Our Team

Milly Torres

Director of Events & Community Engagement

Milly joins our leadership team with an exceptional combination of public service experience, organizational excellence, and a genuine passion for bringing communities together. Through her work with the New York City Parks Department, she has developed extensive expertise in event coordination, venue management, community programming, and public engagement—skills that have allowed her to successfully create welcoming spaces where individuals from all walks of life can connect, collaborate, and build stronger communities.

Her professional background has equipped her with the ability to transform ideas into impactful experiences, ensuring that every event is thoughtfully organized, accessible, and meaningful. Milly understands that successful advocacy extends beyond policy—it begins by creating opportunities for people to gather, learn, share their stories, and unite around a common purpose.

As Director of Events & Community Engagement, Milly will oversee the strategic planning, coordination, and execution of The Jay Act's statewide and national events. She will lead the development of advocacy rallies, educational forums, legislative briefings, community workshops, fundraising initiatives, awareness campaigns, and special events that amplify the voices of incarcerated individuals and their families while strengthening public understanding of criminal justice reform.

In this leadership role, Milly will:

• Lead the planning and execution of Jay Act events throughout New York and across the country.

• Coordinate all event logistics, scheduling, volunteer management, and operational planning.

• Identify and secure venues that best support the organization's mission and maximize community participation.

• Collaborate with executive leadership to develop innovative community engagement initiatives that educate, inspire, and mobilize the public.

• Build and strengthen relationships with community organizations, advocacy groups, elected officials, businesses, and strategic partners.

• Create meaningful experiences that foster education, compassion, civic engagement, and collective action.

• Help expand The Jay Act's visibility and impact through professionally executed events that bring together families, advocates, policymakers, and community leaders.

Milly's leadership will play an instrumental role in advancing The Jay Act's mission of restoring dignity, promoting justice, and creating lasting systemic change. Her dedication to community engagement reflects our belief that meaningful reform begins when people come together with purpose, compassion, and a shared commitment to building a more just society.

Barbara Holmes

Barbara Holmes is a dedicated advocate whose journey into advocacy began through her unwavering love and support for her incarcerated son. What started as a mother's determination to stand beside her child evolved into a broader commitment to helping other families navigate the challenges of incarceration, systemic barriers, and the pursuit of justice.

Inspired and mentored by Stephanie Harris, Barbara transformed her personal experiences into purposeful action. Through education, advocacy training, and community engagement, she developed a strong understanding of the issues affecting incarcerated individuals and their families, becoming a trusted voice for those who often feel unheard.

As an Advocate, Barbara works to support families impacted by incarceration, raise awareness about the importance of accountability and humane treatment within correctional facilities, and encourage others to find strength in their own voices. Her compassion, resilience, and commitment to service allow her to connect with families on a deeply personal level, offering understanding, guidance, and hope during difficult times.

Barbara's advocacy is rooted in the belief that every individual deserves dignity, every family deserves support, and every voice deserves to be heard. Her journey demonstrates how personal hardship can become a catalyst for meaningful change, transforming pain into purpose and creating opportunities for others to find empowerment through advocacy.

SHERLLAY CASTRO

Executive Meeting & Engagement Coordinator

Some of the most powerful advocates are not those who sought this work—but those whom life called into it.

For more than 17 years, Sherllay Castro has lived the reality that countless families of incarcerated individuals know all too well. As the devoted wife of our Assistant Executive Director, Mario Castro, she has spent nearly two decades navigating New York State's correctional system from the perspective of a family member—enduring the emotional strain, financial hardship, endless travel, administrative barriers, uncertainty, and heartbreak that accompany loving someone behind prison walls.

Those experiences did not diminish her spirit; they forged it.

Sherllay understands that incarceration extends far beyond prison walls. It impacts spouses, parents, children, siblings, and entire communities. She knows what it means to wait for a phone call, prepare for a visit, advocate for answers, and remain a source of unwavering strength for someone society often forgets. Her journey has cultivated an extraordinary depth of empathy, resilience, patience, and compassion—qualities that now serve as the foundation of her leadership within The Jay Act Advocacy & Legal Reform Initiative.

As Executive Meeting & Engagement Coordinator, Sherllay serves as the primary bridge between The Jay Act and the families we proudly represent. She creates safe, welcoming, and supportive spaces where families can speak openly, receive guidance, share their concerns, ask difficult questions, and discover that they are no longer walking this journey alone.

Her work extends far beyond organizing meetings. She helps transform isolation into community, uncertainty into understanding, and pain into collective purpose. By ensuring every family feels heard, respected, and valued, Sherllay plays a vital role in strengthening the relationships that fuel our movement for justice, dignity, accountability, and meaningful reform.

Her responsibilities include:

• Serving as the primary facilitator for family meetings, support sessions, and engagement forums.

• Coordinating communication between incarcerated families and Jay Act leadership.

• Creating welcoming, organized, and productive environments where every voice is respected.

• Building meaningful connections among families affected by incarceration.

• Providing guidance, encouragement, and compassionate support to individuals navigating the correctional system.

• Helping families stay informed about advocacy efforts, organizational initiatives, and available resources.

• Strengthening our statewide network of families committed to justice, accountability, and systemic reform.

Sherllay's lived experience reminds us that behind every incarcerated individual is a family whose love never stopped, whose hope never disappeared, and whose voice deserves to be heard. Through her leadership, compassion, and unwavering dedication, she ensures that those families are no longer standing in the shadows—but are empowered to become an essential part of the movement to transform New York's criminal justice system.

DIPSY DELGADO

Chief of Staff & Director of Mental Health Initiatives

Dipsy Delgado serves as the Chief of Staff & Director of Mental Health Initiatives for The Jay Act Advocacy & Legal Reform Initiative, where she is a key member of the executive leadership team and one of the principal architects behind the organization's operational excellence and mental health advocacy efforts. Working directly alongside Founder and Executive Director Stephanie Harris, Dipsy helps transform the organization's vision into meaningful action by strengthening leadership, supporting strategic initiatives, and ensuring that every effort remains centered on justice, dignity, accountability, and compassion.

With more than 20 years of professional experience in the mental health field, Dipsy has dedicated her career to supporting individuals facing trauma, emotional distress, behavioral health challenges, and crisis situations. Her extensive background in mental health, crisis intervention, trauma-informed care, and compassionate advocacy provides The Jay Act with invaluable expertise in addressing one of the most overlooked human rights issues within America's correctional system—the mental health and psychological well-being of incarcerated individuals.

Dipsy is also the devoted wife of Anthony "Ding Ding" Casellas, whose remarkable journey of transformation throughout decades of incarceration has deepened her understanding of the profound emotional, psychological, and systemic challenges experienced by incarcerated individuals and their families. Her lived experience, coupled with her professional expertise, allows her to advocate with both clinical insight and personal compassion, making her an influential voice for meaningful correctional reform.

As Chief of Staff, Dipsy serves as one of the Executive Director's closest advisors and is responsible for ensuring the organization's daily operations function with excellence, integrity, and purpose. She provides executive leadership, strategic oversight, and organizational coordination while helping guide The Jay Act's continued growth on both the state and national levels.

Primary Responsibilities

• Provide executive leadership and strategic support to the Founder & Executive Director.

• Oversee daily organizational operations and executive administration.

• Coordinate communication between executive leadership, department directors, advocates, volunteers, and community partners.

• Assist in developing and implementing organizational strategy, long-term initiatives, and operational goals.

• Lead organizational planning, project management, and cross-department collaboration.

• Support legislative advocacy efforts by assisting with policy initiatives, organizational priorities, and public engagement.

• Help cultivate partnerships with attorneys, legislators, advocacy organizations, medical professionals, and community stakeholders.

• Ensure organizational accountability, professionalism, and adherence to The Jay Act's mission and values.

• Assist with executive correspondence, leadership initiatives, media preparation, and organizational development.

Director of Mental Health Initiatives

In her role as Director of Mental Health Initiatives, Dipsy leads The Jay Act's commitment to ensuring that mental health is recognized as an essential component of correctional reform. She works to elevate awareness surrounding the psychological effects of incarceration, prolonged isolation, trauma, medical neglect, and systemic barriers to behavioral healthcare.

She is committed to promoting trauma-informed advocacy, supporting families navigating mental health crises, and advancing policies that prioritize timely access to quality behavioral healthcare for incarcerated individuals.

Mental Health Leadership Responsibilities

• Develop and oversee The Jay Act's mental health advocacy initiatives.

• Advocate for improved access to mental health and behavioral healthcare within correctional facilities.

• Promote trauma-informed approaches to correctional policies and practices.

• Support incarcerated individuals and their families experiencing mental health crises.

• Assist families in navigating behavioral health concerns affecting incarcerated loved ones.

• Develop educational materials, workshops, and public awareness campaigns focused on mental health and incarceration.

• Collaborate with licensed mental health professionals, healthcare providers, and advocacy organizations.

• Provide guidance on suicide prevention awareness, crisis intervention, emotional wellness, and rehabilitation-focused programming.

• Help identify systemic deficiencies in correctional mental healthcare and support legislative solutions to improve outcomes.

• Serve as a resource for organizational leadership on matters involving behavioral health, trauma, and family wellness.

Dipsy's unwavering compassion, exceptional leadership, and decades of professional experience make her an indispensable member of The Jay Act's executive leadership team. Her work embodies the organization's belief that true justice extends beyond legal reform—it requires protecting the dignity, humanity, and mental well-being of every individual. Through her leadership, Dipsy is helping shape a future where mental health is no longer treated as an afterthought within correctional institutions, but as a fundamental human right deserving of respect, attention, and meaningful action

Ashley Denham

Marketing Director | Advocate | Founder of Half Love Podcast

Ashley Denham serves as the Marketing Director for the Jay Act Advocacy & Legal Reform Initiative, where she utilizes her skills in communications, advocacy, and public engagement to help advance the organization's mission of justice, accountability, and meaningful reform.

Ashley is the Founder and Host of Half Love Podcast, a platform dedicated to highlighting the experiences of individuals and families impacted by incarceration. Through candid conversations, storytelling, and community engagement, Half Love Podcast sheds light on the realities of maintaining relationships through prison walls, overcoming adversity, and finding strength through love, resilience, and advocacy.

Her passion for advocacy is rooted in personal experience. Having been directly impacted by the incarceration of loved ones, Ashley understands the unique challenges families face, including emotional hardship, financial burdens, and the often-overlooked effects of separation. These experiences inspired her to become a powerful voice for families navigating the criminal legal system.

As Marketing Director, Ashley leads outreach initiatives, public awareness campaigns, social media engagement, and strategic communications efforts that amplify the voices of incarcerated individuals and their loved ones. Her ability to connect with people through authentic storytelling and lived experience has helped strengthen community engagement and expand support for criminal justice reform efforts.

Ashley firmly believes that every person deserves dignity, every family deserves support, and every story deserves to be heard. Through her leadership, advocacy, and the continued growth of Half Love Podcast, she works to create spaces where healing, understanding, and meaningful dialogue can flourish.

Her dedication to advocacy, family empowerment, and community education makes her an invaluable leader within the Jay Act Advocacy & Legal Reform Initiative and a respected voice for those impacted by incarceration.

Toby Nunez

Senior Advocate | Family Advocate | Criminal Justice Reform Leader

Toby Nunez serves as a Senior Advocate for the Jay Act Advocacy & Legal Reform Initiative, bringing powerful lived experience, unwavering determination, and extensive knowledge of the New York State correctional system to the organization's mission.

Toby's advocacy journey was born from profound personal loss. She is the widow of Raul Nunez, an incarcerated individual whose death she believes resulted from medical neglect while in the custody of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). Following this tragedy, Toby transformed her grief into a relentless pursuit of justice, accountability, and systemic reform to help prevent other families from enduring similar heartbreak.

Through years of navigating the correctional system on behalf of her husband, Toby developed extensive knowledge of New York State correctional facilities, institutional policies, visitation procedures, medical care systems, administrative processes, and the challenges faced by incarcerated individuals and their loved ones. Her firsthand experience has made her a trusted resource for families seeking guidance, support, and advocacy.

As a Senior Advocate, Toby works closely with impacted families, assists in identifying systemic concerns, raises awareness regarding medical neglect and accountability, and helps ensure that the voices of incarcerated individuals and their loved ones are heard. Her compassionate approach, combined with her deep understanding of the correctional system, allows her to provide meaningful support to those navigating difficult circumstances.

Toby is driven by the belief that every incarcerated person deserves timely medical care, dignity, transparency, and humane treatment, and that every family deserves honest answers when harm occurs. Her advocacy honors the memory of her husband while advancing a broader movement for reform, accountability, and justice.

Through her leadership, courage, and commitment to change, Toby continues to be a powerful voice for families impacted by incarceration and a dedicated champion for protecting the lives and rights of those in state custody.

Founder & Youth Director, The Jay Act Advocacy Youth Program | Youth Advocate | Emerging Community Leader

Amari Morales Rodriguez

Amari Morales-Rodriguez is a dedicated youth advocate, emerging leader, and the Founder of The Jay Act Advocacy Youth Program. As the son of Stephanie Harris and the nephew of Jose Rodriguez, Amari has been raised in an environment centered on service, advocacy, resilience, and community empowerment.

Mentored by both Stephanie Harris and Jose "Jay" Rodriguez, Amari has developed a strong understanding of leadership, accountability, and the importance of using one's voice to create positive change. Inspired by their commitment to justice and advocacy, he established The Jay Act Advocacy Youth Program to engage, educate, and empower young people to become active participants in their communities.

As Founder and Youth Director, Amari works to encourage youth leadership, civic engagement, mentorship, and community involvement. He is committed to helping young people understand the value of advocacy, education, personal responsibility, and service to others. Through the program, he seeks to provide opportunities for youth to develop leadership skills, build confidence, and become agents of positive change.

Amari represents a new generation of advocates who understand that meaningful reform requires the participation and voices of young people. His leadership reflects the belief that today's youth are not merely the leaders of tomorrow—they are leaders today, capable of making a significant impact within their communities.

Through his dedication, vision, and commitment to empowering others, Amari continues to build a foundation for future generations of advocates while carrying forward the mission of compassion, accountability, and justice that defines the Jay Act movement.

Personal Motto:
"The young generation will stand with The Jay Act."

London Thompson

Inside Lead Legal Advocate

London Thompson is a dedicated advocate for incarcerated individuals and a respected leader within the correctional community. As the Founder of the HOA (Helping Others Achieve) initiative at Green Haven Correctional Facility, he has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to empowering others through education, mentorship, and advocacy.

With extensive knowledge of correctional operations, policies, procedures, and the day-to-day realities of institutional life, London possesses a unique understanding of the challenges faced by incarcerated individuals and their families. His firsthand experience and deep familiarity with correctional systems allow him to identify systemic issues, support meaningful reform efforts, and serve as a valuable resource for those navigating complex institutional processes.

As an Inside Legal Advocate, London works diligently to assist incarcerated individuals in understanding their rights, accessing available resources, and advocating for fair treatment and accountability. His leadership, insight, and commitment to justice have earned him the respect of both his peers and community stakeholders.

Driven by a belief that every person deserves dignity, opportunity, and a voice, London continues to be a powerful force for positive change, helping bridge the gap between those living within correctional facilities and the communities working to create a more just and equitable system.