Committee on Mental Illness and Wellness

The NCPD Council on Mental Illness and Wellness (CMIW) works to accompany our brothers and sisters with mental illness and their families while assisting the Catholic community by providing resources and education for spiritual and pastoral support. The Council provides:

Resources and training for pastoral staffs and parish leaders;
Information, referrals, and advice; and
Advocacy for persons with mental illness and their families to promote a just society and an end to stigma.

Visit the NCPD Mental Illness webpage for more information.

Steve Nash

Chair

Mental Health Advocate - Kansas City, MO

Steve is the En Route Director with the Tim Fletcher Co. in Canada where he is engaged in raising awareness of Complex Trauma (frequently referred to as childhood developmental trauma or CPTSD) and its far reaching and underlying impact in the areas of mental illness and addiction. He facilitates classes, conducts group presentations, provides coaching sessions, and works with several types of organizations in the United States and Canada to inform and educate them on effects of Complex Trauma. Steve has received training in the Compassionate Inquiry approach and Recovery Education for Addiction and Complex Trauma. He also focuses attention on support group services for substance use disorders and trauma, suicide prevention and survivors of suicide, parish men’s group and RCIA programs. Steve’s experience with the Complex Trauma issue resides within the personal, family, and community levels. His son, Tyler, struggled with trauma related issues and ultimately succumbed to suicide in 2018. He works within the Kansas City, MO area delivering Complex Trauma based education programs to help inform those individuals and families struggling with this issue, so they might avoid adverse outcomes. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Rockhurst University in Kansas City, MO.

Fr. Frederick Cabras OFM Cap., LCSW

Board Liaison

Licensed clinical social worker (LCSW), Director of Social Services for the Capuchin's Soup Kitchen, Detroit, MI

Fr. Cabras is a Roman Catholic priest, ordained in 2019, and a member of the Capuchin Franciscan Province of St. Joseph since 2011. Fr. Cabras is a Capuchin Franciscan. Before relocating to Detroit in 2020, Fr. Cabras worked as a licensed inpatient and emergency room psychiatric social worker at the Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he worked with a multidisciplinary team. He also previously served as coordinator of a social justice program providing regional resources for the homeless, as assistant staff member for a day program for adults with developmental disabilities, as case manager for persons experiencing homelessness while also offering sacramental ministries to a local Catholic community. He received his Master of Divinity Degree from the Catholic Theological Union, a Master of Social Work with a specialization in Mental Health from Loyola University, and a Bachelor of Psychology from the University of Illinois, in Chicago, IL. Fr Cabras is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) for the State of Illinois and Michigan. Fr. Cabras serves on the Governance Board of the National Catholic Partnership on Disability (NCPD) and as the Board Liaison to NCPD's Council on Mental Illness and Wellness (CMIW).

Christian Bentley

Regional Mental Health Representative for VOICE and Advocate for mental health and social justice, Diocese of Virginia.

Christian is a resident of the City of Alexandria in the Southside Historic District, a descendant of John Parker and member of the Historic Parker, Dogan and Bentley Families. A mixture of enslaved and freedman devout Catholics.
For over 5 years, Bentley has been a noteworthy advocate for mental health and social justice within Virginia and the National Catholic Church. Using his own experiences with managing a Bipolar 1 diagnosis and how faith, community and proper care can lead to a fulfilling life. Bentley currently serves as the Regional Mental Health Representative for VOICE, an interfaith social justice community advocacy group. The Chair of the Bishop's Advisory Council on Racism, The Diocesan Pastoral Council for Arlington, and an active participant with the USCCB in Young Adult and MultiCultural projects to name a few. A connector of people and a passionate person of faith, his life motto is based on the old gospel song, “If I can help somebody”. When he is not busy in his faith community, you can find Bentley walking his dog Epi through the streets of his ancestral home of Old Town Alexandria or on the Polo Fields of Middleburg, Virginia.

Jennifer L.K. Charles, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, National Catholic School of Social Service of The Catholic University of America

Jennifer, has a clinical social work background in community mental health, including crisis stabilization and mobile crisis response. Guided by her practice and educational experiences, Charles’s research focuses on the identification of and issues related to the stigma of mental illness. Particularly of interest to her are the negative attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of mental health service providers toward their clients as well as the influence of stigma on the mental health help-seeking behaviors of college-aged adults. She earned her Ph.D. in 2015 from Virginia Commonwealth University, her M.S.W. from Barry University, and her B.A. from Virginia Tech.

Sr. Sarah Martz, OSF

Recovery Support Specialist in a mental health center in the Archdiocese of Chicago

Sister Sarah Martz is a vowed member of the Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton, Iowa who is currently living and ministering in Chicago, Illinois. Sister Sarah works as a Recovery Support Specialist at a community mental health center, where she utilizes her own lived experience of mental illness to connect with her clients, providing support and resources for healing and wholeness. Her previous ministries include teaching, parish youth ministry, and advocacy for at-risk children. Sister Sarah holds a B.A. in Visual Art from Mount St. Clare College in Clinton, Iowa and a M.A. in Justice Ministry with a special interest in Reconciliation and Peacebuilding from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.

Deacon Ronald San Nicolas

Member of Mental Health and Inclusion Ministries, Archdiocese of Seattle, Washington

Deacon Ronnie was ordained in the Archdiocese of Agana, Guam in 2003. He is a social worker with a combined 30 years of experience in behavioral health and university teaching in Guam, Hawaii and, the State of Washington. Presently, he is a teaching professor at the University of Washington, Tacoma’s School of Social Work and Criminal Justice. His ministry experiences include chaplaincy service at Western State Hospital, parish mental health ministry, and pastoral care to the mentally ill, developmentally disabled, and their families. He and his wife Missy married in 1986 and are blessed with three adult sons and two grandchildren. His youngest son is autistic. He resides with his family in Tumwater, Washington.

Deacon Ed Shoener

Deacon, Diocese of Scranton PA; Founder of the Catholic Mental Health Institute and the Katie Foundation

Ed Shoener was ordained a permanent deacon in 2004 and serves at St. Peter’s Cathedral in the Diocese of Scranton. Shoener is a founding member of the Association of Catholic Mental Health Ministers and the Catholic Institute of Mental Health Ministry at the University of San Diego and the Scranton Mental Health Ministry. He earned a graduate certificate in spiritual direction from the Aquinas Institute of Theology. Shoener’s family and friends founded The Katie Foundation after his daughter, Kathleen, died by suicide in 2016. Katie’s obituary went viral because it spoke to the needs and concerns of people who live with mental illness. He lives with his family in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Claire Wills Shynett

Coordinator, Our Mother of Mercy Catholic Church Mental Health Ecumenical Ministry

Claire Wills Shynett worked as a health care professional for over 45 years, advocating for individuals with both mental and physical disabilities to live with dignity as fully functioning, participating, and contributing members of our community. Claire now works with many nonprofits organizations in Houston, Texas assisting individuals diagnosed with Mental Illness and IDD issues in the employment arena. She remains an advocate coordinating Our Mother of Mercy Catholic Church Mental Health Ecumenical Ministry providing free mental health education classes, support group meetings, and community outreach for those impacted by mental illness including the diagnosed, family members and the larger community of churches in Northeast Houston.

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