About Us
VALEAP was established in 2008, following the 2007 Virginia Tech mass shooting and the 2006 tragedy at the Fairfax County Police Sully Station. Since the first PCIS retreat in the summer of 2009, nearly 1,500 officers from over 100 Virginia agencies have participated in more than three dozen PCIS events. VALEAP has also worked with dozens of federal and out-of-state agencies, including participants from Connecticut, Ohio, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Missouri, and Arkansas. Additionally, VALEAP has welcomed participants from Australia and New Zealand.
VALEAP is an accredited CISM team through the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Office of Emergency Medical Services. Thus, CISM services provided by VALEAP are considered privileged communication which is protected under Virginia Code § 19.2-271.4. Privileged communications by certain public safety personnel (virginia.gov).
In the News
“After Virginia Tech: Guns, Safety, and Healing in the Era of Mass Shootings” by Tom Kapsidelis discusses the origins of VALEAP and our continuing work with police officers.
Alex currently serves as Pastor, Second Presbyterian Church, in downtown Richmond, and as Convening Director of VALEAP by leading the 10-member volunteer Board of Directors.
Articles:
Co-Founder, Convening Director
Alexander W. Evans retired in 2023 from 35 years as a Presbyterian (PCUSA) pastor who served three different congregations – Pickens, SC, Blacksburg, VA, and more recently, Second Presbyterian Church in downtown Richmond, VA. His priorities in life and ministry have been strengthening congregations to worship and serve God locally and internationally. He is a graduate of Davidson College (BA), with master’s degrees from both Union Presbyterian Seminary and Yale University, and a doctorate from Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur GA, where his focus was on leadership and care for police officers.
Since 2004, significant aspects of Alex’s life have been as a police Chaplain, and as Co-Founder and Director of VA Law Enforcement Assistance Program (VALEAP), which emerged from the horrific shootings on the campus of VA Tech in April 2007. VALEAP has evolved into a significant organization serving and supporting the law enforcement community in the Commonwealth of VA and beyond.
Alex has also served as lead chaplain for the FBI, Richmond Division. He has published articles in national and international journals related to his work, spoken at national and international conferences. As part of the VALEAP team, he has also responded to traumatic incidents in the Commonwealth, with the US Capitol Police in Washington, DC, and more. He has led the Board and served as the Convening Director of VALEAP since its inception in 2008. He has been married since 1980 to Ginger Taylor Evans and they have 3 adult children and 8 grandsons.
Treasurer-Board of Directors
Jack Berry – Richmond, VA – Director (since 2024)
Jack Berry recently retired after serving in local government for 20 years and then leading a non-profit agency for 15 years. Jack’s public sector career included 13 years with the City of Richmond, where he served as Budget Director and Deputy City Manager. Jack oversaw the creation of the Richmond Ambulance Authority and served as its first president. Jack was the Hanover County Administrator for 7 years, where he developed a deep respect for law enforcement officials and first responders, and was known for his strong support of their work.
Jack was the Executive Director of Venture Richmond for over 15 years, leading efforts to promote economic development in downtown Richmond, manage riverfront property and produce events like the Folk Festival. In 2016, Jack Berry was a candidate for mayor. In retirement, Jack has been part of a development team building 282 units of affordable housing in south Richmond.
Jack has served on numerous non-profit boards and committees, including the Capital Trees Foundation, Virginia Performing Arts Foundation, Metropolitan Business League, Richmond Real estate Group (President), and the United Network for Organ Sharing Ethics Committee.
Co-Founder, Member-Board of Directors
Tommy McDearis – Blacksburg, VA – Director (since 2008)
Pastor, Church on Main, Blacksburg, VA (26 years)
Chaplain, Blacksburg and Virginia Tech Police Departments (20 years)
Law Enforcement Chaplain for 47 years in various departments
Former Deputy Sheriff, State of Georgia
BA, Berry College, Rome, GA, 1979
Master of Divinity, Southeastern Seminary, Wake Forest, NC, 1982
Doctor of Ministry, Southeastern Seminary, Wake Forest, NC, 1986
Clinical Pastoral Education, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, School of Clinical Pastoral Education, 1986
Served on the FBI Task Force for Spirituality in Law Enforcement, 2008-2009
Guest Lectured at the FBI Academy, Quantico, VA, on Community Healing Following a Mass Casualty Incident, 2009
Member- Board of Directors
Captain Erik Mollin- Franklin County, VA
Captain Erik Mollin serves as the Support Services Administrator of Franklin County, Office of the Sheriff. He started his career with the Town of Rocky Mount Police Department in 1997 as a Patrol Officer rising through the ranks into an administrator role leaving the agency at the rank of Captain. He continued his Law Enforcement career as a mentor and trainer to both the Iraqi and Afghanistan National Police leaders. As part of his Law Enforcement career he has been an instructor in multiple disciplines, to include ICISF trainer for CISM(Critical Incident Stress Management) and was part of developing new Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services state training objectives for new Law Enforcement Officers. He is dedicated to providing services to the community and also serves with the Virginia Law Enforcement Assistance Program (VALEAP) as a Law Enforcement Peer and Board Member. In 2014, he was the recipient of the Valor award presented by the Virginia Sheriffs Association in addition to receiving Department valor award and the lifesaving award through his time with the Department. He has successfully completed executive leadership training through the FBI-Law Enforcement Executive Development Association.
Member-Board of Directors
Sergeant Chris Scallon
Sergeant Scallon, a retired 24-year veteran of the Norfolk Police Department, holds a Masters in Psychology, BS in Criminal Justice, and is certified in Critical Incident Stress Management from the University of Maryland BC Emergency Health Services. He provides direct mental health and substance abuse services, connects first responders, veterans, and their families to resources, and serves as the National First Responder and Veteran Liaison for After Action Recovery. Chris is a consultant/responder for the Department of Justice AEAP, founder of Survival Mindset Training and Consulting, and Co-Founder of Trauma Behind the Badge. He founded the Norfolk Police Department’s CISM & Peer Support Unit and served as CIT Co-Coordinator. Chris is a certified instructor with ICISF, Mental Health First Aid, and Iraq and Afghanistan Veteran’s Association, and a Master Trainer with Homefront Protective Group. He is an international speaker/trainer and has worked extensively with victims of mass shootings. Currently, Chris is a Training and Technical Assistance Consultant for OVC TTAC, involved in creating a national CISM model with the IACP, and chairs the Peer Support portion of the National Consortium on Preventing Law Enforcement Suicide. He is a U.S. Navy Veteran and has received numerous awards, including the National Top Cop award and Virginia’s Public Safety Medal of Valor.
Member-Board of Directors
Rob Ham – Verona, VA – Director (since 2024)
Captain, Virginia Department of Wildlife Services
Rob has served the Commonwealth of Virginia with the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources for the past 18 years, most of his career in the Shenandoah Valley. During this time with the Commonwealth, Rob worked as a patrol officer, and district supervisor, and for the last 4 years in the Office of Professional Standards as the agency's accreditation manager. Rob has been a member of the agency's Peer Support team since 2011 and since 2018 has been the team leader bringing significant enhancements, including expanding team membership, instituting annual meetings and training, refining peer response mechanisms, creating a Chaplaincy Program, and forging a partnership with VALEAP.
In addition to Rob’s work with the Department, he has been actively involved in various accreditation boards, serving as the Vice President of the Virginia Law Enforcement Accreditation Coalition (VALEAC) and as assistant program director for the North American Wildlife Law Enforcement Accreditation (NAWLEA). Parallel to this, Rob has dedicated over 22 years to the Bridgewater Volunteer Rescue Squad, holding various key positions including Chief of Operations for eight years and President for four. His commitment also extended to the Central Shenandoah EMS Council executive board for several years.
Throughout Rob’s more than two decades in public service, responding to numerous critical incidents has given him an intimate understanding of the profound impact that traumatic incidents and cumulative trauma can have on all first responders. It is through VALEAP's responses and their Post Critical Incident Seminars (PCIS) that he has witnessed the tangible positive effects on first responders across the Commonwealth and beyond. Rob remains deeply committed to furthering this positive impact, offering his skills and experience wherever they can be most effective.
Member-Board of Directors
Kate Matikonis – Spotsylvania County, VA – Director (since 2024)
First Sergeant Kate Matikonis, a law enforcement officer since 2000, initially pursued a career in design, earning an architecture degree from the University of Virginia and managing multi-million-dollar design budgets overseas before running her own business in the U.S. Her career shift to law enforcement came after the death of her father-in-law, a Virginia Tech police officer, which introduced her to the true character of officers. She graduated from Radford University with a graduate degree in criminal justice and found her true calling in peer support and mental health work. Kate served as a member of the Fairfax County peer team, created a peer service at ABC, and currently leads the peer support team at Spotsylvania County, established through grant funding. Since joining VALEAP in 2018, she has become a peer, taught across the state, participated in PCIS weeks, and joined the VALEAP Board. Kate’s credentials include a BS in Architecture from the University of Virginia, an MS in Criminal Justice/Public Policy from Radford University, and a comparative international CRJU independent study at Universidad de los Andes in Venezuela. She has served in various roles including Private First Class at Fairfax County Police Department, Special Agent at Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, and First Sergeant at Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office, where she founded the Behavioral Health Unit and Peer Support CISM team. She is also an ICISF instructor and was named Public Safety Employee of the Quarter in 2018.
Board of Directors
Jeffrey M. Gallagher
Jeff Gallagher works in the business of life sciences. He serves now as Emeritus Executive Director of the Alliance for Building Better Medicine which accelerates the development of the advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing and R&D cluster in Richmond/Petersburg, Virginia. He Chairs the Board of Grow Capital Jobs Foundation for economic development in GO Virginia Region 4. Jeff served until 2019 as CEO of Virginia Bio, the statewide trade group of the life sciences industry. Virginia Bio connects and supports universities, companies, entrepreneurs, investors, clinicians, service professionals and patients to accelerate the discovery, commercialization and clinical application of bioscience products and services. Prior to leading Virginia Bio, Jeff was a co-founder and for ten years served as VP & General Counsel for Lyotropic Therapeutics, Ashland, VA., a small specialty pharmaceutical company. Previously, he practiced corporate law in Richmond, focusing on new technology company formation, international business, and intellectual property transactions. He counselled multiple biotechnology-based companies, including university technology spinouts, and managed the firm’s China practice. He holds an A.B. cum laude in Government from Harvard, a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School, and an LL.M in Public International Law from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was a Ford Foundation fellow.
He serves as a Trustee of the Raymond James Charitable Endowment Fund. He serves or has served on the Boards and in the leadership of multiple nonprofit organizations, including World Pediatric Project, Virginia Repertory Theatre, Wintergreen Music and Second Presbyterian Church Richmond and in the life sciences on the Board of Directors for Virginia Bioscience Health Research Corporation, the Advisory Board for the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, Virginia Commonwealth University Innovation Gateway Technology Review Committee. He volunteers with ministries helping men who are transitioning out of prison. Jeff was born and raised in Greater Cleveland, Ohio. He resides with his wife Catherine Howard in Richmond, Virginia and Wintergreen, Virginia in the Blue Ridge Mountains, and has two children Nan (30) and Joseph (28).
Co-Founder, Managing Director
Christopher D. “Kit” Cummings is the Managing Director of the Virginia Law Enforcement Assistance Program (VALEAP). Kit retired from the Blacksburg Police Department in 2014 after 25 years of service and enjoys a semi-retired second career working in the public safety peer support field. While with the Blacksburg Police Department, Kit served as a patrol officer, sergeant, and lieutenant in uniform patrol, in Special Operations, and as the Professional Standards and Accreditation Lieutenant.
Having worked in public safety peer support since 1994, Kit was a founding member of the Virginia Law Enforcement Assistance Program in 2008. Kit has been a Crisis Intervention Team officer with the New River Valley Crisis Intervention Team since the team’s inception in 2004 and, from 2014-2023, served as liaison between the Community Services Board and fourteen partnering law enforcement agencies. Kit has been deployed to numerous communities in the wake of significant events, including Charleston, SC (Emanuel AME shootings) and Houston, TX. (Santa Fe HS shootings) and Virginia Beach (VB Public Works shootings), the US Capitol (after January 6th), and he was among the first responders to the Virginia Tech shootings in 2007.
Kit is also the spouse of a retired law enforcement officer – his wife Valerie is a 23-year police veteran with the Vinton Police Department. They and their three children make their home in the Roanoke Valley.
