About Us

Our Board

President: Juliet Sharrow VP: Bryan Sharrow

Treasurer: Rebecca Hinchman Secretary: Dana-Jo Pearl

Members: Anne Acker, Stephen Miller

About the President/Founder/Executive Director

Juliet Sharrow's passion to help broken women flows from the pain of her own past. She is a survivor of domestic violence, homelessness, and attempted suicide. But her story didn't end there. Today, through Thrive, she works with victims on their survival journey while helping to meet their ongoing needs, giving them hope, and sharing the love and grace that God has so lavishly blessed her with. She shares her story and her pain to help others find their voice and she knows that together we can help victims not just survive but Thrive!

In addition to her personal experience, Juliet spent the last 7 years working with victims, in partnership with many local agencies. Juliet is a member of the Adams County & York County Domestic Violence Task Forces. She is also a board member of the Adams Rescue Mission. Juliet has spoken at organizations and churches throughout PA; including speaking as part of mandatory Police training for both state and local police. She also speaks as part of Resilient Voices, a speakers' bureau through the PA Office of Victim Advocate, hoping to impact legislature to better help victims of abuse.

About the Vice President

Bryan Sharrow currently serves on our board as Vice-President. His passion for helping victims stems from his own journey walking alongside his wife, Juliet (our Founder & President) as she healed from her own domestic violence experience. Bryan’s encouragement and support were vital to her ability to overcome and eventually move on to a place where she can help others like her.

Bryan was instrumental in the founding of Thrive and remains a crucial member of our team. He is an all around fun-loving and kind-hearted guy, while also making our clients feel safe and protected. He is willing to help wherever needed, from moving clients, to doing car repairs, to doing work around the building; he is always there to lend a helping hand.

His tireless efforts over the last several years enabled us to move hundreds of clients into new homes safe from abuse. He served as our sole trailer driver until recently and assisted on every client move up to that point. He is truly an unsung hero.

About the Secretary

Twenty-five years ago Dana-Jo Pearl and her husband Henry were considering a move to Hanover, Pennsylvania for a great job opportunity. They were both born and raised in New Jersey and this was a huge life decision for them. They wanted to learn more about the community where they would be living, so they started to read the Evening Sun newspaper to get a sense of what life would be like. They had questions about the school system, the crime rate, drug use and access to the cultural arts. Back then they published a police blotter listing all the police activity and fire and EMS calls for the week. Dana-Jo was shocked to read about the number of domestic dispute altercations reported, but she was not personally worried about these crimes being a threat to her family.

Fast forward twenty-three years. Dana-Jo retired from working as a Reading Paraeducator in the South Western School District. While working in the elementary schools she was exposed to the damage many of these children experienced witnessing the violence and instability in their homes. Both of their daughters were living out on their own, and she wanted to volunteer somewhere hoping to make a difference. Then the issue of domestic violence became more personal. At the time a dear friend of hers was dealing with domestic abuse and told her about Thrive, a non-profit that assists victims of domestic violence. She contacted Juliet to see how she could help, and the rest is history. She started helping in the warehouse sorting and cleaning donations, assisting with fundraising and now currently sits on the board as Treasurer.

She has become a huge supporter of this organization because she feels so strongly in the mission. She has learned so much in the past year and a half and is passionate about doing what she can to help support these victims on their journey to live in a safe environment.

Dana-Jo currently serves on the boards of South Western Dollars for Scholars, and the South Hanover YMCA Advisory. She likes being involved in different areas of charitable giving and decision making in our community.

She graduated from C.W. Post College, Long Island University with a BA in Criminal Justice, and worked as a Social Work Counselor in a juvenile detention facility. She has always connected herself to areas where she can help others improve their quality of life. Working with Thrive has been a fulfilling and educational experience.

About Anne Acker- Board Member

While serving as Director of YWCA Hanover Safe Home for victims of domestic violence, Anne Acker met Juliet, the current Executive Director of Thrive. Juliet was in an abusive relationship seeking services from the program. After leaving her abuser and becoming a survivor, Juliet’s passion to serve the community led her to assist Safe Home as a volunteer in the mission of providing services to domestic violence victims. Several years ago, Juliet came full circle through founding an agency serving survivors of intimate violence, and invited Anne to serve on the Thrive Board of Directors.

Prior to working at Safe Home, Anne served as a Career Development Specialist in Massachusetts for thirteen years, providing counseling to a diversified client base, securing government funding, and developing curricula. Upon relocating to York County after her husband retired from the Air Force, she worked as a case manager at Community Progress Council assessing housing needs of economically disadvantaged individuals and coordinating services with other providers. Through holding these positions, Anne was able to identify a common thread woven throughout the backgrounds of her female clientele that prevented them from successfully attending school, seeking employment and childcare and finding and maintaining housing. This thread was the terrible crime of domestic violence.

When offered the directorship of Safe Home, she was able to apply all she had learned about intimate abuse and grow and develop the required skills to steer Safe Home through good and bad times. She was frustrated when there was not enough funding or the grants were too prescriptive to provide critical services and items so desperately needed by those leaving dangerous relationships. This is where Thrive steps in and excels in supporting survivors in so many ways that domestic violence organizations are unable to do. She is proud to serve on the Board of Thrive and feels that it is a perfect fit for her. 

During her tenure as Safe Home Director, Anne served as co-chair of the York County Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team, member of both York and Adams County Task Forces, the York County Victim/Witness Policy Board, Family Issues Round Table and Victims’ Rights Coalition. She has a B.A. in Psychology from Gettysburg College and an M. Ed. in Guidance Counseling from McDaniel College. 

Living Unshackled ON Purpose host Jennifer Foxworthy interviews guest, Juliet Sharrow for domestic violence awareness month during October 2021.

Partner Agencies

Thrive partners with many agencies in our service area which extends out from York, Adams, Franklin, and Fulton counties in Pennsylvania to include Hanover, McSherrystown, Littlestown, New Oxford, East Berlin, Hampton, Biglerville, Bonneauville, Gettysburg, Chambersburg, Lemoyne, Spring Grove, York, Dover, Glen Rock, Manchester, and more.