Meet the Faces Behind the Conversation

Each year, Huckleberry House’s Sleep Out brings people together in support of young people experiencing homelessness and crisis. This year’s theme, We Are Community, reflects the power of connection, compassion, and collective action in creating brighter futures for youth and families in our community.

One of the most meaningful parts of the evening is our panel discussion, where voices from across our community come together to share experiences, insight, and expertise surrounding youth homelessness.

Get to know this year’s panelists and moderator below, and meet the voices helping shape this important conversation.
 

MODERATOR

Jennifer Sharma
CEO
Huckleberry House

Jennifer Sharma was named Chief Executive Officer of Huckleberry House in June 2025, bringing to the role a deep-rooted commitment to serving youth and more than 25 years of leadership experience in housing and human services.
 
Prior to joining Huckleberry House, she served as Chief Strategy Officer at Community Housing Network, where she played a pivotal role in developing strategic initiatives to address housing instability, homelessness, and supportive services in the region. 





 

PANELISTS

Amanda Erickson, 
Kaleidoscope Youth Center
Interim Executive Director

Amanda Erickson, she/her, has worked with Kaleidoscope Youth Center since 2017, focusing on advocating for LGBTQIA+ youth across Ohio through education for youth-serving professionals, including teachers, social workers, and more. Amanda holds a Bachelor of Science in Education from Bowling Green State University, and a Certificate in Public and Non-Profit Leadership from the John Glenn College of Public Affairs at The Ohio State University. She is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer and served two years post-college, educating teachers in the South Pacific. Before joining KYC, she taught sex education and life skills in the juvenile justice system and managed program partnerships for a regional youth-serving organization. Amanda lives on a small urban farm in Columbus with her wife, cats, and chickens. 



 

Beth Fetzer-Rice
President + CEO
Home For Families

Beth Fetzer-Rice is the President/Chief Executive Officer of Home for Families in Columbus, Ohio. In her role, Beth provides strategic, operational, and cultural leadership to the organization, to implement comprehensive homeless prevention, re-housing and education programs to stabilize families and children living in poverty and experiencing crisis. 

Beth has extensive non-profit and public sector experience including more than over 30 years in leadership roles in the homeless and community social services systems; leading teams of social workers, developing innovative programming, and leading planning efforts in both urban and rural communities. Beth has served on multiple boards and committees for homelessness, human services, anti-human trafficking and emergency disaster services. She has served as chair of county and regional homeless continuum of care committees, and has led diverse groups in coordinating resources to create efficient homeless and community service systems. Beth regularly provides technical assistance to local providers and communities, and has presented on best-practice programming and organizational management at the National Alliance to End Homelessness and COHHIO Conferences. Beth currently serves as a Board Member of COHHIO, the Coalition of Housing and Homelessness in Ohio, and is the youth homeless organization representative for the Columbus and Franklin County Continuum of Care. 

Beth holds a Masters Degree in Social Work from The Ohio State University and is a Licensed Independent Social Work Supervisor in the State of Ohio.

 

Laverna Styles
Advocate
 

Since 2023, Laverna Styles has been a passionate advocate for Huckleberry House, helping to build awareness and support for youth experiencing homelessness and crisis throughout the community. Through her personal outreach and generosity, she has inspired her family, her friends, and her community to become engaged in Huckleberry House’s mission and donated thousands of dollars to support the youth served by the organization. Her commitment reflects the power of community leadership and the meaningful impact that dedicated supporters can have on the lives of vulnerable youth people.







Micayla Wilson
Ohio State's Office of Criminal Justice Services
Child and Youth Anti-Human Trafficking Specialist

Micayla Wilson is a subject matter expert that has 9 years of professional experience in the anti-trafficking field. Many of these years were spent in direct services with child and youth survivors of human trafficking and their support networks in both residential and community-based responses. Ms. Wilson also has experience in leading anti-trafficking programs, developing multi-disciplinary response networks, and building trauma responsive protocols. Ms. Wilson now serves on the Ohio Governor’s Human Trafficking Task Force as the Child & Youth Anti Trafficking Specialist. In this role she supports the Task Force’s child and youth initiatives such as improving the child welfare and juvenile justice responses to human trafficking and supporting victim services agencies in building out their anti-trafficking programs and response protocols.

SPECIAL REMARKS BY

Melissa Green

Councilmember
City of Columbus

Councilmember Melissa Green is a dedicated advocate for social equity, public health, and community resilience. Elected in 2023 as the first representative of Columbus’ District 6—covering much of the West Side—she also made history as the first licensed social worker to serve on Columbus City Council. Melissa brings a human-centered approach to policy making, shaped by years of experience in direct clinical practice, nonprofit leadership, public health, and policy advocacy.

Throughout her career, Melissa has worked to strengthen Columbus’ communities through systems-level interventions, ensuring that public health, social services, and local government work together to uplift residents. A lifelong harm reduction advocate, she played a key role in shaping Columbus’ response to the opioid crisis. Her efforts expanded access to naloxone, grew the City’s syringe service program, and launched Project LIFE (Limiting Involuntary Fentanyl Exposure), one of the nation’s first government-funded and administered drug-checking initiatives. In recognition of her work, she received the Spirit of Public Health award in 2018.

Beyond policymaking, Melissa is committed to strengthening communities through engagement and service. She has served on numerous boards, including Franklinton Cycle Works, The Art of Recovery, and SAFER Stations. She is a co-founder of both, Songs on Sullivant and the Franklinton vs. Hilltop Charity Softball Game, annual events that, each year, bring neighbors together to celebrate the sense of community, pride, and resilience of Columbus’ West Side.

Melissa holds a dual bachelor’s degree in Communication and Anthropology and a master’s degree in Social Work. A proud Hilltop resident, she lives there with her four-year-old son, Miles, who is a fifth-generation West Sider.

 

SLEEP OUT TIMELINE

     Friday, May 29

• 6:00 PM | Check-in Begins
• 7:00 PM | Program Kick-offs
• 9:00 PM | After-Program Activities
• 11:00 PM | Settle in for the night

• 6:00 AM | Wake Up 
• 6:30 AM | Breakfast and Debrief
• 7:30 AM | Thank you + Good Morning!