Kendra Deja comes to Solace Friends with 25 years of experience working in hospice and palliative care. Kendra holds a Master's Degree in Social Work (MSW) from UW-Madison, a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) from Marquette University, and completed her Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) at UW-Madison. Prior to joining Solace Friends, Kendra worked as a hospice and palliative care clinician for several community hospices, VA medical centers in San Diego and Palo Alto, CA, and for hospital and clinic-based palliative care teams in California and Madison. Helping people to know that they matter has been at the core of her clinical work in every setting. Kendra is committed to bringing her core values of joy, empathy, and growth to the Solace Friends residents and community.

Katherine Kamp (board president) is the former Director of The Wisconsin Partnership Housing Development, Inc. (WPHD) where she also held several other key positions, all focused on the need to increase access to affordable housing and revitalize neighborhoods through partnerships among the public, nonprofit and private sectors. She was Executive Director of the Housing Partnership of the Fox Valley, and a Vice President at Lewin/ICF, a large Washington D.C. policy consulting firm. Ms Kamp has a BA from Kalamazoo College and a MPP from University of Michigan. She completed the Achieving Excellence in Community Development program at the Harvard JFK School, and continues to serve as the President of the Board of Cinnaire Lending, a national CDFI, and is on the City/County Homeless Committee for Dane County.

Ed Hughes (board treasurer) is a retired attorney who previously worked at Stafford Rosenbaum LLP and the U.S. and Wisconsin Departments of Justice.  He is a former president and nine-year member of the Madison School Board and has served on a number of boards.

Joan Karan (fund-raising committee co-chair) has extensive experience working in Dane County nonprofits, including having served for 31 years as the associate director of Disability Rights Wisconsin, a statewide advocacy organization.

Ann Catlett, M.D., a physician specializing in palliative medicine, is the founder of Solace and the cofounder of the street medicine initiative Madison Area Care for the Homeless (MACH) OneHealth. She is on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

Laura Rose is a retired legislative and health policy attorney, working most of her career as Deputy Director of the nonpartisan Wisconsin Legislative Council. She concluded her career as Vice President of Policy Development at the Wisconsin Hospital Association.

Laura met Ann Catlett, founder of Solace Friends, through her work at WHA. Inspired by Ann’s work with Solace Friends, Laura joined the Board of Directors in 2022, taking a leave of absence in 2023 to assume the role of Interim Executive Director of Solace Friends. Upon the hiring of Solace’s permanent Executive Director, Kendra Deja, Laura resumed her place on the Board. She now serves as Board Secretary and chair of the Program Committee.

Latasha Robinson, LPN, has more than two decades of nursing experience in a variety of key positions and is currently a Manager of Business Development. Latasha also founded and currently runs Empowering Colorful Minds. Latasha serves on the Wisconsin Serious Illness Coalition and serves on the leadership team for Madison Black Nurses. Her professional passion lies in coaching, mentoring and education.

Lisa Berry is the Head of School at Woodland Montessori School. She has been part of their school community for 12 years. Lisa has extensive experience as a consultant for teachers, schools, and community programs on their Anti-Bias, Anti-Racist (ABAR) journey. She was appointed by the Mayor to join the Early Childhood Committee, which provides guidance and support for all Early Childhood programs in Dane County. Lisa’s own family has moved around the United States nine times, which allowed them to form close connections with people from all backgrounds and develop a deep concern for our communities. Lisa is a volunteer for several organizations that aim to make our communities a better place for everyone.

Jane Corkery recently retired from the State Bar of Wisconsin where she worked with twelve member boards representing different practice areas of law. Her work involved facilitating the work of the boards to benefit their members. She is also a long-time community volunteer for a variety of organizations including United Way Dane County, The Road Home, Catholic Multicultural Center, Red Cross and Others.

Lisa Cappelli worked as board-certified hospice and palliative care nurse for Agrace HospiceCare from 1999-2021, serving in both the home care and inpatient settings. She was a member of the agency’s equity and inclusion committee, advocating for culturally responsive end of life care for patients and families from all backgrounds. Lisa has been a faculty member in the School of Nursing at Madison College since 2002. From 2020 until 2023, she served as the Faculty Director for Equity and Inclusion for the School of Nursing.