Elizabeth first moved to Alaska in 2021 with her partner and husky. She likes to joke that she moved here to make her husky happy, though she fell in love with her new home almost immediately. Elizabeth lived and worked in the Interior as the director of a rural library, promoting programs for community-building, education, and inclusivity. She identified a severe lack of diverse materials in the collection and worked over the course of the next two years to fill those gaps. During this time, she enrolled at the University of Alaska Fairbanks where she became very indecisive about her major.
In early 2023, Elizabeth and her little family moved to Juneau where she assumed a number of roles. As a trans woman who has struggled with mental health all her life, she feels charged to help those who may be suffering. Elizabeth is passionate about ensuring that no person falls through the cracks and believes firmly that intervention, advocacy, and education are the keys to strengthening her community. She serves as a director for two other non-profit boards in Juneau and currently works as a case manager at a social services agency. She enjoys hiking, chess, and cooking/baking new and exciting dishes.
Elizabeth is a Junior at UAF where she is on track to graduate with degrees in both Social Work and Justice next Spring, with aspirations of pursuing her Master’s. In the meantime, she is honored to have the opportunity to serve her community in support of NAMI’s mission. She fully credits similar organizations for supporting her through some of her most difficult times and feels uniquely privileged to be able to give back to others.