Emily joined CFI in 2022 as the CEO.  She has Ms. Thompson brings a wealth of knowledge and experience, and will continue to lead and guide CFI as a leading provider of recovery-based mental health programs and services in metropolitan Atlanta. She brings more than two decades of experience in behavioral health and will continue her mission to aide people become better with each step of their journey. Emily has developed several behavioral health programs from conception and enhancing service provision in established program continuums.  A native to the Metropolitan Atlanta community, Ms. Thompson obtained both her undergraduate and graduate degree in Psychology from Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville, Georgia. 

Ms. Thompson has always been a true advocate of assisting people to enhance the skills and emotional well-being needed to be self-sufficient, independent and thrive in the communities we all work and live. This goes hand-in-hand with the mission, vision and values that Community Friendship, Inc. has held for more than 50 years in the Metropolitan Atlanta community. Ms. Thompson is also “team driven” and the staff and consumers of have welcomed her to the CFI culture and community of working together to eradicate stigma and assist people with their personalized mental health recovery. Emily has a daughter and son, a dog, and enjoys playing tennis, baking and spending time with family and friends.

DeCarlos joined CFI in October 2024 as Director of Development and Communications. DeCarlos is a multifaceted leader with nearly 20 years of executive leadership experience in the public and nonprofit sectors. He is a passionate leader who drives change to meet the critical needs of both urban and suburban communities.

He is a passionate leader who drives change to meet the critical needs of both urban and suburban communities. DeCarlos excels in working with volunteer boards, aligning resources with goals, growing annual campaigns, and fiscal management. He is known for his strong ability to effectively multi-task within a fast-paced, goal-driven environment while establishing authentic relationships, which lead to, increased contributions and partnerships from various philanthropic sources. His experience and body of work have yielded more than $75 million in grants and contributions from government agencies, foundations, corporations, and individuals. Before joining the CFI family, DeCarlos served his community as Executive Director of the YMCA of Columbus, Georgia, and Vice President of Development for 100 Black Men of America, Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia.

DeCarlos holds a bachelor’s degree (cum laude) in History from Fort Valley State University. He is a member of the Young Nonprofit Professional Network, former Advisory Board Member for MedTech College, and former member of the Young Professionals Council for the Georgia Center for Law & Justice. DeCarlos is a native of Columbus, Georgia, and an active member of World Changers Church International.

Brittney joined the Community Friendship family in August 2024 as our Chief Operating Officer.  She brings a wealth of knowledge to CFI as she has worked in a variety of settings serving underserved populations throughout her career.  Brittney graduated with her Bachelors of Science in Child and Family Development and Master of Social Work from The University of Georgia.  She has served in direct practice roles as well as leadership roles within Community Service Boards, Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facilities, acute care hospitals, outpatient centers, permanent supportive housing programs, drop in centers, and school-based mental health.  She specializes in crisis intervention, working with severe and persistent mental illness, program development, fiscal expansion, and scaling mental health initiatives pertinent to increasing access for individuals in the community.

As Chief Operating Officer at CFI, Brittney will oversee a variety of programming to ensure high quality services continue to be delivered to our members.  She will work as part of a multidisciplinary team to ensure that organizational processes and procedures operate at peak efficiency, and integrate multi-modal approaches into the framework of supportive services. Brittney will work closely with partners to ensure that collaboration is a pillar of our community relationships, and work with our broader staff on enhancing our brand recognition within the Atlanta area.  With financial viability and a future-focused vision at the forefront of Brittney’s responsibilities, she will help us ensure CFI remains a viable resource and support to any member in the community who may benefit from our service array.

Christella King Gainous is a strategic Human Resources leader with over 14 years of experience driving business growth through innovative, people-focused solutions. An SHRM-certified professional pursuing her degree in Human Resources at Mercer University, Christella excels in aligning HR strategies with business objectives to deliver tangible results in talent acquisition, employee engagement, and organizational development.
 
Prior to gaining her current role as Human Resources Director, she worked as an Human Resource Assistant, where she supported multiple divisions, including Operations and Finance, by streamlining hiring processes and enhancing team performance. Her data-driven approach has reduced time-to-fill metrics without sacrificing quality, showing her strong business acumen and strategic decision-making.
 
Christella’s leadership journey began in the mental health industry, where she helped build the HR infrastructure for a startup agency, fostering a compliant and positive workplace culture. Her initiatives have consistently improved employee retention and organizational efficiency, making her a trusted advisor to senior executives.
 
Outside of work, Christella’s achievements, including completing a beach half marathon with Black Girls Run and traveling solo internationally, reflect the same determination and strategic thinking she brings to her HR career. Known for her collaborative leadership style, Christella is passionate about driving organizational excellence through effective people management, passionately believing that “HR is the heartbeat of a company.”

Debbie joined CFI in 2009 as CFO has spent most of her career in accounting and finance leadership roles and is oversees all aspects of CFI’s overall financial responsibilities. As a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) for more than 30 years, Debbie Henderson has a proven ability to increase systems efficiency, both in the non-profit, private, and public sector. Throughout her close to 40-year career, Debbie has been an intricate part of assuring financial standards and practices are met with the highest integrity. Providing CFI with dynamic leadership, vision and communication skills, she produces innovative strategies to increase and enrich CFI’s revenue. Under the leadership of Debbie, Community Friendship, Inc. has been able to reduce the annual housing budget; facilitate the reduction of SIA apartment costs; coordinate the acquisition the adjacent property required to complete the refinance of HUD properties; as well as increase net profit annually. Debbie also enjoys spending time with her family and working to assist her daughter achieve her dreams of becoming an attorney at law.

For more than two decades, Ziegler has worked in the social service sector as a quality professional.  She has extensive knowledge of psychiatric hospitals, community-based services, adolescent group homes, foster care, the juvenile justice system and risk management. 

Prior to joining CFI, Ziegler served in Quality leadership roles within the child and adolescent social service sector in Georgia. Her professional interests are assessment and outcomes tools, neurofeedback and other promising treatments for working with those who have experienced trauma.

She enjoys traveling, cooking and is an avid reader.

Arnold Perdue is the Director of the Work Opportunities Department at Community Friendship, Inc.  A graduate of Clark Atlanta University, he has been involved with employment services for over 30 years. 

Arnold views the relationship between the job seeker/ employed, the employer, and the agency as critical to providing an environment that will foster greater opportunity for success for all involved. Arnold has a great appreciation for the process of one finding fulfillment through employment and the various rewards and rich experiences that it brings.  He enjoys helping people who are diagnosed with a mental illness, choose, get and keep employment and believes that everyone who wants to work should have that opportunity. Arnold is excited to see our members follow their dreams and live in recovery.  

Arnold has served on the boards of the Georgia Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association and Georgia Association for People Supporting Employment (GAPSE).  He is a Certified Psychiatric Rehabilitation Practitioner (CPRP). Arnold is also certified as a trainer in the Thinking Skills for Work curriculum created by Boston University.