Fr. Carl Chudy, M.A., D.Min.Education: Master of Divinity; Master of Arts; Doctor of Ministry“Active bystander’s training has been a great opportunity to connect with like minded people who are deeply committed to community compassion in these divided times we live, and a particularly important feature for both faith and secular communities.”
Reverend Liz Garrigan-Byerly
TAB Trainer since Feb 2021
Place of Employment: Area Conference Minister, Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ
Education: BSW from Bloomsburg University; M.Div from Andover Newton Theological School
“Each of us is responsible for the quality of our communities. When the issues that face our society–racism, economic disparity, climate change–feel so overwhelming, I find hope in equipping people to make a tangible and significant difference.”
Sara Morrison Neil, MPA
TAB Trainer since Feb 2021
Place of Employment: Church Administrator & Membership Coordinator, First Parish in Framingham
Education: BA English Literature, Earlham College and Master of Public Administration, UMass Amherst
“It is so important that more people who want to DO something positive learn the skills to address situations in our community so that we can all feel safe here.”
Angela Garabet, MASc, BSc (Hons)
TAB Trainer since Feb 2021
Place of Employment: Harvard University, Teaching Fellow
Education: University of Waterloo, Masters in Systems Design Engineering. University of Toronto, Bachelor of Science (Hons)
“We all want to live in healthy, kind communities and feel connected to one another through our shared humanity . Small actions can have a huge impact in someone’s life and in our community but often it can be hard to know what to do and feel overwhelming. Empowering community members strengthens the confidence to act so we can together heal wounds and causes of harm to build a community in which we all want to live in.”
Najee Nunnally
TAB Trainer since Feb 2021
Place of Employment: Framingham Public Schools, Equity & Diversity Project Coordinator
Education: Framingham State University, BA; Boston University, Masters in City Planning
“Being an Active Bystander is important to me because I understand why it can be difficult for some to be an active bystander. An individual may be in fear of retaliation/being targeted, may not have context to the situation, feel as though they do not have the tools to be an active bystander etc.
With this understanding, I feel it is important to lean in on these inhibitors as a means of seeking solutions to enable active bystandership. Every situation is different and every person is different. The world we currently live in and have always lived in is one that will benefit greatly from greater active bystandership. We see videos online and on TV from what happens when active bystandership does not occur but we also see the benefits of it when it does occur.
Thanks to JFS and Quabbin Mediation, I am fortunate enough to be in a position to equip individuals with actionable steps towards active bystandership.”