Our Board Members

Larry Anderson
Treasurer

Lawrence Anderson served as Executive Vice President of Finance for Covenant Ministries of Benevolence, where he was responsible for coordinating the overall financial operations of the various entities under the control of the Board of Benevolence. He was also responsible for the centralized investment program of CMB as well as the pension plan for the employees of the CMB affiliates. Prior to joining CMB, Lawrence was Executive Vice President for Sales and Marketing for Newedge Financial, Inc., a subsidiary of Credit Agricole and Societe Generale Banks. He was an elected board member at both Swedish Hospital and Covenant Ministries of Benevolence over a period of 35 years, serving as board chair and finance committee chair at various times.

Lynette Baker
Secretary

Lynette's background is as a registered nurse, college clinical instructor, hospital administrator, and perinatal flight nurse with a degree in nursing and a public health certification.  She has served on collegiate, county, local, and church boards for educational, medical, and spiritual purposes. At Jessica’s House she has served on the initial Advisory Board and the Heart Circle Committee. For over a decade, her passion has been to facilitate adults grieving from the loss of a child or spouse. Lynette deems it an honor now to serve on the Jessica’s House Board of Directors.

Exploring the world and serving in her church with her husband, Gary, along with adventures with her grandchildren, are her delights. Some other activities that bring her job include bicycling, line dancing, refinishing furniture, and practicing hospitality in her home.

Steve Hollinger
Director

Steve Hollinger brings a heart for service and deep community connections to our Jessica’s House Board. Originally from South Pasadena, and a UC Santa Barbara graduate, Steve has made Turlock home for the past 15 years, along with his wife of 27 years, Kelly, and their three children.

Steve’s community involvement reflects his commitment to supporting families and young people. He is an active member of Enclave Church, and he, his wife Kelly, and daughter Evelyn volunteer at Jessica’s House. Steve previously served on the Heart Circle Council for Jessica’s House, where he helped raise $100,000 through Zenith Insurance Company, where he is a Senior Vice President. When he is not working or serving the community, Steve enjoys traveling, music, hiking, and golf.

Steve’s experience raising children in our community and his proven leadership and volunteer service give him valuable insight into local families' challenges and opportunities. He approaches service with genuine care and a collaborative spirit that builds consensus around shared goals.

Steve views his role on the Board at Jessica’s House as an extension of his lifelong commitment to creating a supportive community where individuals and families can thrive. He says, “Jessica’s House is precious to our community.  Witnessing what happens in the groups, seeing how families respond, and seeing the impact are remarkable. I would like to offer my work and life experiences to help protect, advise, and position Jessica’s House for the future and carry on the mission that ‘no one should grieve alone.’

Todd Slechta
Director

Todd Slechta is the President of Covenant Ministries of Benevolence and, prior to this position, was President of Covenant Initiatives for Care. He has broad executive and ministerial experience, including growing a small, five-county rural healthcare agency into a statewide entity with the mission of serving children with special needs in rural and remote-rural areas. Todd also has served as a Covenant pastor and as executive director of Covenant Bible College in Canada and Ecuador. He was principal of Vanguard Classical School, which serves students with a range of disabilities, social and emotional needs, as well as those with gifted and talented capacities. Following his time at Vanguard, Todd was Vice President of Personnel Development for PeopleCare Health Services, an in-home healthcare company.

Linda Stuhmer
Director

Linda M. Stuhmer is President and Chief Executive Officer of EMC Health, Inc., the nonprofit organization that founded Jessica’s House. Her wealth of knowledge helps guide Jessica’s House’s fiscal and legal responsibilities. Concurrently Linda serves as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Covenant Ministries of Benevolence.

Linda is a graduate of University of Puget Sound and received her law degree from University of San Diego. She is licensed to practice law in California and Illinois.

Linda is committed to her community and volunteers her time with Turlock Christian School where she serves as Chairman of the Board. 

She and her husband Steve have one son, Brian, three cats and two dogs.

Josh Weimer
Director

Josh Weimer serves as the Director of External Affairs at Turlock Irrigation District, where he oversees government affairs, communications, education, and energy programs. With experience in public policy, community partnerships, and strategic planning, he is dedicated to advancing initiatives that benefit both the region and its residents.

Josh has also been a volunteer at Jessica’s House for more than 10 years. Initially drawn by the need for more male volunteers, he quickly discovered the deep impact Jessica’s House has in providing a safe, supportive space for children and families to grieve. The peer-to-peer model of listening, presence, and meeting kids where they are has not only helped those he serves but has also changed how Josh approaches conversations about loss and healing. He was honored to serve on the building committee that helped create the new Jessica’s House facility.

At home, you’ll find him and his wife, Meredith, chasing their two young boys around the neighborhood.

Erin Nelson
Executive Director

Erin is the founding Executive Director of Jessica’s House, which launched through EMC in 2011. Under her leadership, Jessica’s House has helped thousands of children, teens and young adults by providing a safe place to grieve for children and their families.

Erin is a trauma practitioner through the National Institute of Trauma and Loss in Children. She entered the grief world when her late husband, Tyler, died when her children were five and three. Soon after Tyler’s death, she became a survivor of her mom’s suicide and began raising her 15-year-old sister. She learned the importance of grief support for families while raising her own children and sister who were grieving. In 2019, Erin’s son, Carter, died in an accident.

Erin and her husband, Bryan, live in the Turlock area and enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren. Since Carter’s death, Erin has been writing about child loss. She co-authored When Grief Comes Home with fellow staff member, Colleen Montague, for parents raising grieving children, which was released in Spring 2025 through Baker Books.