Erin Merryn

Executive Director

Erin Merryn is an internationally recognized author, speaker, and child abuse advocate and activist. She earned her MSW from Aurora University in 2009. For six years of her childhood she was sexually abused keeping her secret locked away in her childhood diary. Before graduating Schaumburg high school in 2004 Erin published her diary into a book called Stolen Innocence her senior year of high school. She has since published 4 more books. Since 2007 she has been on a mission to pass Erin’s Law in all 50 states. Erin’s Law requires age appropriate personal body safety education taught every year in school K-12th grade. Teaching kids on safe touch, unsafe touch, safe secrets, and unsafe secrets empowering kids to use their voice if someone is abusing them. Erin’s Law currently is in 38 states and Kerala, India and about to be passed in Ontario Canada. Erin has appeared on Oprah, Today, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, NBC Nightly News, CNN, FOX, Katie Couric, Tamron Hall, among hundreds of local news stations. She appeared on the TLC network documentary Breaking the Silence. She has appeared in the New York Times, USA Today, Time Magazine, People Magazine, Glamour Magazine, New York Post, Chicago Tribune, among many state local news outlets. She is a national spokesperson for the National Children’s Alliance.

In 2010 Daily Herald named her the newsmaker of the year. In 2012 Glamour Magazine named her woman of the year where she gave her acceptance speech on stage at Carnegie Hall in NYC. Prevent Child Abuse Illinois awarded her the Friend of Children Award for her commitment to children to assure children have safe, healthy, and loving environments in 2012. People Magazine named her a HEROES Among Us and one of fifteen women changing the world in 2013. She received the Dr. Henry C. Lee Award in 2014 for her work helping sexual assault survivors. The Children’s Advocacy Center awarded her with the Champion of Children’s Award in 2014. In 2015 President Obama signed the federal version of Erin’s Law. Which provided federal funds to teach it. In 2016 she was selected as the Young Alumni Excellence Award from WIU where she earned her BSW. The National Association of Social Workers named her with the Outstanding Achievement Award in 2020.

She speaks at child abuse prevention events, middle, high school and colleges across the world. Credited with helping nonprofits raise millions of dollars. She has helped dozens of students come forward disclosing their own abuse after hearing her present.

She runs Erin’s Law 501c4 since 2011 testifying at state capitols in more than half the country.  Erin’s Law Foundation 501c3 she founded in June 2023. With the mission to educate and empower children and adults on the prevention and healing of child sexual abuse. Her vision for the last twenty years is to give children the voice she never had and end the silent epidemic surrounding child sexual abuse. When she isn’t traveling the world testifying to legislators or speaking on stages to students and adults, she is raising four children with her husband.

Paula Meyer Besler, JD

Board President

Paula Meyer Besler has served as the Board President of Erin’s Law Foundation since its inception in June, 2023. She is the President and Founder of ON BEHALF OF, LLC, a professional advocacy and training organization advocating for survivors and the prevention of sexual abuse and exploitation. Before founding ON BEHALF OF, Paula was a Managing Attorney for the Chicago Alliance Against Exploitation (CAASE) where she represented survivors of sexual exploitation, sexual assault and sex trafficking. It was there where Paula had the honor of representing Erin and getting to know her determination and character first hand. Upon leaving CAASE, Paula agreed to join Erin in her imperative mission to launch Erin’s Law Foundation “to educate and empower children and adults on the prevention and healing of child abuse.”

Paula’s entire career has been devoted to using her legal and leadership voice to represent and benefit exploited individuals and to make the systems that serve them better. From healthcare to human trafficking and sexual harm and exploitation, the through lines of her work are in how she can shape policies and community responses to create a healthier and more just society. Paula was a civil trial attorney and managing partner in Chicago for many years, as well as an adjunct law professor for 10 years during that time. Paula also was a Director of Community and Government Relations government at Illinois’ largest healthcare system as well as an Executive for an anti-sex trafficking non-profit organization.

Paula graduated cum laude with a Business degree from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and received her law degree from Loyola University Chicago of Law. Paula also has completed her coursework for her LL.M. (Masters of Law) in Child & Family Law, Abuse and Neglect and is in the process of completing her thesis project. Paula is married with four children.

Dario Zanichelli, CPA

Treasurer

Dario began his career as an entrepreneur at the age of 16, starting his own landscape contracting business, Twin Landscaping in 1986.  He started this business with only the lawnmower borrowed from his father. Dario grew this business to 275 weekly customers, three crews of landscapers with a total of 12 employees and annual revenues exceeding half a million dollars.  Because of this, he has much wisdom and knowledge beyond his years. After working full-time as a small business owner, Dario continued working as a student financing his own way through DePaul University’s Business program.  He earned a degree in commerce and accounting, and used the tools learned and perfected to start developing a CPA firm in 1994. Dario has successfully helped over a hundred business clients and many more individual clients to succeed in business and personally.  Dario uses his unique business experience and different licenses in a comprehensive approach to help his clients succeed while maintaining profitability, sustaining growth, and overcoming the many challenges business face. This experience also allows Dario to empathize with the business owners since he himself started a business from the ground up, and grew it into a turn-key operation that ran itself.  Dario has the uncanny ability to place himself in the shoes of his clients and see their perspective on almost every issue. This enabled Dario to expand his practice to concentrate in highly personalized tax and financial planning services.  This diverse background also affords Dario the unique opportunity to utilize both tax and investment strategies when working with clients. Dario’s goal is to assist his clients reach their goals in business and individually. Specialties: CPA, accounting, tax planning and tax preparation, new business advisor, incorporations, Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, small business accounting and tax for the hospitality, legal, hi-tech, construction and other professional services.

Jennifer Samartano

Member

Jennifer is a Prevention Specialist for Prevent Child Abuse Illinois. Her duties include collaborating, advocating, and promoting the prevention of child abuse in the Northern Region of Illinois. She is also the Program Manager for the Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Programs for PCA Illinois. She is a Certified Facilitator and Certified Instructor for the Darkness to Light’s, “Stewards of Children” child sexual abuse prevention program. She also serves on the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services Northern Region Child Death Review Team. Prior work experience includes being employed by the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office at the Child Advocacy Center. Working as a Child and Family Advocate, Jennifer worked with children impacted by child sexual abuse. Jennifer currently holds a position on the Friend’s Board of the DuPage County Children’s Advocacy Center. Jennifer also serves on the Erin’s Law Foundation Board. Jennifer has a bachelor’s degree in social work from Loyola University and also a master’s degree in Nonprofit Management & Leadership from Walden University.

Danny Langloss

Secretary

Danny Langloss is a 27-year veteran of the City of Dixon, serving 10 years as Police Chief before being promoted to City Manager in 2017. Danny is an innovative and progressive leader who specializes in creating winning cultures and championship teams fueled by the X Factor of purpose-driven ownership. Danny’s leadership has been tested by the most difficult situations. He helped lead the City of Dixon back from the $54 million Crundwell embezzlement, lead the Lee County COVID Unified Command Team, lead the City through the 2016 Dixon High School Active Shooter Incident, and has led the police department through several high profile murder investigations. One of Danny’s greatest skills is creating diverse and specialized teams to address complex issues that span across several professions. From creating public / private partnerships between local government, developers and financial institutions to accelerate community and economic development to working with state and national organizations to create several innovative programs that are alternatives to the traditional criminal justice system. He has led multiple statewide task forces and helped create “first of its kind” laws in the country to prevent child abuse “Erin’s Law” and to help those suffering from substance use disorder.   Danny has a Master’s Degree in Law Enforcement Administration.  His extensive training and experience in executive leadership, crisis / hostage negotiations and interview and interrogation have given him a deep understanding of human connection, motivation, inspiration, and influence. Danny currently serves on the P.A.A.R.I. National Police Board, and has served as the 4th Vice President of the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police and as the Erin’s Law Illinois State Task Force Chairman. He was named the State of Illinois Champion for Children in 2010, Dixon Citizen of the Year in 2013, received the P.A.A.R.I. Leadership Award in 2016, and in 2018 received the State of Illinois Justice Leadership Award for his work to serve those suffering from substance use disorder. Danny founded Langloss Consulting and the Leadership Excellence Podcast in 2020. Danny is a keynote speaker and works with companies in the public and private sector to help transform divided, fractured, and toxic cultures into cultures filled with psychological safety, belonging, purpose, empowerment, and ownership.

Julianna Margulies

Advisory Member

Julianna Margulies is an American actress. After several small television roles, Margulies received wide recognition for her starring role as Carol Hathaway in the NBC medical drama series ER (1994–2009), for which she received a Primetime Emmy Award and six Screen Actors Guild Awards, in addition to four Golden Globe Award nominations. In 2009, she took on the lead role of Alicia Florrick in the CBS legal drama series The Good Wife (2009–2016). Her performance garnered critical acclaim, winning a further two Primetime Emmy Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and a Television Critics Association Award. Margulies also had roles in the TNT miniseries The Mists of Avalon (2001), the HBO crime drama series The Sopranos (2006–2007), the National Geographic miniseries The Hot Zone (2019), and currently stars as Laura Peterson in the Apple TV+ drama series The Morning Show (2021–present). She starred in the adventure film Dinosaur (2000), the drama film Evelyn (2002), the supernatural horror film Ghost Ship (2002), the action horror film Snakes on a Plane (2006), the comedy drama film City Island (2009), the crime comedy film Stand Up Guys (2012), and the comedy drama film The Upside (2017). Margulies has received one Golden Globe Award, three Primetime Emmy Awards, and eight Screen Actor Guild Awards, making her the second most awarded woman ever within SAG after Julia Louis-Dreyfus.[2][3][4] She is also the recipient of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2015, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.[5] In 2012 Julianna presented Erin Merryn with Glamour Magazine Woman of the Year Award. It was the start of a friendship that lead to Julianna actively working alongside Erin to pass Erin’s Law in Julianna’s state of New York. They have done multiple media interviews together to bring awareness to ending child sexual abuse and pass Erin’s Law. They are working on a project now to help continue to pass Erin’s Law in the remaining states.

Emily Kuhn

Member

Emily has worked in the education field for 18 years. During those years she has been a teacher, school counselor, and a social emotional learning specialist at an educational cooperative. She has extensive experience working in schools and leading trainings across Kentucky. Emily has also coached district leaders in social emotional learning, behavior systems, and trauma informed practices. She has her master’s degree and Rank 1 in school counseling from the University of Northern Kentucky.

Eli Verschleiser

Member

Eli Verschleiser is the Chairman of the Verschleiser Family Foundation and a dedicated advocate for mental health, philanthropy, and community development. 

For over two decades, Eli has made a profound impact in the mental health sector. He is the Chairman and Co-Founder of Our Place in NY Inc., a nonprofit organization established in 1998 to support individuals struggling with substance abuse and addiction.

Through its four divisions and 15 locations, Our Place has provided critical resources and assistance to over 20,000 individuals, helping them achieve recovery and rebuild their lives. Eli’s vision and leadership continue to drive the organization’s mission of creating lasting change in the community.

In addition to his philanthropic work, Eli is a seasoned entrepreneur with a distinguished career in real estate investment and development. He has led a private real estate fund and investment banking firm, overseeing more than $10 billion in transactions.

Eli also serves on the boards of trustees for the American Jewish Congress and Magenu.org, an organization dedicated to protecting children from Child Sexual Abuse. 

A frequent commentator on political and social service issues, Eli is recognized for his insights and leadership across various industries.