HIV ALLIANCE - Key Persons

My name is Jayden Ruff (she/her). I have been living on Oregon's southern coast for the past five years. I am originally from Roberta, Georgia, a two-red-light town that is surrounded by peach growers. My advocacy is centered around mitigating QTBIPOC issues, and barriers to food access, and helping in the creation of safe spaces for marginalized communities. I currently serve as Vice-Chair of United Way of Southwestern Oregon, and Co-Chair of Southern Oregon Coast Pride and I am so excited to be able to represent Coos and Curry County as a member of the Board of Directors for HIV Alliance. I have been volunteering with HIV Alliance for almost as long as I have been in Oregon and have been impressed since the day we crossed paths, I believe in our mission, and the support HIV Alliance offers Oregonians.

Jayson Garcia

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Resident Services Specialist, Eugene

Jereth Anderson

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Coordinator

Jerry Kovac

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Member of the Board

Jesse Quinn

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Member of the Board
Research Assistant

Jesse Quinn worked a Graduate Research Assistant with the Division of Equity and Inclusion and the Center on Diversity and Community during his time in grad school. He has formerly served as the Assistant Director of LGBT Education and Support Services, a Graduate Teaching Fellow for the Bias Response Team, and an Assistant to the Associate Dean of Students. As a master's candidate in Nonprofit Management through the school of Planning, Public Policy and Management, Jesse graduated in spring 2018 and is searching for positions dedicated to supporting members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Jessica Higgs

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Coordinator

Johanna Thompson

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Peer Support Specialist, Eugene

Jonathan Duncan

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Services Manager

Jordan Bennett

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HR Assistant, Eugene

Justin Robinson

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Community Health Worker

Karina Payne

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Coordinator

Karlee Carlson

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Prevention Specialist, Roseburg

Kate Craig

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Support Specialist

Keith Mathew

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Coordinator

Kelly Mahan

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IT Coordinator, Eugene

Kiyomi Manabe

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Care Coordinator, Eugene

Kyle Rodriguez-Hudson

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Member of the Board

Kyle is a licensed clinician and founder of A Guided You, LLC, an outpatient mental health private practice in Eugene, Oregon, that specializes in working with BIPOC & LGBTQIA+ communities. In addition, Kyle has worked with individuals who struggle with severe persistent mental illness. Kyle utilizes trauma-informed and evidence-based care to ensure that the marginalized and disenfranchised are seen and heard. Kyle is also the Executive Director of TransPonder, a trans/gender-diverse founded and led nonprofit, located in Eugene, Oregon, who provides support, resources, and education for and about the trans/gender-diverse community and its allies. Kyle earned his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Northeastern Illinois University, a Master of Arts in Community Counseling from Argosy University, and a Master in Business Administration, with a concentration in Healthcare Administration from Concordia University. In addition to, his current board membership, Kyle currently sits on the Health Equality Committee for the Oregon Health Policy Board and on the Clinical Advisory Panel of the Lane Community Health Council. Kyle has made it his life goal to be an advocate and conduit for the voiceless and the underserved in whatever capacity that he can, and do so in the most humbling way. His mantra: Everyday is a teaching moment.

Larry Howell

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Services Manager

Laura Davis

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HR Specialist, Eugene

Laura Henry

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Executive / Finance / HR Assistant, Eugene

Laura Montoya

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Coordinator

Leah Jo Figueroa Carnine

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Physician Assistant, Eugene

Leigh Goldstein

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Care Coordinator, Medford

Leilani Perez

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Support Specialist

Lena Wiggins

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Support Specialist

Lexi Sylvester

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Community Engagement Manager

Lisa Kennedy

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Support Specialist

Marcia Solis

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Administrative Assistant

Marie Dorsey

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Member of the Board
Staff Pharmacist at Sacred Heart Medical Center

Marie Dorsey is currently a Staff Pharmacist at Sacred Heart Medical Center and a certified HIV Pharmacist through the American Academy of HIV Pharmacists. Previously Marie has worked as Clinical Pharmacist with HIV Alliance and was instrumental in the development of our medication adherence program. She was the principal investigator on our Rural Tele-Health Pilot. She earned a Bachelor of Science with honors in Microbiology and went on to the OSU Doctor of Pharmacy Program in 2007 and earned the Distinguished Young Pharmacist of the Year award in 2013. Marie has a passion for HIV care and innovative pharmacy initiatives.

Marta Lopez

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Support Specialist

Maxine Howell

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Support Specialist

Michaela Starr O'Leary

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Director

Michelle Tambellini

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Receptionist / File Clerk, Eugene

Nicole Dianda-Smith

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Purchasing Specialist, Eugene

Nokay Wester

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Support Specialist

Olivia Stankey

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HR & Operations Director

Omar Al Rais

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President of the Board

Omar Al Rais, MBA, MBChB, D Pharmacology, is the Vice President of Operations at Project Access NOW; before joining PANOW, Omar served as the Director of Affiliate Quality and Compliance at Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon, where he led the affiliate risk, quality, compliance, and patient experience efforts. Omar has a deep and varied background in medical care, policy, and quality improvement, including most recently earning an MBA in Healthcare Management from OHSU/PSU in 2019. Previously, he practiced as a medical doctor in Iraq and Jordan as a resident in otolaryngology. Subsequently, he earned a degree in Molecular Pharmacology, where his research focused on the correlation between alterations in DNA Damage and Repair genes and patient responses to chemotherapy. Demonstrating his commitment to mission-driven community service, his experience includes performance improvement with Planned Parenthood, equity outreach at Cascade AIDS Project, and being an Oregon community board member of Comagine Health. Omar is committed to eliminating health disparities. He is utilizing his past medical experience to help underserved and at-risk populations to overcome barriers in accessing equitable healthcare.

Paul Hempel

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Treasurer of the Board

Paul Hempel is currently retired. Past work includes being a consultant with experience in senior management in the areas of legal functions, leadership and organizational development functions, human resources function, corporate governance function and compliance function. Paul served as the Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer and the Senior Vice President of Leadership Development and General Counsel during his 14 years with Alere Inc. His legal practice prior to that concentrated on small to mid-sized business corporate advice, mergers and acquisitions and international law. Paul currently serves as working Treasurer of Automatic Musical Instruments Collectors' Association, a non-profit international collector's association of approximately 1,000 members worldwide. He received a bachelor of arts from Middlebury College, a JD from Northeastern University School of Law and Paul holds certificates in French and International Finance and Fiscal Law. Paul and his husband Bruce live in Curry County and have helped to implement our new testing site there.

Paul Homan

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Member of the Board
Member of the HIV Alliance Staff

Paul Homan is a previous member of the HIV Alliance staff. He left HIV Alliance in 2016 as the Senior Program Manager for Prevention and Pilot Programs. During his tenure, Paul oversaw several programs in various departments across the agency. Prior to working at HIV Alliance, Paul earned a Master of Public Administration degree at George Washington University with a focus in state and local government management. Since leaving the agency, Paul has focused on education and working with families. Paul taught elementary special education for Boston Public Schools. He currently works for the State of Oregon in Child Protection Services. He has also volunteered with Camp Starlight (a camp for kids living with and affected by HIV since 2007). Paul believes strongly in the harm reduction model. His passion brought him to DC twice with Caring Ambassadors to lobby Congress members to improve outcomes for those living with HCV and at greatest risk. Among their priorities was legalizing needle exchange at the federal level. Paul was very honored to receive the Queer Hero award from the Portland Q center for his advocacy for the LGBTQ community in Oregon in 2015.