Melissa B. Lombardo is the founder of Write, Heal, Thrive® LLC and a trauma-responsive author, speaker, and workshop facilitator. A certified meditation instructor and experienced sexual assault crisis advocate, she facilitates creative writing workshops for in-person and online communities. She is a member of the Authors Guild, Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association (CAPA), the Connecticut Poetry Society, and the Amherst Writers & Artists Northeast Chapter. Melissa also serves on CAPA’s Board of Directors as Membership Director and co-chair of the CAPA CT Book Festival, and is Director of Toivo Center for holistic healing, a program of Advocacy Unlimited Inc.. She is a member of the Jane Doe No More Survivor Speak Outreach team. Melissa is bilingual in English and Spanish.