Our Team
Our staff is the heartbeat of A.Y.A.’s mission and vision. Together, we bring our shared passions to the table in the name of building authentic relationships and breaking the cycle of homelessness in our community.

Staff

Andy Allen
Director of Advancement
he/him
aallen@ayayouth.org

Kendra Avila
Housing Manager
she/her
kavila@ayayouth.org

Liz Welch
Administrative Assistant
she/her
ewelch@ayayouth.org

Dre Davidson
Youth Advocate
he/him
ddavidson@ayayouth.org

Madison Haack
Advancement Coordinator
she/her
mhaack@ayayouth.org

Coming Soon
Director of Finance

Li Kaplan
Outreach Specialist
she/her
Lkaplan@ayayouth.org

Gemhyl Kelley
Engagement Specialist
he/him
gkelley@ayayouth.org

Crystal Kitten
Director of Housing
she/her
ckitten@ayayouth.org

D.L. McKinney
Director of Drop-In
they/them
dmckinney@ayayouth.org

Korey Mills
Youth Advocate
he/him
kmills@ayayouth.org

Jen Parmenter
Youth Advocate
they/them
jparmenter@ayayouth.org

Kasey Powlenko
Youth Advocate
he/him
kpowlenko@ayayouth.org

Charles Sanders
Housing Advocate
he/him
csanders@ayayouth.org

KJ Tucker
Director of Innovation
she/her
ktucker@ayayouth.org

Mark Tucker
Director of Operations
he/him
mtucker@ayayouth.org

Jon VanKeulen
Chief Housing and Innovation Officer
he/him
jvankeulen@ayayouth.org

Lauren VanKeulen
Chief Executive Officer
she/her
lvankeulen@ayayouth.org
Mentors

Tara Colvin
Logan Home Mentor
she/her

Asu Iyakaremye
Naylor Home Mentor
he/him

Savion & Rebekah Sanford
Lafayette Home Mentors
he/him – she/her

Prince Shema
Cherry Home Mentor
he/him

Kat + Andre Knox
Underhill Home Mentors
she/her – he/him

Carissa Ureña
Union Home Mentor
she/her
Board Members

Laketa Alexander
Board Member
she/her
Booking.com

Krista Josephson
Board Treasurer
she/her
Herman Miller

Missy Jackson
Board President
she/her
The Vantage Group

Mike Keller
Board Recorder
he/him
Booking.com

Julius Lema
Board Member
he/him
Bissell

Ja-Quari Moore-Bass
Board Member
he/him
Kentwood Public Schools
Housing Co-Founder, Alumni, and Former House Mentor

Jacques Moss
Board Vice President
he/him
Amway Global

Luis Mossburg
Board Member
he/him
AYA Alumni

Shawn Perduee
Board Member
he/him
Herman Miller

Alex Torres
Board Member
he/him
Merck Pharmaceuticals

Join Our Newsletter
Subscribe below to get the latest AYA news!