Our Board of Directors, at present, comprises:

Rita Beckett, President
Ms. Beckett is the former Chairperson of the DSI Brokerage Advisory Group and has been a member of their governing body since 2003. She has been a recipient of Support Services Brokerage services since 2002. She has spent most of her adult life caring for her younger brother, a gentleman with a developmental disability. Ms. Beckett has completed the Partners in Policymaking training through The Arc of Oregon and Oregon Council on Developmental Disabilities, has been a tireless advocate for disability rights in the state of Oregon and has a vested interest in ensuring Brokerage services available to her peers in the community are of utmost quality.

Martha Stracener, Treasurer
Ms. Stracener has been working in the field of disability for more than sixteen (16) years, the last ten (10) of which have been in a senior administrative capacity. Most recently, she served as Executive Director of Inclusion Inc. Previously, Ms. Stracener served as Deputy Director and Interim Executive Director of REACH Inc. in Juneau, AK, an agency supporting people with developmental disabilities from birth throughout life.  At both agencies, Ms. Stracener was responsible for the accurate management of millions of dollars annually in Medicaid home and community based waivers. She has actively participated on statewide groups in both Oregon and Alaska to further develop programs and systems to enhance the quality of life for people with disabilities.  She has developed and presented several trainings, and written manuals, on best practices for providing supported employment services and benefits counseling. Throughout her career, Ms. Stracener has been a proven collaborator and team builder, having forged many partnerships across a wide variety of networks within the field including Customers, families, providers, advocates, vocational rehabilitation and other community partners and sister agencies. 

Nathan Deeks, Secretary
Mr. Deeks is currently a Lead Personal Agent at Mentor Oregon Brokerage after having worked as Personal Agent for three years. He looks forward to having the opportunity to use his experience to contribute to the board of a startup brokerage. Before his position as a Personal Agent, he was a Residential Treatment Counselor with the Christie School, providing residential skill building services to youth in a secure facility. He was introduced to the Brokerage system by his uncle, a customer receiving services through Mentor. A graduate of Portland State University, Nathan has enjoyed past volunteering opportunities with City Repair (an urban community building organization), Start Making A Reader Today (SMART) and RideWise (currently a community committee member for the organization, which provides public transportation support and training to both the elderly and people with disabilities). Mr. Deeks enjoys the opportunity to participate on a daily basis in assisting individuals with managing their self directed supports and anticipates serving individuals with disabilities in a different capacity on this board.

Linda Gheer, Director
Ms. Gheer has an extensive background and is well-known and respected throughout the developmental disabilities community. Ms. Gheer is a former resident of Fairview Training Center and was one of the first individuals to demand community supports and transfer from United Cerebral Palsy's now-defunct group home (in the late eighties) into a highly personalized supported living program. She served on Inclusion Inc. Support Service Brokerage’s board for two years, participated on the UCP Self-Advocate Advisory Committee and has worked closely with the Center on Self-Determination. Ms. Gheer is committed to fair, equitable and highly individualized supports for individuals in her community.

Jennifer Bickett , Director
Ms. Bickett grew up in Portland and graduated with honors from Portland State University.  She began working in the field 13 years ago in a children’s group home where she had the opportunity to listen and learn from families who had made the difficult decision to consider group home services, thereby ensuring their children would have a place to live as an adult. Ms. Bickett had the chance to reconnect with one of these families when she worked for Community Vision.  The now-adult daughter and family were happily in a Supported Living arrangement where the daughter was able to live in her father’s home with 24-hour support.  Ms. Bickett worked in Supported Living both with Community Vision and United Cerebral Palsy.  Until the spring of 2009, Ms. Bickett was a Lead Personal Agent at Inclusion Inc. where she worked for over two years. She is currently the Brokerage Director of The Arc of Multnomah Clackamas Brokerage, serving 350 adults in the tri-county area. Ms. Bickett recently became a Certified Life Coach supporting her belief in continuous learning.  Ms. Bickett is committed to choice and responsibility and the importance of education of both of these to all people.

William Beckett, Director
Biography forthcoming.