OUR TEAM
Jason Larsen
Executive Director
Jason is the Executive Director of St. Clare Health Mission. With a long track record of reliably leading non-profit organizations, he took the mantle from his predecessor Sandy Brekke and spearheaded the mission through the pandemic. The clinic continues to thrive under his leadership and management. In his free time he loves being a dad, mountain biking, and spending time with family and friends.
Kayla Kemp, RN
Clinic Director
Kayla is the Clinic Director of St. Clare health Mission. She is an RN by training and served her first 10 years as a nurse, in the hospital. She currently helps manage the medical side of St. Clare. In her free time, Kayla loves running, traveling, gardening, cooking and having quality time with her husband & 3 kids.
Gretchen Clements, LPC, CSW
Mental Health Therapist
Gretchen is our Mental Health Therapist and also supervises our Community Health Workers. She has 19 years of experience working in mental health and mindfulness and is passionate about helping underserved and vulnerable populations in our community and decreasing the stigma associated with mental illness and substance abuse. Gretchen provides individual and group psychotherapy and assists individuals with social service needs. She is the proud mother of 2 children and enjoys soccer, snowboarding, kayaking and writing.
Ann Thurman
Administrative Assistant
Ann is our Administrative Assistant. She started her career in education, teaching elementary and special education. She shifted lanes to stay home with her 3 kids but continued volunteering in schools and several non-profit organizations. Ann helps with clinic-follow-up, donation intake, volunteer scheduling and more. She loves contributing to the cause of St. Clare Health Mission and seeing first-hand the positive impact the volunteers and staff make in the lives of so many. In her free time, Ann enjoys attending her kids sporting events, reading, hiking, and traveling.
Michael Fitzpatrick
Mobile Clinic Coordinator/Community Health Worker
Michael serves as the Mobile Clinic Coordinator and as one of our Community Health Workers in St. Clare. With a background in street outreach services for the local unsheltered population and previous experience in special education, Michael brings a wealth of knowledge and dedication to his role. He is enthusiastic about contributing to the impactful work of St. Clare Health Mission in the community. Michael firmly believes that eliminating barriers and meeting people where they are is crucial for fostering a healthier and more inclusive community. His passion lies in building trust and fostering relationships with those he serves, ensuring that everyone has access to the care and resources they need. In his free time, Michael enjoys the arts, shopping, hanging out with his pets, and spending time with his loved ones.
Alicia Sykes, CNA, LPN
Community Health Worker
Alicia serves as one of our Community Health Workers. She has over 20 years of experience as a CNA and decided to pursue a career change as an LPN. As an LPN, Alicia works for Gundersen, in its ER department, and Mayo. Alicia loves her new workstyle and work environment particularly enjoying her community work as she prefers being outside interacting with the community she once felt disconnected to, rather then being stuck in an office setting with its own rules and regulations. Alicia has enjoyed the work of St. Clare and feels that her experience and her position can benefit her community as a whole. In her free time, Alicia loves spending time gardening, travelling, a variety of water sports (canoeing, tubbing, etc.), and most of all having dance parties with her favorite human, his son Quincy as their "rocking the 3rd chromosome"
Barb Pollack
Community Health Worker
Barb is one of our Community Health Workers and has been working in the field since 2015. Barb has past experience throughout the La Crosse County as a Mobile Responder, Gundersen Health System, Great Rivers 211, Couleecap as a Case Manager/Supervisor of the PSH, the La Cross Collaborative to End Homelessness as an Outreach Worker/Navigator, and at Adult Teen Challenge as a Peer Support Specialist. Barb stays active in the community by volunteering as a mentor for children in Northside Elementary School, a teaching Assistant for the Self Sufficiency Program at UW La Crosse and as a host family with Safe Families. As a Community Health Worker, Barb works primarily with high utilizers at Gundersen Health in the ER department. Working with Community Resources, Barb helps bridge the gaps between Gundersen, local service agencies, and patients. Barb loves working with people. Her faith gives her hope and the desire to help anyone in need. She always takes the time to talk and listen to everyone she meets as she never wants to miss the beauty that people have hidden just below the surface. Barb enjoys spending time with her grandchild, watching her grow and learn
Francisco A. Jimenez
AmeriCorps VISTA/Clinic Operations Associate
Francisco is the latest addition to our team as our new Clinic Operations Associate. Francisco is a recent and proud graduate of Wabash College and is looking forward to utilizing his undergraduate internship experience with various free clinics and food banks to continue St. Clare's ever-growing reach and support to the La Crosse community. This isn't Francisco's first time with St. Clare, as he was originally with us as an intern. So when the opportunity arose for him to come back and work with us again through the AmeriCorps VISTA program, he was more than ready to return and be of service. Now, he helps with the clinics day-to-day operations, ensuring that the clinic can run as smooth and efficient as possible so our patients can receive the best of our services. Francisco has always known that he wanted to help people, especially those facing disparities caused by socioeconomic inequalities because he lived through them. In his free time, Francisco enjoys hiking, traveling, anything outdoors, cooking, and spending time with his friends and family.