Family Voices of Tennessee, LLC is dedicated to providing welcoming and respectful support to families of ALL types, including ALL cultures, ALL languages, ALL sexual orientations, ALL gender identities, ALL abilities, ALL religions, and ALL people regardless of citizenship status.

We understand that our success is dependent on our willingness to acknowledge systemic oppression, interrogate our own internal bias, and act with humility to eliminate barriers as we identify them.

Headshot of Ashlie Seibers, Director Family Voices of Tennessee
Headshot of Molly Anderson, Director of Peer Support. Molly is white woman with shoulder length brown hair. She is wearing a blue shirt. The background is green leaves.
Leah Williamson, PEARS Parent Guide
M. Holmberg, PEARS Parent Guide
Natalie Carlise, PEARS Parent Guide
Image of smiling Black woman with short red hair. She is wearing a red and black patterned shirt standing in front of green leaves.

History of Family Voices

Family Voices, Inc., was founded in 1992 by family leaders concerned about the changing health care environment and the implications for our children with disabilities, chronic illnesses, or other special health care needs.

Based in New Mexico, Family Voices, is a network of leaders working with families and professionals at the local, state, and national level to improve health care and related services for children.

Family Voices of Tennessee started in 1993 as a program of the Tennessee Disability Coalition and became the first state chapter formally sanctioned by the national organization in the last quarter of 2000. Family-Voices of Tennessee was one of six Family-Voices state programs during 1999-2001 to participate in a pilot program to develop Family-to-Family Health Information Centers (F2FHICs).

These F2FHICs are designed to be family-friendly places to learn about health care service systems and programs for children with disabilities, chronic illnesses, and special health care needs. Their purpose is to provide training or assistance to families in navigating various service systems, including Medicaid and TennCare, SSI for Children, Title V (Children’s Special Services), Early Intervention (TEIS), and other programs.

Today, Family Voices of Tennessee operates as an LLC under the umbrella of the Tennessee Disability Coalition. Family Voices of Tennessee continues to operate the F2FHIC and has expanded to include the Tennessee Parent to Parent affiliate program, the nationally recognized PEARS program, Voices 4 Choices, and a growing youth program.

Board of Directors

smiling white woman wearing black shirt. Kaci Fisher, CHAIR Parent, AVP, Market Development, Robotics, and orthopedics, Healthcare Corporation of America
Melanie Lutenbacher PhD, MSN, RN, FAAN PAST CHAIR Parent of a child w/ special health care needs Associate Professor of Nursing and Medicine Vanderbilt School of Nursing
Dara Howe SECTARY Parent of a child w/ special health care needs Co-Founder of Family Voices of TN
Carol Westlake Corporate Member Executive Director Tennessee Disability Coalition Co-Founder of Family Voices of TN
Chasity Crouch Parent of Child w/ special health care needs Business Manager Country Radio Broadcasters
Becky Scott Parent of Child w/ special health care needs Singer/Songwriter- Carters Chord