TestimonialsFrom Advocates

After learning about New Futures' mission while working at its award ceremony in 2023, Erin has become a passionate advocate for children's mental health. "This is some of the coolest stuff I've ever heard. I didn't know people could get involved like that," Erin recalls. Erin then jumped into advocacy, drawing on their own experience navigating mental health treatment systems as a teen. Due to insurance coverage gaps, Erin's family had to send them thousands of miles away to California for mental health treatment—a "suffocating feeling" that left them separated from their mom and loved ones. Now a member of New Futures' Children's Behavioral Health Advisory Committee, Erin has testified on multiple bills, courageously sharing vulnerable parts of their story to advocate for community-based services and insurance coverage so other children don't experience the same fear and isolation. Despite being "terrified of people" and never considering public speaking their strength, Erin has gained confidence through advocacy, explaining, "I'm doing it for younger me, for the person who felt so helpless, and I'm doing it for all the kids that feel just the same as I did."

Since losing her son Matthew in 2021, Katie Lyon-Pingree has become a powerful advocate for improving New Hampshire’s mental health system. Katie courageously shared her family's experience with lawmakers and at public events, speaking about how wraparound services and crisis supports like the 988 Lifeline could have been transformational for Matthew if they had been available when he needed them. Despite waiting eight hours and feeling "petrified,", Katie stood before more than 350 people during a budget hearing to advocate for these life-saving programs. "Just having friendly faces like [the New Futures staff] who sat with me for hours" helped Katie and gave her "the advocacy bug." Katie will continue to advocate as she views it as an extension of caring for her son and ensuring other families have access to the supports they need.

Director, Connected Families NH

As Director of Connected Families NH, Dennis Calcutt has been a tireless advocate for children's behavioral health. In 2025, he consistently made the long drive to Concord to testify before committees, co-host legislative breakfasts, and meet with lawmakers to ensure all New Hampshire children have access to needed behavioral health supports. Dennis has seen firsthand how insurance gaps delay critical care for families in crisis, driving his commitment to closing coverage gaps between Medicaid and private insurance. "Dennis was in Concord every single time we asked him to be," recalled Emma Sevigny, New Futures' Children's Behavioral Health Policy Coordinator, noting how he stayed past 9 p.m. to testify at a budget hearing. For Dennis, the work is simple: "If we can continue to move this forward, in the end, families are going to benefit."

NH Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics

As President and Immediate Past President of the New Hampshire Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Dr. Christine Arsnow and Dr. Julie Kim are a constant presence at the State House, providing crucial expert testimony against anti-vaccine legislation. When a 2025 bill proposed to eliminate the program that allows pediatric practices to provide free vaccines to children, the doctors mobilized 350 AAP members across the state, inspiring dozens of pediatricians to testify and ultimately getting the bill retained in committee. "Our job as pediatricians and adults in society is to stand up for kids and their interests and make sure that their voices are heard," Dr. Arsnow explains. With New Futures' support in developing their advocacy skills, these physician leaders are encouraging others to get involved in the legislative process.

Steering Committee, NH Alliance for Healthy Aging

Nancy Ekman Dorner has been advocating with New Futures for over a decade, and her passion for mental health and healthy aging has led to real policy change. She first connected with New Futures while advocating for mandatory suicide prevention education in New Hampshire schools – a campaign that succeeded in 2019 when Governor Sununu signed SB 282 into law. "My experience with New Futures, especially in recent years, has been wonderful," Nancy reflects. "The collaborative approach to aging issues in New Hampshire that New Futures supports has brought all the stakeholders to the table." As a member of the Steering Committee of the New Hampshire Alliance for Healthy Aging, Nancy has witnessed how New Futures brings together organizations like the Commission on Aging, AARP, and the Alzheimer's Association to work on innovative solutions to shared concerns.

Founder & Pediatrician, Breakthrough Direct Care

As a pediatrician and owner of Breakthrough Direct Care, Dr. Amy Watson has always advocated for her patients in the exam room. However, she first entered the legislative arena when a 2025 bill threatened access to vaccines for New Hampshire families. "I was initially very intimidated," Dr. Watson admitted, but after testifying at her first public hearing, she found her voice – going on to speak against three more bills that would harm immunization rates across New Hampshire. "New Futures has been a joy to work with and so incredibly informative and helpful to me as my advocacy efforts grow," she shared. To others considering advocacy, Dr. Watson's message is simple: "Don't be afraid to get involved! Organizations like New Futures make advocacy fun and easy. And it feels really good to speak up and take action!"

Five years ago, Dr. Alex Brown set out to expose family medicine residents to the vital role of legislative advocacy in community health. When he was developing the curriculum, a colleague introduced him to New Futures and its advocacy training program. “New Futures was extremely supportive of the goals and objectives of the experience I was creating,” Dr. Brown recalls. “Their expertise in leading this sort of training was far beyond what I could have achieved alone at that time.” What began as a single training session in 2019 has become an annual cornerstone of the residency curriculum, demystifying the legislative process and making advocacy accessible to physicians early in their careers.

At six years old, Cordelia Dubois became New Futures’ youngest advocate. When a bill surfaced that would have banned social-emotional learning (SEL) in public schools, Cordelia decided to take action by testifying at a public hearing to explain the importance of SEL to kids like her. Showing legislators techniques like five-finger breathing skills to help her manage her feelings, her testimony helped lead representatives to defeat the bill. Cordelia’s testimony was covered on local news stations and captured the attention of CASEL (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning), which earned her a trip to Washington D.C. to talk to federal lawmakers about the importance of SEL.

Coos Coalition for Young Children and Families

The first time Airole Warden made the three-hour drive from the North Country to Concord, it was to testify in front of a Senate Committee on the child care crisis in Coos County. She had prepared six minutes worth of testimony - but the Committee told her she had only two minutes to speak. She decided to stick to the stories she heard repeatedly in the North Country - stories of child care centers forced to close because they couldn’t find staff. Stories of police chiefs searching for child care for two new officers he had hired - but who could not work without child care. Endless stories of nurses, dental hygienists, teachers, and prison workers whose families were on long waitlists for care. Since then, Airole has made repeated visits to Concord to advocate for solutions to New Hampshire’s child care crisis, attending information sessions and direct meetings with legislators, and becoming an expert voice for lawmakers on the child care crisis.

Owner, Hope 2 Freedom Recovery Homes

For Shawn Cannizzarro, advocacy is all about helping people get the help they need. In February 2023, Shawn traveled from Claremont to testify in support of Medicaid expansion. As a person in recovery and the owner of two recovery homes, Shawn knows just how critical health insurance is to those seeking treatment. “My friend was waiting on the list for a ‘free bed’ as they call it, and he overdosed and died before he got that bed. He didn’t have insurance.” Shawn’s credits his exceptional advocacy efforts to his relationship with New Futures, saying they help remind him when hearings are coming and provide gas cards to help offset the cost of traveling to and from Concord. “I think of New Futures as this great big organization, but I come here, and it’s just people helping people.”

Executive Director, Sunset Hill Educational Institute

For Carol Conforti-Adams, helping others is just what she does. She created Sunset Hill Educational Institute to provide holistic services and programs like health promotion, wellness education, career counseling, and life skills training to adults with physical disabilities and youth of all abilities. “I’ve always been an advocate,” said Carol, “But New Futures opened up a whole new door for me. There was a collaboration of agencies and organizations that put together a plan that would address the funding issues of all areas of people who need to have Medicaid in their lives. Many lawmakers don’t realize that Medicare only provides so much for people who are aging or have disabilities - it’s Medicaid is the only insurance that will provide for home care in people’s homes and apartments, and we need to realize that if we don’t have that kind of home care, that many individuals don’t have a quality of life or can’t get up and contribute to society or go to work.” Carol’s testimony was instrumental in achieving a $130 million state investment in Medicaid reimbursement rate increases.

In his day-to-day life, Brian advocates for everything – issues relating to substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery, children’s behavioral health, trauma prevention, mental health, education, reproductive rights, and survivors’ rights. Brian is the embodiment of advocacy in action, never shying away from a controversial issue. “New Futures does a great job supporting their advocates and keeping the momentum going in their advocacy journey. The legislation may pass, but it may not – the victory is that you won’t be alone.” Brian first connected with New Futures through a friend and has been advocating ever since, testifying at the State House, writing opinion pieces in local newspapers, and meeting with legislators to educate them on issues that Granite Staters are facing. “I am so grateful that New Futures has always supported my advocacy.”

Executive Director, Rochester Child Care Center

Reflecting on her collaboration with New Futures, Cora-Lynn said “My experience with New Futures has been life changing. I didn’t understand the power of advocacy until I saw it in action. New Futures is what helped save child care – without the work on child care by President Michele Merritt, Child and Family Policy Director Rebecca Woitkowski, and Community Engagement Coordinator Jillian Andrews Dubois, child care would not be where it is today.” Cora-Lynn recognizes that it’s okay to be scared to advocate for issues you care about, but New Futures will help you through it.

Heather Martin is a tireless advocate for moms and families in New Hampshire and across the nation. When Heather first began advocating with New Futures, she admired New Futures’ collaborative approach to solving problems through policy change. She felt welcomed by the advocacy team, and the first time she testified in front of legislators at the State House was a turning point in her advocacy journey. “I didn’t think that my story would make a difference until I testified,” Heather reflected. “I knew from that point on that my story, and then my voice, could make a difference.”

“New Futures spreads the right message,” Heather emphasized. “I want to spread it as well, especially with all of the bills that New Futures is standing up for.” To Heather, New Futures feels like a family – a supportive network that welcomes Granite Staters into advocacy and amplifies their personal voices. “Why wouldn’t I want to be a part of that?” Heather stated.