Mark DeStefano, Lieutenant (Ret.)

President, BlueLine Support

Lieutenant (ret) Mark DeStefano is a 48-year law enforcement veteran who retired from active service in 2021. During his career he worked uniform patrol division, investigations, tac squad, and SRO. He was also a Sgt over numerous units and watch commander when he retired.  

Mark is a graduate of the University of Central Florida with a BS in social science with a minor in Criminal Justice. Also, during his career, he attended numerous in service training classes, including Command Officer Development Course through the University of Louisville and Public Safety leadership through Valencia College.  

He is a founding member of BlueLine Support and is a trained Peer 2 Peer Officer. He is also the team coordinator for the West Orange Law Enforcement CISM team.  

Mark is always available to work with his fellow officers, support personnel, and their families.  

Sara Swarthout

Vice President, BlueLine Support & PSO Director

Sara Swarthout has been a Police Officer for 14 years with the City of Ocoee Police Department. She has held the positions of Patrol officer and Police Detective. She earned a certificate for Crisis Intervention training in 2009, she is a certified hostage negotiator, and is on the West Orange Critical Incident Stress Management Team. She is currently attending Southern New Hampshire University and previously obtained an A.S degree in Criminal Justice. 

She has been involved with BlueLine Support since 2016, and the Vice President since 2020. Sara has a passion for mental health and has always been willing to help her fellow officer stay on the right track mentally.

David San Filippo, Ph.D.

Clinical Director & Treasurer, BlueLine Support

Dr. San Filippo is an educator and counselor. He teaches courses and seminars in health care administration & management, research methodology, human services, post-traumatic stress, thanatology, bereavement, and near-death experiences.

Dr. David San Filippo earned his Ph.D. in Human Science from Saybrook University. He is a licensed mental health counselor, certified disability management specialist, accredited disability representative, and serves as the Clinical Director of BlueLine Support, a peer-to-peer support service for law enforcement personnel and their families. He is a Mental Health Consultant to the West Orange County, FL Critical Incident Stress Management team. Dr. San Filippo’s mental health counseling practice focuses on post-traumatic stress injuries, suicide awareness and prevention, and bereavement issues.

Adam Lafon, Officer First Class

Secretary, BlueLine Support

OFC LaFan is a Central Florida native who has spent most of his life in the Orlando area. He attended the Police Academy at Valencia’s Criminal Justice Institute in 2008 and started his law enforcement career at the Edgewood Police Department in 2010. 

Although his primary function at Edgewood is with the Patrol Unit, OFC LaFan holds many hats within his department. He writes department policies, is an active instructor and has been heavily involved with Edgewood’s accreditation process for the past five years; taking on the title of Accreditation Manager in May 2017. He has also participated in many assessments as a CFA Assessor.

OFC LaFan is also an advocate for Law Enforcement Mental Health and volunteers his time with BlueLine Support as a Peer Support Officer & an Executive Board Member. 

Matt Lonam, Ph.D.

Born in Washington, D.C., raised in Germany and Italy as well as the United States, 

Dr. Lonam received his undergraduate degree in Political Science from Loyola College in Baltimore, Maryland; his M.A. in Tourism Development from The George Washington University; and a Ph.D. from the University of Missouri in Higher and Adult Education.

Dr. Lonam is a lifelong professional in the hospitality and tourism industry with hospitality experiences ranging from front desk agent and night auditor to director of sales, food and beverage and hotel general manager.  One of his specialties is in hotel information systems; at one time he was the chief installer of a pioneering hotel front office and accounting system when local area networking was a new phenomenon.

Dr. Lonam’s teaching career began with adjunct assignments at the Community College of Baltimore, Montgomery Junior College and Nova Community College while working as sales, food and beverage director for hotels in the Washington, D.C. area.  He began his full-time teaching career as professor of hotel information systems at Johnson & Wales College in Rhode Island, participated in the founding of the hotel school at Northern Arizona University, and received his doctorate while teaching hotel and restaurant management at the University of Missouri.  

Since receiving his doctorate, Matt Lonam has served as vice-president (Latin America, based in Mexico City) for the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, Associate Director of GW’s online master of tourism program and currently teaches graduate leadership studies courses in UC’s master and doctoral degree programs.

Keith Tower, Ph.D.c.

Keith Tower has been working in support of law enforcement since becoming a private practice mental health counselor in 2001.  He currently serves 5 agencies as part of the CISM team for West Orange County, Florida and serves as a chaplain for the Ocoee (FL) Police Department.  Keith is a PhD candidate in Organizational Leadership and has a master’s degree in mental health counseling.  Keith is the Senior Pastor of HighPoint Church and Director of HighPoint Counseling in Ocoee, FL.  He leads leadership seminars for businesses, sports teams, and community organizations around the world.

Keith played professional basketball for 7 years, with the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks, and backing up Shaquille O’Neal with the Orlando Magic.  Keith and his family reside in Windermere, FL.  An avid traveler, Keith has been to 64 different nations and 49 of the 50 US states.  When not working, Keith can be found cheering on Notre Dame football, relaxing on a boat, or reading a good book.

Tom Cronin, Captain

Tom Cronin is a faithful Catholic, and a dedicated husband and father. His law enforcement career began twenty plus years ago with the Winter Park Police Department (WPPD). While with the WPPD, Tom was a officer, detective and task force agent (TFA) serving as a TFA with the Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration and United States Department of Homeland Security. Currently, Tom is a sworn law enforcement Captain with the Attorney General’s office overseeing Florida’s Central Region.