Empowering lives, building futures together!

Melissa Kebert

Executive Director

Melissa’s strengths as the director of Grace Unlimited Foundation are ones of leadership, compassion, determination, and lived trauma experience. As the leader of this nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering survivors of trauma, She brings a powerful blend of skills and experiences that enable her to guide our mission with wisdom, empathy, and tenacity. Her leadership abilities allow her to effectively manage our team, oversee operations, and chart strategic plans to grow our programs and outreach. She has honed skills in team-building, decision-making, and motivating others towards a shared vision of healing and hope. compassion stems from having walked her own journey of trauma recovery. Melissa understands the pain, shame, and inner chaos that survivors face, allowing her to create an atmosphere of safety, validation, and care. This empathy fuels her determination to make a difference in survivors’ lives. She is determined not give up on helping them find light even in the darkest of places. Melissa’s own lived trauma experience is perhaps her greatest strength. She knows firsthand the power of human resilience and the inner resources we all have to rise above suffering. She has done her own healing work, facing her demons and integrating her pain into purpose. She now channels this wisdom to empower our clients on their journeys. Her experience equips her to truly understand their struggles and needs. She aims to guide them with hard-won knowledge, compassionate listening, and an unshakable belief in their potential to heal and thrive. With leadership, compassion, determination, and lived experience, She steers our organization on the vital mission of trauma recovery and empowerment. At the present time she is also taking the Women’s Services, Inc. Volunteer training course and the Peer Recovery Specialist Certification Classes to better serve our community. For over 5 years, Melissa and her husband Rob owned and operated JT's SteamTable Restaurant & Catering on Chestnut Street. At their establishment, they hosted Narcotics Anonymous meetings, Celebrate Recovery meetings, support groups, and a "pay it forward" giving tree to help feed the homeless. Melissa has also held successful fundraisers for Hayden House and St. James Haven. At Christmas time, the restaurant ran a "stuff a bag" fundraiser to collect donations for local shelters. Empty nesters of 2 adult children, the Keberts live In Meadville with their four cats (Mia, Ziggy, Little Bit, and Remi) and their Chihuahua, Taco Beans. In her spare time, Melissa enjoys thrift shopping, jewelry making, interior design, and of course cooking.

Rose Hilliard

President

Rose serves as our president of Grace Unlimited Foundation and will be Director of Social services at Morning Glories Trauma/Recovery Café. With over 30 years in social services, she has valuable knowledge working with domestic violence victims and advocating for those trafficked into sex slavery. Her compassion, gentleness, and grace have made her an invaluable team member at Women’s Services Inc. and our local women’s shelter. Rose is also an ordained pastor who gives inspiring sermons every Wednesday at New Beginnings Church for ARC clients, as well as guest sermons at local churches. A talented public speaker, she immediately captivates audiences with her powerful presence and moving words. Rose and husband, Joe live in Meadville with their 3 cats. In her spare time she loves to travel, visit new coffee shops, and spend time with her grandchildren.

Emerald Mitchell

Vice President

Emerald serves as Vice President of Grace Unlimited Foundation and will become General Manager of Morning Glories Trauma/Recovery Café. Having overcome homelessness and trauma herself, she embodies resilience and compassion. Her warm smile and grit inspire those around her. Employed for nearly 5 years as General Manager at JT’s SteamTable Restaurant, Emerald also co-runs Boho Swag Jewelry with her boss Melissa. She lives in Meadville with her fiancé Eli and three cats, enjoying thrift shopping and gardening in her spare time.

Tai Dean

Secretary

Tai currently works at Bethany as a Certified Recovery Specialist since January of 2023 and serves as Secretary on our board at Grace Unlimited. She was inspired to work with individuals in recovery as she has been in recovery herself since October of 2015. She is passionate to show others that there is a hope and light in life that she never dreamed possible, until she took those first steps. Tai has experience in providing recovery support services for individuals since 2019. She also combats the stigma of addiction by taking part in numerous community committees and events. Tai received her peer certification through the Pennsylvania Certification Board in September of 2018 and her Recovery Coach certification in 2020. She is also currently attending Allegheny College for a Major in Psychology and a minor in the Arts.

Maria Rosado-Husband

Treasurer

Maria serves as Treasurer for Grace Unlimited Foundation and embodies a spirit of empowerment and compassion. In this role, she leads with tenacity, passion, and transparency. Maria currently heads Hope in the 5th Ward, a program of Women’s Services, Inc., where she uses her experience overcoming adversity to uplift her Meadville community. A resident of 5th Ward herself, she enjoys spending time with her family and granddaughter.

Joe Barnhart

Board Member

With his calming presence and his steadfast focus, Joe keeps us on track toward achieving our goals. Joe has 20 years of experience in mental health and child welfare as an employee and contractor with Crawford County Human Services. Currently, he provides project coordination services for the Crawford County Crisis Intervention Team (emergency behavioral health services improvement initiative), Crawford County System of Care (countywide mental health collaborative), and Peace4Crawford (countywide coalition for trauma-informed services and community resilience). Joe and his wife, Rose, reside in Meadville.

Bridgette Reeb

Board Member

Bridgette Reeb is a disabled Navy veteran and former National Security Agency intelligence analyst. She is also a philosophy major and global health studies minor at Allegheny College who is pursuing a career in public health education and medical ethics. She also has nearly a decade of experience volunteering for medical non-profit organizations and brings valuable leadership, organizational, and training experience to the table. Bridgette is motivated to turn her personal experience of trauma, addiction, and housing instability as a result of medical trauma into a force for good. She is passionate about enabling everyone to ask the questions and find the resources they need to be a happy and healthy part of a thriving neighborhood, including how to find help with homelessness and recovery. Bridgette enjoys spending time with her husband Jim, a retired Naval warrant officer, and her cat Boatswain’s Mate. In addition to enjoying philosophy and healthcare studies, Bridgette has a variety of hobbies including gardening, swimming, biking, and crotcheting.

Rob Kebert

Board Member

Rob and his wife Melissa have passionately advocated for unhoused people, mental health services, and addiction support in our community. Holding a degree as a certified temperament counselor, Rob hopes to someday realize his dream of becoming a pastor. His grounded, laidback personality and ability to see all perspectives make Rob a valued addition to our board. He and Melissa live in Meadville with their five pets. In his spare time, Rob enjoys movies and music. For over a decade, he has worked as general manager at his brother’s business, Smock Plumbing, Inc.

Jackie Roberson

Board Member

Jackie L. Roberson, Jr. was named Executive Director of FCCA in March 2022. He started his career at FCCA as Human Resources and Operations Director. Jackie came to FCCA from the Child Care Resource Network where he served as Director of Legally Exempt Services. He began his professional career at Bank of America working as a Team Ambassador/ Mortgage Specialist. As Jackie worked at Bank of America he developed an interest for helping people from a Human Services point of view. As a result of his passion to help people Jackie enrolled himself into the graduate program at State University of New York College at Buffalo (Buffalo State College). As Jackie pursued going back to school to obtain his Masters Degree in Multidisciplinary Studies with emphasis on: Human Services, Human Resources, and Adult Learning, he felt that it was necessary to work in the area/field of his study. So he applied for the Legally Exempt inspector position at Child Care Resource Network and was hired. Since joining CCRN in December of 2007, Mr. Roberson has held a number of progressive positions within the Legally Exempt Department including: inspector, supervisor, and senior supervisor, and director. Jackie has over 15 years of supervisory experience in strategic planning, forecasting, reporting, and the development of policies and guidelines. Jackie also has served on the Board of Trustees Charter School of Inquiry, in addition to being the Parent Association President. Jackie is committed to mission, vision, and values as he has works hard to nurture greatness both internally and externally. Jackie is the CEO/Pastor/Founder of Achieving Greatness Ministries. His passion is to ensure that every man, woman, and child reach their full potential through the empowerment of the principles of the Word of God.