Featured Speakers

Bam (they/them) is a national speaker, published writer and anti-racist facilitator.  Their work is informed by their lived expertise as a queer person of color and has been featured by NBC, REI, and Mountainfilm Festival.  Their NBC documentary has received over 200,000 views and their essays have been featured on the covers of Washington Trails and Mountaineer Magazine. Bam was also named the winner of the Outdoor Industry Association’s Together We are a Force award and lives on occupied Duwamish territory (Seattle, WA) with a cat named Mitzi and many (many) houseplants.

Tovah Denaro (she/her) is the founder and lead consultant of Innovative Behavioral Consulting (IBC). She began this work in 2011 through her own experience in the classroom as a Special Education teacher for youth impacted with Emotional and Behavioral Disabilities. Through her years in the classroom, she began to strategically focus on supporting youth, ages 3 to 18, who are historically minoritized; specifically, BIPOC, youth in Special Education, who are or have been incarcerated, and those that identify within the LGTBQ2IA+ community. Tovah founded IBC to ensure that any adult who supports youth has the skill and understanding to build intergenerational relationships and recognize the power that an adult/youth connection has on keeping youth engaged and in school. Tovah’s work focuses on spreading Trauma Sensitive and Culturally Responsive Mental Health practices to school districts and Community Based Organizations across the states of Washington and California, emphasizing social emotional learning and wellness systems for all. Tovah is currently a Doctoral Student through the University of Southern California in K-12 Urban Education.

Linden has had a career that included attorney, mental health counselor and college professor.  In his retirement, he works with PFLAG Skagit to support, educate about and advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, friends and allies.  His goal is to help others understand the complexities of gender which will help our community receive the respect, care and dignity that they deserve.  He is part of the Speakers Bureau and has given over a hundred trainings locally and beyond for making the world a more welcoming place for the LGBTQ+ community.

Aleksa Manila, (she/her) is a proud FilipinX immigrant and genderqueer individual from the Asia Pacific region, she brings with her social justice lens and human rights activism to raise the visibility and voice of minority populations. Her first title is Miss Gay Filipino 2001 (Filipino Community of Seattle) where she focused on the senior and elders, and intersections of the LGBTQ+ groups with the API/Filipino-American communities. HISM Olympia XXXV, ALEKSA MANILA is the 35th elected Empress of the Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle, the Olympic and Rainier Empire. She is also Miss Gay Seattle XL (2004-2005), believed to be the oldest drag title West of the Mississippi.

 

Charles P. Hoy-Ellis, PhD, MSW, LICSW, earned his undergraduate degree in psychology at Seattle University, and his master’s degree in clinical/contextual social work and his doctorate in social welfare from the University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Hoy-Ellis’ scholarship focuses on the health and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, and other nonheteronormative (LGBTQ+) individuals, families, and communities, particularly midlife and older adults. As a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker, he has more than two decades of direct practice experience providing clinical services to the LGBTQ+ community.

DeeAnna Orre is an Advocate at YES (Youth Emergency Services) of Pend Oreille County. Her job revolves around connecting youth and young adults of at-risk marginalized communities with a wide variety of resources involving housing stability, gender affirming care, and mental health amongst others. DeeAnna is also a board member of the Washington State Youth for Youth Board where she works to create better equitable services across the state. DeeAnna has dedicated her time to changing the systems that also held her back as a young queer adult. She works every day to create a better environment for everyone where they can feel safe, respected, and heard. DeeAnna is a strong-headed, stubborn person with a big heart and a lot of love. “I may be just one person, but I’m going to be the one person who unites millions.”

Roo Ramos (they/them) is an Iñupiaq, Two Spirit liberation and equity consultant and nonprofit leader with over 20 years experience in the nonprofit sector and in advocacy, activism, and systems change work. Roo spent much of their career advocating for Indigenous children, youth, and families in the school, justice, healthcare, and foster care system. They are able to advocate and organize in those spaces because of their lived experience with each of those systems. They are passionate about building communities where these systems are no longer required. They have a bachelor’s degree in journalism with a minor in Native American Studies and an MBA in healthcare management. They own Redfox Consulting and they are the staff-chosen Executive Director of Spectrum Center in Spokane. They also run the Indigenous horse program at the Urban Native Youth Organization.

Scott Swan, MS, LMHC, CN Clinical Programs Manager, Behavioral Health at Molina Healthcare. My experience has focused on working with individuals diagnosed with eating disorders, involuntarily detained adults and LGBTQIA+ youth. As a child, youth, and family therapist, I help primarily manage services for youth and families at Molina. I graduated with a Master of Science in Nutrition and Clinical Health Psychology from Bastyr University. In addition to my clinical skills, I utilize lived experience in my work, having personal mental health diagnoses and family members impacted by severe mental illness. I am a doctorate in social work student at USC focusing on closing the health gap and seeing some clients for individual work. I was born and raised in Seattle, WA, I have an identical twin, and in my free time, I hike, rock climb, and travel.

Leiyomi Preciado is a proud Filipina, Mexican, Indigenous American Transwoman who resides in Kitsap County. As a Certified Peer Counselor, Leiyomi has assisted organizations attain greater understanding of Gender Dysphoria while reinforcing evidence based practices and trauma informed care for LGBTQIA clients. As a Drag Queen, Leiyomi has dedicated her time creating community through Drag Queen Musical Bingo and Drag Queen Story Time. Leiyomi is also one of the first transwomen in Washington State to run for elected office and has been a part of various local, state, and national agencies’ board of directors.