Who We Are
At CareEQUIP, our mission is to bring hope and healing to children
who have experienced adversity by
equipping their caregivers with
trauma-informed training and
resources.
Using an evidence-based approach called Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI®), CareEQUIP conducts caregiver trainings to teach practical strategies that parents and caregivers can immediately implement and use every day. In addition to group events, we also provide in-home family coaching sessions tailored to the needs of individual families.
CareEQUIP is not an adoption or foster care agency, nor are the services it provides exclusively for use by caregivers of children who have been removed from abusive homes. At CareEQUIP, we understand that developmental trauma takes a variety of forms.
Our niche is empowering a variety of caregivers with therapeutic tools to use with children in a way that promotes healing and wholeness. By doing this, CareEQUIP creates supportive communities where a child who has experienced trauma can always find an adult who is trained in trauma-informed care – whether at home, in the community, or at school.
Any equipped adult – in whatever role they occupy – can dramatically alter the life trajectory of a struggling child. We invite all caregivers to learn firsthand how trauma-informed care changes lives, heals children, and saves families.
Since its inception in 2019, CareEQUIP has equipped hundreds of adults and has impacted more than 40,000 children. Graduates of our courses include adoptive and foster parents, biological families seeking reunification, children’s home staff, teachers, social workers, churches, after-school program staff, and law enforcement officers.
Our vision is to be the trusted connector of organizations and builder of communities in which each caregiver in a child’s life understands and responds to the symptoms of trauma in a way that promotes healing and wholeness.
Jordan Freshwater, Executive Director
After graduating from Lee University with a degree in Psychology and TESOL, Jordan continued her education at Lee University completing a master’s degree in Holistic Child Development. Jordan has been invited to travel to Africa and South America to provide trauma-sensitive trainings based on materials she created. After completing her schooling, Jordan participated in an internship program with For His Children (Hogar Para Sus Ninos) located in Ecuador, where she served alongside the caregivers at the organization’s two children’s homes and provided trainings on trauma and strategies for healing. Upon returning to the United States, she was hired at an immigrant youth shelter where she served in several roles as a youth care worker, case aide, and PE/Social Studies teacher. Jordan later transitioned to a case manager role at Centerstone, a mental health organization, providing emotional support, health promotion, and community resources to her clients.
Freshwater is based in Cleveland, Tennessee, where she is actively involved in her community. Since 2016, Jordan has been a volunteer, friend, and leader in a local non-profit called International Friends Network (IFN). It is common to see Jordan sharing meals with her international friends, caring for children while parents work, providing rides to families for IFN events, and serving in her local church as a care counselor. Jordan has been a TBRI® Practitioner and a member of the CareEQUIP team since 2023.
Karen Uhlhorn, Director of Operations & TBRI® Trainer
After receiving a bachelor’s degree in public relations and a minor in sociology from the University of Florida, Karen served as an English education volunteer in Peace Corps Colombia. Most recently, she worked as a communications specialist at Curley & Pynn Public Relations Management, one of Orlando’s leading communications firms.
A passion for education and an interest in attachment theory have underscored Karen’s career so far. Karen has remained engaged in local education initiatives, serving most recently as a volunteer English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher in her hometown (Orlando, FL), as well as a small group mentor through her church. Karen is a TBRI® Practitioner through the Karyn Purvis Institute for Child Development and cofounded CareEQUIP in 2019.
Katie Rinaudo, Founder
Katie is the founder of CareEQUIP, an alumna of Lee University and has a Master’s Degree in Holistic Child Development. She worked as a preschool teacher for six years and served a term as an AmeriCorps VISTA with Habitat for Humanity. She moved to Paraguay in 2015 and spent three years working in a children’s home, where she served as director of the home and house mother. She also taught English in the on-campus middle school and high school.
Since becoming a TBRI Practitioner in 2018, Katie has been doing TBRI® Caregiver Training and TBRI® coaching in English and Spanish. She is the oldest of five foster and birth siblings and is a proud aunt to six of her favorite kiddos. Her passion is to see restoration for children, teens, and adults who have experienced trauma.
Lydia Brannen, Program Coordinator
Lydia Brannen serves as Program Coordinator with CareEQUIP, bringing a strong background in communications, event coordination, and community-centered leadership. With a Bachelor’s degree in Communications and an Associate’s degree in Business Management, Lydia combines strategic organization with relational warmth.
Lydia’s professional background includes advocacy and outreach work with Harbor Safe House & Advocacy Center, as well as years of leadership in management and community engagement roles. She serves as Chair of the Southeast Tennessee Interagency Council, a regional collaborative of organizations and service providers.
Some evenings, you’ll find Lydia bartending or hosting a Paint & Sip at The Bus Bar & Grill. She also owns Ocoee Oddities, a small retail venture designed to serve the local whitewater and music communities with practical, creative goods.
Outside of work, Lydia thrives on movement, creativity, and connection. She loves live music, open mics, karaoke, hiking, whitewater rafting, painting, theme parks, and spontaneous adventures. She’s a three-time Halloween costume contest champion, a vinyl record collector, and a devoted parent to four kids and two cats.
Board of Directors
Wencke West, Board President
Wencke West is a member of the CareEQUIP team and brings a strong legal and administrative background to her work. She is an attorney based in Cleveland, Tennessee, and earned her Juris Doctor from the Nashville School of Law.
Wencke has experience practicing law in Tennessee, with work that includes legal research, case preparation, client communication, and navigating complex procedural requirements. Her professional background equips her to approach systems, policies, and documentation with precision and care.
Julie Tilley, Board Member
Julie Tilley is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) in the state of Tennessee. Certified in the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics and trained in several therapy modalities related to early life trauma, Julie brings a wealth of expertise to the CareEQUIP board of directors.
Julie holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree in business administration and a Master of Science degree in marriage and family therapy from Lee University. From her previous career in corporate customer service, Julie honed her ability to improve systemic problems. A knack for supporting friends and family through their most difficult moments prompted Julie’s 2010 career shift from business to therapy.
Julie lives in Tennessee, where she enjoys coffee, the company of her dogs (all dogs, actually), and being a safe friend to people who are marginalized. She is a single mom to two successful adult children and “JuJu” to four amazing grandchildren.
Mara Grisham, Board Member
Mara Grisham, retired from Cleveland City Schools, is an Elder at First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Cleveland, which hosts OrphanWise’s offices and training center. Due to her love of education, she still serves as a substitute teacher at several elementary schools in Cleveland.
Mara is very active in her community. She has been involved with Habitat for Humanity since it began in Cleveland. She serves on the board of her home church, the Christian Church of the Tennesse Region, and her local YMCA. She volunteers with the United Way and the Snack Pack Program, which provides food for children in Cleveland City Schools for the weekend.
Mara has been married to her husband, Nick, for 40 years. They have two adult sons, two grandchildren, and live in Cleveland with their corgi, Trapper.
Board of Advisors
Andrew Wexler, CEO, Herschend Enterprises
Randy Kaiser, executive director, K4 Enterprises