, 2024 Justin Coonan, CPS
Justin Coonan, CPS, Program Director at the Fall River Recovery Connection Center
649 Bedford Street Fall River, MA 02723
coonanj@vinfen.org
(857) 895-6503
Justin's Biography
I grew up in the small town of Duxbury, located on the South Shore of Massachusetts. I have since moved to Fall River and I am currently the Program Director at the Fall River Recovery Connection Center. I have been in recovery since 2010, and I worked at the Atlantic Clubhouse in Quincy from 2022-2024 before taking my current position. I have been at the Fall River RCC since June of this year and have been enjoying my time getting to know the peers who make our program so wonderful. I am able to spend time in each of the special groups that our RCC has to offer, and I have also got to know the amazing staff that we have. I completed my CPS Training through Kiva Centers in the beginning of September and will always value all of the tools and knowledge that I gained from that program. I graduated from Quincy College in 2018 with an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts with a focus in Behavioral Science. I was drawn to the Recovery Connection Center because of my belief that groups and peer engagement can play a vital role in anybody’s recovery. I enjoy spending time with loved ones, listening to my favorite music on repeat, and taking photographs while immersed in nature.
Our Guest Speaker Series uses the same Zoom ID each month:
Join our Zoom Meeting
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Meeting ID: 969 8487 4345
https://bostonmedicalcenter.zoom.us/j/96984874345
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For more information on upcoming and past speakers, please go to the NAMI Boston website.
​​https://namiboston.org/events/category/speaker-series/
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Contact Howard Trachtman at howarddtrachtman@gmail.com for more information or to be a guest speaker.
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