Rooted in Experience. Driven by Compassion.
Hi, I’m Christina Riley, Executive Director of the TFL Care Initiative. As a military spouse with a background in health insurance and benefits, I’ve seen firsthand just how overwhelming healthcare and coverage decisions can become—especially when military benefits, Medicare, retirement, and major life transitions begin to overlap.
My interest in Tricare For Life actually began years ago when I knew a fellow military spouse who became eligible for TFL much younger than I expected. At the time, I didn’t really understand what Tricare For Life was or why someone our age would have it. I simply wanted to know more.
Later, when I began working in health insurance and benefits, I realized just how complex these systems can be. Tricare has its own rules, Medicare has another set, and your coverage can change significantly depending on your age, military status, retirement, disability-related Medicare eligibility, and other life circumstances. Even people who have spent decades in the military community can suddenly find themselves trying to understand an entirely new set of benefits.
That realization eventually led me to create a small Facebook group focused on helping people navigate Tricare For Life. I honestly wasn’t sure how much interest there would be, especially since most people transitioning to TFL are age 65 and older. It quickly became clear, though, that there was a real need. Retirees joined, but so did spouses, caregivers, and family members trying to help someone they love. People weren’t just looking for information—they were looking for clear explanations, trustworthy resources, and a place where they could ask questions without feeling overwhelmed.
What began as a Facebook group grew into something much bigger and ultimately became the TFL Care Initiative. Service has always been an important part of my life. I’ve served on Family Readiness Group boards, worked as a Navy ombudsman, and today I also teach courses in nonprofit management, human resources, and organizational leadership as an adjunct instructor.
Each of those experiences has taught me something different about advocacy, education, leadership, and the importance of helping people find the resources they need. Our heart remains deeply rooted in serving military retirees and their families age 65 and older as they navigate Medicare and Tricare For Life. But as our community has grown, so has our ability to help.
Today, the TFL Care Initiative supports military-connected individuals and families through many seasons of military life. That might mean helping a new military family understand Tricare for the first time, helping an active-duty family navigate a benefit question, supporting a service member preparing to transition into retirement, or walking alongside a retiree or caregiver trying to make sense of Medicare and Tricare For Life. No matter the season, our purpose remains the same: to make complicated information easier to understand, connect military families with trustworthy resources, and help people feel more confident navigating the benefits available to them. You shouldn’t have to become an expert in an entire benefits system just to understand your own coverage. Sometimes you simply need someone willing to help you make sense of it.
I’m so glad you’ve found us.
Christina Riley
Founder & Executive Director
Our Mission
To guide military retirees and their families through the transition from Tricare to Tricare for Life and Medicare with clarity and compassion.
Our Vision
That every service member and their loved ones can confidently navigate Tricare for Life, with peace of mind and the support they deserve.
Our Board
Randy Powers
Chair/President
Randy is a retired U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer who proudly served 24 years in the Surface Navy community. Throughout his military career and into retirement, service has remained an important part of who he is and how he chooses to give back to others.
Today, Randy remains deeply involved in his local community, with a special heart for serving veterans and families in need. He volunteers with Quilts of Valor, helping honor and provide comfort to service members and veterans through the presentation of handmade quilts. He is also an active member of his local quilt guild, where his service has included creating and donating quilts for organizations such as Hasbro Children’s Hospital and Project Linus, which provides handmade blankets to children who are seriously ill, experiencing trauma, or otherwise in need of comfort.
Randy is also actively involved in his church, where he serves as a greeter and with the food pantry ministry. Beyond these roles, he regularly participates in other community outreach efforts, continuing to look for opportunities to serve wherever there is a need.
Randy brings this heart for service, along with 24 years of military leadership and nonprofit experience, to his role as Chair/President of the Tricare for Life Care Initiative. As a veteran who has remained closely connected to the veteran and military community, he understands the importance of making sure military retirees and their families have access to reliable information, meaningful support, and people willing to advocate alongside them.
For Randy, serving others is more than a role—it is a passion that has carried through his military career, his church, his community, and now his leadership with TFLCI. He is proud to continue that service by helping further our mission to educate, support, and advocate for military retirees and their families.
Lee Anne Hestness
Treasurer
Lee Anne’s connection to the military spans nearly her entire adult life, giving her the unique perspective of both a Navy veteran and a longtime military spouse. She enlisted in the U.S. Navy after high school and served aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) as an Aviation Administrationman (AZ3). During her service, she earned her Aviation Warfare designation, served as a Rapid Response Fireman on the ship’s Flying Squad, and was named the Aviation Intermediate Maintenance Department’s Junior Sailor of the Year. With her father also having served in the U.S. Navy, military service has been an important part of her family for generations.
Following her own time in uniform, Lee Anne’s connection to military life continued as a military spouse. For nearly 18 years, she has supported her husband, an active-duty Navy Senior Chief and Aviation Warfare Systems Operator (AWO). Together, they have raised two sons while navigating the moves, sacrifices, challenges, and opportunities that come with military family life.
Today, Lee Anne works as a clerk and probation courtroom liaison in the Criminal Department at the Clay County Courthouse. She is also a photographer and small business owner through Sunflower Shift Photography. Her love of photography extends into her church community, where she serves as a member of the photography team.
Lee Anne’s personal journey has also shaped the compassion and perspective she brings to serving others. With more than seven years of sobriety, she understands firsthand the importance of resilience, second chances, and having people in your corner during difficult seasons. Her recovery has strengthened her passion for encouraging others, meeting people where they are, and reminding them that they do not have to navigate life’s challenges alone.
Lee Anne chose to serve on the TFL Care Initiative Board of Directors because she understands military life from multiple perspectives—as a veteran, the daughter of a veteran, and a longtime military spouse. Those experiences, along with her own personal journey, have shaped her belief that supporting the military community means caring for the whole person and recognizing the families who serve alongside them. Through TFLCI, Lee Anne brings her military experience, community perspective, compassion for others, and belief in the power of second chances to help ensure military retirees and their families feel informed, supported, heard, and never alone as they navigate the challenges that can come during and after military service.
F. “Michelle” Conerly
Secretary
Michelle is a U.S. Navy veteran who served from 2017 to 2025 as a Second Class Petty Officer in the Master-at-Arms community, the Navy’s military law enforcement field. Her time in the Navy strengthened her commitment to leadership, teamwork, and serving others, particularly fellow service members, veterans, and military families.
Today, Michelle is a substitute teacher and Assistant Track Coach at Orange Park High School. She is also the Founder and Head Coach of the North Florida Road Runners Track & Field Club, where she mentors and develops young athletes both on and off the track. Prior to these roles, Michelle served her community as a 911 Dispatcher with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
Michelle is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Applied Physiology and Kinesiology with a concentration in Human Performance at the University of Florida. Her graduate studies include a focus on human performance, injury prevention, and evidence-based coaching.
Her commitment to serving others extends into her church community, where she sings as a member of the worship team. She is also passionate about helping young athletes develop confidence, discipline, and resilience and hopes to continue expanding access to athletic opportunities and health education within her community.
Michelle chose to serve on the TFL Care Initiative Board of Directors as another way to continue supporting the military community. Having experienced military life firsthand, she understands the unique challenges service members, veterans, and their families can face and the importance of having access to reliable information, resources, and advocacy. As Secretary, Michelle is honored to help advance TFLCI’s mission and continue serving a community that means so much to her.
Disclaimer: TFL Care Initiative is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the Department of Defense, the Defense Health Agency, or the official Tricare For Life program.
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