Brandee (They/She)

Brandee is a first generation Chicana from Denver, CO. When not on desk duty, they work weekends as a licensed massage therapist. It’s here where they are able to merge passion for their craft with their belief that BIPOC deserve equal access to healthcare and bodywork services.

They aim to provide trauma-informed, therapeutic, and accessible bodywork to BIPOC, while educating their clients on ways they can participate in their own somatic healing. When not at work, they spend their time playing the drums, practicing yoga, or relaxing outdoors.

Erion (He/Him)

Erion joins RNW as the co-director of Mediation, and has since created a mediation program for landlords and tenants. His hope is that people can resolve their issues with an open discussion before filing with courts and leaving a final decision in the judges’ hands. Conversely, mediation usually ends with everyone involved having more satisfactory outcomes. Erion has experience in different types of conflict resolution including, victim-offender dialogue, dissolutions, and neighbor to neighbor mediations. In his free time, Erion likes to watch sports and attend comedy shows. 

Jamila (She/Her)

Jamila is a Somali writer, educator, and community organizer currently living in Portland, Oregon. As a former public-school teacher, she is a passionate youth advocate and is invested in supporting schools on their equity journeys.

Maria (She/Her)

Maria’s passion for ending cycles of harm began as a young child. She saw how individuals, families, communities and systems repeat unlearned and unhealed lessons, which leads to cycles of harm. Life led her to Restorative Justice (RJ) and the philosophy has become a way of life more than a job. Maria has been a volunteer for the Dept. of Corrections and the Oregon Youth Authority since 2008 as a Restorative Justice Group Facilitator and as a Dialogue Facilitator for serious and violent harms. She completed her MS in Conflict Resolution from Portland State University in 2008 and joined Resolutions Northwest in 2011. She has taught college and high school classes in RJ and has been a trainer, dialogue and circle facilitator for youth, families, adults and organizations for over 12 years. She most appreciates the constant learning, unlearning and relationship building that is essential to dismantling the sticky webs of oppression.

“You can’t be neutral on a moving train.” Howard Zinn

Marita (They/Them)

Marita is a Seattle-raised queer Filipinx femme who centers equity, laughter and kindness in their work and life. Marita has worked primarily in non-profit social service organizations for the past 16 years, with a three year stint as an esthetician and makeup artist. They have experienced and witnessed the restorative power of connection, forgiveness, and moving through discomfort to heal harms, and they are energized by helping others in these ways. Marita lives with their cat, Maple, and finds joy on the tennis court and in bodies of water.

Sunsong (They/Them)

Sunsong (They/Them) is a transplant to Portland: Born in Ohio and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee. They moved to Portland in December of 1995 immediately from their experience attending Oberlin College. They started life in Portland as performer for Imago Theater; and worked in social services with developmentally disabled adults.  As a queer polyamorous mixed race intersexed person, they bring both lived experience as well as experience from a background working with Target communities to their work, especially in their recent time as an advocate and case manager for houseless youth. They have assisted and co-led trainings on racial and social justice. Before being hired on full time worked as a contractor doing mediations at Resolutions Northwest. They were a past equity informed mediation cohort member and have a dedication to building bridges across communities.

Tara (She/They)

Tara is an indigenous Chamoru who was born and raised on the island of Guam. Her passion for racial and social justice began as a young child during her travels throughout Southeast Asia, North and Central America.  She moved to Portland in 2010 to complete a degree in social work and then pursue further education in community development and social justice. During graduate school, Tara worked as a local barista at Cathedral Coffee for several years, the place where she grew in love for her local community – the St. Johns neighborhood. Her experiences working alongside underserved and underrepresented communities include being a program facilitator and trainer for youth in the Portland Metropolitan area, a community organizer and political advocate with Tearfund USA, as well as a volunteer in houseless services for the past 10 years. In 2020, Tara began working with Do Good Multnomah and eventually helped establish and manage 2 new sheltering programs during the pandemic – a motel shelter and the St. Johns Village. She also was a part of the formation of Do Good’s first DEI committee. During her years working and volunteering in houseless services, Tara became increasingly passionate about empowering others who are already change-makers in their own communities by providing tools, resources, and training. In addition to this lifelong work and passion, Tara enjoys adventuring with her fiancé Kimmy throughout the Pacific Northwest. They have a cat named Snax Boudreaux. In her free time, you can assume that Tara is swimming, climbing, hiking, camping, or curled up on the couch with her family eating nachos and watching a good movie.