Who We Are
"Building the Team that Builds the Dream"
- Aisha K. Rodriquez
Dr. Brenita Mitchell
Founder And Board President
We Welcome You to Healing Waters Global
Dr. Brenita Mitchell is passionate about women’s issues. She is a Mother, Womanist Theologian, Global Feminist, Ordained Minister, Speaker, Author and survivor of child sexual trauma. She has worked over 30 years serving diverse populations, and is the Founder and President of Healing Waters Global Inc., whose mission is to serve women and girls sexually violated and women living and affected by HIV/AIDS.
Dr. Mitchell graduated Magna Cum Laude from New Brunswick Theological Seminary. She also received a Masters of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, and completed a Doctor of Ministry at United Theological Seminary. She is writing her first book “Sexual Terrorism: Women Trapped in Silence, Domination, Power and Control,”
(Forthcoming in March 2022 (Paperback and Kindle edition)
Dr. Mitchell is the proud parent of two adult children, Maximo and Aisha.
Constance Kearse
Board Advisor
Constance is a Woman of Faith and a Licensed Minister in the Baptist Church. She has served in the community as a volunteer to clothe and feed those in need. She has taught various Biblical courses; a leader and facilitator of Women’s Ministry and Bible Study. Her overall experience in academics includes Student Coordinator and Residency Program Assistant.
Constance's passion for the work of Healing Waters Global is due to her love and passion to help improve the lives of women and girl survivors of sexual terrorism. As a survivor of sexual terrorism, she is able to connect with the experiences of other survivors. She is also a blogger on our HWG website, and God to the Rescue Ministries.com. Constance is currently working on a book to support the healing of women sexually violated. She lives in Lithonia, Georgia, and will lead the effort to bring HWG services to that region of the country.
Lisa Smith-Mcfall, MPA
Advisory Board Member
Lisa Smith-McFall is founder and sole proprietor of LSE- Life Services and Essentials, a professional network of travel, real estate, insurance and personal administrative services. The concept for LSE originated in the early 1980’s when she developed a desire to help people attain and manage some of the core necessities needed and wanted to balance and enhance life. This desire led her to later return to college to complete her degree in Public Administration and Nonprofit Management. Coupled with professional licensing in real estate and insurance Lisa brings a wealth of resources to aid Healing Waters in not just our fundraising efforts but also our commitment to helping our survivors with other essential resources. She is not only an entrepreneur of many years, but also a single mother of two college aged children who are great teachers of patience and being resilient.
Laura Foley
Board Secretary
Laura hopes to give a voice to women who have experienced the different forms of abuse and shine a light on this growing problem. She is a parishioner of Zarephath Christian Church and has an associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Dean College in Massachusetts. She has completed Human Trafficking 101 training and has participated in various meetings given by the New Jersey Coalition Against Human Trafficking. Laura also volunteers for Love True, a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization based in Somerset County that serves to fight sex trafficking with in the state, and she has helped with the Trek Against Trafficking at Duke Island Park. Laura is also bilingual and speaks spanish fluently.
Laura is a proud member of the Healing Waters Global 'Come To The River Sister Circle' and she has participated in the Forgiveness Frees The Butterfly Retreat. In her spare time, she is a writer of poetry. She is a survivor of sexual childhood abuse and domestic violence. And her passion is to serve and help women and others heal from this atrocity.
Kyla Niewinski
Board Treasurer
Kyla dedicates her life to empowering women through methods of Holistic Healing to achieve balance of mind, body, and spirit. She inspires women to think outside the box to live a life of spiritual freedom, creativity, and peace. Kyla is a Licensed Massage Therapist, White Light Reiki Master and Teacher, Practices Craniosacral Therapy, Zumba Instructor, and a Licensed Realtor®
Kyla owns her own businesses, IAM Center of Healing LLC and Indigo which better serve the community through Wellness services such as Therapeutic Massage, Reiki, Craniosacral Therapy, and more. She also makes her own Handmade Soaps and Other Body Products, as well as Sage, Crystals, and other New Age Products to create serenity in your day to day life.
Kyla has been able to take her trauma and turn it into LIGHT. She believes every day is a new day to take a step in the right direction for the highest good of YOU.
Debra Wells
ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER
Debra Wells has counseled and worked with survivors of sexual assault for over thirty years. Against the backdrops of domestic violence, maternal and child health issues, pregnant and parenting adolescents, and adult protective services, the stories and needs of these survivors emerged, sometimes as a core issue. As a founder, coordinator and social worker in various social programs and committees, Debra realized that the numbers of victims and survivors were often hidden among other issues. Debra earned her BA in Sociology at Douglass College in New Brunswick and has studied psychology, clinical social work and counseling on a post graduate level at Rutgers and Princeton Universities. She is bi-lingual in English/Spanish and is herself a survivor.
Sandy Seminerio
VOLUNTEER
Sandy has volunteered with Healing Waters Global for over four years. During our Retreats, Sandy faithfully transports survivors to and from airports; carries their luggage, sets up our activity rooms, purchases items from the store when needed and much more! Sandra is a fun loving beach girl! She is a hard working woman with a heart of gold who would give you her last dime if you needed it. She is the mother of an adult daughter and two grandaughters. She loves her cats, Boo Boo, Bonnie and Clyde. She also loves traveling, and of course the beach is one of her favorite past-times!.
Mark Brodie
ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER
For over 40 years Mark Brodie and his company MiB Mediaworks, have produced, directing, edited and filmed video segments for his clients. Mark's expertise has helped his clients remain on the cutting edge of the industry by employing the latest advancements in web technology, allowing them to reach larger and more diverse audiences. With the use of drones, robotic cameras and high-resolution imaging, Mark continues to create compelling content with high-quality production value to tell their stories. He has collaborated on more than 100 broadcast magazine TV shows and national broadcasts such as 60 Minutes, 48 Hours, Dateline NBC, CNBC Documentaries, CBS Documentaries and NFL Films. His broadcast segments have earned 6 Emmys, a Peabody and a DuPont Award. His company MIB Mediaworks has been awarded 8 Telly's, 10 Communicator awards and an Indie-fest Documentary award.
Wendy Wright
Executive Board Member
As the 4th child to William and Martha Howard, a mother of three (Braun, Carl II and Sterling Wright), a grandmother of two (Shawn II and Amaura Simmons) and the wife to Carl Wright for 32 years, Wendy Wright still finds time to serve her community and Cultivate her talents in helping others who need it most. The Somerset, NJ Native started her education at Northeastern University’s School of Business in Business Administration and worked in Corporate America for 22years with Johnson and Johnson. Once she left the corporate world, she established her own business Bessene Armaun, LLC., which houses Bessene’s Blessings Spa products and Book Jewels. Bessene’s Blessings was established out of necessity for Sterling who suffered from eczema. Once she saw how successful she was in treating her daughter’s ailment, she created more products and moved forward with her business. Because of her work, she received an Honorarium from Healing Waters Global Institute and her products are available at the Lewis Healing Institute in West Orange, NJ.
After having taken a course for Mental Health First Aid, her interest in Mental Health and Aging developed her non-profit organization Life As It Were due to her own family trauma and how it affects the aging process. The organization believes in aiding the families in service and support, who face a health challenge of loved ones with Alzheimer’s disease, Epilepsy, and other brain disorders and social traumas. It receives partial funding from Bessene’s Blessings proceeds and donations. It also helps by continuing research, providing available resources, and becoming an “extended family” who understands when life becomes overwhelming for the caregiver.
Wendy takes after her parents as a civil servant serving in several capacities. She is the 4th Ward Franklin Democratic Committee Representative of Franklin Township, a member of National Council of Negro Woman - Mercer County Section, a member of the Somerset County Democratic Black Caucus, as well as served as the Parent Teacher Student Organization President of Central Jersey College Preparatory Charter School from 2010-2012. She serves on The Advisory Board, conducts self-care workshops with Healing Waters Global Institute and enjoys partnering with different organizations and fundraisers.