As the Assistant Director of Community Engagement at Pride Foundation, Helen leads and collaborates on Pride Foundation’s annual fundraising calendar. She brings ten years of experience in social justice philanthropy, working at the intersection of political education, organizing, and fundraising. Most recently, she directed donor programs at North Star Fund, a social justice fund that supports grassroots organizing led by communities of color in New York City and the surrounding area. Helen comes to Pride Foundation with a strong commitment to mobilizing resources for social movements and the belief that everyone has a role to play in building more just and equitable communities.
Helen returned to the Pacific Northwest in 2020 to be closer to her family and community. Originally from Seattle, Helen got involved with LGBTQ youth organizing as a high school student. She later coordinated programs at Lambert House, managed an LGBTQ youth speakers bureau in King County and coordinated training for teachers and administrators across Washington State. She holds a BA in Psychology from Smith College and a Master’s in Social Work from the University of Michigan.
Helen lives in West Seattle, where she can be found hanging out at Lincoln Park and walking up and down very steep hills with anyone who will join her. She also likes to think about fashion, teach children and adults to cartwheel, and discuss what to have for dinner.
Favorite Quote: “Real poverty is the belief that the purpose of life is acquiring wealth and owning things. Real wealth is not the possession of property but the recognition that our deepest need, as human beings, is to keep developing our natural and acquired powers to relate to other human beings.” – Grace Lee Boggs
Favorite Place in the Northwest: Anywhere you can see the Olympic Mountains over Puget Sound.