baHRC · Bay Area Human Resources Connections

Thriving from the Inside Out

Mental Health, Self-Care, and the Human-Centered Workplace

May 27, 2026 · Pulmonx, Redwood City · Live panel, no recording

baHRC convened this panel this past Wednesday, May 27, marking National Mental Health Month. It was both practical and personal: research-backed insights and lived experience, in one room, for one night.

It was a live jazz show. You had to be there to feel it. What we can do is point you to the four people who made it possible, and to where their voices live the rest of the year.

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Moderator
Patty de Vries headshot
Patty de Vries
Chief Experience Officer, Living Well USA
Patty de Vries
Chief Experience Officer, Living Well USA

Patty is Chief Experience Officer at Living Well USA, a nature-based retreat in the Santa Cruz Mountains where she integrates neuroscience, self-awareness, and time outdoors to help leaders reset. A nine-time NCAA All-American at Stanford and 1988 Olympic Trials competitor, she brings three decades of wellness leadership to the work, including early corporate wellness programs for Google, Cisco, and Yahoo, and a decade leading wellness initiatives at Stanford University and Stanford Health Care.

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Panelist
Laura DeCook headshot
Laura DeCook
Founder, LDC Wellbeing
Laura DeCook
Founder, LDC Wellbeing

Laura founded LDC Wellbeing, a mental health education and training company, during COVID after building one of the tech industry's most recognized employee mental health programs as the first Wellbeing Specialist at Expedia Group. Named a Mover and Shaker in the mental health industry, she has contributed to Forbes and the American Psychiatric Association Foundation, speaks at global mental health conferences, and runs Mental Health First Aid certification trainings for organizations of all sizes.

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Panelist
Jessica Grossmeier headshot
Jessica Grossmeier, PhD, MPH
Researcher, Author, and Advisor
Jessica Grossmeier, PhD, MPH
Researcher, Author, and Advisor

Jessica is a workplace well-being researcher, advisor, and author of Reimagining Workplace Well-being and Well At Work. With 30 plus years advancing individual and population health, she has published more than 80 peer-reviewed articles, served as co-editor of The Art of Health Promotion section in the American Journal of Health Promotion, and was named one of the most influential women leaders in health promotion. She is a Senior Fellow at HERO and chairs the Workplace Wellbeing Initiative of the Global Wellness Institute.

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Panelist
Jeff Jacobs headshot
Jeff Jacobs
Executive Coach, Facilitator, Speaker
Jeff Jacobs
Executive Coach, Facilitator, Speaker

Jeff is an executive coach, facilitator, and speaker with 30 plus years in leadership development and organizational effectiveness, including senior roles at Adobe and Intuit. He brings three certifications in compassion and mindfulness practices, including from Stanford Medical School, and serves as Board Chair for Community Solutions, an organization supporting individuals facing mental health, substance abuse, trauma, and other crises. He is a contributing author to the bestseller Leading with Self Awareness, Starting from the Inside Out, and is writing his first book, Keep Coming of Age.

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Volunteers make this happen

Sincere thanks to Ginny Conboy, Lee Tao, and Manisha Kale, who worked the event so the rest of us could focus on the conversation.

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