Our Staff & Board
Brenda Konkel
Executive Director @ Madison Street Medicine
Program Coordinator @ Dairy Drive
Brenda has a long history of activism, advocacy and non-profit work in Madison for over 30 years. She has served on over 25 non-profit boards, worked with hundreds of staff and volunteers and has raised millions of dollars for various causes. She is a passionate believer that housing is a human right and that houselessness can be solved if there is the political will. She was instrumental in developing the city-owned campground run by Madison Street Medicine as well as the three tiny house villages for people experiencing houselessness that are self governed by members and residents of Occupy Madison. She has a law degree from UW-Madison, was Executive Director of the Tenant Resource Center for 23 years, is a co-founder of the Social Justice Center, Occupy Madison, Inc. and the Affordable Housing Action Alliance. She is also a former Madison City Council member (2001-2009), blogger, WORT community radio and WYOU community television host and volunteer, videographer and editor. Outside of working or being an activist, she is a local music, camping and gardening enthusiast.
Butch
Peer Outreach Worker
Butch is a Peer Outreach Specialist at Madison Street Medicine. Butch spent 22 years living outside, in which time he hopped over 50 trains and migrated across 38 states. In this time, Butch developed an intimate understanding of the perils of scarcity and came to recognize the devastating social, physical, and mental consequences of being unhoused. Butch’s lived experience lends critical insight to the daily operations and long-term goals of the organization. His presence and engagement during outreach helps cultivate trust among clients and he honors the privilege of that trust with his commitment to improving the welfare of those he encounters.
Savannah Harpel, APSW
Dairy Drive Case Manager
Savannah is a licensed Advanced Practice Social Worker and serves as one of Dairy Drive’s housing case managers. Savannah earned her Master’s in Social Work with a concentration in health from UW-Madison in 2024, following a Bachelor’s in Social Work from Illinois State University in 2021. Savannah brings hands-on experience from interning in the trauma ICU at UW- Hospital, as well as from their previous role in Runaway and Homeless Youth services (RHY). She is passionate about addressing the systemic issues driving the housing crisis, particularly the impact of systemic racism and the lack of regulations for private landlords. In their free time, Savannah embraces her inner grandma and enjoys time with her cat (Xena), crocheting, puzzles, and lots and lots of reading.
Joe
Outreach Coordinator & Peer Support Specialist
Joe is a Homeless Outreach Coordinator, Certified Peer Supporter, Harm Reductionist, and Trained Doula with Madison Street Medicine. He serves as a panel member on UW’s ECHO ACCEPT, a board member of UW’s Rural Health and Substance Use Support Program, and Co-Chair of Dane County Health and Human Needs Opioid Settlement Subcommittee.
In his direct care work, Joe supports people experiencing housing insecurity and those who use drugs. He advocates fiercely for the safety, health, happiness, and rights of unhoused individuals and people who use drugs (PWUD), focusing on providing the tools necessary to foster their well-being. Joe is deeply committed to challenging harmful policies and dismantling the stigma that perpetuates harm and shame.
Outside of his professional work, Joe is passionate about mycology, spending time in nature, helping animals, attending Phish concerts, playing music, creating art, and bodybuilding.
Donna
Volunteer & Health Programs Coordinator
Donna grew up in Chicago and graduated from Columbia College. Her lived experience left her with a deep understanding of the challenges unhoused people face. She loves bridging the gaps between people who want to help and those who need it. She is ecstatic to be part of the Madison Street Medicine Team.
Olivia
Olivia is an artist and a mom. Her favorite media are pottery, textiles, and metal. She has been working with Madison’s unhoused community since 2021. She believes that housing is a human right, and that the current broken housing system needs to change. She loves music, tattoos, and cuss words. She thinks capitalism and mean people suck.
Joanna, RN, BSN
Outreach Nurse
Joanna has worked as a nurse in the Madison area since graduating from UW-Madison with her BSN in 2011. Volunteering with Madison Street Medicine led to discovering a passion for working with individuals experiencing housing insecurity so she was thrilled to later join staff as an Outreach Nurse.
TJ
Facilities Lead, Program Coordinator
Tim joined Madison Street Medicine Nov. 2021 at Dairy Drive where he gets to apply his technical savvy to development and maintenance of the site and thereby supports everyone living and working there. This extends Tim’s efforts started in Chicago building soil to be gardened by and for community and continued upon return to Madison through full-time commitment to a combination of The Madison Mutual Aid Network (MAN), and Occupy Madison, now serving as a working board member to both Occupy and the international networking cooperative HUMANs (Humans United in Mutual Aid Networks).
Angie
Outreach Specialist
Angie received a Bachelors of Science in Psychology in 2013 and has been working against housing insecurity since 2018. Angie faced her own housing insecurity all throughout and after college until 2019 when she purchased her first home through Madison Area Land Trust. Angie is also a Werq dance fitness instructor and in 2024 underwent a procedure that removed 30lbs of excess skin from her 193lbs weight loss. Angie would not have been able to have this life changing surgery without the security of permanent affordable housing. Angie has 3 rescue dogs that were found in the trash, a fish tank full of neon glo-fish, way too many house plants, a crested gecko, and a partner in crime and love.
Jaime
Dairy Drive Case Manager
Jaime, by her own admission, is super cool. She really enjoys her job. She also enjoys kayaking, wandering in nature, short camping trips, and spending time with her family. Reading is her favorite. That and snacks. She has a BA in Sociology and an MA in Pastoral Counseling. Her education and experience enable her to develop supportive and nurturing relationships with folks in the community, which is a pretty spectacular privilege.
LaRon
Nights & Weekends @ Dairy Drive
LaRon is a queer performer and a Navy veteran. His own experience with homelessness lends him an especially empathetic and personable demeanor. He cares for all in need.
Jack
AmeriCorps VISTA Member
Jack is the AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteer. He graduated from UW-Madison with a B.S. in Neurobiology and Psychology in 2024. He is excited to be working with the unhoused community in Madison where he grew up. In his free time he enjoys listening to music at the Union, playing video games, and spending time with friends.
Zainab
Office Manager
Zainab brings a strategic, systems-focused mindset to her role as Office Manager at Madison Street Medicine, where she supports the organization’s mission through streamlined operations and thoughtful process improvements. With a background in design innovation, project leadership, and organizational development, Zainab thrives at the intersection of efficiency and empathy – ensuring the team has the structure they need to serve the community effectively.
Outside of work, you’ll likely find Zainab deep into a novel, backpacking along a quiet trail, or exploring new music on a long walk.
Molly
Molly graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2024 with a BS in Global Health. She works with Madison Street Medicine as a Public health AmeriCorps member, doing her due diligence to understand the unique needs of the Madison community. She hopes to collaborate with more local organizations and volunteers to create sustainable solutions to common problems within the city, and better help the very people she is inspired by. In her free time she enjoys running, biking, creating pottery, and spending quality time with friends and family.
Tim
Peer Advocate
Tim joined MSM in August 2021 as a Community Peer Health Advocate. In this role, he delivers essential supplies to local homeless encampments, assists individuals with completing important paperwork, and provides transportation to shelters. Additionally, Tim leverages his associate’s degree in Computer Systems Administration to handle a variety of IT tasks, further supporting MSM’s mission through his technical expertise.
Board of Directors
Fred Turkington
President
Fred has called Madison home since 2012 and has worked in healthcare for that whole duration. As a student in Ohio, he worked with the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences to help their continuing education department modernize their course tracking database, which sparked a passion for bringing the power of technology to nontechnical users.
Katie Gillespie
DNP, RN, CPH, FAAN
Member
Katie has many years of working as a healthcare and public health nurse. She advocates using a systems approach to address the social issues that impact a person’s health and well-being. She believes that all policies affect health and must consider mental and physical health parity.
Deb Lange
Member
Deb is a member of Madison Street Medicine’s Resource Development and Finance Circle. She is a seasoned attorney in a private practice who also applies her experience to help organizations focused on housing and immigration issues. She has served Madison Street Medicine since 2019 and strongly believes that housing is healthcare.
Haley Kovac
DNP, MSN, RN, CENP
Treasurer
Haley Kovac is a seasoned healthcare leader with over 20 years of experience. As the RN Director of Ambulatory Operations at UW Health in Madison, WI, she champions patient-centered care and evidence-based practice. Haley’s innovative leadership in the Emergency Department improved patient flow and care quality. She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice in Leadership from Edgewood College of Nursing and advanced degrees from Chamberlain College of Nursing. Haley actively fosters community partnerships to enhance healthcare delivery.
Butch
Member
Butch is a Peer Outreach Specialist at Madison Street Medicine. Butch spent 22 years living outside, in which time he hopped over 50 trains and migrated across 38 states. In this time, Butch developed an intimate understanding of the perils of scarcity and came to recognize the devastating social, physical, and mental consequences of being unhoused. Butch’s lived experience lends critical insight to the daily operations and long-term goals of the organization. His presence and engagement during outreach helps cultivate trust among clients and he honors the privilege of that trust with his commitment to improving the welfare of those he encounters.