Superpower: Helping others feel seen
Program Director, West Virginia Wesleyan College
Growing up in Buckhannon, Dr. Jen Randall Reyes learned early that the greatest strength of a small Appalachian town is its people. Surrounded by teachers, neighbors, and mentors who believed in her, she carried that sense of community into adulthood—even when she thought success meant leaving it behind.
After earning a master’s degree in international affairs, Randall Reyes planned to become a diplomat. But the events of September 11, 2001, reshaped her goals. She realized her true calling wasn’t navigating global politics—it was helping people heal. Nearly 20 years in trauma and addiction counseling eventually led her back home as director of the new Master of Arts in Counseling program at West Virginia Wesleyan College.
Randall Reyes, also a published author, credits two women with charting the course of her life: Buckhannon teacher Roianne Hackett, who celebrated her curiosity, and counseling mentor Dr. Christine Schimmel, who challenged the idea that success required leaving the Mountain State. “I was operating under the false assumption that I had to get out, be more, and do more,” Randall Reyes says. “I learned we need people to stay here and be passionate about where we live.”
Whether mentoring future counselors, serving with West Virginia CASA, or advocating for addiction professionals across the state, Randall Reyes sees every opportunity as a chance to pay forward the encouragement she once received.
“So much of this work is getting to do for other people what others did for me,” she says. “I want to create a ripple effect that outlives me.”
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Since 2014 WV Living magazine has been honoring West Virginia Wonder Women, amazing women who are raising the bar in their communities, serving as beacons of light in their industries, and forcing change for the greater good. WV Living is proud to celebrate these Appalachian mothers, millennials, and mavens proving that in a time full of uncertainty, divisiveness, and hate, love for one another is all we really need. No need for bulletproof bracelets or a golden lasso of truth—these women are creating a better West Virginia with their can-do attitudes and Mountain State spirit.
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