About Us
In Memory of Gail Leland
Founder
After Gail Leland’s 14-year-old son, Richard, was murdered in 1981, she recognized the need for support for parents of murdered children. She founded the charter chapter of Parents of Murdered Children (POMC) in Tucson, Arizona, on February 19, 1982, which later became Homicide Survivors, Inc. Read more about Gail’s story here.
Meet The Team
James Gierke
Executive Director
In 1999, James began his career in social work and worked with different victim service agencies in Tucson, Az. James is honored to work with an organization dedicated to advocacy, support, and assistance to family and friends who have lost a loved one to murder.
Dennisse Ley
Operations Manager / Victim Advovate
Born in Mexico to two parents that always encouraged her to help others, Dennisse became involved in community & social justice groups at a young age. Dennisse feels honored to work for HSI & hopes to grow & formalize our program to better serve families & friends of murder victims.
Sylvia Alvarez
Victim Advocate
In 2015, Sylvia turned to HSI for emotional support after her son, Michael, was killed in a drunk driving crash on Valentine’s day. In September of 2017 she joined HSI as a Victim Advocate & finds helping survivors rewarding & comforting, as well as healing for her during her ongoing grief.
Alexandra Gastelum
Victim Advocate / Development Associate
Alexandra is a nationally credentialed Comprehensive Victim Intervention Specialist. As a certified trauma-informed yoga instructor, she developed the curriculum for trauma-informed yoga for homicide survivors. She is currently pursuing her J.D. at CUNY School of Law.
Amy Gomez
Victim Advocate
Prior to joining Homicide Survivors in 2018, Amy Gomez spent most of her career working as an advocate for victims of domestic abuse. Amy’s primary focus at Homicide Surviors is supporting families and friends of homicide victims through the criminal justice process.
Brad Holland
Victim's Counsel
At a young age Brad grew a passion for music, at one point he moved to Hollywood to become a star. However, he moved back to Tucson where he pursued his law degree to make an impact in his community. Today, he is pleased to act as Victim’s Counsel with Homicide Survivors and help in any way he can.
Paloma Sainz
Victim Advocate
As a young child Paloma saw the hardships, pain, & injustices that occur to individuals regarding things they have no control over; such as race, gender & religious associations. Wanting to change this, Paloma did everything she could to become a voice for the voiceless.
Daniela Muñoz-Alvarez
Victim Advocate
Within the last ten years, Daniela has dedicated her work towards understanding and addressing gender based violence. As an HSI advocate, she hopes to combine her experience of serving different communities at the intersections of violence to provide compassionate support & advocacy on behalf of those who have survived the homicide of their most loved.
Narda Rivera
Victim Advocate
After almost 20 years of working as an advocate, Narda continues to be called to support survivors of violence. As a survivor, she understands the intersections and impacts that all forms of violence have on our communities. Narda is committed to organizing & working towards making systemic changes that will create a stronger, safer, equitable world for all.
Lisa Spilsbury
Bookkeeper
Lisa was raised in Tucson, and after traveling a bit, settled back to the town she loves. As a bookkeeper working behind the scenes, she finds it deeply gratifying to be helping the helpers. She is looking forward to growing and learning as the program grows.
Michelle Robinson
Development Associate
Meet the board of directors