About us:
Our Staff
The professional staff have years of experience in teaching, training, consulting and provision of clinical services to youth and families.
Our biggest accomplishment is by far our commitment in creating a caring compassionate work environment that strives to serve families with the utmost respect and regard while maintaining our own wholeheartedness.
Marisol Peña, LMSW
Executive Director
Marisol Peña was first hired at The Sky Center in 2014 as a Spanish interpreter after receiving her Bachelor’s in Social Work. In her ten years at The Sky Center, Marisol evolved into roles supporting day-to-day office procedures and served as a principal source of information for student trainees and staff. After receiving her Master’s in Clinical Social Work, Marisol was promoted to Associate Director and served as a Bilingual Therapist, predominantly supporting Spanish-speaking families with issues around family conflict, substance abuse, and youth suicidal ideation.
Marisol began her new role as Executive Director in 2025 and is committed to promoting the ongoing mission of reducing youth suicide in Santa Fe and Northern New Mexico. Marisol was guided by those committed to the mission, which helped her begin the path of leading as a person of color. Born and raised in Española, NM, by two Mexican parents, she was taught the values of service and community, which align with The Sky Center’s values of fostering hope and resilience.
Outside The Sky Center, Marisol enjoys playing sand volleyball, drinking tea while working on a puzzle, and seeking her next travel adventure.
Annai Burrola Estrada, LCSW, IMH-E®
Clinical Program Director/ Clinical Supervisor
Annai Burrola Estrada was born and raised in Santa Fe, New Mexico, by her parents, who are both from Chihuahua, Mexico. Annai grew up speaking both Spanish and English with family and friends and is fully bilingual. She has worked with the Santa Fe community in both languages and in various settings for almost fifteen years.
Annai graduated from the Facundo Valdez School of Social Work at New Mexico Highlands University in May 2020 with a Master’s in Clinical Social Work. She completed her internship in 2020 with The Sky Center and remained within the agency as a Development Coordinator, then later trained to be a Clinical Supervisor and in 2024 became the Clinical Program Director. She returned to NMHU in 2023 to teach social work at the Bachelors level. Annai enjoys working with families and children and is rostered in Child Parent Psychotherapy. She is an Associate Bilingual/Bicultural Clinician with Hello Wellness where she offeres family and individual counseling.
Outside of work commitments, Annai enjoys taking short road trips around New Mexico with her husband and dog, Dobby, and spending time with her family, and friends. She also loves traveling to her parents’ and husband’s home state to visit family and friends.
Janice L. Mayer, CFRE
Grants and Development Director
Janice joined The Sky Center from the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market Institute where she served as Development and Communications Director. She moved to New Mexico to serve as Executive Director of the Santa Fe Desert Chorale.Previously she served in leadership positions in the nonprofit sector in New York City, including as Associate Director of Classical Action: Performing Arts Against AIDS. In addition to posts at the New York City Opera, Metropolitan Opera, and the Shubert Organization, she was a Vice President at Columbia Artists Management, Inc. and founded Janice Mayer & Associates, an international artist management firm which she directed for eleven years. Consulting clients have included The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Harlem School of the Arts, and Caminos del Inka, Inc. She has served on numerous grant panels at the federal, state, and local levels. Janice holds a BA from Connecticut College and a Master of Public Administration from New York University where she also taught as adjunct faculty. She is a Certified Fundraising Executive.
The Massachusetts native enjoys watching tennis and attending the performing arts.
Paloma Sandoval
Office Manager/ Spanish Interpreter
Paloma joined the Sky Center in the spring of 2023 as an Office Assistant and Spanish Interpreter. Deeply committed to serving the Latino community in Santa Fe, she brings both heart and purpose to her work. Her dedication extends especially to supporting asylum seekers and refugees, a passion that took shape during her involvement with the Oak Tree Project. There, she played a key role in welcoming 30 Central American refugees, helping set up dormitories, providing meals, and offering Spanish interpretation to ease their transition.
Volunteering has always been a meaningful part of Paloma’s life, and she actively participates in various nonprofits throughout Santa Fe. Looking ahead, she plans to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work to deepen her ability to make a lasting impact.
Outside of her community work, Paloma enjoys serving her church, listening to music, reading, painting, and spending quality time with her family.
Robert Kristy (Bob), MA, LCSW
Adolescent HUGS Coordinator/ Clinical Supervisor
Bob began his career at The Sky Center as a therapist-intern in 2011. Upon ending his two-year internship, Bob was hired in 2013 as Coordinator of the Adolescent HUGS program, a joint venture between The Sky Center and Christus St. Vincent Hospital that offers wraparound, therapeutic, and non-traditional services to at-risk individuals under the age of 22. In 2015, Bob and Katrina Koehler, Executive Director of Gerard’s House, started Semicolon, a peer teen support group for those met with the challenge of transforming suicidal ideation. Bob received his BA in political science at UCLA and a MA in political theory at the University of Maryland. Applying his knowledge of social psychology that links individual and social liberation, Bob received his masters in social work (MSW) at New Mexico Highlands University.
When not serving the needs of young people and their families, Bob devotes time and energy to baseball, rock n roll, and community activism.
Caroline Siewert, SEP
Natural Helpers Coordinator
A performer at heart with roots in somatic work, Caroline brings a rich background in acting, public speaking, and body-based healing to the Sky Center team. With a BFA and MFA in acting and a certificate as a Somatic Experiencing practitioner, she’s passionate about helping people connect with their bodies and uncover the stories that shape them. As a public speaking coach, she’s guided clients to find confidence and authenticity in their voices. She has also worked with kids of all ages as a teacher and a caregiver and has a strong gift for group facilitation and creating spaces where people feel supported and empowered. Caroline is honored to support the Sky Center’s mission and to contribute to the well-being of Northern New Mexico’s communities.
Apryl Miller, LCSW
Leadership Advisor ( Founder, Past Executive Director)
Apryl was hired by the New Mexico Suicide Intervention Project’s Board of Directors in October 1996 and was instrumental in the creation of The Sky Family Therapy Training Center as well as the many programs that have been developed since the center opened in January 1998. She currently serves as as a Leadership Advisor, supporting the next generation of leaders at The Sky Center. Her background includes working on various national research projects focusing on mood disorders, suicidal behavior in youth and the development of protective factors for youth at risk. She has had a special interest in removing barriers that limit access to treatment and promoting systemic family treatment models that build connections between family members while also promoting wellness and deep, sustainable self-care among the center’s staff.
Additionally, she served on the faculty for nearly a decade at the College of Santa Fe and has taught as an adjunct for various graduate departments in New Mexico. She also has a small private practice and strives to maintain a wholehearted approach in her personal life, leadership role, and clinical practice.
Valerie
Office Assistant / Spanish Interpreter
A local of the Southwest, Valerie brings five years of experience in youth development, recreation and social work from three of the Four Corner states. She is a dedicated proponent of bridging outdoor access for at-risk and marginalized communities, and is beyond grateful for the agencies she’s partnered with that share that vision. Her most recent company she partnered with in this common goal was the incredible team at Wild Diversity. She is incredibly excited to support and contribute to the Sky Center team in fortifying Northern New Mexico’s wellness resources and suicide prevention network.
Leah O’Shell, MC
Postvention Team Coordinator
Leah is serving on the Sky Center team as the Postvention Team Coordinator. She first began working with the Postvention team as a volunteer in 2017. She is honored to serve the northern New Mexico community in this capacity. As a native of Santa Fe Leah has spent 24 years in education. Her work was focused on working with students in high need, helping to mentor them and assisting them in getting the resources they need. As a Community Resource Coordinator and the Director of Family & Community Engagement for the Santa Fe Public Schools she was able to engage families & support them with resources. Leah graduated from New Mexico Highlands University with a Masters degree in Counseling. She currently works at Kearny Elementary as the school counselor. Her passion is helping families in need and providing a safe place for students to express their emotions and needs.
Tahoma Wrubleski, MHC
Community Trainer
Tahoma became a member of the Sky Center team in early 2021, transitioning in as the new Natural Helpers Coordinator. In his high school years, Tahoma was a part of the Natural Helpers program himself leading him to having a personal connection with and appreciation for this program. Tahoma graduated from Southwestern College in the spring of 2025 with his Master’s in Counseling and shortly after completed his internship with the Sky Center in May of 2025. After completing his master’s, Tahoma handed over his role with the Natural Helpers program to Caroline Siewart, the new Coordinator, to focus on his work as a therapist in the community. He is dedicated to the Sky Center’s mission and continues to be a part of the Sky Center team as a Community Trainer. Tahoma has a passion for helping others recognize and connect with the inherent value they have in this world and how they can share what they have to offer with those around them. In his free time, Tahoma enjoys dance and movement, making art, gardening, and spending time in nature and with friends.
Dennis Bumgarner, LCSW, ACSW
Clinical Supervisor
Dennis has been a clinical supervisor at The Sky Center since 2014. Additionally, he is the Clinical Director at Susan’s Legacy, a nonprofit in Albuquerque. He also maintains a private practice in Placitas, New Mexico. He received his M.S.W. from Indiana University in 1977. In addition to his clinical work, he has taught social work and psychotherapy at Ball State University and Christian Theological Seminary. He is the past president of Habitat for Humanity and Freewheelin’ Community Bikes in Indianapolis. His spare time is spent cycling, mountain biking, and hiking throughout the southwest along with song-writing and playing the guitar.
Farah Sultan, LCSW, SEP
Clinical Superviosor/ Cultivating Connection Facilitator
Farah first stepped into the Sky Center as an intern in 2018. Her personal and professional growth exceeded her imagination, and she decided to stay and complete post-graduate advanced studies the following year. Farah is passionate about using a systemic lens in her work, beginning with her Bachelors in Economics and Policy and leading her to graduate with a Master’s in Social Work in 2019. She began volunteering in Northern New Mexico shortly after moving from the UK in 2013 to better understand and be part of her new home. Later, she worked at several community mental health agencies, including the Crisis Center of Northern New Mexico and Solace Sexual Assault Services. Farah’s experience and curious mind have led her to pursue advanced studies in trauma and interpersonal neurobiology with a variety of teachers, and become a bodyworker in the process. Farah is the facilitator for the Cultivating Connections program at Sky and also has a private practice in Santa Fe. When she’s not working, Farah enjoys spending as much time as possible outside, learning how to sing better, and training dogs.
Claire Pfister, LCSW
Clinical Supervisor
Claire joined the Sky team in 2017 as a clinical supervisor in our family counseling and graduate training program.. She obtained an MSW from the University of Denver in 1991 concentrating in family therapy, child protection, and drug dependency. She then moved to Australia for thirty years. She furthered her family therapy studies there, completing an intensive two year Milan family therapy course through Relationships Australia and then obtaining a two year Graduate diploma in couple and family therapy through the university of New South Wales. For the past twenty-five years she has worked with families and individuals in a variety of settings both urban and rural and with both voluntary and involuntary clients. In her spare time she has been concentrating on her new project of food production at her farm on the outskirts of Santa Fe while also studying Jungian therapy and Kabbalah.
Carlotta Saiz, LPCC
Clinical Supervisor/ Community Trainer
Carlotta was born and raised in Santa Fe, NM and is a graduate of Capital High School. She received her Master’s in Counseling from Southwestern College in 2006 and went on to begin her counseling career in community mental health on the west side of Chicago. Her work in Chicago included crisis intervention and stabilization with at-risk youth and their families, and teaching Mental Health First Aid. Carlotta returned to Santa Fe in 2013 where she continued working in community mental health as a therapist and Clinical Supervisor; her work is steeped in family systems and trauma-informed care.
In addition to her role as a Clinical Supervisor at the Sky Center, Carlotta is in Private Practice where she works with families, couples and individuals. In her spare time, she enjoys Muay Thai boxing, exploring the green thumb she never knew she had in her garden at home, and spending time with friends, family, her dog, Cashew hiking and traveling.
Spanish Interpreters
Pictured Front row: (L to R) Nancy Toscana, Valerie C. Back row (L to R) Paloma Sandoval, Marc Forlenza.
Spanish Interpreters’ roles at the Sky Center are essential to our free family counseling services.
The Sky Center Spanish interpreters have lived experience with interpreting for family members and know the importance of Bilingual families to access mental health services. Having Spanish interpreters helps families in need feel comfortable expressing themselves in their native language without barriers. Our Spanish interpreters build bridges for mental health services and are very passionate about working with the Latinx community, graduate students, and staff. We are grateful for their time and commitment. Mil gracias!
Valerie C.
Marc Forlenza
Paloma Sandoval
