Board of Directors

Helen Robinson, President

Columbia Trust Company

Helen Robinson specializes in Special Needs Trusts, personal trusts and estates. Helen graduated from Cannon Financial Institute and received her Certified Trust and Financial Advisor accreditation in 2006. Helen is an active participant of the Estate Planning Council of Portland.

Hon. Juliet Britton, J.D., Vice President

Ms. Britton has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) from the University of Hawaii Richardson School of Law.  Ms. Britton is currently the Presiding Judge at Beaverton Municipal Court. Prior to that, she was the Executive Director of the Oregon Psychiatric Security Review Board and a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) program in Kansas. She began her career working as a staff attorney for the State of Hawaii Senate Majority Office and practiced administrative, civil and criminal law as an active duty judge advocate in the United States Army for over six years.

Theressa Hollis, Secretary

Attorney at Law | Fitzwater Law

Theressa Hollis is a partner with the law firm of Fitzwater Law. Her practice emphasizes legal issues unique to the elderly and their families, including guardianship and conservatorship proceedings, probate estates, trust administration, and estate planning. She is the author of the following publications and presentations: Guardianship/Conservatorship, Health Ed, Oregon Elder Law 2011 & 2012, Temporary Guardianships, Oregon Law Institute CLE, Guardianship and Conservatorship, and the Oregon State Bar CLE Elder Law Handbook, Supplement.

Steve Sutherland, CPA, CFE, CFP, Treasurer

Financial Insights LLC

Steve has B.S. and M.S. degrees in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University and 30+ years of experience in the finance industry.  He is the founder of Financial Insights LLC, a financial planning and forensic CPA firm.  In seeking a way to “give back,” Steve was drawn to Guardian Partners’ mission of protecting vulnerable seniors which resonated with him personally and professionally.

Sibylle Baer

Senior Assistant Attorney General | Oregon Department of Justice

Sibylle Baer joined the Oregon Department of Justice in May 2019 after 13 years at the firm of Cartwright Baer Johansson. Before joining the firm she was a trial attorney at Multnomah Defenders, Inc. Ms. Baer has been a trial attorney since 1992 and has extensive courtroom experience. Her varied trial experience makes her skilled at both prosecuting and defending cases. Ms. Baer’s focus is will and trust contests and fiduciary litigation with an emphasis on protective proceedings. Ms. Baer is also a trained mediator with a focus on mediating contested probate matters.

Tara M. Hendison, J.D.

Allen Trust Company

Tara received her Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Washington State University and went on to earn her Juris Doctor from Willamette University College of Law. Prior to attending law school, Tara served as a registered representative with a national broker/dealer. Formerly responsible for day-to-day trust administration, Tara now supervises those duties. Her primary responsibility involves the coordination of the firm’s operational and compliance requirements. Tara is a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor and an attorney.

Mark Nishi-Strattner

Multnomah County Public Guardian Office (ret.)

Mark has a Master's degree in mental health counseling and worked for 20 years in mental health, primarily with older adults. In 2003 he joined the Multnomah County Public Guardian program and became a National Certified Guardian. Mark became the Senior Deputy/ supervisor, responsible for referrals and intake. In 2019, he received The Excellence in Guardianship Award from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

Timothy Porter

Geffen Mesher & Company, P.C.

Tim joined Geffen Mesher in 2013 after spending three years at a boutique CPA firm specializing in employee benefit plan audits, where he gained extensive experience auditing a wide range of employee benefit plans. He earned a bachelor’s degree in both Accounting and Finance at Portland State University while holding a supervisory position at United Parcel Service. Tim has earned the prestigious Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) designation, which denotes proven expertise in fraud prevention, detection and deterrence.

Miguel Santos, J.D., ATFA

Senior Fiduciary Strategist - Oregon, SW Washington and Alaska Regions | Key Private Bank

In his day-to-day work, Miguel manages estates, trusts, conservatorships, and foundations for Key Private Bank and advises clients on estate, trust and charitable strategies. Before working as a fiduciary advisor, Miguel was an attorney whose practice focused on estate planning, trust and estate administration, and elder law, including guardianship and conservatorship matters.  Miguel is a member of the board of directors, and past Treasurer, for the Oregon Energy Fund, a member of the Estate Planning Council of Portland, the Oregon State Bar, and the New York State Bar.

Debbie Scales

Court Manager/Probate Commissioner - Jackson County Circuit Court 

Debbie has been with the Oregon Judicial Department (OJD) for over 25 years. She has been a leader in the court with her peers, community partners, and unit. She started her career as a file clerk after graduating from college with a Paralegal Degree. She has worked with OJD, in civil/family, probate, criminal, small claims, /FEDs, juvenile, and as a judicial assistant for two judges.