Staff

Executive Director
Kim Dougherty
kim@friendslife.org

Kim joined Friends Life as Executive Director in July 2011. She recently moved to Tennessee from the Chicago area and feels like she has returned home now because of her attachment to her alma mater, the University of the South, in Sewanee, TN. Her new position suits her personality very well – she believes that all people deserve to be treated fairly and is quick to defend those who are not afforded respect and dignity within our society.

With an MBA from Duke University, and a certificate in nonprofit management, her career has included both nonprofit and business leadership positions. She has worked in marketing and sales and even for a while in US foreign policy as the result of her undergraduate major in Russian Studies. She led a startup nonprofit in Illinois that provided support programs for people living with cancer. Her volunteer work began as a young girl when she collected donations in front of the Post Office for local Veterans’ organizations. While in Chicago, her volunteer avocation continued through her work on several nonprofits’ boards of directors, membership in Rotary Club and various lay ministry functions in her church. She is looking forward to once again becoming an active volunteer in Nashville.

Kim has always delighted in spending time with her nephews and nieces and Nashville provides her many opportunities to see her nephew Chris, his wife Stephanie, and their young twins. When not at work or spending time with family, you might find her reading spy novels or creating something with her knitting needles or sewing machine.

Program Director
Waverly Harris-Christopher
waverly@friendslife.org

Waverly grew up in Lewisburg, TN.  She graduated with a BA in Sociology from Western Kentucky University.  Waverly has had the privilege of traveling the country and the world through various academic and service opportunities, including managing 20 Ugandan employees at a recycling factory in Kampala, Uganda.  She now lives in Gallatin with her husband, Steve, and their beloved pet, “Kitty”.  Waverly is also studying at Lipscomb University for her M.A.  Waverly has had the opportunity to work with Friends Life since December 2009 as part of the Project HEALTH team.  She is excited to learn from our Friends while partnering with other organizations to create a fun learning environment where our Friends can learn and grow.  For Waverly, the best part of her job is having fun with the Friends and staff while exploring Nashville, exercising in parks, creating art and just living life with good people.  On a Saturday morning, you can find Waverly going for a long walk outside or attending a Hot Yoga class.  She can quote Ferris Bueller’s Day Off better than you, and would choose to eat Chipotle over Qdoba!

Office Manager
Dianne Hamilton
admin@friendslife.org

Dianne is a native Tennessean. She and her husband Mark have been married for 21 years. They have 3 children aged 18, 11, and 5. While her children were young, Dianne helped her husband with his real estate investment company. Now that they are all in school, Dianne decided to pursue a job where she felt the misson of the organization was making a difference in the lives of others. Dianne loves working for Friends Life because she gets to see the smiles on our participants’ faces as they come through the doors each day. She feels very lucky to be a part of Friends Life during this time of tremendous growth and change.

Direct Services Supervisor
Krishonda Lanier
krishonda@friendslife.org

Krishonda is the mother of two children and is currently in school with the high hopes of becoming a nurse. In her spare time she likes to work on puzzles and shop. Krishonda works for Friends Life because she loves the friendships that she can create with the participants. She believes that exposure to typical people in the community will greatly increase an adult with a developmental disabilities chance of being a productive person in society. Krishonda has a son that has Autism and hopes that there will be a program like this when he is old enough to participate. Krishonda’s favorite subject in high school was lunch (or biology). On Saturday mornings, Krishonda studies until her kids wake up, then they all cook breakfast, followed by a jump on the trampoline. After all of that she needs a nap, so she’s back in bed before noon!

Curriculum and Assessment Administrator
Jake Habegger
jake@friendslife.org

Jake is originally from Ohio, but now lives in Franklin, TN with his wife Kate. He holds a Music Business degree from Anderson University with a minor in History. He is currently enrolled at Belmont where he is working on his Masters in Teaching. He loves playing disc golf, producing music, and playing music. Jake plays the piano, the bass, and the guitar. He also really enjoys food and once attempted to eat a 36 inch pizza in 30 minutes with a friend. He failed. His favorite part of working at Friends Life is hanging out with people that are cooler than he is. He hopes they might rub off on him.

Program Specialist and Media Consultant
Scott Hill
scott@friendslife.org

 Scott and his wife, Emily, live in East Nashville with their dog Maggie.  Scott is also on staff at Mosaic Nashville, a church downtown, and is attending Fuller Theological Seminary.  Scott works for Friends Life because he feels the significance of his work here is important.  Friends Life is an opportunity for him to invest in lives and build relationships with adults that are significant in the eyes of Jesus.  Scott’s favorite part about his job is the collection of stories that he walks away with at the end of every day.  Scott knows every line in the movie Dumb and Dumber by heart.  His two favorite books are A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller and Let the Nations Be Glad by John Piper.  When asked “what is the best dish you can cook?” Scott responded that his favorite dish to EAT was chicken pizza, proving what we already knew, that Emily cooks all the food for their family.

Program Specialist/Volunteer Coordinator
Jeannie Lee
jeannie@friendslife.org

Jeannie is originally from Seoul, South Korea but calls North Carolina home. She graduated from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2008 and has a love for college basketball. Since graduating from college Jeannie has served with AmeriCorps NCCC where she worked with a variety of non-profits and also spent a year teaching outdoor education in Texas. Jeannie feels so fortunate to work with Friends Life because she gets to spend her time with such amazing people every day. Jeannie loves to eat and her favorite food is sushi, although any other type of food makes her happy too. Shark Week is one of her favorite weeks in the whole year because she gets to learn about some of the coolest creatures on the planet.

Program Specialist
Jameson Elder

Jameson is originally from Alpharetta, GA and is a senior at Belmont University.  He will graduate in May with a degree in Music Business.  He plans on making a career out of playing and recording music.  Jameson considers Friends Life to be the most fun job he’s ever had, although he thinks that it does not feel like a job!  He loves that there are so many different personalities that make every time he works so different from the last time.  Jameson loves all of his Audio Engineering classes at Belmont.  He can’t decide if Paul McCartney or U2 puts on a better concert and he is a frequent customer at Baja Burrito.