Meet the Wyoming Board
March 28, 2024 – 3 min read
Donna Birkholz, Board Chair (she/her)
Sheridan, WY
What year did you start on the Board?
2017
What is your heart connection to the cause?
I have lost family members and friends to suicide (including my grandfather), and have family and friends who have struggled.
What AFSP events do you look forward to every year?
Our Sheridan Out of the Darkness Walk, our Wyoming Capitol Day event, and the National Advocacy Forum in Washington, D.C.
What's something about you we may not know?
I have six sisters (no brothers).
My Hidden Talent:
I can milk a cow by hand.
My Core Values:
Kindness, Honesty, Hard Work
I’m Passionate About:
Skiing, Reading, Gardening, Family
My Favorite Quote:
"It's the job that never gets started that takes longest to finish." JRR Tolkien
Joann Stadel, Board Secretary (she/her)
Cheyenne, WY
What year did you start on the Board?
2020
What is your heart connection to the cause?
I am an attempt survivor as well as a loss survivor. I never want anyone to experience either of those things alone. When I found AFSP and the community it has created I knew I had to be part of it.
What AFSP events do you look forward to every year?
Advocacy Day. Participating in advocacy work has been an amazing way of helping me find my voice in suicide prevention work.
Pride Month is always amazing as well. I make it a point to help table at as many festivals as possible.
What's something about you we may not know?
I also volunteer my time as a crisis counselor for Crisis Text Line.
My Hidden Talent:
I can type really fast. Around 80 words a minute.
My Core Values:
Treat everyone with unconditional empathy
I’m Passionate About:
Helping people
My Favorite Quote:
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing” – Edmund Burke
Margaret Hudson, Board Member (she/her)
Laramie, WY
What year did you start on the Board?
2023
My Hidden Talent:
Headstands, I can do a headstand anywhere any time. I have an album of pictures of my headstands which has over a hundred pictures of headstands all around the world.
My Hobbies:
Reading
My favorite Food:
Rice Krispie Treats and powder sugar donuts.
My Favorite Quote:
Seek First to Understand —Stephen R. Covey
Kayla Stevens, Board Member (she/her)
Sheridan, WY
What year did you start on the Board?
2022
My Hobbies:
Reading, when I am not busy mothering my children, going for walks and being outside.
My Favorite Food:
Mexican Food
I’m Passionate About:
Maternal mental health, women’s mental health in general, raising awareness, providing education and advocating for perinatal and postnatal mental health.
Kim Pope, Board Member (she/her)
Buffalo, WY
What year did you start on the Board?
2023
What is your heart connection to the cause?
My personal journey and those around me have helped me find my way into being a more active part of AFSP.
What AFSP events do you look forward to every year?
Hike for Hope
What's something about you we may not know?
I have 8 grandchildren and am an avid reader
My Hidden Talent:
Pranking others
My Core Values:
Kindness, integrity, empathy
I’m Passionate About:
Families in our communities and helping others whenever the opportunity arises.
My Favorite Quote:
"How we walk with the broken speaks louder than how we sit with the great." Bill Bennot
Jana Strahan, Board Member
Wheatland, WY
What year did you start on the Board?
2024
My Hobbies:
Backpacking
I’m Passionate About:
Knitting – I have a YouTube Channel regarding knitting, it's purltogether
My Favorite Quote:
Not really a quote, but people say God Bless You, but not everyone wants to be blessed so I say Godzilla
Kaitlyn Breitenfeldt, Board Member
Laramie, WY
What year did you start on the Board?
2025
What AFSP events do you look forward to every year?
Out of the Darkness Walks, Pride Events, and Talk Saves Lives Presentations.
What's somehting about you we may not know?
Penguins are my favorite animal and I have a large collection of penguins (plushies, figurines, photos, etc.)
My Hidden Talent:
I love making rice krispie treats. I make them for every event I go to and am asked to bring something. I even made them gluten and vegan free.
My Hobbies:
I am learning how to ice skate and figure skate.
My Favorite Quote:
"It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences." ~ Audre Lorde