Healthy Start Staff
Healthy Start – Acadiana
Kristen Copenhaver
(She, Her, Hers)
Director of Grants Management
kristen@acadianafamilytree.org
Kristen Copenhaver is the Director of Grants Management at The Family Tree Information, Education, and Counseling Center. She was previously the Healthy Start Project Director and has over 15 years of experience in working with women, children, and families. Kristen received a Bachelor’s of Applied Life Sciences Degree from the University of Southwestern Louisiana in 1998 and her Master’s in Counselor Education Degree from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2005. She is also a Certified Doula and Certified Lactation Counselor.
Kristen is the proud single mother of two amazing young men. When her boys are not on the basketball court, Kristen loves to read. As a child, her love of reading started when her mother paid her a penny a page so naturally she started with the encyclopedias. She also enjoys spending time with family and getting together with friends. Originally, from a small town in southwest Missouri, Kristen relocated to Lafayette in 1994 to attend USL. After 25+ years, she considers herself an honorary Cajun.
Tonya Hoover, RSW, CLC, CD
(She, Her, Hers)
Healthy Start Program Manager
thoover@acadianafamilytree.org
Tonya Hoover is a registered social worker with the Louisiana State Board of Social Work Examiners, a Certified Lactation Counselor, and a Certified Doula. She attended Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, LA where she graduated in May 1997 with a bachelor’s degree in Social Work. Tonya’s primary focus in the field of social work has been supporting and empowering families with young children so they may achieve their greatest potential. She is passionate about making a difference in families’ long-term outcomes.
Tonya hails from the booming city of Natchitoches but moved to the Acadiana area over 20 years ago. Tonya enjoys spending time with her family and friends and doing fun things with her son.
Laurie LaFleur
(She, Her, Hers)
Community Action Network (CAN) Coordinator
LLaFleur@acadianafamilytree.org
Laurie was born and raised in Broussard, La. She is genuinely honored and overjoyed to join The Family Tree Healthy Start team as the Community Action Network (CAN) Coordinator. She has worked two previous tenors with The Family Tree Healthy Start Program from 2005-2010 and in 2014- 2016 when Healthy Start was relaunched and again in 2023. Her previous experience of over 15 years with the Healthy Start program and other non-profits will be vital to making connections with the community to create new and lasting relationships and collaborations. Her unwavering commitment remains dedicated, strong, and passionate to fulfilling the mission of The Family Tree Healthy Start program. She is fully dedicated to serving and meeting the needs to provide community resources for mothers, babies, and families in our community. Laurie and her husband Chris, enjoy traveling, home projects, traveling with Chris’ Cajun band, sharing quality time with their 3 beautiful grandchildren, and daughter and son-in-law, and rescue cat Kalle.
Jasonnaye Wilson, CBS
(She, Her, Hers)
Community Health Worker/Outreach
jwilson@acadianafamilytree.org
Ms. Jasonnaye Wilson was born in California. The “spoiled one” of the crew due to being the youngest child and the only girl out of four children.
After losing her first child to SIDS, she was overcome with grief and gave up on high school. However, she found the determination to go back and with faith and hope, she graduated high school at William Daylor High School in 2018. Ms. Wilson continued to beat the depression that was constantly trying to take over her mind, body, and soul. The grief never stops but she is determined to beat the odds.
She now serves as the full-time Community Health Worker for the Healthy Start Program. Being a former participant in the Healthy Start Program made her believe she had a purpose here. Her goal is to do all she can to make other parents aware of not only SIDS but also infant mortality. She is also determined to help parents give their families a better, healthier life.
Everything she does is dedicated to her late son, Najea Jr., and her beautiful daughter. She is determined to achieve great things, including opening a nonprofit that focuses on SIDS and SUIDS deaths. She will not let Najea Jr.’s death be in vain and hopes that by sharing her story, she can bring awareness and hopefully save a child’s life.
LaShanaa Brown, MS, Psy.M
(She, Her, Hers)
Case Manager Supervisor
lbrown@acadianafamilytree.org
LaShanaa Brown is one of the Case Manager Supervisors for the Healthy Start program here at The Family Tree. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Louisiana-Lafayette and a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology with a specialization in Child and adolescent development. She has over 7 years working with families, children, and women in the mental health field. Her work during this time and her strong passion to help build strong healthy families ultimately guided her to shift gears. As a supervisor for Healthy Start, she is currently helping assist families with challenges raising small children.
LaShanaa truly believes that the most important part of building healthy families is ensuring they have the tools, resources, and knowledge to do so. Some of her favorite pastimes include traveling, selling homes as a licensed Louisiana realtor, and spending time with her mother and amazing daughter.
Amber Savoy, LSP, CPST, CBS
(She, Her, Hers)
Lead Case Manager
asavoy@acadianafamilytree.org
Ms. Amber Savoy was born and raised in Breaux Bridge, LA. She obtained her bachelor’s in Child and Family Studies with a minor in Sociology from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Amber finds great joy in helping families find the services they need. Her creative and innovative thinking, coupled with precise attention to detail has enabled a long history of working with individuals with developmental disabilities. She is excited to take this experience and work with a variety of families to locate appropriate resources for every individual in the family unit. Amber is passionate about improving the quality of life of families here in the Acadiana community and looks forward to continuing her education so that she may better serve families in her community.
Amber truly believes that family is one of the most important things in a person’s life. Her greatest passion in life is spending time with her husband and daughter making beautiful memories. In the rest of her spare time, she enjoys cooking, reading, fishing, and riding in their boat.
Kaylyn Credeur
(She, Her, Hers)
Case Manager
kcredeur@acadianafamilytree.org
Born in Lafayette, LA, and raised in the small town of Oberlin, Louisiana, Kaylyn Credeur returned to Lafayette for college, earning a B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. From a young age, she knew she wanted to make a difference in her community, which led her to pursue a career centered on helping others.
Excited about the opportunity to form personal connections while making a positive impact on the community, Kaylyn is dedicated to continuous education to better serve those in need. In her downtime, she enjoys outdoor activities, spending quality time with family and friends, cooking, and unwinding with a good TV show or movie.
Lauren David, BSN, RN, IBCLC, RLC
(She, Her, Hers)
High-Risk Clinician
Lauren is a Registered Nurse and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). She joined The Family Tree as the High-Risk Clinician in 2023. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Nursing from the University of Louisiana @ Lafayette (2002) and was originally certified as an IBCLC in 2011. She has also had special training in infant feeding issues through Chrysalis Orofacial’s TOTS (Tethered Oral Tissues) Specialty training program, which allows her to better identify and assist mother/baby dyads who are having difficulties with breastfeeding.
Lauren has over 20 years of experience in Maternal-Child services, working as a nurse in labor and delivery/nursery, as a public health nurse with the WIC & KidMed programs, and as a lactation consultant for a local hospital’s Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative. She has her own lactation private practice, Drops of Hope Lactation and Wellness Consulting, where she visits families who need specialized support with breastfeeding. In the community, she serves on the Boards of both the Acadiana Breastfeeding Coalition & Family Strong Foundation.
Lauren’s current role with The Healthy Start Program as High-Risk Clinician involves meeting with mothers who have a high-risk medical or nutritional condition to help clarify any questions or concerns they may have and develop a care plan for a healthy pregnancy, mother, and baby. She is also available for lactation consults to help with any specialized breastfeeding concerns.
Born and raised in Marksville, LA, Lauren moved to the Acadiana area for college in 1998, met her soulmate, and has been here ever since. She and her husband, Shawn, have 3 very active children who keep them busy and running every day of the week. In her few moments of downtime, she enjoys cooking, audiobooks, and sharing the wonders of natural solutions through essential oils.
Shelly Daigle, M.S., M.Div., LPC, PMH-C
(She, Her, Hers)
Mental Health Clinician
sdaigle@acadianafamilytree.org
Ms. Shelly is a licensed professional counselor and is perinatal mental health certified (PMH-C). She joined The Family Tree as the mental health case manager in the fall of 2019. She holds a master’s degree in mental health counseling from Oklahoma State University (2019) and a master’s of divinity from Claremont School of Theology (2004).
Shelly is passionate about supporting families through the transition of parenthood, whether that is welcoming their first or sixth child. She regularly utilizes her training as a counselor, breastfeeding specialist, and doula to help her empower moms in Acadiana through individual, couples, or family counseling, support groups, and postpartum phone calls. Shelly seeks to support her clients through a person-centered, strength-based, and self-compassionate approach. She has also been trained in EMDR and is interested in the interplay of attachment, brain development, and trauma and how those connections can impact the therapeutic relationship and work.
Shelly has lived throughout the U.S. before relocating to Lafayette with her family in 2019. She previously worked in the leadership of local churches, with domestic violence organizations and foster care agencies. She and her husband, Adam, are raising 4 dynamic children. While she has been married to her Cajun husband since 2011, she is learning more about the food and fun that comes with living in Cajun Country.
Christopher Lazard, CD, CBS
(He, Him, His)
Fatherhood Coordinator
clazard@acadianafamilytree.org
Christopher Joseph Lazard was born in Opelousas, LA. Chris attended LSUE and All Nations Biblical Study Center. In 2010, Chris accepted the call to preach and in 2014, he brought to fruition the Spirit of Elijah Life Institute Church where he is the Founder and Senior Pastor. Learning to cope after the suicide of his cousin, Dominique Domino in 2016, Lazard started the Domino Effect – an organization geared towards the prevention and education of suicide. He is also the owner and operator of Lazting ImpressionZ LLC. Since the age of 12, Chris has played the piano, which helped him in the transition of becoming both a recording artist and a songwriter. His love for the betterment and empowerment of the world led him to the social service field. In his spare time, he enjoys singing, writing, traveling, and laughing whenever the chance presents itself. If asked what he is doing, his response would be “I’m trying to make the world a better place!”