Senior Advocacy Services

Crista Barnett Nelson, Executive Director of Senior Advocacy Services, is a 28 year veteran of the non-profit world. After spending 18 years with a Petaluma Residential Treatment Center and special education school for adolescents as the CFO, she transitioned to the world of seniors. It was the position at an Adult Day Care for seniors, specializing in people afflicted with dementia, that she cemented her appreciation for the myriad of challenges that are brought on through aging. Senior Advocacy Services serves the senior community with its free, unbiased services through three programs: Medicare Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP); the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program; and the Elder Justice Initiative.

Crista currently serves as the Board President of the state association California Long Term Care Ombudsman and is a board member for the Congress of California Seniors. In November, she was elected as a Board Member for the Petaluma Health Care District.
When she’s not busy helping people pronounce the word “Om-buds-man,” or explaining what in the world that is, she is running the trails of Sonoma county, enjoying the many events of Sonoma County and supporting worthy non-profit organizations as a volunteer.