IARC - Key Persons
Ashley joined the IARC family in 2019. She studied accounting at St. Cloud State University and assists in creating monthly statements for intended parents and processing payments for program expenses. Ashley loves playing tennis, playing musical instruments, and traveling. She feels honored to be part of an organization that helps to build families.
Betsy started her journey with IARC as a surrogate in 2020, but, as an adopted child, she knew she wanted to help make families since she was young. While on her journey, she knew a career with IARC was necessary for her future and was so excited to join the wonderful team as a Program Coordinator in 2021. When asked what it means to be on a surrogate journey, she said, "It is incredibly humbling to be entrusted with, not only the hopes and dreams of the intended parent, but also the hopes and dreams they have for their little one. It is truly a momentous honor to be a small part of their lives." The most important part of her life are her son and daughter. She loves reading to them, learning from and with them, cooking/baking with them and going on adventures with them. Her values are showing kindness, gratitude and helping others. She is passionate about social justice and loves spending time with friends and family, being outside (especially in and around water), hiking, traveling and all things food.
Christine originally joined IARC in September 2017. She was born and raised in Germany before she came to MN as an AuPair in 2008. She lived 12 years in MN and raised her son Kolby there. She left us in March 2020 due to the pandemic when she went to live in Germany again for a time. Currently she is back in the US and lives in Idaho with Kolby and her boyfriend Matt. She enjoys the views of the mountains plus the milder weather. She rejoined our IARC family in December 2021 and couldn't be happier to be back where she belongs. She loves being a part of making a family's dream come true. Seeing the parents' excitement and their huge smile is the most rewarding feeling plus getting to hold the baby in the end.
Job Titles:
- OPERATIONS & ACCOUNTING MANAGER
Destiny joined the IARC family in 2014. She studied accounting at Florida Atlantic University and has several years of experience in accounting. She oversees all the expense and escrow accounts and processes the payments of all program expenses. She will also prepare invoices and monthly account statements for intended parents. She loves spending time with her family and is very proud to be part of a team that creates new families each and every day. In her free time, you can find Destiny spending time with her family or traveling. She tries to go to a new place every chance she gets!
Job Titles:
- BILLING & CYCLE COORDINATOR, PROGRAM COORDINATOR, and ITALIAN SPEAKER
Heidi is a true Italian through and through! She loves all things Italian - good food, great wine, amazing art, and wonderful conversation! Heidi has an unmatched determination to do all things to the best of her ability and if ever she's unsure of something she makes it a point to seek out as much information on the topic as she can until she's become proficient. Heidi has a niece and nephew that she absolutely treasures and she does all that she is able to ensure they are given the world. She has one of the kindest hearts you will ever meet and a smile that can light up the room. To know Heidi is to know one of the most compassionate and generous human beings there is! She loves using her passions and skills to help others achieve a forever family of their own! It's rewarding for her to see intended parents and surrogates join together to help these parents have a child of their own. Heidi's language abilities help her connect to other parts of the world where surrogacy is restrictedand having a lingual and cultural connection encourages others to feel hopeful to begin a surrogacy journey here in Minnesota. She thinks there is nothing more satisfying than to see former clients and surrogates continue to send pictures of the children growing happy and healthy!
Kate is the first person to welcome staff each morning. She is the director of first impressions for clients calling or visiting our office. She joined us in the spring of 2017 and brings us little rays of sunshine and inspiration daily. She keeps the office running smoothly and assists in planning staff social events! She has a broad spectrum of previous work experience which includes time as a preschool teacher, executive administrative assistant, and travel agent. Her cheerful disposition and dedication is felt by our entire team. In her spare time she enjoys traveling, wine tasting, reading, and running.
Job Titles:
- SENIOR PROGRAM COORDINATOR
Kayla started with IARC in 2015 and lives right in Maple Grove only minutes from the IARC office. She loves living in MN because of our 10,000 lakes, which is where she spends most of her summers boating, swimming, tubing, and fishing. Kayla is a huge animal lover and the proud owner of two dogs named Tito and Luka who love the water even more than she does. When Kayla's not busy at IARC, she loves to read, boat, rollerblade, travel, work on home renovation projects, attend comedy shows, and spend time with friends and family. There really isn't anything she doesn't enjoy doing and she's always open to trying new things. Kayla is very happy to have found a job she's passionate about. She loves knowing that she plays a part in one of the greatest, most life-altering experiences in someone's life, creating a family. Throughout her time at IARC she has helped numerous intended parents and surrogates, many of which choose to stay in touch even after their journey is over.
Krista was born and raised in Finland before living in England for four years with her husband. She then moved to Minnesota in 2016. She tries to visit her friends and family back home in Finland as often as she can. Krista is not only a wife but a mother of two dogs, Rogue and Hank, and a cat named Cloud. Her hobbies include crafts, knitting, going to the gym, reading, movies, and playing video games. Although she also likes nature and hiking, she would eat pizza every day if she could! Krista knew she wanted to work at IARC so that she could be a part of helping to create families. She has an understanding for the parents and appreciation for the surrogates as she is unable to have kids herself. Krista is kind, easy-going, and funny and IARC is lucky to have her as part of our family.
LaKesha started with IARC in the spring of 2017 and instantly became a critical part of the team, going above and beyond in everything she does! LaKesha and her husband Cole bought a home on the lake so she can enjoy more time outside. She is also mom to 2 fur babies, a Siberian Husky named Lola and a Newfoundland named Charles II. LaKesha loves working for IARC because she believes what we do here is simply beautiful! Coming to work every day and being able to help others make their dreams come true is the best feeling to her! Everyone at IARC loves her witty sense of humor as she brings many smiles to the team and her huge heart brings joy to the many surrogates and intended parents that she works with each and every day!
Lauren joined the IARC team in 2021. She previously spent eleven years in the childcare field. She is originally from Illinois and moved here to attend college in 2005. Lauren and her husband met in college and now have a daughter named Alara and a dog named Bailey. She loves spending time with family and values their time together. Some things she likes to do includes bowling and watching sports with her husband. She has gone through her own journey of IVF and now being with IARC she can help other families build their dreams. She feels honored to be a part of a team that is so dedicated to helping their families.
Job Titles:
- INTENDED PARENT INTAKE COORDINATOR and FRENCH SPEAKER
Marilyne is originally from Lyon, France and that is still her favorite vacation destination…there's no place like home! She has been living in the U.S. since 2008 and has been an important part of the IARC team since 2014. Marilyne and her husband have three wonderful kids, a daughter and two sons. When Marilyne talks about her family her face lights up with pride and you can feel the love she has for them just in hearing her speak about them. Marilyne is such a joy to be around and has such a soft-spoken sense of humor that constantly has everyone cracking up with laughter. Her favorite thing at IARC is educating our new intended parents that are entering the process and taking the time to answer any questions they may have on the different aspects of this amazing journey. She puts so much effort and attention into what she does, so if you ever need help with anything, Marilyne is the person you can count on!
Job Titles:
- LEAD PROGRAM COORDINATOR & FRENCH SPEAKER
Morgane is originally from France and has lived in the US since 2011. She and her husband have an amazing son named Noah and a cat named Yoda. Her mom is the best cook she knows and she hopes to follow her footsteps, one dish at a time. She is a bit of nerd especially when it comes to movies, but her main hobby is spending time with the two men of her life. Working at IARC and helping create families all over the world never ceases to amaze her! She feels really blessed to be part of a team of "above-and-beyonders"! Her calm personality brings a nice balance to our team, though she has an amazing laugh and knows how to let loose!
Nicole has known she wanted to help others become parents even before she had her own child. From a very young age, she dreamt of carrying a child for someone who genuinely wanted to be a parent, but could not without the help of someone else. This is a dream she fulfilled when she carried twins as a surrogate in 2013. As with many surrogates, this is an experience that has become very near and dear to her heart, and as a result, she enjoys working with IARC to educate and support prospective surrogates about the journey they are hoping to embark on, which she has been doing since 2011. Nicole is passionate about nutrition and living an active lifestyle, spending a lot of time outdoors with her son, biking, going to various events with friends, and always trying to challenge herself. She is such a caring person and genuinely wants everyone to have a great experience and to feel prepared for the surrogacy process. This is so evident in the passion she has for making sure surrogates have a complete understanding of the process and are 100% comfortable and educated. Nicole is reliable and works hard to make sure those around her know exactly how valuable they are. She feels so lucky to work with so many people who fill different roles but all share the same goal; to help intended parents accomplish their dream of becoming parents and to help the generous women who want to help them accomplish their dream of giving such a precious gift.
Rebecca has been with IARC since May of 2017 and has loved every minute since. She enjoys true crime, coffee and is very active in her fitness community. Rebecca wears her heart on her sleeve, and it shows through each interaction with her parents and surrogates. She feels truly honored to be able to help make families and can't see herself doing anything else. You'll always find a big, warm smile on her face.
Job Titles:
- SURROGATE COORDINATION & MARKETING MANAGER
Ruthie is a four-time surrogate who started working for IARC in the spring of 2017. She has a master's degree in human resource management, loves working with people, and genuinely loves connecting with all of the surrogates and intended parents. She has a passion for this line of work and finds it rewarding and inspiring to see how people can work together to make dreams come true. When she is not working, Ruthie enjoys time with her kids whether it's watching movies together or playing a very serious game of Mario Kart. She is a fan of the theater and also loves to sing and dance, often at the same time. Ruthie is a true Jersey girl and loves her roots and her Philadelphia Eagles! Go birds!
Shae has been with IARC since 2016 and has been an integral part of our growing team! She takes on any task with a big smile on her face. No task is too big for Shae! She is enthusiastic and passionate about the work that she does because she knows it makes a difference in the lives of so many people she helps. Shae is the proud mama of 2 feline fur babies, Norman and Pamela. She is an avid volleyball player in the summers and spends winters snowboarding and ice fishing. Her current goal is to travel the world; she has been to 25 states and 15 countries so far.
Job Titles:
- EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR of IARC®
Tierra joined the IARC staff in February 2019. As a previous surrogate herself, Tierra puts her whole heart into her work every day. With a true passion and dedication towards surrogacy, Tierra feels privileged to work with intended parents and surrogates from around the globe. Through the ups and downs of each unique journey, she is there for it all. In her spare time, Tierra loves to get together with family and friends and focuses on creating memories that will last a lifetime. Tierra and her husband Marty are parents to twin girls Isabella and Claire and little boy Finnegan. In the summer, you can find them swimming at the lake & in the winter you can usually find them at home watching movies or playing board games.
Job Titles:
- INTENDED PARENT & MATCHING COORDINATION MANAGER
Whitney joined the IARC team in 2020. She previously spent four years in the world of professional sports working with clients for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx. After that, she spent around a year and a half in a restaurant sales and service management role but always had the feeling there was a piece missing. She wanted to be a part of "something bigger" and truly wanted meaningful work. Being a true believer that you always end up where you are meant to be, she met Steve (Snyder) through her management position and very much wanted to be a part of his team helping families grow. Now, IARC has been the missing puzzle piece that she finally put into place and she could not be more honored or excited to be a part of this team. When Whitney isn't at work, she is spending time with her fur babies, Milo and Lyla - she has an enormous place in her heart for animals. She loves movies, true crime TV/podcasts, spending time with her family in Wisconsin, and traveling as much as possible.