Community Engagement

My background in corporate communications and government relations, spanning a five-state area, enables me to work knowledgeably at both the local and national levels, including state and federal levels. I have decades of experience connecting people and ideas with action.

Engagement

  • I helped a nonprofit nature conservancy reach out to local and regional outdoor education experts for their feedback.

    I created and disseminated a survey, then organized the responses into a report to be presented to the board for action.

  • While working in government affairs in the financial services industry, I oversaw the donations of two former bank-owned properties to communities the bank was exiting, as a way to ease the transition out of the community.

    There were tricky conversations at times, but donating old bank branches to see a health center open in Port Orford, Ore., or move in the Morton, Wash., Police Department after their roof leaks made it all worth it.

  • After difficult decisions to close branches, I worked with communities to ensure continuity of services through onlines channels. This included work with Tillamook, Ore., and Kooskia, Idaho, communities to support a public internet hotspot for the community, and offered online banking training as well.

Political Engagement

With knowledge, humor, and the wisdom of experience, I help organizations navigate municipal, legislative, and congressional offices, including outreach, meetings, follow-up, and everything in between. Whether creating a legislative agenda, testifying at a hearing on a bill, requesting state funds in the budget process, or providing insights during the rule-making processes, I can help.

I’ve also been a trusted voice at various policy tables, discussing topics such as housing, healthcare, emergency response, economic development, cannabis policy, and more.

  • While working in healthcare policy and after producing a docutmentary series on Spokane’s homelessness crisis in 2021, I was honored to be asked to serve on incoming Mayor Lisa Brown’s transition committee on Housing and Health. This was one of 5 committees that convened 100 Spokane community leaders to surface and share ideas about the intersection of those experiencing homelessness and their overall health.

  • I was honored to serve on Spokane Country’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in March of 2020, stood up to coordinate and manage our County’s and cities response to the pandemic. As one of two representatives serving on the EOC ensuring our region’s businesses could recover, I coordinated outreach, alignment, and dissemination of the rapidly changing information from local, state, and federal sources.

    I also served on the statewide Joint Information Center (JIC) committee, which was responsible for coordinating messaging, events, and communications across the city, county, and state.

  • While working in government affairs in the financial services industry, I was fortunate to work with then-Representatives Heck (WA) and Perlmutter (CO) on moving policy that supported and provided a pathway for banks to “bank” the cannabis industry.

  • After both Washington and Oregon passed laws legalizing recreational cannabis, I was fortunate to have been supported by leaders in becoming an expert on what that meant for our industry.

    Working with the Oregon Bankers Association then-President, we co-founded the Cannabis Banking Coalition, inviting banking and related associations across the country, including leaders at the American Bankers Association (ABA) to a conversation of how to manage, among other things, the conflicts that exist (still!) between state and federal laws.

    After 14 months, we passed management of the Coalition over to the ABA, who recognized the need for the consistent conversations on this topic.