Our Team
Denise Cagley-Jefferson, Executive Director
Since the age of nine, Denise has been called to service. She grew up volunteering with her mother in a soup kitchen in Iowa, participating in environmental clean-ups and leading youth groups. As a college student, she took her first trip to Hagley Gap in 1995 and has been working with the community ever since. As the Founding Executive Director, she worked with a dedicated team of volunteers and staff to start the Blue Mountain Project in 2004. In 2010, she began working for the US Peace Corps until responding to BMPs call-to-action in 2017 and was named Executive Director once again. In addition to BMP, she currently works as an independent contractor for the USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance. Denise has a Behavioral Sciences Degree from the Metropolitan State College of Denver and is a Registered Yoga Teacher.
Since the age of nine, Denise has been called to service. She grew up volunteering with her mother in a soup kitchen in Iowa, participating in environmental clean-ups and leading youth groups. As a college student, she took her first trip to Hagley Gap in 1995 and has been working with the community ever since. As the Founding Executive Director, she worked with a dedicated team of volunteers and staff to start the Blue Mountain Project in 2004. In 2010, she began working for the US Peace Corps until responding to BMPs call-to-action in 2017 and was named Executive Director once again. In addition to BMP, she currently works as an independent contractor for the USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance. Denise has a Behavioral Sciences Degree from the Metropolitan State College of Denver and is a Registered Yoga Teacher.
Cheryl Horton, Community Ambassador
Cheryl is from Phoenix, Arizona and recently retired from the healthcare field at the
Arizona Department of Corrections. In 2018, she volunteered with the BMP Service
Learning Program. She returned in 2019 as a Group Leader to facilitate a medical team and decided she wanted to do even more. “Helping and caring for people has always been a passion of mine. I am glad to have been given this opportunity by Blue Mountain Project to work with and assist the communities of Hagley Gap and Penlyne Castle. I enjoy walking and taking in the atmosphere around me, so you can say I am triple blessed because I am doing it all in Jamaica, my favorite place in the world!”
Cheryl is from Phoenix, Arizona and recently retired from the healthcare field at the
Arizona Department of Corrections. In 2018, she volunteered with the BMP Service
Learning Program. She returned in 2019 as a Group Leader to facilitate a medical team and decided she wanted to do even more. “Helping and caring for people has always been a passion of mine. I am glad to have been given this opportunity by Blue Mountain Project to work with and assist the communities of Hagley Gap and Penlyne Castle. I enjoy walking and taking in the atmosphere around me, so you can say I am triple blessed because I am doing it all in Jamaica, my favorite place in the world!”
Palasha Tuladhar, Intern
Palasha is an international student from Nepal studying at Ripon College in Wisconsin. Born in a Hindu-Buddhist family, she was always taught that if you do good, good will come to you. She loves to volunteer, meet new people and travel. She has helped fundraise, volunteered in a local community hospital and organized fun after-school courses for a public school during her holidays in Nepal. During her Spring Break in 2019, she went on a mission trip to South Carolina with Samaritan’s Purse to build houses for people who lost their homes in a hurricane. During her Summer Break in 2019, she went to Jamaica for two weeks with the Blue Mountain Project to organize Fun Camp for children. She now volunteers as a remote Intern with BMP.
Palasha is an international student from Nepal studying at Ripon College in Wisconsin. Born in a Hindu-Buddhist family, she was always taught that if you do good, good will come to you. She loves to volunteer, meet new people and travel. She has helped fundraise, volunteered in a local community hospital and organized fun after-school courses for a public school during her holidays in Nepal. During her Spring Break in 2019, she went on a mission trip to South Carolina with Samaritan’s Purse to build houses for people who lost their homes in a hurricane. During her Summer Break in 2019, she went to Jamaica for two weeks with the Blue Mountain Project to organize Fun Camp for children. She now volunteers as a remote Intern with BMP.