Anne Montgomery is an experienced policy analyst and health systems researcher specializing in long-term care and support systems for older adults and individuals living with disabilities. Currently an independent consultant working with the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, the Center for Innovation, and Gray Panthers NYC, Ms. Montgomery served the U.S. Congress for a decade, developing legislative policy for the Senate Special Committee on Aging and the House Ways & Means Committee. She has also worked at the Government Accountability Office, the Alliance for Health Policy, and as director of the Center for Eldercare Improvement at Altarum.  Ms. Montgomery has extensive experience developing actionable strategy and governance proposals for improving a wide range of programs serving older adults and individuals with disabilities, and is currently working with the “Moving Forward” coalition, the Gray Panthers and the Live Oak Project, all of which aim to implement key policy reforms to overhaul our nation’s outdated nursing home model of care. Ms. Montgomery is currently co-leading research projects on transformation of long-term services and supports at both the local and national levels, together with development and piloting of a universal, person-centered, core competency-based educational curriculum for Direct Care Professionals.  She has a BA from the University of Virginia and an MS from Columbia University, and participates in various community-building local organizations in Washington, D.C. and in Virginia. Ms. Montgomery enjoys a variety of outdoor and cultural activities and is married to Robert Wollam, owner of a beautiful flower farm in Jeffersonton, VA.

Joe Angelelli, PhD is a gerontologist and social impact strategist with over 25 years experience advancing innovations in long-term care research, policy and practice. Joe has co-led initiatives as a faculty member at Brown, Penn State, and Robert Morris University. While serving as Director of Networking & Development at Pioneer Network twenty years ago, Joe supported the development of many state culture change coalitions. While Pennsylvania State Director at PHI, Joe co-led the design and testing of a model direct care professional curriculum. Most recently at UPMC Health Plan, Joe served for four years as Senior Advisor for Alternative Payment Models in the UPMC Center for High-Value Health Care, and four years as Senior Advisor for Age-Friendly Health & Well-Being in the UPMC Center for Social Impact. He serves on the Steering Committees of the national Moving Forward Coalition and the Live Oak Project. As a long-time volunteer board member for the Southwestern Pennsylvania Partnership for Aging (SWPPA, 2011-2019, 2024-present Board President), Joe co-led the committee that created the nationally recognized Age-Friendly Greater Pittsburgh collaborative in 2015. Joe earned a masters degree in Human Development & Family Studies from Oregon State, a doctorate in Gerontology & Public Policy from the University of Southern California and was an AHRQ Post-Doctoral Fellow at Brown University. He’s currently CEO of Lifespan, Inc, an aging services provider in Allegheny County.

Carrie Leljedal is a dedicated advocate and mother to a 36-year-old son who lives in an Intermediate Care Facility for adults with developmental disabilities and complex medical needs. As Vice President of Gray Panthers NYC and Co-Chair of Transformation Tuesday, Carrie leads efforts against ageism and champions long-term care reform through a monthly webinar series.

In her role as part-time Program Manager for The Live Oak Project, Carrie focuses on coordinating meetings, educational initiatives, and publicity for the Connected Communities—a transformative initiative reimagining traditional nursing homes into vibrant, community-centered spaces where residents and staff thrive with purpose and dignity. Carrie's work underscores her unwavering commitment to revolutionizing long-term care and fostering environments of vitality and inclusivity.

Jack is the Chief Catalyst Officer of Gray Panthers NYC, an organization with a storied history of ensuring the rights and programs for all who are aging, especially older persons themselves. Importantly, he is proud to be the co-focal point of the Stakeholder Group on Ageing at the United Nations.. He leads and/or participates in numerous important initiatives, such as ensuring that the concerns of older persons are included in global frameworks at the United Nations (Sustainable Development Goals; Human Rights of Older Persons;  Innovative approaches for older persons in the least developed countries);  working toward better enforcement of violations against nursing homes; addressing explicit and institutional manifestations of ageism; reminding emergency planning efforts (at the local and global level) to include older persons; working toward intergenerational solidarity, and much more.  He is the 2020 awardee of Colgate University’s highest honor – the Colgate Humanitarian Award. 

Jack received his college degree from Colgate University and his law degree from Brooklyn Law School. A New Yorker by birth and choice, his childhood was spent at the family owned and run rest home for the elderly in Rockland County, NY.  This is where the seeds of his passion were sown.

Joanne Rader, R.N., M.N., has worked as a nurse in long term care for over 50 years and taught nursing at Oregon Health and Sciences University for 20 years. As a nurse clinical specialist, professor and researcher, she focused much of her work on caring for persons with dementia and their caregivers.  She worked to reduce the use of physical restraints, inappropriate psychoactive medications, and defensive, self-protective behaviors during bathing for persons with dementia. Her books, Individualized Dementia Care: Creative, Compassionate Approaches and Bathing Without a Battle, won American Journal of Nursing Book of the Year Awards. She is a founding member of the Pioneer Network, an organization working to change the culture of aging in America and Live Oak Project, a group of advocates working to reimagine, redesign and transform Long-term Care Services and Supports so that each person can thrive. Currently, she works as an independent consultant and babysitter for grandchildren.

Rick Gamache, MS, FACHCA, is Chief Executive Officer of Aldersbridge Communities, a not-for-profit continuum of care for older adults across Rhode Island.

He’s been continuously employed in aging services since 1981 and has worked for organizations large and small, publicly traded, privately-owned and everything in-between. His career has been equally split between for-profit and not-for-profit companies and has included multi-site management of nursing homes and assisted living communities in four states, a home care organization, in-patient hospice, in-patient acute rehab, out-patient rehab, and the creation of the first two senior-friendly emergency departments in New England. He’s also survived four corporate mergers and/or acquisitions. 

He teaches courses in leadership and long-term care at RI College, serves on the board for Leading Age RI and the RI Quality Institute and served as past chair of The Eden Alternative and the RI Health Care Association. He is a member of the Live Oak Project and the Moving Forward Coalition, both dedicated to transforming long-term services and supports in America. 

He was recently appointed by the Governor of RI to the Board of Examiners for Nursing Home Administrators.

In 2024, he received the Public Service Award from the American College of Health Care Administrators.

Cathy Lieblich retired in 2022 after 42 years in the field of aging and long-term care, working on the local, state and national levels. Her most recent position was as Director of Network Relations for Pioneer Network, which she held for 11 years. In her retirement, Cathy is serving in a volunteer capacity with The Live Oak Project Steering Group, Florida Pioneer Network Steering Committee, Neighbors Network Board of Directors (President), and UPLIFT Florida Network Board of Directors. All of these entities share Cathy’s passion for changing the culture of aging in the 21st century. Cathy has a Master of Arts Degree from the School of Social Service Administration at The University of Chicago and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Anthropology from The Johns Hopkins University.

In 2020, Mikko Cook co-founded the Essential Caregivers Coalition, a national advocacy organization, during the Covid lockdown after her family went without contact with her father for over 100 days, in his NY state nursing home. Her experience as a marketing and communications professional for over 25 years also helped her to build and co-lead the Essential Caregivers Movement: a coalition of state long-term care advocacy leaders, which drafted state and federal nursing home reform legislation, led a national protest, and published the book, Protecting Them To Death: The Impact of Isolation in Long-Term Care. In 2022, Mikko and OPEN DOORS brought the Nursing Home Lives Matter (NHLM) movement to the steps of the Capitol through the announcement of the Essential Caregivers Act. In 2023, Mikko became the NHLM Movement Gardner, establishing seats on national long-term care reform committees for nursing home residents and bringing the NY Times “Critic’s Pick” documentary film, Fire Through Dry Grass to the National Consumer Voice for Long-Term Quality Care conference. Today, Mikko is the Outreach and Long-Term Care Advocate for Fire Through Dry Grass where she is bringing FIRE to conversations with public health institutions and governing bodies. She is also the Website Manager and Map Wrangler for the Connected Communities, and a member of Dignity Alliance Massachusetts where she sits on the Covid Memorial Dignity Remembrance committee.