the mufon Experiencer Research Team

our exclusive Ert team is dedicated to helping EXPERIENCERS OF alien CONTACT

Take the first step towards understanding by completing the following short questionnaire. You can confidentially share your experience with someone who can help you to find answers.

Kathleen Marden
Director of Experiencer Research

Dr. George Medich
Assistant Director of Experiencer Research
Kathleen Marden
Kathleen Marden, BA, CHt. is MUFON’s Director of Experiencer Research. She is recognized as one of the world’s leading researchers on the ET contact phenomenon. Her interest in UFOs dates back to the abduction of her aunt and uncle, Betty and Barney Hill, in 1961. Her educational background in the social sciences has shaped her interest in scientific ufology. Extensive research into the ET contact phenomenon, scholarly investigation, and her personal experiences has convinced her that Earth is being visited by technologically advanced non-human races.  

Kathy has coauthored four books, "Captured! The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Experience", "Science was Wrong" and "Fact, Fiction, and Flying Saucers", with nuclear physicist/scientific ufologist Stanton T. Friedman, and "The Alien Abduction Files", with Denise Stoner. Her essays have been published in several additional books. In 2012, she spearheaded an extensive research project, with ERT member Denise Stoner, to identify little known commonalities among experiencers. Her articles and papers have been published in the “MUFON UFO Journal”, “MUFON’s International UFO Symposium Proceedings”, “Open Minds”, “Alternate Perceptions”, and “FATE” magazines and in several books and web sites.

She has appeared on the Discovery, History, H2, National Geographic, and Destination America channels and on several documentaries. Kathleen has lectured at conferences and colleges across the United States and internationally. Kathy is associated with the Foundation for Research into Extraterrestrial Encounters as an Advisory Board member and research consultant.

You can purchase her books or read her articles at www.kathleen-marden.com.

Dr. Don C. Donderi
Experiencer Research Team  Member

Dr. Don C. Donderi
Don Donderi is a retired Associate Professor of Psychology at McGill University in Montreal, and a former Associate Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research at McGill. He is also the co-founder and Principal Consultant of a Toronto-based human factors and ergonomics consulting firm. Donderi earned his undergraduate degrees (B.A. and B. Sc.) from the University of Chicago and his Ph.D. in experimental psychology from Cornell University. While a graduate student at Cornell, he worked for IBM to develop radar navigation displays for the B-52 bomber. His basic research interests are in human memory, perception and thinking, and his applied work has included projects in marine navigation, naval architecture, nuclear power plant operation, agricultural inspection, computer interface design, and aviation human factors. He is the co-author of a psychology textbook, editor of a second textbook, author of over one hundred research papers and technical reports; and most recently, of UFOs, ETs, and Alien Abductions: A
Scientist Looks at the Evidence (Hampton Roads Press, 2013).

Ann Castle
Experiencer Research Team Member

Ann Castle
Ann Castle has a BA in psychology and originally worked in her field of study as a group therapy leader in psychiatric hospitals. Her second career was in information technology, which culminated as an IT Director. Ann has had multiple UFO sightings, and for over 30 years has been researching UFOs and the experiencer phenomenon. She has helped experiencers in Texas and Florida to process and integrate their unique history into their lives. She has been a MUFON field investigator for approximately four years; she has written numerous articles for the Journal of Abnormal Abduction Research (JAAR); and she is active in the Jacksonville ET Abduction/Experiencer Support Group. Ann is a clairvoyant who researches consciousness and the quantum field. She has teamed with law enforcement in four countries and has found dozens of missing persons and other targets. Her interests in UFOs and missing persons culminated in her novel, Captured Souls, which combines facts she encountered in her UFO and missing persons investigations. Ann is in Toastmaster’s International and frequently speaks to organizations. She is available for interviews and speaking engagements. 

Ann has a website at: www.anncastle.net

FRED LANE
Experiencer Research Team Member

FRED LANE
 Fred Lane is retired from the City of Erie where he was an electrician assistant and an instrumentation specialist.  He earned his Bachelor Degree in Social Work from Gannon University in Erie, PA.  He has also completed classes in Public Relations and Sales and Management.
Fred has been an ice hockey coach for boys and girls ranging in age from youth hockey to college level, finishing his career as head coach for the D-2 Mercyhurst Men’s Hockey Team.  In the past he has been involved in coaching clinics in the U.S. and Canada.

Fred has been a member of MUFON for several years and is currently an investigator and State Section Director.  He has been instrumental in planning the Pennsylvania MUFON conference held in Erie since 2013.

Fred is also involved in a number of community activities; educational programming for youth, organization of charity football games and initiating a neighborhood lending library housed on his front porch.  He has also actively involved in numerous political campaigns.

MADELEINE (MADY) TOBIAS
Experiencer Research Team Member

MADELEINE (MADY) TOBIAS
Madeleine (Mady) Tobias is a retired psychotherapist who worked with veterans with PTSD from combat trauma and sexual abuse. She had also been in private practice since 1981 and is a Clinical Specialist in Adult Psychiatric and Mental Health Counseling. She holds a Master’s of Science Degree in Education/Counseling.

Mady became a MUFON Field Investigator in 2016 and was immediately drawn to helping experiencers and those affected by their exposure to the UFO phenomena. She has had a lifelong interest in ufology and the paranormal. She is the author of books and articles on helping those recovering from experiences with mind control in destructive cults. She sees many similarities in the aftereffects of both destructive cults and abduction experiences.
MARCIE KLEVENS
EXPERIENCER RESEARCH TEAM MEMBER
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​Marcie Klevens, MA, LMHCA is a psychotherapist in Seattle who specializes in working with paranormal experiencers, as well as, people going through spiritual awakening. Marcie is trained in both hypnotherapy and EMDR, which are both outstanding tools to help people recover memory and process and move through trauma. Marcie has done extensive research into the contact and other paranormal phenomena over the last twenty-five years, as she grappled with a lifetime of paranormal experiences. Being a life-long experiencer herself has enabled her to see first-hand the transformative nature of these and other non-ordinary experiences. With determination she was able to move through the fear and into empowerment and it is her mission to help others do the same. She has facilitated the Washington State Paranormal/UFO Encounter Support Group for the last 5 years and believes in the need for community through these life-changing
encounters. She is currently accepting new clients in her private practice in Seattle
at Open Box Counseling www.openboxcounseling.com.
PR. FRED KOHLER
EXPERIENCER RESEARCH TEAM MEMBER
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Pr. Fred Kohler holds a Associate's degree from Vision International University and a Master of Arts degree. In addition to this he has many certificates in Biblical Studies. He is the author of two books "Planting the Seed" and "1 God, Faith and Baptism," and is currently working on a new book with an experiencer whose case he investigated. Fred holds many titles at MUFON, including ERT, Certified Field Investigator, Certified Star Team Member,  Case Editor for the Communication Department, and Administrator Manager for CAG. He is State Director of Alaska, Maryland, Mississippi, District of Columbia, & South Dakota, and is the Assistant State Director of Idaho.  

Fred was employed by the USPS for 30 years and retired in 2013. Thereafter, he joined MUFON. His interests include UFO/abduction cases, helping those with abduction issues through their religious faith, woodworking, billiards, showing his 2014 Mustang, and reading the Holy Bible. Fred resides in Altoona, PA, with his wife and their puppy Tiberius.
 Dr. George Medich
George is a former professional athlete who spent 10 years in the Major Leagues as a pitcher for the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, Texas Rangers, and Milwaukee Brewers. During the off season, while playing professional baseball he attended the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Medicine. After completing his baseball career in 1982, he did an orthopedic  residency at the University of Pittsburgh followed by a Sports Medicine Fellowship with Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, Alabama.

After retirement from clinical practice, he pursued his love of astronomy becoming an amateur astronomer supplemented by university courses in Astrophysics. His curiosity about the UFO phenomenon led to his Field Investigator training with MUFON and an appointment as a Section State Director for Pennsylvania and ERT member. He also participated on MUFON’s  Anomalous Foreign Body Removal Protocol Team.  

His interest in alien abduction was fostered by years of medical practice, a strong background in physics and astronomy and an interest in UFO phenomena. 

Denise Stoner
ASSISTANT TO THE ERT DIRECTORS

Denise Stoner
Denise M. Stoner has an educational background in business and psychology, and iscertified hypnotist specializing in regressive hypnosis. She has taught classes in stress reduction for 12+ years for professionals in such fields as medicine and law.

For 12 years Denise did back ground investigations for the military on recruits seeking highly classified clearances for work on nuclear submarines. Prior to retirement, Denise moved to the Naval Air Warfare Center, Training Systems Division, military research facility where she was the training coordinator for several hundred military and civilian employees.  Denise is a retired S.C.U.B.A. instructor, cave diver and former research member of the National Speleological Society Cave Diving Section.

Denise has appeared on TV and over 100 radio shows in the US, UK, and Australia and has lectured throughout Florida and on the east coast. She has worked as an on-camera expert for documentaries produced in the UK. She is coauthor of The Alien Abduction Files with Kathleen Marden and participated in the “Marden-Stoner Experiencer Commonalities Study”.

Denise has a website at: www.denisemstoner.com

Dr. Robert Upson
Experiencer Research Team  Member

Dr. Robert Upson
Robert Upson, DCH, CH, CI has a Doctorate of Clinical Hypnotherapy (DCH) from American Pacific University. He is a member of the National Guild of Hypnotists and practices as a consulting hypnotist (CH) and is a Certified Trainer/ Instructor (CI) for the Guild.

He has been practicing hypnosis for over 20 years. He has performed many Past-Life regressions, Memory Recall including many Experiencer regressions and helped clients with Weight Loss, Smoking Cessation, Anxiety and other issues with positive results. He is also a certified practitioner of the Sheila Granger Virtual Gastric Band program.

Robert has been a student of Ufology for over 50 years, is a Field Investigator and a Star Team member. He is also a certified paranormal investigator and is a licensed Professional Engineer in Florida and New York.

Contact Robert at http://www.hypnofl.com/about_us.htm or Bob@HypnoFL.com.

Gwen Farrell
Experiencer Research Team Member

Gwen Farrell
Gwen Farrell is a certified hypnotherapist specializing in experiencer therapy and an intuitive counselor.  She facilitates private experiencer support groups and has co-facilitated groups at the International UFO Congress.  She is a member of MUFON, an ex-field investigator and case consultant. As an author, she has written articles for the MUFON UFO Journal, the Organization for Paranormal Understanding and Support (OPUS), the Foundation for Research into Extraterrestrial Encounters (FREE) and the Journal for Abduction Research (JAR), where she serves on the Board of Editors. She maintains a blog – etcontact-healing.blogspot.com. In addition, she is a CE-5 contact/consciousness researcher and a life-long experiencer.

KATHLEEN LANE
Experiencer Research Team Member

KATHLEEN LANE
Kathleen Lane is a retired elementary teacher and principal.  She worked for the Diocese of Erie in Pennsylvania for 34 years.  Kathleen earned her Bachelor Degree in Social Work from Lock Haven University, her Elementary Certification from Edinboro University, and a Masters in Educational Leadership with a Certification in Administration from Gannon University all in Pennsylvania.

She has been a member of MUFON for three years and an investigator for two years.  She and her husband have been on the planning committee for the MUFON conference in Erie, PA since its inception in 2014.  Kathleen has had an interest in UFO’s for over 40 years.

Kathleen is involved in many community activities to educate the public about the mission and purpose of MUFON.  She is active in the community and volunteers as a docent at the Erie Zoo and serves as a political poll worker among other involvements.
THEODORE BLOCH
EXPERIENCER RESEARCH TEAM MEMBER

Theodore Bloch is an attorney who retired after 32 years of federal service. He is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar.
JOHN BUDRYS
EXPERIENCER RESEARCH TEAM MEMBER
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John Budrys has a BA in Psychology and a MSA with concentration in International Business. He has additional training in numerous psychological disciplines, manufacturing philosophies, shamanic and metaphysical techniques, regression hypnosis, woodworking, and audio.
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John worked a number of years as a counselor/group therapist for several organizations. He then worked a few years as custom furniture maker and wood model maker. He is retired (civilian) from the US Army as a specialist in manufacturing equipment, production process improvement, and technical negotiator for Abrams Tank and other vehicle contracts. Subsequently he was asked by several DOD organizations to return as a consultant on various vehicle programs, most notably the MRAP vehicle production and repair process. He spends his free time as a volunteer Field Investigator for MUFON and Researcher with this ERT. He is also enjoying investigating paranormal topics, supporting animal rights, creative woodworking, audio speaker designs, and his grandchildren.
JONATHAN SCHWARTZ
EXPERIENCER RESEARCH TEAM MEMBER
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​Jonathan Schwartz is a MUFON Field Investigator for the state of New York. He interests encompass a broad array of topics that range from ufology and parapsychology to cryptozoology. His interest in these areas of research began at a young age. He finds consciousness to be fundamental within these fields. Jonathan is also investigating the evidence for the survival of consciousness beyond death. He is currently earning a degree in Communications and is a member of the Forever Family Foundation and Parapsychology Association.
 
He is also a licensed Amateur Radio operator and holds four FEMA certifications for emergency communications preparedness and response. As an accomplished pianist, he has trained at the Manhattan School of Music and has performed at music festivals around the world. Jonathan has also studied Scoring for Film and Composition at the Juilliard School’s Evening Division.
MARIA MUELLER
EXPERIENCER RESEARCH TEAM MEMBER
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​Maria Mueller has a BA in Modern Languages and professional experiences as an interpreter / translator in various international corporations, followed by a career in project management for R & D engineering departments in the automotive industry. She is a member and Field Investigator at MUFON CES Germany, as well as MUFON International, and is listed as an experiencer support provider for the Edgar Mitchell Foundation for Research into Extraterrestrial and Extraordinary Encounters (FREE).

Since 2013 Maria’s own experiences in paranormal phenomena have led her into deeper research of these aspects.
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Her utmost concern is to contribute to a better understanding as well as acceptance of experiencers and the connected phenomena. She represents our Experiencer Research Team for German and English speaking countries in Europe.