Board of Directors

Cathy – PFLAG Board Co-Chair

Cathy moved to Bellingham in 1995 and has served on the PFLAG Board since 2023. In her new role on the board, she helped found the popular Generations of Pride monthly dinner in collaboration with the Bellingham Queer Collective and Western WA University.

Cathy worked for most of her career for the Department of Ecology – specifically, the Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. She now has her own business where she trains scientists and government officials around the country how to give technical presentations that people can easily understand. Some of the skills that Cathy brings include leadership, implementing effective systems, group development, and presentation design. Her mother helped found the PFLAG chapter in Columbia, Missouri, in the 1990’s and worked tirelessly for social justice. Cathy feels like she is helping honor her mother’s memory to serve in this way. She is very excited about the positive impact that PFLAG is making in the lives of allies and their loved ones and looks forward to helping to create a stronger, more powerful presence in Whatcom County.

Cathy is also very active with the Center for Spiritual Living in Bellingham, with a long history of serving on the board, music team, strategic planning committee, and other groups. She and her wife love all the outdoor opportunities that this area has to offer, such as biking, kayaking, camping, and hiking. They adore their two feline fur babies, Sierra Rose and Lucy Violet.

Katherine – PFLAG Board Co-Chair

Katherine moved to the Bellingham area in May 2023. Once her family was settled, she looked for opportunities to serve her new community in ways that would make a lasting and impactful difference in the lives of those who are vulnerable and underserved. She is a strong ally for LGBTQ+ community and believes in being part of the solution in building inclusive and healthy communities that are supportive of all humans.

As a retired leader from a local tech company, Katherine brings skills in change management, leadership development, learning development and coaching to the PFLAG organization. Katherine serves as the PFLAG-Whatcom co-chair and actively supports the speaker’s bureau program which is core to our mission of providing education for local organizations on a variety of topics related to understanding and celebrating the gender identities and sexual orientations represented in our communities. Besides her work with PFLAG Whatcom, Katherine volunteers for 501Commons.org, coaches early career professionals, enjoys working out, traveling with her husband and playing with her pup Cooper. 

Schantell – PFLAG Board Secretary

Schantell has served on the PFLAG Bellingham/Whatcom County board since 2023 and now serves as the Secretary. Schantell is from the Pacific Northwest and has lived in Bellingham with her husband and two cats for over 7 years. 

As someone who grew up Catholic and went through the catholic private school system, Schantell faced many challenges when it came to understanding her queer identity. It wasn’t until they transferred to public school in high school where they found community and belonging. This is one of the many reasons why Schantell believes in the power of community. 

With over 3 years of experience in event management, combined with leadership and teaching roles, Schantell is passionate about creating memorable experiences, community-focused collaboration, and advocating for systemic change. Schantell currently works as the Director of Community Outreach for a local heating and home services company. She is able to give back to communities in meaningful ways through monetary donations, sponsorships, and in-kind donations. Outside of work you can find her listening to a podcast, walking trails, or doing a house project.

Constance – PFLAG Board Treasurer

Constance has served as Treasurer of PFLAG Bellingham Whatcom since 2019.  She has been actively involved in the speaker’s bureau, tabling at events, and marching in the annual PRIDE PARADE. She is also the Treasurer of the Transgender Assistance Fund (TAF).  As a board member of TAF she meets with others once a month to review applications by transgender folks who are seeking financial assistance for affirming help. Any transgender person over 18 can apply, those under can apply with the aid of a parent or guardian. 

Constance also serves on the board of the Bellingham Queer Collective as Treasurer. She is very active in social justice issues. She works with many groups in Whatcom County who support immigrants, the farm worker community, indigenous rights, feeding the unhoused, and providing alms work through the Bellingham Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. She supports the relocation of gender refugees to safer places.

Deborah – PFLAG Board Member

Deborah joined the PFLAG Board in 2023. Her background is in environmental biology and music, and for the last ten years, art. She loves being outdoors, playing with her dog, making music, and making and teaching art.

Deborah and her husband have 2 children. During middle school, their oldest child went into a deep depressive and anxious period. They later learned that their child was feeling like their body did not match their sense of self. This was a number of years ago, before the language and discussion around being trans was as open and available as it is today. As a family, they struggled to support their child, though they didn’t understand what the experience was. There were no role models in their or their child’s world. They spent many years walking the pathway with their eldest as they figured out that they were nonbinary transgender and made medical decisions around this understanding.

For them, it was a very steep learning curve and a very scary pathway as they watched their child having a really difficult time. Since that time, the language and understanding around being transgender has become more common and available. As Deborah became aware, she became more interested in helping to educate other families, starting with their extended family, many of whom have a lot of judgment. When the opportunity came up to join the PFLAG Board, she jumped at the chance.

Being on the Board gives Deborah a chance to be in the community and to help make a difference. Her general responsibilities on the Board have been developing the monthly newsletter and helping to facilitate the monthly support meetings. She also helps with tabling and educating at various events in the area. It is a privilege for her to work with the Board and in the community. It is important work to help more people in the community understand the varying experiences of the LGBTQ+ community and their families. It is critical that everyone learns to see the diversity of the human experience.

Charlie – PFLAG Board Member

Charlie moved to Bellingham 6 years ago to pursue a Psychology degree from Western Washington University and hasn’t left. They bring experiences from serving as the treasurer of WWU’s psychology club from 2019-2020 and volunteering at food banks, community centers, and concerts growing up. They have been an out and proud part of the LGBTQIA+ community since 2018 and seek to serve the community that has brought them so much love and understanding. Charlie has a deep interest in social justice and the role that gender and inclusivity play in it and brings that energy to PFLAG. Outside of work and PFLAG, Charlie enjoys reading, spending time in the kitchen, chilly evening walks, and hanging out with their 3 cats, dog, and partner.

Saga – PFLAG Board Member

Saga moved to Bellingham 12 years ago to attend Western Washington University and, while they left for one year to live in Seattle, they found a home here that they didn’t want to leave behind. Saga works as an Equity Administrator for a multinational corporation where she has become a skilled bookkeeper and system administrator who is used to working with a number of people across different communities. They have only recently come out as trans and are excited to help the community that welcomed them with open arms. Outside of work and PFLAG, Saga loves to play and write tabletop RPGs (role-playing games) along with their friends, read books while snuggling their dog Nemo, and watch shows with their partner Tori.

Áine – PFLAG Board Member

Áine (pronounced On-Ya) is excited to join the Whatcom county PFLAG Board as Co-Volunteer coordinator. She recently moved to the Pacific Northwest from the east coast after 8 years of serving in the US Navy. She has always had a passion for supporting and providing education about the LGBTQ+ community, including vocally advocating for equal trans rights while serving in the Navy. Aine realized her own queer journey later in life and wants to continue providing information and education for allies and anyone who just wants to learn more about the LGBTQ+ community. She believes that through education we can bring people together and reduce hate and fear. In her free time, Aine and her Husband love to mountain bike and read books with their 5 pets.

Matthew – PFLAG Board Member

Matt is an attorney working at the Whatcom County Public Defender’s office. They went to law school in the Kansas and worked as a state and federal public defender in Missouri and Iowa before moving out to the West Coast. Matt has tried cases to juries, argued cases on appeal, and brought civil actions against agencies and officials for violating the constitutional rights of others. Matt believes that everyone deserves to live their lives authentically.

Ash – PFLAG Board Member

Ash is very passionate about LGBTQ+ issues and rights. After the 2024 election, he began to look for ways to advocate for and help Bellingham’s queer community, and he now serves on the PFLAG Board. 

Ash is very knowledgeable about LGBTQ+ history. He completed a research project on queer history in the United States and, as a result, created a series of educational videos on the topic. Ash believes that teaching queer history is incredibly important, for everyone. It allows us to know that there have always been people like us, and lets us learn from the past and those who came before us. Learning LGBTQ+ history also allows non-queer people to understand our stories, why queer rights are important, and inspires them to support queer people in their communities.