Who We Are

Alexander Perla has been with the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk since 2018. He loves the way the Recovery Walk brings everyone together to celebrate and support their community by helping break stigmas and barriers people face with substance use and mental health.

Professionally, he is the Director of Admissions and Outreach for JADE Wellness Center. Working in the recovery field since 2009, he aims to provide client-centered healing through a cooperative care model that empowers individuals to embrace their journey through wellness and recovery.

He’s particularly proud of his work to develop programs for three state-licensed treatment centers and a recovery house in Southwestern Pennsylvania. His career objective is to assist individuals in identifying personal treatment goals and provide them the tools that can help meet these goals through integrative and eclectic behavioral health services.

Alexander also sits on the board of directors for the Institute for Research, Education & Training in Addictions (IRETA) and a local non-profit, Johns Echo.

Cheri Norfolk grew up 75 miles east of Pittsburgh. She was profoundly shaped by the onset of America’s opioid epidemic during her formative years. Driven by a passion for helping others, Cheri channeled her experiences into a career in drug and alcohol treatment. She accumulated extensive experience in various treatment settings, including withdrawal management, residential, outpatient care, and pharmacotherapy. In June 2014, she joined Allegheny County’s Office of Behavioral Health, Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services where she is currently the Drug and Alcohol Program Representative Supervisor, focusing on quality assurance and providing support for county residents in need of substance use services. Cheri has been volunteering with the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk since its inception.

Jess Williams, LCSW, MPH has been working in the area of substance use, addiction, and recovery for over fifteen years. She helped launch the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk in 2016 and served as its event coordinator until 2022. Two of her core values are harm reduction and hope. She does her best to apply these values as a therapist, as a community organizer, and as a writer. She also tries to bring them to her own personal recovery, which is still unfolding.

Jesse Scheck has been involved in the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk since the idea for the Walk was first conceived in the boardroom at the Institute for Research, Education and Training in Addictions – PRW’s fiscal sponsor – where he has served on the board in multiple roles since 2010. He has been in long-term recovery since 2007, and has greatly appreciated the opportunities the Walk has provided him to open his mind and his heart to a diversity of recovery pathways beyond his own. He also serves on the board of the Tri State Regional Service Office for a 12-step fellowship. In his professional life, he is a project manager in the oil and gas industry. He brings his passion for event planning and logistics to his role as PRW Executive Committee Chairperson.

Director of Public Safety & Wellbeing, CONNECT
Former Mayor, Turtle Creek Borough, PA

Kelley Kelley is the Director of Public Safety & Wellbeing at CONNECT where she oversees the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) program and directs Wellbeing programming for Allegheny County local elected officials, staff and public service professionals.

Kelley served 2 terms as Mayor in Turtle Creek Borough, PA, and is a longtime advocate for people with substance use disorders and their families. Currently Kelley is a member of the Allegheny County Independent Police Review Board, and serves on the Executive Committee of the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk.

Pastor Lance Rhoades has been involved in Pittsburgh’s recovery community for over five years, working to bridge the gap between faith-based support and harm reduction efforts. As the executive of the South Pittsburgh Opioid Action Coalition and the Faith Community Collaborative, he has led efforts to expand access to naloxone and trauma-informed recovery resources. He is also the founding pastor of Tree of Life Open Bible Church, home to Pittsburgh’s only certified Recovery Church. Through his leadership, faith communities have become more engaged in harm reduction and recovery advocacy. Lance is currently pursuing his Doctor of Ministry at The King’s Seminary, focusing on the intersection of faith, leadership, and public health

Rachel Shuster, BSN, RN, CARN, CAAP, FIAAN, is a Certified Addiction Registered Nurse and person with lived experience. Her professional expertise spans critical care, nursing education, various treatment settings (office-based, inpatient), and managed care. Rachel has been involved with the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk since first attending in 2018, and she is also our 2021 recipient of the Recovery Pathway Supporter Award. Rachel is the President-Elect (’25-’27) for the USA Chapter of the International Nursing Society on Addictions (IntNSA) and actively contributes as a member of the Butler County Opioid Overdose Coalition (BCOOC), the Community Advisory Board for the Appalachian Node of the NIDA Clinical Trials Network, and as a board member for Unity Recovery. Rachel is driven by a deep commitment to addressing stigma, promoting harm reduction, and advancing drug policy, and her blend of personal experience and professional expertise makes her a powerful advocate in the field.

Perry Scheck joined the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk staff in 2025. Prior to taking on his current role, he served for several years on the PRW Planning Committee and as Volunteer Coordinator. He’s been in long-term recovery since 2012, embracing a number of different pathways along his personal recovery journey. This fostered in him a deep understanding and appreciation of the Walk’s mission to celebrate all roads to recovery and all those who walk them. In his other professional life, he is a software developer, and brings his passion for data management to the Pittsburgh Recovery Walk.