September 9/9 Summit Agenda
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8:30 am – 9:00 am: Sign–in, coffee, and pastries.
9 am – 9:30 am: Opening greetings by Jerry Ashton of End Veteran Debt (EVD) and Michael Matthews of Staten Island PPS and Service Member/Veterans and Families Taskforce (SMVF).
Proof-of-Concept. Jerry, a former Navy journalist and experienced nonprofit leader, and Michael, a civilian behavioral health specialist, share their experiences of the power and need for Civ-Vet engagement. Think globally; act locally. Raising awareness raises money.
9:30 am – 10:15 am: Panel #1: “Field Experience” – This panel, led by Michael Matthews, LCSW, comprises individuals who, personally and/or by profession, are familiar with incarceration, homelessness, and unpayable debt. What are the effects? Are there antidotes?
Panel members include Anthony Warren, an Army veteran and founder of AboutFace4Vets, Cristina Castro, senior staff attorney for the Legal Services of New York City, and Army combat medic Mike Williams
10:15 am – 10:30 am – Break
10:30 am – 11:15 am: Panel #2: The Need for a “Civ-Vet” Approach - Michael Matthews and a panel of academics and professionals explore the problems plaguing both veteran and civilian communities with specific emphasis on suicide and suicide prevention.
Panelists are Candace Bravo, Executive Director NYC chapter of the AmericanFoundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP);Dr. Emily Edwards,Director, Treatments for Justice-Involved Veterans Program, Director of Clinical Core, VISN 2 MIRECC; Salvina Barresi, LCSW, VA Community Engagement and Partnership Coordinator/Suicide Prevention Team, and Alex Marrocco, founder and president The Road Home Foundation/Wounded Warriors and Families.
11:20 am – 12 noon: Panel #3: “If they don’t know about you, they can’t do anything about you.” Former Marine Corps photographer and co-founder of Military Veterans in Journalism (MVJ), Russell Midori, leads a panel on the importance of military media veterans as “Indie” journalists.
Panel Members include Jerry Ashton, former Navy Journalist, Huffington Post blogger, author, and EVD Founder, and two others to be named.
12 Noon – 1:00 pm Working Lunch – Donation event (SIPPS) and Keynote speaker
Michael R. Eastman is a retired United States Armybrigadier general, last serving as the Special Assistant to the Director of the Army Staff. BG Eastman was appointed Executive Director of the ETS Sponsorship Program, now rebranded as Onward Ops, a national nonprofit dedicated to assisting service members from all branches of the military in their transition back to civilian life.
1:00 pm – 1:45 pm: Panel #4: Can You Hear (and See) Me Now? Artist and philanthropist Steve Alpert showcases the Creatives who provide the “Impact Awareness” that compels public interest and action.
Panel participants include Ernie Paniccioli, Navy Vet and Hip-Hop photographer, Mike Williams, Army battlefield medic and songwriter, Chris Cilento, US Army (ret), multi-disciplinary artist, and Kerra Renee, President of African-American Women in Cinema.
1:45 pm – 2:15 pm: The Magic, Need, and Value of Erasing Unpayable Debt. Jerry Ashtonand Craig Antico are best known as the two “bill collectors” who co-founded the celebrated non-profit, RIP Medical Debt (RIP). To date, RIP (since renamed Undue Medical Debt) has abolished nearly $23 billion in Medical Debt for over 11 million Americans. With that accomplishment under their belt, they again continued to erase debt, but Antico as co-founder of the B2B public benefit corporation, ForgiveCo (FGV), and Ashton, as founder of End Veteran Debt (EVD).
Dina Magnes, Program Manager, Student Engagement at Undue Medical Debt, and Andrew Gordon of the Marshall Allen Project will join them.
2:15 – 3:30 pm: Four Star Shuffle. Select military and civilian thought-leaders share how they are meeting today’s challenges. A “Why didn’t I think of that?” experience. Featured will be Richard Bennet, Co-Founder and CEO of Epicured, James Hendon, Commissioner of New York City Department of Veteran Services, Dr. Owen Muir, MD, The Frontier Psychiatrist with Fermata, Marine Col (ret.) and CEO of End Veteran Debt, Marine Colonel (ret) Rick Johnson.
3:30 – 3:50 pm: Coffee and Snacks break.
3:50 – 4:45 pm: Tables: What does coffee have to do with this? EVD reveals its “Red, White and Bold” coffee approach to fundraising. Good to the last donation. A Primer on Combining Awareness and Fundraising. Action Item Assignments and calendaring.
4:45 – 5:00 pm – Summarizing the key takeaways for everyone to bring home, and a preview and invitation to the National Veteran Debt and Healthcare Summit, scheduledto take place in NYC on November 10th, 2025. Oh yes, and participating the following day with a float in the famed NYC Veterans Day Parade.
Driving, bus, subway, walking directions.
Don’t get lost along the way. We want you there on time (8:30 am). You do, too.
Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus is located at the northwest corner of Columbus Avenue at 113 West 60th Street, New York, NY 10023.
Enter at 113 West 60th and follow the signs for the 140W Building. Room G76A is located in the Garden Level ("B" on the elevator). The space is to the left once you are off the elevator. You will be greeted outside the room by registration staff.
Various ways to get to 113 West 60th Street
Parking
Daily parking for visitors to the Lincoln Center campus is currently available at any of the following locations. Have your parking ticket validated at the Lowenstein Public Safety desk for preferential rates.
Bio's for Summit 4-Star Shuffle/Speakers/Panelists/Keynote
Mike Eastman - Keynote
Michael R. Eastman is a retired United States Armybrigadier general last serving as the Special Assistant to the Director of the Army Staff. A 1991 Distinguished Graduate of the United States Military Academy, Eastman holds a BS in International Relations from the US Military Academy, an MMAS in Military History from the Command and General Staff College, and an MS and PhD (ABD) in Political Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also attended the British Higher Command and Staff College in Shrivenham, England, as the sole American military representative, and served as a Senior Fellow at the Institute of World Politics. In October 2021, BG Eastman was appointed Executive Director of the ETS Sponsorship Program, now rebranded as Onward Ops, a national nonprofit dedicated to assisting service members from all branches of the military in their transition back to civilian life.
Jerry Ashton
Jerry Ashton is a former Navy journalist who served from 1955 to 1959. Returning to civilian life, he pursued sales and management, eventually becoming an executive in the credit and collections industry, spanning over 30 years of experience. In 2011, incorporating the best elements of the Occupy Wall Street movement, he and debt industry partner Craig Antico launched RIP Medical Debt (since renamed Undue Medical Debt). RIP has since abolished nearly $22 billion in medical debt for more than 11 million Americans. He retired from UMD in late 2023 to launch End Veteran Debt as a 501(c)(3) private charitable foundation to address any form of unpayable debt burdening US veterans and active-duty service members. In July 2025, he received the “Pillar” Award from the Whistleblower Summit and Film Festival in a ceremony at the famed National Press Club in Washington, DC.
Michael Matthews, LCSW
Mike has over 40 years of experience in the field of behavioral health, with his most recent position being Director of Outpatient Behavioral Health Services at Richmond University Medical Center, where he oversaw nine programs. Currently, he is the Director of Veterans Programs at the Staten Island PPS. He worked for 7 years as a systems engineer at Summit Systems, a software company. He has collaborated with NYC Department of Veterans Services to create the Staten Island Veterans Suicide Prevention Collaborative and with AmeriCorps Seniors to develop the Staten Island Service Member/Veterans and Families Taskforce. He has leveraged his experience in behavioral health, IT, and business settings to develop innovative and transformative programs for veterans and the general population.
Rick Johnson
Rick Johnson is End Veteran Debt’s CEO and chief influencer of the role and approach the charity takes in dealing with veteran and active duty suicide, especially in relation to the social determinant impact of unpaid and unpayable debt. A 1985 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, he joined the Marine Corps. Earning his wings in 1988, he spent the next two decades as a Marine aviator. He also served as chief of staff for two years in the Marine Corps Reserve. Johnson’s career path included Inspector General for the Dept. of Defense, and leadership positions with healthcare policy and technology companies focused on helping those at risk of taking their own lives. Johnson is also a war-game analyst at the U.S. Naval War College.
James Hendon
James Hendon is the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Veterans’ Services. Previously, Commissioner Hendon served as Director of the NYU Veterans Future Lab, a small business incubator for practicing and aspiring entrepreneurs who are US Military Veterans or Veteran Spouses. Commissioner Hendon is a 2002 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, a 2012 graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School and Columbia Business School, and a 2015 graduate of the Earth Institute’s Program in Conservation and Environmental Sustainability. As a drilling US Army Reservist, Commissioner Hendon, a Lieutenant Colonel, currently serves as the Battalion Commander for 1st Battalion, 411th Regiment, 4th Cavalry Brigade—a logistics support battalion.
Craig Antico
Collection industry veteran and thought leader. Debt valuation, technology, and debt eradication expert. Craig co-founded RIP Medical Debt, a nationally recognized 501(C)(3) organization focused on forgiving medical debt. With funding of over $150 million over the last eleven years, RIP (since renamed Undue Medical Debt) has abolished over $22 billion in medical debt for nearly eleven million Americans. Today, as the co-founder and CEO of the public benefit (B2B) corporation ForgiveCo, he and his team collaborate with corporate marketing and CSR objectives to eradicate debt within the communities and people they serve.
Dr. Emily Edwards
Dr. Emily Edwards is the Director of the Clinical Core at the VISN 2 Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center and a licensed clinical psychologist in New York State. As a scientist practitioner, she embraces integration of clinical practice and research. Her research focuses on themes of suicide, justice-involvement, homelessness, and personality disorders, particularly among military Veterans, and on transdiagnostic interventions to reduce risk for individuals affected by these difficulties. In addition to her research and clinical work, Dr. Edwards has also provided consultation services to local problem-solving courts, the Veterans Benefits Association, VA Office of General Counsel, and NYC Department of Corrections, among others. She has led several novel initiatives for addressing and preventing suicide, including interventions focused on meeting the needs of homeless and justice-involved Veterans as well as those with histories of substance use disorders. Toward this end, Dr. Edwards is the creator and lead of Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Justice-Involved Veterans.
Salvina Barresi
Salvina Barresi is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with the Suicide Prevention Team as the Community Engagement Partnerships Coordinator at New York Harbor VA. Before this role, Salvina spent 8 years working with unsheltered Veterans at the San Francisco VA. Her experience also includes forensic social work, spending the first half of her career working at both the San Francisco and Alameda County jails.
Candace Bravo
Candace Bravo is the Executive Director for the New York City chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, where she leads the NYC chapter staff, Board of Directors, and volunteer base in carrying out AFSP’s mission to save lives and bring hope to those affected by suicide, in addition to increasing awareness of the organization and its resources through community outreach and collaboration. Candace has an extensive background in development with expertise in event fundraising, donor cultivation, corporate sponsorship, and mission marketing. Prior to AFSP, Candace was the Director of Development for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, covering 9 counties in the Greater NYC market, including New York City, Westchester, and Hudson Valley.
Russell Midori
Russell Midori is a Hispanic-American photojournalist and documentary producer from New York City. He shoots and edits local breaking news for WPIX and has worked around the world for nearly 20 years, telling stories focused on conflict, crime, and civil unrest. Midori founded Military Veterans in Journalism, a nonprofit professional association advocating for veterans. Midori continues to serve on the board of MVJ, as well as that of Overseas Press Club Foundation and the Disabled Journalists Association. He is a veteran Marine who used the GI Bill to earn a master's degree from John Jay and Columbia University in criminal justice and investigative journalism.
Patrick De Warren
From fashion to documentary to special-collection photography, Patrick creates visual content that sustains a story, touches the audience, both visually, aesthetically, and emotionally, when the subject matter requires it. In the early 200’s, Patrick turned his lens to activist causes, beginning with covering Occupy Wall Street, documenting actions and protests concerning medical debt and human rights. He moved on to covering RIP Medical Debt summits and, most recently, veteran issues in his documentary work with the 501(c)(3) End Veteran Debt private charitable foundation.
Elyse Frenchman
Elyse Frenchman is a Brooklyn-based documentary filmmaker and criminal justice advocate. Her recent film Fragments of Paradise won Best Documentary at the 2022 Venice Film Festival. She has also worked on award-winning HBO documentaries including True Justice: Bryan Stevenson's Fight for Equality (Peabody and Emmy winner) and King in the Wilderness (Emmy winner).
Beyond filmmaking, Frenchman advocates for criminal and environmental justice through volunteer work and her non-profit The Way We See, which creates documentaries to reduce prison sentences—achieving a 68% average sentence reduction for clients.
Frenchman holds a degree from NYU's Gallatin School and is a former professional figure skater with interests in poetry and cave exploring.
