For myself, being met means that we are trusted as the experts of our own stories. We are seen as the many threads of experience and identities that shape our present day lives, and we are held in unconditional positive care as we collaborate in mapping out an understanding of our stories and what are needed areas of tending and growth are.

As a Queer Trans Fat Disabled Person whose families are Hawaiin, Japanese, and White and grew up in rural Oregon in a Mormon household, I know intimately the experience of what it is to be both at the margins and under a spotlight, and the limitations that can be created in mapping out one’s self understanding.

In the years it took me me to map out my own self understanding, in my community organizing,  in my work as an advocate in youth services, housing services, and sexual and relational violence, I have been held with care and curiosity, and so, I aspire to offer that same depth of care and curiosity in my work.

I hold a critical analysis of my identities, the power and privilege I experience, and how I might leverage these experiences to be in service of reducing harm to the folks I am in community with and for whom I am a service provider.

Some of the anchors of my growth and learning are Alice Wong, Eli Clare, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna Samarsinha, and Mia Mingus.