Advisory Board
Amy Liebman Rapp, M.S.Ed, CT
Amy Liebman Rapp, M.S.Ed, CT is an internationally recognized authority on childhood and young adult loss, grief and bereavement, known for her abilities as an active listener, strategist, collaborator, innovator and mentor.
After the death of her husband in 1991 when her son Alex was 8 years old, Amy pursued graduate studies in both thanatology and grief counseling when she realized there were no grief support resources available for children and adolescents on the east coast of the United States.
For the past 28 years she has been committed to providing grief support and education for youth, families and businesses. Amy facilitated the creation, expansion and strategic vision of more than 200 children’s bereavement organizations, impacting the lives of over 250,000 children in 39 states - through her work as both the Managing Director and Program Design and Strategist of A Little Hope Inc. - The National Foundation for Grieving Children, Teens and Families. (2002-2016).
Amy’s current professional affiliations include the Association of Death Education and Counseling (ADEC), Hospice Foundation of America (HFA), Exponent Philanthropy and the National Alliance for Children’s Grief (NACG) of which she is a founding board member.
Alex Cares Inc. /ALEX CARES for Grieving Youth®) a creator of innovative initiatives and partnerships is a non profit incubator and accelerator founded by Amy in early 2016. The organization partners with non-profit organizations with ideas and initiatives that ignite transformative social change, They have shown a demonstrated commitment to social justice, diversity, equity and inclusion, especially along lines of race and gender, since their inception.
Jill A. Harrington, DSW, LCSW
Jill A. Harrington, DSW, LCSW is an Assistant Professor, Masters in Social Work at Marymount University. She is a former Adjunct Associate Professor for The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Washington DC Campus (TCSPP-DC) who maintains an active clinical counseling practice. Dr. Harrington is the lead editor of the novel textbook Superhero Grief: The Transformative Power of Loss (Routledge 2021) published by Routledge and has a 2nd Edition in publication.
She is a member of The National Association of Social Workers, The American Association of Suicidology, and the Association for Death Education & Counseling (ADEC) where she is also a former Board Member and Committee Chair. In her career, Dr. Harrington has published numerous peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, created and co-edited a novel textbook exploring modern superhero narratives in teaching thanatology and was recognized as TCSPP-DC Adjunct Professor of the Year and the ADEC Service Award (2023).
Kenneth J. Doka, PhD
Dr. Kenneth J. Doka is a Professor Emeritus at the Graduate School of The College of New Rochelle and Senior Vice-President for Grief Programs for the Hospice Foundation of America. He is one of the authors of the text, Dying & Death: Life & Living and a prolific author. He has also published over 100 articles and book chapters. Dr. Doka is editor of both Omega: The Journal of Death and Dying and Journeys: A Newsletter to Help in Bereavement. He has an ongoing blog for Psychology Today entitled Good Mourning.
Dr. Doka was elected President of the Association for Death Education and Counseling in 1993. In 1995, he was elected to the Board of Directors of the International Work Group on Dying, Death and Bereavement and served as chair from 1997-1999. The Association for Death Education and Counseling presented him with an Award for Outstanding Contributions in the Field of Death Education in 1998, Significant Contributions to the Field of Thanatology in 2014 and Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019. In 2000 Scott and White presented him an award for Outstanding Contributions to Thanatology and Hospice. His Alma Mater Concordia College presented him with their first Distinguished Alumnus Award. He is a recipient of the Caring Hands Award as well as the Dr. Robert Fulton CDEB Founder’s Award. In 2006, Dr. Doka was grandfathered in as a Mental Health Counselor under NY State’s first licensure of counselors. Dr. Doka is a recipient of the International Center for Loss, Bereavement, Loss and Human Resilience and the Israeli Bereavement Forum Award for Lifetime Contributions to the Study of Loss, Bereavement, and Human Resilience, and The International Work Group on Death, Dying, and Bereavement’s Herman Feifel Award for Lifetime Contributions to the field of thanatology as well as the Lifetime Achievement Award from ADEC (The Association for Death Education and Counseling).
Dr. Doka has keynoted conferences throughout North America as well as Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. He participates in the annual Hospice Foundation of America Teleconference and has appeared on CNN and Nightline. In addition he has served as a consultant to medical, nursing, funeral service and hospice organizations as well as businesses and educational and social service agencies. Dr. Doka is an ordained Lutheran minister.
Susan Thomas
Ms. Susan Thomas is the Founder and Program Director for the Center for H.O.P.E. (Healing, Opportunity, Perseverance,Enlightenment) at Cohen Children’s Medical Center, Northwell Health System. This is a comprehensive counseling center for bereaved children and families. Ms. Thomas is a Fellow in Thanatology and a Certified Trauma and Loss Specialist and has been a psychotherapist specializing in grief, loss and trauma for over thirty- five years. She is the recipient of the 2010 Presidents Award for Patient Excellence for the entire Northwell Health System. Ms. Thomas also has presented at many local and national conferences and seminars and maintains a private counseling practice in New Hyde Park, NY where she sees children, adults, couples and families.
How we do this
These services are provided at no cost to families thanks to the generosity of many people who believe in this work and have donated significant funds to make Roula's Kids a reality. Roula's Kids was seeded with initial capital donated in memory of my mother, Roula. Established as a 501(c)(3) organization, Roula's Kids solicits and receives tax-deductible donations from individuals and seeks grants from foundations and corporations to support its work: providing much-needed grief counseling services to children and their families. Roula's Kids is governed by a volunteer board of trustees, which ensures that Roula's Kids operates in accordance with the highest ethical and legal standards. Please join us in supporting this important work.