Meet Our Team

Jennifer Puthoff

Jennifer Puthoff joined the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Victim Services Unit in January 2021. She has extensive background in education, health, and human services. Jennifer is a solution’s focused leader, passionate about delivering quality services, managing by metrics, and spearheading change. Jennifer received her B.S. from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CA and a Master’s in Educational Leadership from Concordia, Portland, OR.

District Attorney Victim Advocate

Margarita Villa-Castañeda

Margarita is a Victim Advocate with the District Attorney’s Office. Born and raised in Bogotá-Colombia, where she graduated in Visual Arts. She has always been compassionate to help others even while she was working as a documentary producer in Colombia, where she assisted on producing documentaries about the different social programs offered by the District of Bogotá.

District Attorney Victim Advocate

Michelle Cabrales

Michelle was born in Durango, Mexico and has been a San Jose, CA resident for most of her life. Michelle has a Bachelor’s in Science from Cal State East Bay and plans to pursue her master’s degree in Social Work. She is passionate about helping people and making a difference in people’s lives while at the CAC. When Michelle is not working, she runs half marathons, enjoys reading, spoiling her 13-year-old dog, spending time with family and loves to travel.

District Attorney Victim Advocate

Elvia Enriquez

Elvia is a Victim Advocate with the Office of the District Attorney and has been with the County of Santa Clara for over 20 years. Elvia has dedicated her career to helping her community and much of her professional career has been supporting young survivors of sexual and physical abuse. Elvia is honored to work at the Children's Advocacy Center where she can continue to help children and their protective family members seek the healing and justice they deserve. Outside of work, Elvia enjoys spending time with family and friends, listening to music, and traveling.

District Attorney Victim Advocate

Cathy Hjelt

Cathy is a Victim Advocate with the Office of the District Attorney. A San Jose native and graduate of San Jose State University, she holds a Bachelor’s degree in Child Development. She has always had a passion for helping and supporting others and is honored to do the work at the Child Advocacy Center helping survivors and their families find their voice. When she is not working she loves to spend time with her husband hiking, watching the SF Giants, and traveling.

Forensic Interviewer

Kathryn Sims

Kathryn has been a child forensic interviewer for the past two years and retired as a lieutenant with the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety. She has over 20 years of experience interviewing children and youth. When she is not interviewing at the CAC, her favorite activity is spending time with her husband and enjoying the outdoors.

Forensic Interviewer

Lydia Cardoza

Lydia is a Forensic Interviewer at the CAC. Lydia has a law enforcement background and has experience working with children and families who have experienced domestic violence and sexual assault. Lydia is Spanish speaking and is grateful for the ability to communicate with Spanish speaking families in their native language. When Lydia is not at work, she enjoys spending time with her family, cooking and attending football games.

Medical Director

Marlene Sturm

Marlene A. Sturm, MD has served as the Medical Director at the Children’s Advocacy Center since the Center’s opening. Dr. Sturm has been a pediatrician for more than thirty years. She attended Brown University and Stanford Medical School, and completed a residency in Pediatrics at Stanford Hospital. Dr. Sturm has directed the child abuse and protection program at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center since 2017. The daughter of refugees, Dr Sturm has dedicated her professional life to the care of children and families who have endured and survived great challenges. Dr.

Pediatrician

Caitlyn Kurinsky

Dr. Caitlyn Kurinsky is a board-certified pediatrician at the Medical Clinic at the Children’s Advocacy Center, where she helps provide care for children who may have experienced abuse and neglect. She received her undergraduate degree from Tufts University, where she majored in Community Health and Psychology. She then attended the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Physician's Assistant

Mary Ritter

Mary Ritter is a physician assistant (soon to be called “physician associate”) who has been working in pediatric medicine for over 40 years, the last 34 as the primary medical examiner of child sexual abuse at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center’s Center for Child Protection, and now at the Children’s Advocacy Center. Obviously, it is a job she loves.

Physician Assistant

Sunayana Pydah

Sunny is a certified Physician Assistant working with children who have experienced abuse or neglect and is trained in Pediatric Sexual Assault Forensic Examinations. She received her master’s degree in PA medicine from the University of Lynchburg and recently completed her Doctor of Health Sciences degree from Radford University Carilion with a focus on telemedicine and PA education. She has also received her masters’ degrees in health administration and business administration from Texas A&M University.

Program Manager II

Sarah Oliveira

Sarah Oliveira joined Santa Clara Valley Healthcare in April 2023 and currently serves as the CAC’s Program Manager for the Medical Clinic. She believes all her prior positions have led to this most important role - helping to advocate and provide excellent care coordination to at-risk children and adolescents affected by trauma, abuse, and all forms of maltreatment. Sarah holds a Master’s in Public Administration and a Bachelor’s in Public Relations from San Jose State University.

Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)

Lianna Flores, LCSW

Lianna is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) for the Youth Center for Evaluation and Advocacy and serves as one of the mental health therapists working with children and youth of the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC). She graduated from the University of California, San Diego with her B.A. in Psychology, Minor in Sociology and received her Master of Social Work (MSW) from the University of Southern California.

Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)

Angelica Longa

Angelica is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and has worked for the County of Santa Clara for the past 18 years providing a variety of services for vulnerable populations. She received her bachelor’s degree in counseling psychology from John F. Kennedy University and her master’s degree in social work from San Jose State University.

YWCA Victim Advocate

Mayra Galindo

Mayra has twelve years of experience working with the YWCA providing counseling and advocacy to children and families who have experienced domestic violence and sexual assault. Mayra has co-led support groups for youth impacted by sexual abuse and facilitated children and family groups at the domestic violence shelter. She has a Bachelor’s in Criminology with an emphasis in Victimology from Fresno State and a Master’s in Social Work with an emphasis in Children, Youth and Families from San Jose State University.

YWCA Victim Advocate

Samantha Ledesma Garcia

Samantha is a Victim Advocate with the YWCA. She was born in Tijuana, Mexico, but raised in San Jose, CA for most of her life. Samantha has earned a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice with a minor in Adolescent Development from Cal State Fullerton and, as a DACA recipient, has focused a lot of her work helping undocumented and at-risk youth. She hopes to continue her passion for advocacy at the CAC where she can help survivors heal and seek justice. In her free time, she loves to go to the gym, travel, and spend time with her friends and family.

Community Solutions Victim Advocate

Debbie Ruiz

Debbie has been an Advocate with Community Solutions for over 22 years supporting survivors of Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence and Abuse. As an advocate, she provides supportive services for CAC clients and families living in south county as well as in San Benito. When Debbie is not at the CAC, she enjoys Cross Fit, being with her grandchildren, participating in bible class and spending time with family and friends.

Law Enforcement Liaison

Antonio Padilla

Antonio Padilla works as Law Enforcement Liaison for Santa Clara County, Dept. of Family and Children Services (DFCS). His current role is to facilitate a collaborative relationship between DFCS, Law Enforcement, and other county agencies to address child abuse challenges. He has a Bachelor’s in Sociology with a concentration in Human Services from California State University, Stanislaus and a Master in Social Work from San Jose State University. Antonio has over twenty years of child welfare experience including work in Los Angeles County, Dept.

Meet Our Team

Jennifer Puthoff

Margarita Villa-Castañeda

Michelle Cabrales

Elvia Enriquez

Cathy Hjelt

Kathryn Sims

Lydia Cardoza

Marlene Sturm

Caitlyn Kurinsky

Mary Ritter

Sunayana Pydah

Sarah Oliveira

Lianna Flores, LCSW

Angelica Longa

Mayra Galindo

Samantha Ledesma Garcia

Debbie Ruiz

Antonio Padilla

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