Keynote Speakers
Wednesday October 18th 11 am-noon Our First Keynote speaker will be:
John Shinholser
John Shinholser serves as the President of The McShin Foundation, which was founded in 2004 and named for its two recovering co-founders, John Shinholser and Carol McDaid. John and Carol have dedicated their lives to helping individuals and families in or seeking recovery from the disease of addiction. McShin operates on the founders’ belief that by helping others find and sustain recovery, they can better sustain their own recovery. John and Carol decided to establish a non-profit recovery community resource foundation based on this belief and on the work John had been engaged in with individuals in the recovering community since 1982.
John is a United States Marine Corps veteran. He owned and managed a successful contracting business for over 30 years, during which time he served as President of the Richmond Chapter of the Painting and Decorating Contractors Association and was twice recognized as a national award winning Original Design Faux Finisher.
John served as President of SAARA of Central Virginia Affiliate and is a former board member of SAARA of Virginia. He also served as Chairman of the board of Rubicon, Inc. (2012-2014), Virginia’s most comprehensive substance abuse treatment facility (230 beds).
In 2005, John received the prestigious America Honors Recovery Award from the Johnson Institute — one of six recognized (nationally) who have been affected or afflicted by alcohol and other drug addictions, and have given back to their communities so that future generations may know the possibility and power of recovery. Other awards include the Caron Foundation’s Outstanding Alumni Award, Virginia Office of Substance Abuse Services Award of Virginia for significant contributions to the field of recovery. John was the first recovering community member to receive this award. McShin received the Joel Hernandez Award presented by Faces and Voices of Recovery in 2011.
John Shinholser has been featured in Addiction Professional Magazine, Newsweek, The Richmond Times Dispatch, The Mechanicsville Local, Richmond Free Press, and Virginia Association of Community Service Boards 2005 Annual Report.
John also has been in many news broadcasts, including Face the Nation and national documentaries to include The Anonymous People.
John currently resides in Hanover with his wife Carol and his daughter Mary Page. He has been clean and in successful long-term recovery since August 10th 1982.
Thursday October 19th 9 am-10 am Our Keynote speaker will be:
Peter J. Ninemire, LCSW
Peter Ninemire’s journey from childhood to addiction to prison was unusual and very eventful, from his months of eluding the U.S. Marshall’s Service to his years in the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Yet, his story has a dramatic, positive finale which has not yet closed.
Peter has some15 years in the field of addictions and mental health and has been successful in advocating for community based treatment and drug treatment alternatives to incarceration in the Kansas General Assembly. After numerous positions in clinical settings, including a multi-service Day Reporting Center, Peter rose to supervisory positions, managing teams of therapists and case managers. He was a critical force in expanding the service delivery and clinical supervision to enhance the Sedgwick County Drug Court in Wichita as the Addiction Treatment Supervisor and Mental Health Therapist, prior to launching the Caring Center of Wichita in 2012. Currently, Peter is the Owner/ Executive Director of The Caring Center, a clinical practice which specializes in the treatment of co-occurring disorders, applying Peter’s unique expertise in the neuroscience of addiction as a bio- psychosocial disease.
Peter will share his amazing story and miraculous ending from a personal and policy perspective, which includes the importance of justice reinvestment in the management of justice-involved persons. His tireless advocacy with stakeholders to shift funding n from incapacitation of addicts from prisons and jails to treatment and other critical interventions which will enhance the likelihood of long term reentry success. He is a strong proponent, as well, of custody-based therapeutic community which promote learning, treatment and healing versus criminal and addictive beliefs and behaviors for many suffering from the disease of addiction. Peter will promote new policy approaches to helping reduce the impact of felonies on employment and help those with suspended drivers gain a restricted license to gain employment and pay on their fines. Peter will also correlate the lessons learned in custody, mostly about the human spirit and its ability to cope and adjust to incredibly, challenging conditions, to his holistic approach to treatment and therapy to all persons, struggling with disorders.
Peter achieved a Masters of Social Work degree from the Wichita State University, and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. He has attained numerous advanced certificates in the treatment of co-occurring disorders. He has delivered professional papers and speeches across the country, most recently at Harvard University in September, 2017.
Thursday October 19th 1 pm-1:25 pm Our Keynote speaker will be:
Justin Fairfax is running for Lieutenant Governor to help create and protect higher-paying jobs and economic security and opportunity for all Virginians.
Growing up, Justin didn’t have much money, but he was surrounded by family love and spiritual wealth. After his parents’ divorce, Justin, along with his hardworking mother and three older siblings, moved into his grandparents’ house in inner-city Washington, DC, until his mom could save enough to buy her own house across the street, and just a few doors down from aunts, uncles, and cousins.
The neighborhood had transformed from a close-knit middle-class community to one ravaged by a growing drug epidemic, increasing violence, and dwindling economic opportunities, so Justin learned early on how fragile the future can be, watching the lives of many friends and neighbors unravel in the face of unexpected challenges because they didn’t have the same strong network of support.
Defying long odds, Justin’s mom put all four of her children through college – and two through law school. Justin received scholarships to Duke University, where he graduated with a degree in Public Policy Studies, and Columbia Law School, where he was selected for the Columbia Law Review.
As Justin grew up, he felt determined to re-pay his spiritual debt by dedicating himself to public service – to help others gain access to the kind of opportunities he had to pursue his American dream, no matter where they start in life.
During his career, Justin has worked in the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government, developing a keen insight into solving the challenges that face Virginia families today.
As an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia and the Deputy Coordinator of the Northern Virginia Human Trafficking Task Force, Justin saw the power that law enforcement and criminal justice reform can have to keep communities safe, while providing appropriate second chances, saving hard-earned taxpayer dollars, and changing communities and lives.
As a small business owner with his wife, Dr. Cerina Fairfax, DDS, he understands the importance of strengthening and diversifying Virginia’s economy. And as a father of a young son and daughter, he knows how important economic stability is for our children’s future.
The challenges Virginia families face today are unprecedented – when one bad life event can turn into a cascade of failures. Justin believes it doesn’t have to be that way. As Lieutenant Governor, Justin will work every day to build the foundation of economic and educational opportunity that every Virginian deserves and that will make our Commonwealth an even better place to live, work, raise a family, and grow a business.
Thursday October 19th 1:30 pm-1:55 pm Our Keynote speaker will be:
Jill Vogel
Jill Vogel is a nationally recognized attorney and native Virginian. She has held legal and policy positions in and out of government, including serving as Deputy General Counsel at the Department of Energy. As managing partner of a law firm that specializes in charity and non-profit organizations, election law, and ethics, she has consistently been listed by Washingtonian Magazine as a “top lawyer in her field.”
Jill is currently serving a third term in the Senate of Virginia, where she represents Winchester, Frederick County, Clarke County, Fauquier County, and parts of Loudoun, Culpeper and Stafford counties. She serves on the General Laws and Technology Committee, the Rules Committee the Finance Committee, and the Privileges and Elections Committee of which she is the chairman. In addition, Jill is chairman of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on General Government and Technology and serves on the Subcommittee on Claims. Jill was also appointed to the Governor’s Commission on Parole Review and the Joint Subcommittee to Evaluate Tax Preferences. She remains a member of the Commemorative Commission to Honor the Contributions of the Women of Virginia.
In the past, Senator Vogel has been named Legislator of the Year by the Virginia State Police, the Virginia Courts Clerks Association, the Virginia Treasurers Association and the Commissioners of Revenue Association of Virginia. She has also been named a Champion of Justice by the Virginia Association of Commonwealth Attorneys and a Catalyst for change by the Arc of Virginia. In addition, she received an Outstanding Legislative Leadership Award from the Lord Fairfax Soil and Water Conservation District and in 2014, she was the only member of the Virginia Senate to receive a 100 percent score from the Northern Virginia Chamber Partnership.
Born and raised in the Shenandoah Valley, Jill is a wife, mother, and business owner. She volunteers her time helping civic and charitable organizations and she resides in Fauquier County with her husband and children.