About

Ed Ternan’s professional background includes marketing communications, product development and project management. A pragmatic “problem solver,” he has extensive experience building teams and managing strategic partnerships. Since Charlie’s death, he has dedicated himself to informing young people about new risks of self-medication and recreational drug use in the age of synthetic drugs like fentanyl.

Mary Ternan is a Gerontologist who retired from her position at her local Catholic Parish in September 2021, after 30 years of service.

Mary handles Donor Relations, Administration in addition to helping our partners craft our message to parents and kids.

Marcia Lee Taylor is the former President and CEO of the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids and founder of MLT Strategies, a behavioral health consulting firm.  Marcia has 30 years of public and private sector experience in the addiction field. In her work at the Partnership, Marcia oversaw the organization’s relationships with government agencies, elected officials and key stakeholder groups, managed all fundraising and development efforts and served as a media spokesperson.  She forged partnerships with Google, Meta, Walmart, and Paramount, as well as numerous pharmaceutical companies.  She also created and ran the Medicine Abuse Project, a successful five-year campaign to drive down teen misuse of prescription medication, partnering with eight government agencies, fifteen corporations and more than 80 non-profit organizations.

Previously, she served as the Senior Advisor for Drug Policy and Research for the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs as well as the Democratic Staff Director of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, working for then-Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr. In that capacity, she worked on a wide variety of drug policy bills, which were enacted into law, aimed at curbing the proliferation of methamphetamine, ecstasy and GHB as well as drug treatment, prevention and enforcement initiatives. She has also worked for Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan of New York and served in the Jesuit Volunteer Corps as a community organizer in Baltimore.

Marcia is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross and holds a Master’s in Public Policy from Georgetown University, where she has served as an Adjunct Professor. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and recently completed nine years of Board Service for the United States Anti-Doping Agency. She and her husband Jeff are the proud parents of two teenage daughters.

Robert Graff is currently a technology advisor to Song for Charlie and the Co-Founder of Kickplan, an early-stage startup. Previously, Robert was the co-founder and CTO of Goldstar, a live-events marketplace that was acquired by TodayTix Group in 2021. Before that, he worked on building products for venture-backed companies such as Kiko, Yahoo! GeoCities, and Warner Bros. Consumer Products. Robert has more than 25 years of experience in creating digital consumer products and is a graduate of UCLA. When he’s not staring at a laptop, he’s an avid runner, board gamer, and Lakers fan. He lives in Pasadena, California, with his wife, three kids, and one dog.

Jill is a former CPA and joined Song for Charlie at its inception.  Jill has known Ed and Mary since Charlie and her daughter Caitlin became friends in pre-school and eventually attended college together at Santa Clara University.  Jill brings over 20 years of nonprofit fundraising and accounting experience to Song for Charlie.  She is one of the Founders of the Spiritual Care Guild for CHLA and has also served on the school board, finance council and parent guild at her local Catholic parish. Jill holds a BS in Finance and Accounting from Berkeley Haas School of Business and started her career in public accounting.

Kaila Sassano brings over 15 years of for-profit and nonprofit leadership and fundraising experience to the SFC team. She has a special passion for leveraging corporate partnerships to create meaningful impact. She joins SFC as our Chief Development Officer and is responsible for raising revenue through the creation of meaningful relations while creating strategic partnerships to ensure SFC can continue to empower families for years to come.

Denise Mariano joins the SFC team with over 13 years of non-profit leadership in the prevention, substance use disorder and recovery space. Denise has been a strong voice for families and a thought leader in the national conversation since 2011. She was selected and honored at the White House as an ‘Advocate for Action’ where she was recognized as one of the leaders across the country making a difference.

Jennifer Epstein joined Song for Charlie after losing her dear 18-year old son Cal to a fake pill in December 2020. Jennifer worked with Beaverton School District to develop their Fake & Fatal campaign, the first known fake pill awareness campaign by a school district in the country. Jennifer is now SFC’s Director of Strategic Programs, leading the implementation of The New Drug Talk program in Oregon and assisting with the CA New Drug Talk program. Jennifer brings with her 20 years of both Fortune 100 and start-up operations experience, and over 12 years of working with schools and youth.

Krista’s professional background includes 18 years of expertise in graphic design, web design and user experience/product design. Krista joined SFC as a contractor in 2020 to design our website. From there she became our Social Media Manager and then Director of Digital Content and Strategy. Krista now joins us full-time as our Creative Director. As Creative Director, Krista is responsible for planning, creating, executing and managing all of the social media content across Song for Charlie’s 8 platforms, maintaining our website as well as creating all of our marketing materials.

After tragically losing her 17 year old son Zach to a counterfeit pill in December of 2020, Laura began her partnership with Song For Charlie. Utilizing Song For Charlie materials, she gives counterfeit pill and fentanyl awareness presentations to students, parents, and community organizations. She has participated in the creation of multiple public awareness campaigns in Northern California. Laura also maintains correspondence with the bereaved family members who contact Song For Charlie, providing them with compassion and resources.