AbleChild Announces Advisory Board Transition and Welcomes Elizabeth Loper Jones

AbleChild Announces Advisory Board Transition and Welcomes Elizabeth Loper Jones

Republished with permission from AbleChild.

AbleChild is deeply grateful for the time, talent, and dedication Kelly Patricia O’Meara has given to the organization as an Advisory Board member and freelance writer. Her investigative work, strong voice, and willingness to address difficult issues have been meaningful contributions to AbleChild’s mission. AbleChild wishes Kelly every success in her writing, research, and all future endeavors.

AbleChild is honored to welcome Elizabeth “Liz” Loper Jones as an official Advisory Board Member.

For AbleChild co-founder Sheila Matthews, Liz’s appointment is profoundly personal. Liz is Sheila’s sister, and her life experience brings both an educator’s perspective and a family’s understanding of the unanswered questions that can follow a devastating loss.

Liz is a retired early-childhood educator who worked with young children in the Greenwich, Connecticut, nursery-school community. Her career gave her firsthand awareness of the responsibilities placed on educators, including the need to meet administrative, state, and federal expectations while caring for children and working with families. Her educator’s perspective will add significant value to AbleChild’s Advisory Board.

Liz’s personal experience has also shaped her commitment to helping other families. Following the sudden death of her husband after withdrawal from an older antipsychotic medication, Liz was left to raise two children while confronting profound grief, medical uncertainty, insurance concerns, and the practical burdens that follow an unexpected death. The medical examiner was unable to determine whether medication withdrawal caused or contributed to his death.

The family sought legal guidance in Connecticut about a possible wrongful-death claim and confronted insurance questions related to the reported cause and manner of death. Like many families facing an unexpected death, Liz was left with painful questions and few clear answers.

“My sister has been through hell, but she leaned into heaven by using faith, love, and determination to create a beautiful life after the death of her husband,” said AbleChild co-founder Sheila Matthews. “Her willingness to advise AbleChild and help further its mission to ensure other families obtain informed consent, together with her understanding of the early-education system, will be an important part of her work with AbleChild.”

Liz said, “I have watched my sister fight like a lion for justice and accountability, not only for my family, but for people she has never even met. I want her work to continue, and I am very supportive of AbleChild’s mission. I am honored to join AbleChild as an Advisory Board Member and to support families seeking information, transparency, and answers.”

Liz’s appointment also honors the legacy of her and Sheila’s father, William Philip Matthews, who passed away in 2018. He served as a U.S. Navy officer during World War II, continued his service in the Navy Reserve, and attained the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade. He later devoted 37 years to The Equitable Life Insurance Company, serving as Vice President of its Pension Division.lohud+1

After Liz’s husband died, William Matthews, Liz and Sheila’s father, stepped into the void to help Liz manage the overwhelming paperwork, insurance matters, and practical responsibilities confronting the family. His professional knowledge and deep love for his daughter and grandchildren helped them navigate a period of immense uncertainty.

William Matthews served on the AbleChild Board of Directors from the organization’s inception until his passing. “My father would be so proud and thrilled to see Liz joining AbleChild,” Sheila Matthews said. “He believed that families deserve support, protection, and answers when their lives are turned upside down.”

AbleChild continues to educate lawmakers and the public about informed consent, transparency, meaningful data, and accountability in psychiatric-drug policy. Tennessee’s landmark HB 1349/SB 1146 requires county medical examiners to test for and collect specific information about drugs found in certain deceased persons connected with qualifying mass-shooting investigations. The law represents an important step toward gathering objective information about psychiatric-drug exposure and related questions in these investigations.

AbleChild believes reliable toxicology information and complete reporting are essential for families, medical professionals, regulators, and policymakers to assess medication exposure, adverse effects, drug interactions, and withdrawal concerns when deaths occur. Families deserve careful investigation and honest answers, not assumptions that leave critical medical questions unexplored.

AbleChild is a 501(3) C nonprofit organization that has recently co-written landmark legislation in Tennessee, setting a national precedent for transparency and accountability in the intersection of mental health, pharmaceutical practices, and public safety.

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