Cheri Alvarez
Steering Committee Director since 2025​
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​Member (Compeer) since 2024
My Story
Cheri Alvarez is a purpose-driven leader with more than 25 years of experience transforming health and human service organizations across Western New York, USA. As CEO of Compeer Buffalo and Compeer International, she oversees strategic direction and organizational growth for mental health social support programs that operate in forty communities across four countries—supporting connection, reducing isolation, and improving mental well-being.
Holding a Master’s in Counseling Education from Canisius College in Buffalo, New York, Cheri’s career spans frontline social services to executive leadership. Her strengths include strategic planning, program development, collaborative leadership, and innovative grant implementation.
Cheri has been recognized as a Business First “40 Under 40” honoree and is a graduate of the Health Foundation for Western and Central New York’s Health Leadership Fellows Program and the University at Buffalo’s Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership.
At the heart of her work is a deep belief in the power of human connection to transform lives and communities.