Cheryl Guidry Tyiska

From Beaumont, TX and now living in Silver Spring, MD, Cheryl Guidry Tyiska has devoted most of her life to assisting victims of crises. She is a nationally Certified Crisis Responder, a Crisis Response Trainer and a Victim Advocate. A graduate of the University of Maryland, Cheryl served with the National Organization of Victim Assistance from 1988 - 2007 in increasingly responsible positions of National Crisis Response Team Coordinator, Director of Victim Services, Deputy Director and Executive Director of the national organization. In these positions she and her team responded throughout the world assisting victims of crime and natural disasters including the 11 September 2001 terrorist attack on the United States. While in directorship positions, she conducted strategic planning and policy decisions, supervised all staff and worked closely with members of Congress and national organizations in developing victim assistance programs. From 2007 - 2010 Cheryl was the Director of Victim Witness Services for the Maryland State's Attorney's Office. She supervised 15 Victim Witness Specialists working in the Circuit and District Court offices in addition to many other duties including representing the State's Attorney on various teams and councils. From 2010 - 2013 Cheryl was Project Director of the Office for Victims of Crime Training and Technical Assistance Center for ICF International. Her current position from 2013 to the present is Manager of the Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Washington. Her work includes ensuring dignified burials, maintaining the cemeteries, providing accurate recordkeeping and supervising/training all staff. Cheryl has written extensively in the victim advocate field. In addition to her professional career, Cheryl also volunteers as an English tutor, as an assistant at Montgomery Hospice to ease the family's burden and as a resource with Casey Trees to increase tree canopy in Washington, D. C.