Cheryl is the Hackley Community Care (HCC) Board Chairperson. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from Western Michigan University (WMU) and a Master’s Degree in Social Work (with a child welfare specialty) from Grand alley State University (GVSU). Cheryl is retired from the Department of Human Services (DHS) after 24 years of service in child Welfare with her last position being Program Administrator for Adult, Child and Family Services in both Muskegon and Kalamazoo Counties. Currently, she is employed as a Renal Social Worker with DaVita in Battle Creek and Kalamazoo, MI and serves on the Kalamazoo County Foster Care Review Board.
A native of Kalamazoo, MI, Cheryl says she chose Social Work as her profession because “I believe the greatest call in life is helping others. My mom always told us as kids, if you help someone throughout your life, then your living will not be in vain”. She loves serving on the board of Hackley Community Care because HCC is the helping, empowering and supporting role in Muskegon County and the staff is committed each and every day. “I am thankful I have the opportunity to be connected with this great organization. I like that we attempt to offer all services under one roof so our patients are supported by a collaborative team. Often, patients go from provider to provider with no communication between those providers. While we are not perfect, we continue to embrace this collaborative concept in spite of the challenges to assure that our organization continues to grow and meet the needs of our patients, community and the staff that are the foundation of our vision.
Cheryl not only helps others in her community. She has been married to her spouse Walter for 33 years and they have two adult children: Walter, II who lives in Chicago, IL and Dr. Adrianna Nebedum who lives in Atlanta, GA. Mentoring is a natural part of Cheryl’s life; she has adopted daughters who live in North Carolina and Belgium; five adopted sons, one of whom is a finalist on American Idol. Cheryl enjoys spending time with her family which also includes three brothers and her 83 year-old father.