Empowering youtH
Strengthening community
VISION | OUR FUTURE
A community that values and embraces all young people while addressing harm together
MISSION | WHAT WE DO
To create opportunities for reflection, connection, & empowerment for teens, victims, and families in the Flathead Valley
VALUES | WHAT MATTERS
Resiliency | Accountability | Integrity
Collaboration | Inclusion | Relationships
Center for Restorative Youth Justice envisions a community that values and embraces all young people by cultivating a climate of purposeful inclusion and non-judgement. Together we address the root causes and impacts of harm, deepen connections and relationships, and empower each other to move through the world with empathy and integrity.
CRYJ works with Flathead Valley teens, families, justice agencies, and school discipline teams to reduce youth involvement with the legal system, interrupt cycles of harm, repair trust, promote accountability, and foster community connections.
CRYJ utilizes restorative justice circles to hold space for dialogue between youth, families, and community members. Alongside restorative conferencing, CRYJ engages teens in service-based activities, empowerment and harm reduction-based workshops, and high levels of individualized adult and peer support. CRYJ remains committed to helping teens find their strengths and move out of cycles of harm, incarceration, poverty, violence, and a lack of connection to school and community.
CRYJ is based in Kalispell, Montana and works with agencies, institutions, and individuals in our backyard and around the nation to promote restorative responses to community harm.
Our Team
Catherine Gunderson
Executive Director
"Said the river: imagine everything you can imagine, then keep going” — Mary Oliver
Catherine has been with CRYJ since 2008 - from coordinating youth programming to expanding community engagement to jumping into the director role in 2019. Her favorite part of it all is finding authentic opportunities for curiosity, connection and creativity every day. If she could suddenly have one superpower, it would definitely be teleportation, as this could be the ticket to her second greatest love, world travel. In the meantime, she is often found cooking without recipes, floating scenic rivers and seeking live music with her first greatest loves, her three kids, family and friends.
Ben Johnson
Development
"Gah I don't know if I even have a favorite quote" — Ben Johnson
After many years working in field-based and science education, Ben Joined the CRYJ staff in 2019 in a youth program capacity. In the years since then, his interests in organizational sustainability and non-profit operations have led him to take the bigger picture look at how CRYJ interacts with our Northwest Montana community - engaging donors and foundations, telling the stories of CRYJ teens, and measuring and sharing impact of CRYJ programs.
His excitement for the work stems from the belief that everyone has something to be passionate about, and some way to work toward being their better self. Ben was once an awkward and gangly teenager too! Although he works in less of a program role these days, he fits right in with so many participants at CRYJ. Outside the office, Ben enjoys tinkering on bikes (and riding them too!), poking around backcountry ski zones in the Flathead Valley, and working as a volunteer board member in the affordable housing realm.
Ashley Tetu
Operations
"Ubuntu is very difficult to render into Western language…it is to say my humanity is caught up, is inextricably bound up, in yours.” — Desmond Tutu
Ashley joined the CRYJ team in the summer of 2020 after years of working in program administration, including for other youth-serving organizations. That means that in addition to making sure that all things human resource at CRYJ are sound, she’s got a knack for keeping the kitchen stocked with snacks for teens (so many Flaming Hot Cheetos). If the task at hand involves a spreadsheet, Ashley’s on it.
Outside of CRYJ, Ashley teaches Iyengar yoga, and loves to hike, ski, and fly fish.
Erin Goudreau
training and Consulting Project Manager
"Look at the skill and spirit with which I rise from that which resembles the grave but isn't!" — Anne Boyer
Erin joined the CRYJ program team in the Fall of 2020 after years of working with young people on farms, after school, and in juvenile detention. Her work in those first few years at CRYJ focused on workshop curriculum development, facilitating restorative conferences, and working through the heavy-hitters with teens: how to care for ourselves while remaining resilient and community-minded. In 2022 Erin took on the role of school liaison, working with school administrators and resource officers throughout the Flathead Valley to offer teens restorative programming and meaningful accountability opportunities outside the juvenile justice system. Since then, Erin has shifted to a training and consulting role, channeling her passion for helping translate both the theory and application of restorative practices to the world outside CRYJ’s walls.
When not in the office, Erin finds peace in her garden, going for long cross country skis, learning 90s country songs on her guitar, and hanging out with her dog (Baxter) and chickens (Gloria, PV, Elle Woods, Linda Lou, and Avril Lavigne).
Claire O’Connor
Youth Programs Director
"May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds." — Edward Abbey
Claire joined the CRYJ team in the Fall of 2022 after working with teens through various settings—as a high school swim coach, leading a Youth Conservation Corps group in Eureka, and as a Youth Leader for a residential care program. She enjoys the curiosity, thoughtfulness, and fun that teens bring into her day-to-day work life. Her impeccable taste in memes and elite Spotify playlists helps her build rapport with CRYJ teens. More than anything, she loves helping teens navigate difficult moments and dismantling the idea of “good kids vs bad kids."
Outside of CRYJ, Claire loves to be on the river in the summer and on the mountain in the winter. She picks up a new creative hobby every couple of months… the most recent one being knitting!
Kristopher Samuel
Youth Programs
“To dare is to lose one's footing momentarily. Not to dare is to lose oneself.” — Soren Kierkegaard
Before joining the CRYJ team in the Spring of 2023, Kris was the Youth Director at his local church in Virginia. He has always found great joy working with youth from all backgrounds and getting involved with his local community. Kris has a deep interest in being able to walk alongside individuals and help make sense of different situations through sharing, dialogue, and being present.
When Kris isn’t at the CRYJ office, you will most likely find him at a basketball court, a coffee shop, thrifting, or listening to the Strokes at a record store. Kris enjoys reading all types of books, from philosophy and theology to the “Diary of the Wimpy Kid” series.
Madison Fernandez
Youth Programs
“Every person you meet is going to want something different from you. The question is: what do you want for yourself?” — Beyonce
“I am Beyonce always.” — Michael Scott
Madison has lived in Montana for eight years. After graduating from Carroll College, she stayed in Helena and worked with various non-profit organizations, realizing her passion for restorative justice and community outreach. Madison moved to the Flathead in December of 2022 and joined the CRYJ team in late August of 2023 as a Masters of Social Work Practicum Student. Madison is looking forward to working with the awesome teens that come to CRYJ and getting to know them.
Outside of the CRYJ office, Madison is kayaking on Flathead Lake, hiking with her dog Mira, starting art projects, and golfing with her partner.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
VALERI MCGARVEY
President
MARJ DEZORT
Treasurer
SARA COLE
Secretary
CORY CLARKE
GINIA HAUF
KATIE BOYD
CRYJ’s board is a robust cross section of the Flathead Valley community. They are teachers, parents, and law enforcement officers. They work in schools, youth homes, non-profits, and for-profits. They have in common a commitment to the values embedded in Restorative Justice and a desire to see every teen and family that walks through CRYJ’s doors supported and cared for.