Course Mentors

Ahmad is the Founder of Life in My Days, an international non-profit that supports individuals and their communities on their journeys for self-actualization through mutual aid, transformative justice, and disability justice. Currently, they are working as an Equity and Transformation consultant, supporting various organizations in four continents. They are a disabled, trans, Muslim, indigenous Palestinian focusing on creating transformative work around displacement, decolonization, equity, and centering lived experiences of individuals most impacted by injustice. Ahmad brings together engineering, peer support, and trauma work to support their vision of more equitable and accountable communities that lead to individuals' self-actualization.

Martha received her BS and DVM from Colorado State University. She spent twelve years in the US Air Force before being sidelined by a diagnosis of depression and PTSD. After several years including multiple hospitalizations, medications, and other treatments, she was introduced to peer support. This led to newfound hope and discovery of inner strength. She served as the director of the Certified Peer Specialist (CPS) Training for Massachusetts for four years. Martha has also worked providing peer support in an inpatient locked unit and in a peer-run organization. In addition to CPS training, Martha is a certified Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) facilitator, Alternatives to Suicide Facilitator, Hearing Voices Network facilitator, SAMHSA Recovery to Practice Next Steps facilitator and a Vet-to-Vet group facilitator. Martha serves on the advisory board for the National Center on Advancing Person-Centered Practices and Systems (NCAPPS) and served as a member of the Recovery Advisory Board and the Veterans' Engagement Stakeholder Council for the VA Healthcare and Implementation Research (CHOIR) program.She also facilitates Alternatives to Violence workshops in several state prisons. Currently, she is on the training team for the Wildflower Alliance and has recently returned to veterinary diagnostic imaging at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University.

In addition to her work with the Wildflower Alliance where she does project development and oversight, grant writing, public speaking, curriculum development, training, supervision, and leadership, Sera has also worked as a lead trainer for the state’s Certified Peer Specialist program for nearly ten years, is a founding member of the Hearing Voices USA Board of Directors, and publishes articles regularly on Mad in America. Sera was able to take her lived experiences in the mental health system and re-define herself as a survivor to find success without any diagnoses or psychiatric drugs for over a decade. She has also developed a passion for filmmaking, beginning with ‘Beyond the Medical Model’ in 2013.

In addition to her work at Peer Collective, Moon is contracted as a cultural strategist for Disability Rights Maine where she advocates for the voices of immigrants and disproportionately represented communities in the mental health field. She first began her work with the ACE program in the Army National Guard, where she received training in suicide prevention for soldiers struggling with their mental health. Moon emigrated to the United States from South Sudan as a child and uses her and her family’s experience and trauma to educate and enlighten providers, consumers, policy makers, and community members about the importance of inclusion. Moon is also a spoken word poet and storyteller who uses her gift for writing to empower and build narratives for Black and brown communities.

Kelly is a mother of three children and three grandchildren. She has worked in Peer Support for nineteen years and started Maine’s only Crisis Respite Program. She was hired fourteen years ago to work in the Office of Consumer Affairs for the State of Maine. While that office no longer exists, Kelly’s role continues as the Recovery Training Coordinator, focusing primarily on managing Maine’s Intentional Peer Support Training Program. Kelly’s passion lies in social justice practice and advocacy.