MARY BETH - FOUNDER & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Mary Beth Lee, LCSW, brings almost three decades of experience at the intersection of trauma, grief, behavioral health, advocacy, and systems change. She holds an undergraduate degree in Psychology (Developmental) with an additional concentration in Women's Studies from Southern Methodist University and a Master of Social Work from the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work.
Together, those disciplines shape a perspective that recognizes how human development, gender, community, and systems influence individual well-being. That perspective is the foundation of Tribe Consulting.
Throughout her career, Mary Beth has focused on closing the gap between what people need and what they can access - especially for those failed by systems with critical gaps in service delivery that are long overdue for reevaluation and fundamental change.
Her work is deeply personal. After the death of one of her four children in a catastrophic rollover crash and supporting another through a traumatic brain injury, Mary Beth transformed profound loss into a lifelong commitment to reintegration, advocacy, and post-traumatic growth. She approaches these issues not as an observer, but from lived experience.
Beginning in 2005, she served as a Fellow with the ChildTrauma Academy under the leadership of Dr. Bruce Perry, MD, PhD, Principal of the Neurosequential Network and co-author of What Happened to You? with Oprah Winfrey. Dr. Perry's Neurosequential Model - a developmentally sensitive, neurobiology-informed approach to clinical problem-solving - has profoundly shaped Mary Beth's understanding of how traumatic loss and grief impact individuals across the lifespan.
Her work spans clinical practice, research, fundraising, community organizing, and advocacy in areas including mental health, substance use, traumatic brain injury, criminal justice reform, gun violence prevention, children and youth at risk, people with disabilities and IDD, women's and men's health, and LGBTQ+ equity. She sees these challenges not as isolated causes, but as interconnected issues that require equally interconnected solutions.
As a clinician and consultant, Mary Beth has developed programs and led workshops for schools, faith communities, businesses, and organizations navigating trauma and loss. She lectures on grief, traumatic loss, the long-term impact and cascading consequences of grief and trauma, intergenerational trauma, secondary trauma, post-traumatic growth, resilience, and hope — always recognizing that lasting change requires addressing both personal experiences and the systems that shape them.
A connector by nature, Mary Beth has spent decades building relationships across many sectors - because she has never believed that any one discipline, organization, or approach can solve what we are facing alone. Her leadership and service have included Bo's Place, The Women's Fund, Nick Finnegan Counseling Center, Houston Botanic Garden, The Institute for Sustainable Peace, TIRR Memorial Hermann, and advisory boards at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work and the Steve Hicks School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin.
Today, Mary Beth's vision extends beyond any single issue or organization. She believes the country's most pressing challenges - from behavioral health and loneliness to violence, foster care, and inequity - cannot be solved in isolation. They require broad, cross-sector coalitions committed to meaningful, lasting change.
Mary Beth founded Tribe Consulting because she believes that when systems fail people, someone must be willing to bring people together to build something better. For her, that conviction has always been personal.
BOARD MEMBERS
Laura Moser
Laura is a writer, journalist, and 2018 congressional candidate whose reporting has spanned technology, travel, books, and education for outlets including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Vogue, and the New Yorker. In the wake of the 2016 election, she founded Daily Action, a text-message mobilization service that activated 300,000 Americans and drew national media coverage. She is the author of a Bette Davis biography, co-author of four young-adult novels, and ghostwriter of several New York Times bestsellers. Her quick, incisive voice has made her a trusted chronicler of politics and culture alike. Raised in Houston, she now lives with her family and cats in Berlin.
Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D.
Dr. Perry is a psychiatrist, neuroscientist, and Principal of the Neurosequential Network, with over forty years spent studying how abuse, neglect, and trauma shape childhood development. His work has reshaped clinical practice and policy worldwide, most notably through the Neurosequential Model, now used across 26 countries. He is the author, with Maia Szalavitz, of the bestselling The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog, and co-author, with Oprah Winfrey, of What Happened to You? Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing, a #1 New York Times bestseller translated into 26 languages. Dr. Perry has advised communities after major crises, from Columbine to the Turkey-Syria earthquake, and has published more than 500 scientific articles.
Linda Rhodes
Linda has served as Executive Director of The Women’s Fund since 2014 and brings more than 30 years of experience in nonprofit leadership, fundraising, and strategic planning. She previously held key roles with the American Heart Association–Houston and the March of Dimes, and has also consulted for small and mid-sized nonprofits. Linda has been recognized as one of the Houston Business Journal’s “Most Admired CEOs” and “Women Who Mean Business,” among other honors. She enjoys spending time with her two sons and two grandchildren, listening to true-crime podcasts, reading, cooking, and playing with her puppy, Daisy Mae.
Kathy B. Swarts
Kathy is an independent educational consultant, former middle school teacher, and devoted community volunteer whose career has taken an unexpected turn into the spotlight as a podcaster for Warner Bros. and iHeartMedia and a cast member on ABC's Golden Bachelor and Bachelor in Paradise. Her life changed irrevocably in 2019 with the death of her husband by suicide, an experience that has since driven her to speak openly about grief and loss with audiences of all ages. Known for her wit, warmth, and love of language, Kathy graduated summa cum laude in English Literature from the University of Houston. A longtime Texan and proud New England native, she is a devoted mother of three and grandmother of five.
Travis Torrence
Travis is U.S. Head of Legal for Shell, leading a legal function of more than 100 employees, and serves as Vice President–Legal and a board member for Shell USA, Inc. He graduated from Yale Law School in 2005 and earned his undergraduate degree, summa cum laude, in Communication and Political Science from Tulane University. Before Shell, he was a senior associate at Norton Rose Fulbright, having begun his career clerking for Judge Edward C. Prado of the Fifth Circuit. Travis is deeply engaged in civic and legal service, chairing the Yale Law School Fund Board and the Hollyfield Foundation, and serving on boards including the Texas Access to Justice Foundation and Dress for Success Houston. He was 2022 Grand Marshal of Houston's LGBTQ+ Pride Celebration and past president of the National LGBTQ+ Bar.
