Ron Hoffman founded Compassionate Care ALS and has served as Executive Director for the past 10 years. As such he deals regularly in supporting people living with ALS including needs evaluation, instruction on ALS disease progression and end of life care. He facilitates and guides intimate discussions with ALS patients and their families who are nearing death or actively dying, the process of death and dying and the questions that arise, helps them examine their choices, and creates space for dialogue around their decisions. 

Ron’s background includes studying with Roshi Joan Halifax of the Upaya Institute in the Compassionate Care of the Dying Program for professionals, and training in the Practice of Living and Dying with Meredith Little and Dr. Scott Eberle of the School of Lost Borders. He collaborates with Julie Yau on the Cultivating Compassion Education Series including Awakening to Living and Dying and regularly leads in-services and trainings for hospice workers, health care professionals and students. Ron also sits on the board of Men’s Leadership Alliance of Boulder, Colorado and is a past board member of the Hospice and Palliative Care Federation of Massachusetts. He regularly speaks at events on ALS and end of life care across the country.

Click here to email Ron

Julie Yau holds a BA in human behavior and an MA in spiritual psychology. For over fifteen years Julie has been studying and teaching in the field of body, mind, and soul. She studied with Roshi Joan Halifax in the Compassionate Care of the Dying Programs for professionals.  She coordinates closely with hospital staff, care givers, and chronically ill patients. Julie developed the Cultivating Compassion Education Series for CCALS and offers meditation and contemplative work to those with ALS and their caregivers. She also supports those on the ALS journey through her ongoing psychotherapeutic practice that incorporates her knowledge of somatic psychology and contemplative awareness.

Click here to email Julie

Darci Meyers has extensive experience in end-of-life care education, bereavement support and training, and spiritual care. For eight years, Darci has supported patients and families in hospice as a spiritual counselor and hospice director. She has also served as the National Coordinator for Rigpa's Spiritual Care Education Program in the United States and she is a faculty member of the Contemplative End of Life Care Program for health care professionals offered in conjunction with Naropa University School of Extended Studies in Boulder, Colorado. Darci teaches a course at the Omega Institute on Death and the Art of Dying and is currently the Manager of the Spiritual Care Centre at Dzogchen Beara, a Tibetan Buddhist Retreat Center in southwest Ireland under the spiritual direction of Sogyal Rinpoche.

Brenda Cvitan, Assistant to the Director

Brenda Cvitan – Brenda is a Certified Hospice and Palliative Nursing Assistant (CHPNA) with more than 20 years of experience in providing direct care to the medically fragile. Brenda brings a genuine warmth and practical wisdom to her work at CCALS. Her authentic ability to connect with families has grown from her experience as mother of three children, the youngest child living with a critical medical diagnosis. Her expertise in end-of-life care provides those on the ALS journey with innovative approaches to care giving that provide real benefit.