RISING TO THE CHALLENGE

Will Bowen is the visionary behind the Complaint Free® movement, inspiring millions to transform complaining into empowerment. Over 15 million people across the globe have embraced his 21-Day Complaint Free Challenge, transforming mindsets, workplaces, and relationships.

Will’s message has earned him features on The Oprah Winfrey Show, NBC’s Today, People, Forbes, Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, Chicken Soup for the Soul - and beyond.

He holds the prestigious CSP (Certified Speaking Professional) designation and is a sought-after keynote speaker and trainer for organizations worldwide. His past clients include household names like Volvo, Kimberly-Clark, and The Million Dollar Roundtable.

Will is also a prolific writer: all five of his books have become international bestsellers, translated into dozens of languages and read by millions.

His talks are equal parts inspiring, humorous, and transformational - designed to help leaders and teams reduce negativity, boost productivity, and cultivate a culture of what’s possible. To learn more about or bring Will to your organization, visit WillBowen.com.

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Since 2001, Jodi Pfarr has worked internationally conducting impactful seminars that leave people learning and laughing. Through her captivating presentations and consulting, Jodi seeks to help people discover the human connections that unite us all—unlocking potential within communities, institutions and individuals alike.

Her engaging style – and trademark humor – allow her to effectively connect with diverse audiences. Her ongoing clients represent a broad range of groups. These include teachers, religious institutions, social service agencies (including Goodwill, Salvation Army, Catholic Charities, Habitat for Humanity), countless government agencies, various fire and police departments (including Memphis Fire and Police Departments and the St. Paul Police Department), judicial systems (including Ohio and Minnesota judges), corporations (including General Mills and Sax Fifth Avenue), and American Indian nations (including Menominee).

Jodi grew up in a rural area and lives in an urban city, giving her a keen understanding of both demographics and the unique dynamics within both.  She brings audiences the knowledge she has gained from years of hands-on experience within the criminal justice system, social services, religious institutions and nonprofit organizations. This vast work experience enriches her presentation with stories from the trenches that audiences often find relatable and transferable into their own personal and professional lives.

Mara B. Vernon CPCC | PCC | CDTLF | TICC is a certified leadership coach, facilitator, and consultant who has spent more than 25 years in leadership and development roles in corporate and higher education industries. Her roles ranged from director of training, to director of operations, to director of career & alumni services, to leadership coach.  She is passionate about empowering others to consciously live the lives they desire.
Mara is the President and Possibility Illuminator of Ripp Leadership LLC, which embodies her life purpose, to radiantly illuminate passionate possibilities so that clients live empowered, creating ripples in the world.
 

The Director of the Colorado Division of Child Support Services has more than 40 years experience with child support programs at both the state and county level in Colorado starting as a legal technician and progressing to County Child Support Manager to Director of the Division of Child Support Services at the Colorado Department of Human Services. He has served on the Board of Directors of the National Child Support Enforcement Association (NCSEA), co-chaired the NCSEA Research Committee, and served on the National Judicial Child Support Task Force. He began his tenure as Director in January 2015. His focus is to provide improved support technology and training to the county child support professionals and implement strategies and initiatives to move the Colorado program from purely enforcement to a 2-Generational model by providing enhanced child support services, emphasizing employment, child well-being, and connecting both parents to the resources they need.  He is proud to be a part of the 700 plus child support professionals in Colorado who dedicate themselves every day to deliver high quality, effective and efficient services to the families served.

Amy Sauer is the IT Support and Data Analyst for the Child Support Division in Arapahoe County, where she has served for over 12 years. She provides frontline technical support for staff and plays a key role in developing technology solutions that improve efficiency and service delivery. Amy develops and maintains more than 20 Microsoft Access databases that serve as essential daily tools, and she creates workflow automations to support productivity and timeliness. Most recently, she led the migration of thousands of files from a server-based system to Microsoft SharePoint and developed the CS Info Hub, a centralized resource that equips staff with the tools they need to succeed. Amy is a Colorado native who enjoys the outdoors—especially time on the water paddleboarding or jet skiing.

After graduating with his Juris Doctorate from the University of Denver in 2012, Andrew began his legal career in private practice as a family law attorney. For five years, Andrew represented parties throughout Colorado in proceedings related to divorce, allocation of parental responsibilities, adoptions, and civil protection orders. In this role, Andrew developed a commitment to children’s advocacy, which ultimately led him to pursue a contract position with the Office of the Child’s Representative. From 2017 to 2022, Andrew served as a Guardian ad Litem in the Denver Juvenile Court, representing the best interests of children in dependency and neglect, paternity, and truancy cases. Andrew also served as a municipal prosecutor with the Denver City Attorney’s Office for two years before returning to the Denver Juvenile Court in 2024, this time, in the role of a magistrate.

 As a juvenile court magistrate, Andrew presides over a variety of dockets, including those related to paternity and child support, delinquency, truancy, and Dependency and Neglect. Andrew also oversees the Juvenile Court’s YFYC Diversion and Competency dockets.

Carolyn Scott, E-RYT-200 has been teaching yoga for 14 years, and received her Hatha Yoga certification in 2012 from Ojas Yoga Center in Edgewater, NJ. Carolyn currently teaches corporate yoga at Gaiam Headquarters in Superior, CO, along with private lessons out of her home. Carolyn resides in Lakewood, CO. with her husband and two daughters, and believes yoga is for EVERY BODY. This is Carolyn's 3rd year teaching at CSFC and she is excited to be back!

Christina Eigel is the Project Manager and IV-D Administrator for the Child Support Services offices of El Paso and Teller Counties as administered by Young Williams.  Christina started working at the Office of the District Attorney, Child Support Division, in 1995 and represented the delegate child support unit in El Paso County, Colorado, and was the Supervising Attorney until becoming project manager in 2021. Christina received her Bachelor of Arts degree, summa cum laude, from the University of Connecticut (Go, Huskies!) in December 1991 and her Juris Doctorate, cum laude, from Boston College Law School in 1995. Christina presently serves as a regional representative on the Colorado IV-D Task Force and served on the Colorado Child Support Commission from 2009 until 2016.

Program Innovation Unit Manager

Sabrina is a veteran of managing partnerships and stakeholder contracts for the Division of Child Support Services. She has been in Child Support Services for 22 years at both the State and County levels in Colorado.  She leads her team of highly motivated professionals in overseeing various special projects including grant writing for the 1115 grant funds that are awarded to the Colorado Title IV-D programs.  Her versatile background also includes Child Support case management, strategic planning, policy development, performance improvement and a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice.  Sabrina is committed to continually improving the Child Support Services program by evaluating how behavioral economics affects the program and the clients we serve.

SAVES Demonstration Training Specialist 

Joe hails from Denver, Colorado, though his formative years were spent in Connecticut. His academic journey led him to UConn, where he pursued a degree in Human Development and Family Services. As an Army veteran with 8 years of dedicated service, he fulfilled roles as both a Civil Affairs and Public Affairs Specialist. For nearly two decades, his professional endeavors have taken him across the globe, primarily within MENA countries as an expert in Learning & Development, instructional design, and consulting.

YoungWilliams P.C: Supervising Attorney 7/2021 to present

YoungWilliams P.C: Staff Attorney 9/2018 to 7/2021

Cain & White: Insurance Defense Attorney 7/2017 to 9/2018

U.S. Army Judge Advocate Attorney: 5/2009 to 7/2017

I started my legal career as an attorney in the U.S. Army in 2008. After serving 8 years and stationed in various fun places including a deployment in the Middle East, my wife told me that she would like to settle down in Colorado and not move again. Like a good husband, I resigned from the U.S. Army after fulfilling my terms and began my journey as a Colorado attorney in 2017. I completed a year as an insurance defense attorney representing State Farm before realizing that I missed going to court and representing the government. I joined YoungWilliams, P.C. and the rest is history.

Jessica Landay is a Partner with Harper Hofer & Associates in Denver, CO, where she
is a business appraiser, forensic accountant and financial expert witness. She
specializes in financial analyses for marital dissolution purposes, including income
determination, business valuation, pension valuation, stock option valuation,
lifestyle/spending analysis, and separate property analysis, among other things.
She also provides business valuation and forensic accounting services for other
litigation and non-litigation purposes. Jessica has been qualified as an financial expert
witness in multiple jurisdictions in Colorado and also assisted in numerous mediations
and settlement negotiations. She has been providing business valuation and forensic
accounting services since 2004.
Jessica has presented on various business valuation and family law related topics
locally and nationally for organizations and events including the Colorado Bar
Association, AICPA FVS Conference, ASA International Conference, Colorado Family
Support Council, CBA Family Law Institute, and Colorado Domestic Relations and
Probate Institute, among others.
Jessica is an Accredited Senior Appraiser in Business Valuation (ASA), Accredited in
Business Valuation by the AICPA (ABV), Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) and Master
Analysis in Financial Forensics (MAFF). She is currently a member of the AICPA’s
Business Valuation Committee and serves on the AICPA’s Forensic and Valuation
Services Conference Planning Committee. She also volunteers as a Mentor for NACVA
and serves on the NACVA CO/WY State Chapter Board of Directors.

Kate Dekker is a Child Support Services Supervisor within Arapahoe County DHS where she co-supervises the Enforcement team. She is on the WICSEC Year-Round Education Committee and the Arapahoe County Action Network as well as several other committees across the state. Prior to her time in child support, Kate worked as a paralegal and continues to love all things legal. In her free time, she enjoys going to Nuggets games, spending time with her animals, and traveling back home to Chicago.

Kristina Wilburn (She/Her) is the Associate Manager of Training and Education for the Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking. Also, she is an adjunct professor for the Graduate School of Social Work at University of Denver.  Kristina holds a Master of Social Work from University of Denver and Juris Doctorate from Valparaiso School of Law.  Previously, Kristina worked with the Office of Alternate Defense Counsel for the state of Colorado. She has held diverse roles focusing on human trafficking, domestic violence, child protection, child custody, forensic social work, elderly law, and criminal law. Prior to the staff position with LCHT, Kristina served on board from 2020 till 2023. Since 2023, Kristina has helped bring awareness of human trafficking to over 15,000 people with an emphasis on systems-involved youth and legal agencies throughout the state. Kristina has years of experience working with survivors of human trafficking on an international, national, and local level.

Lisa has more than thirty years of dedicated practice in family law, she brings a rare blend of experience centered in advocacy for parents and children. Her legal career began at the ground level as a paralegal with Colorado’s Legal Aid Society, where she developed a deep appreciation for access to justice and the human stories behind every case. That early foundation shaped her career marked by an unwavering commitment for justice for families.

Over the last three decades, Lisa has practiced in settings ranging from small boutique firms to a large Seventeenth Street practice, and she built and managed her own successful law firm. Her work has spanned the full spectrum of family law, including serving as a Child and Family Investigator, representing parents and children in truancy and dependency and neglect proceedings, and navigating some of the most complicated and complex divorce and parental dispute cases.

Lisa’s commitment to the legal profession also included fifteen years as an Adjunct Professor at the Community College of Aurora. She taught Family Law and Civil Litigation and mentored the next generation of legal professionals . 

Since 2011, Lisa has focused her practice specializing in child support services working first in Arapahoe County and now in Adams County as the Managing Assistant County Attorney assigned to the Child Support Office. In this role she has become a trusted resource for navigating  the rule of law and balancing it with the practical realities facing parents and children. 

Outside of her legal professional life, Lisa enjoys family time, salsa dancing, hiking and when time permits traveling to warm sunny places. 

Manny Gonzalez is the Culture & Inclusion Strategist at Denver Human Services, where he leads agency-wide efforts focused on organizational culture, inclusion, and employee engagement. He brings over 20 years of experience across public education, nonprofit leadership, behavioral health, and human services systems. Manny’s work centers on translating equity values into sustainable structures and everyday practice, including the development of culture and inclusion frameworks, distributive leadership models, and reflective tools for staff and leaders. He is also an adjunct instructor in graduate-level counseling programs and the founder of Transcendent Solutions LLC, supporting organizations in strengthening culture, climate, and community engagement. His approach emphasizes truth, humanity, and practical systems change that supports both staff well-being and meaningful outcomes for families and communities.

The Safe Access for Victims' Economic Security (SAVES) grant is a $11.2 million federal program launched in 2022 to help domestic violence survivors safely access child support services. It funds 13 state and tribal sites, providing trauma-informed training, screening, and enhanced safety measures for survivors navigating the child support system.

Key Aspects of the SAVES Grant

Goal: To eliminate safety barriers, such as concerns over address confidentiality, that prevent victims from seeking child support.

Funding & Duration: $11.2 million was awarded in September 2022 to 12 state child support agencies and one tribe for a five-year period.

Funded Activities: Projects include improved safety screening, staff training on domestic violence, and policy changes to protect victims.

The SAVES Center: A national resource center, part of this project, supports sites with research, training, and policy guidance.

Participating Sites: Colorado, Georgia, Ohio, Oklahoma, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians.

Services for Survivors

Confidentiality: Safe access to parenting time and child support services.

Support: Assistance for survivors who might otherwise avoid the child support system due to safety fears.

Website Safety: Enhanced safety features, such as "quick exit" buttons, on state child support websites to prevent abusers from seeing browsing history.

The Colorado Central Registry (CCR) team brings a wealth of diverse experience and a deep commitment to intergovernmental child support case processing. The team is composed of specialists with experience spanning across county-level work, financial services, and state-level support.

FSR (Family Support Registry) Financial Services Team manages the banking and payment processing contracts.  We are responsible for handling any issues or concerns that arise with payments and disbursements.

FSR Support Services manages the employer table in ACSES to support the execution of IWOs to employers as timely as possible. We partner with Maximus to maintain the Colorado State New Hire Directory and coordinate with Conduent for the timely printing of checks and notices. Our team provides the essential technical support and resources required for employers to successfully navigate the child support process.

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FSR (Family Support Registry) Financial Services Team manages the banking and payment processing contracts.  We are responsible for handling any issues or concerns that arise with payments and disbursements.

FSR Support Services manages the employer table in ACSES to support the execution of IWOs to employers as timely as possible. We partner with Maximus to maintain the Colorado State New Hire Directory and coordinate with Conduent for the timely printing of checks and notices. Our team provides the essential technical support and resources required for employers to successfully navigate the child support process.

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The operational analysis team are the subject matter experts on the operation of the ACSES financial record management sub-system, and they analyze and evaluate the functionality of current automated financial record management processes and guidelines.

The policy unit researches, drafts, implements, and evaluates child support policies to ensure they align with strategic goals and legal requirements. They analyze data, manage the policy lifecycle, and provide evidence-based recommendations to leadership. Key functions include policy development, impact assessment, and stakeholder management. 

Key Responsibilities of a Policy Unit

• Development and Drafting: Creating new policies, procedures, and guidelines, as well as reviewing and updating existing ones.
• Research and Analysis: Utilizing qualitative and quantitative data to inform policy decisions, conducting benchmarking, and assessing the potential impact of new regulations.
• Strategic Planning: Offering long-term, strategic advice and identifying emerging policy issues.
• Implementation and Compliance: Ensuring policies are properly enacted, communicated, and adhered to within the organization.
• Evaluation: Assessing the effectiveness of policies and identifying gaps to ensure they achieve desired outcomes.

Born in Colorado in 1990, I discovered my passion for fitness at the age of 16 while attending CEC Middle College of Denver. I vividly remember walking into my Exercise Science and Human Performance class with excitement about working out—little did I know that this experience would spark a lifelong fascination with the ergonomic and kinesthetic movements of the human body, both during exercise and at rest.

I remained in this program throughout my high school years and chose to continue my education at Arapahoe Community College. There, I expanded my knowledge of fitness while also studying the psychological and nutritional components of movement and wellness. This journey helped shape my holistic approach to health and exercise.

In June of 2010, I had the privilege of becoming a licensed Zumba Instructor. Learning that I could combine my love for dance with fitness was life-changing. Since then, teaching Zumba has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Through this work, I have had the honor of connecting with incredible people and building a supportive, empowering community through movement.

I am grateful for every opportunity to inspire others to embrace fitness in a fun and uplifting way, and I look forward to continuing this journey.