Washingtonians do better when we are healthy.

Bevin McLeod, Co-Founder & Board President, assisted in the drafting and advocacy processes that realized the passage of the 2019 Pathway to Universal Healthcare Workgroup whose recommendations lead to AHW’s drafting and advocacy on the newly enacted permanent Universal Healthcare Commission. She has worked with a multitude of diverse stakeholders including tribal partners throughout WA State over the past five years to assist in passing legislation that increases affordability on the Exchange, increases access to maternal Medicaid patients in the postpartum period, expands health systems transparency, requires cost transparency for drug manufacturers, improves the Indian behavioral health system, and more.

Previously, she was the Program Director for Health Care for All-WA, and comes from a diverse background of non-profit management, agricultural and economic development work, and advocacy on behalf of refugee and migrant communities. She is passionate about and committed to working on social justice and equity issues, and is focused on fulfilling projects that make our communities more sustainable and equitable for current and future generations.

Bevin holds degrees in economics and international political economy from the University of Washington.

Nicole Gomez, Co-Founder & Board Secretary, worked to pass the Universal Health Care Work Group in 2019, and helped draft and pass the Universal Health Care Commission through both chambers of the WA State Legislature, as well as assisting efforts in passing other legislation that expands access and affordability in healthcare in WA State over the past three years.

Prior to forming AHW, Nicole spent 15-years in the workers’ compensation field handling state and longshore claims nationwide. As a claims adjuster, she acted as an internal advocate for injured workers and learned about the deep systemic issues facing workers’ compensation, the healthcare and insurance industries, employers and employment, and the vocational rehabilitation system. She is familiar with every step from an initial illness or injury to recovery and/or settlement including, but not limited to, payor/payee lien negotiations, Medicare and Medicare Set-Asides, pharmacy benefit managers, approval/denial processes, third-party administrators, ICD 9/10 coding, fee schedules, third-party claims, prescription drug management, therapy, and claims budgeting.

She also previously worked as a Texas State legislative assistant, a crime victim’s advocate in a District Attorney’s office connecting victims from all backgrounds with public resources, and as a legal assistant working with district, superior, and supreme courts in Alaska, California, Texas, and Washington.

Nicole holds degrees in Political Science and Communications from the University of Washington and a Masters in Public Administration from Seattle University where she graduated magna cum laude and currently serves on the Alumni Board of Governors.

Nicole Macri, Board Vice President, is an elected official representing the 43rd Legislative District of Washington State, and is a leader in working to bring comprehensive, sustainable, equitable, and affordable healthcare reform to our state. She has over 20 years of experience championing reform issues around affordable housing, homelessness, human services, and mental health. Having been at the forefront of the Housing First movement nationally, she is a recognized leader in practical and effective strategies that end the homelessness of people living with serious disabilities. Macri holds a bachelors degree from Rutgers University and a masters in Public Administration from the University of Washington.

Carmen Méndez, Board Member, was born in Yakima; growing up, she spent her time between Yakima and her family’s hometown Colima, Mexico. She returned to Yakima in 2004, where she graduated. She attended the University of Washington and Heritage University, where she graduated with a B.A. in Business Administration and a minor in Spanish.

She has worked in the nonprofit sector for over eight years locally and state-wide, working with elected officials and community engagement; Carmen started her career with Northwest Harvest in April of 2020 as the Agricultural Procurement Specialist and currently in role of Sr. Manager of Hunger Response and Distribution for Northwest Harvest.

She has served proudly as one of the first Latinas elected to the Yakima City Council in 2016. Carmen serves on the TVW-Washington State Public Relations Board, ARCORA Foundation Trustee, SOZO Sports of Central Washington Board, and a Yakima Downtown Rotarian.

Carmen has a thirteen-year-old daughter named Valeria, who is in the 8th grade. Carmen and Valeria enjoy traveling, trying new food, cooking together, snowboarding, and spending time with family. Carmen also enjoys staying active, including playing intramural softball, paddle boarding on the Yakima River, and cycling.

Denise Ransom, Board Member,

is a proud native of Seattle, WA. Since her return from living years in Washington, D.C., Chicago, and graduating from Georgia State University in Atlanta with a BA in Finance, she has brought her experiences and commitment to community building, healing, and activism back home. Following her passion for entrepreneurship and empowering others, after an 18-year career as a Human Resource professional, she became Co-Owner of Alltrus LLC, a commercial cleaning company. Denise uses her extensive knowledge in project management, negotiation, love of people, and a sustainable methodology to inspire, and support her team to live healthy, happy, thriving lives.

Recently she served as the Committee Chair for Prisons with the Seattle King County Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). This experience has provided her with more insight regarding the inequalities and injustices within the prison industrial complex, particularly regarding healthcare. As a transformative and healing justice servant of the people, she wants to encourage us to all re-imagine what real equity and equality for us all can be.

When Denise is not trying to “save the world,” she enjoys exploring it. She loves meeting new people, learning about different cultures, and having new experiences by rediscovering the Pacific Northwest in the family motorhome. Most importantly, volunteering in the community constantly feeds her soul.

Heather Erb, Board Member, proudly serves nonprofit organizations, tribal governments and other organizations in the areas of health care, public health, emergency preparedness, government relations, corporate governance, 501(c)(3) formation and maintenance, contract drafting and negotiation, and code/ordinance development. She has been practicing law for the last fifteen years.

Currently, in her representation of the American Indian Health Commission, Heather is working on legislation that addresses Indian health improvement in Washington state. She has previously provided training and outreach to state agencies, tribal representatives, and Indian health program staff and administration across Washington State on Indian health legal policy including American Indian and Alaska Native income tax exemptions, Medicaid expansion, cost sharing, premium sponsorship, and contracting with qualified health plans. She has drafted numerous state tribal consultation policies as well as proposed revisions to the Office of the Insurance Commissioner and Health Care Authority Washington administrative codes.

In the early years of her career, Heather gained considerable litigation experience as an assistant state attorney, conducting over thirty-five jury trials including capital crimes.

Dr. Hisam Goueli, Board Member, completed a dual residency in Family Medicine & Psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University. He specializes in the medical and psychiatric care of geriatric patients. A former city council candidate, he has worked to develop successful healthcare solutions in the United States and around the world through engagement with diverse communities to achieve progress. Previously projects include the integration of primary care in mental health clinics through the Satcher Institute in Georgia, empowering women in Guatemala through behavioral activation, establishing a mobile health clinic for underserved communities in Egypt, and creating a nationwide food and water sanitation program in Nepal. He has worked in the health advocacy space for the past 11 years. During this time, he learned the importance of finding political solutions for the deficiencies in our healthcare system for a healthier Washington.

Jessa Lewis, Board Member, is the Executive Director for Blue Collar Fund, a nonprofit she founded to remove barriers to careers in the trades for disadvantaged populations. She previously was a consultant working on economic development in midsized cities and rural communities and also worked on political campaigns and launching startups. Jessa earned a BA from The Evergreen State College in Resource Management and Policy and pursued an MBA at Presidio Graduate School in Seattle. In addition to being a founding board member of Alliance for a Healthy Washington, she also serves on Washington Conservation Voters’ board on the Political Committee. Jessa is proud of her Eastern Washington roots and has been lovingly called “notorious” by multiple members of Congress.

Max Brown, Board Member, is a principal consultant at the Desimone Consulting Group. He executes policy advocacy strategy on behalf of clients with an intersection in the life sciences, healthcare industry, and patient advocacy sectors. Through direct work with pharmaceutical manufacturers, large regional hospital systems, local research institutions, and therapeutic innovators, Max has had an opportunity to understand the opportunities, challenges, and conflicts that churn political inertia in healthcare policymaking at the local, state, and federal levels.

Prior to joining DCG in 2017, Max ran the state Democratic Party’s 2016 Coordinated Campaign as the Coordinated Campaign Director, where he led their combined campaign effort on behalf of Hillary Clinton, Patty Murray, Jay Inslee, any many other state and local candidates down ticket, organizing a diverse set of stakeholders to fund and execute a multi-pronged grassroots voter contact effort spanning urban, rural, and suburban districts across Washington state. In 2014, Max managed “Organizing for Washington”, a companion field program funded through the WSDC and HDCC working to supplement the electoral efforts of Democrats in state legislative races across 9 targeted legislative districts throughout the cycle. Prior to that, he’s worked as a regional outreach director for US Senator Patty Murray’s office, as the Political/Field Director for the ML King County Labor Council, and as a Political & Field Associate for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America in Washington, DC. Max grew up in Bothell, Washington and earned his BA in Political Science at the University of Washington.

Pete Lamb, Board Member, grew up in a single parent household in a tough neighborhood in Pierce County. Pete understood his responsibility to help put food on the table and learned from a young age the importance of being a member of a Union. His first Union job was as a box boy at a local Union grocery store when he was 14 — a job that forged his belief in organized labor. It was his ticket to break from the chains of poverty and build a life that he could be proud of. From that time he has focused on his passion for the labor movement and providing a voice for those that would otherwise be silenced. Over the past twenty years, Pete has built a record of accomplishments based on his tireless work to better the lives of working people. He is recognized as a labor leader in our region and across the country. Pete currently sits on the Teamsters International Brewery and Soft Drink Workers conference and is the youngest member as well as the first Asian Pacific Islander to sit on the executive board. He has never forgotten his roots and understands how important it is for people to have a voice in their workplace and community. Through effective contract negotiations, political advocacy, hard won strikes and never taking no for an answer, his Members enjoy strong wages for their work, the contractual right to great and affordable health care and healthy and vibrant pensions when they choose to retire.

“Health care as a human right is not just a slogan for me. Growing up poor, I understand what it means not to have it. For two decades I have fought for this basic human right for worker after worker from all walks of life and different industries. I have seen the path of health care change over the years and understand the economic and social costs associated through Taft-Hartley Plans, Employer plans and Government exchanges. I know one thing. We have to tackle this issue together so that we can make this basic human right a reality for everyone.”

Pete is married to his lovely wife Laurine. Laurine is a surgical nurse by profession and they have two amazing and beautiful children. Their strong and awesome 4 year old daughter, Lucy and their all smiles baby boy, Finn. They both keep them busy with activities, running around the house and 2am bottle feedings.

Shasti Conrad, Board Member, is a dynamic change-maker who has built her career understanding how a new, more diverse generation thinks and operates and fighting for diversity and inclusion — from the White House and Princeton University to the private and nonprofit sectors. Most recently, she worked with Nobel Peace Prize winners Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi to push for radical change. In her current role, she is responsible for building and expanding the 100 Million Campaign, a youth mobilization effort to end child labor and trafficking, in the United States.

Shasti has extensive experience mobilizing people and communities in pursuit of transformative social change. She has been staff on 3 presidential campaigns and one senate campaign. As the Chief Operating Officer for a creative social impact agency in NYC, Shasti supported on-the-ground organizers pushing for change in Ferguson, LGBT rights, and immigration movements. In the Obama White House, Shasti served in various capacities, including as Assistant to Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett, where she developed a policy portfolio on youth violence, and worked on disability rights and constituency outreach in the Office of Public Engagement.

Shasti’s mother’s dialysis and losing an uncle due, in part, to lack of affordable and accessible healthcare helped shape what she values in healthcare policies. She joined AHW to find policy solutions in WA that involve people from our community and help influence the national conversation.

Shasti received her Master’s in Public Affairs from Princeton University and her B.A. with Honors distinction from Seattle University. 

Stephanie Hillman, Board Member

Owner, PrairieWood Consulting, LLC; Community Engagement Director, Kinnected

Stephanie grew up on a farm in the Midwest and learned early on how people working together can positively impact their communities. As an adult, she collaborates to implement systems that will improve the experiences of patients, their families, and the people who serve them. She has worked in a public hospital, a non-profit pediatric hospital, a high-tech company, and a small boutique healthcare research firm. Currently she splits time between her consulting business and an emerging health organization.

Her focus has been to amplify the needs of key stakeholders, i.e. patients, families, faculty, employees, donors, referrers, and consumers. Through quantitative data and qualitative narratives, Stephanie advises leaders to understand – from the user perspective – opportunities for improvement and to study exemplars to ascertain and replicate best practices. She has marketing expertise in branding, strategic planning, metrics, and communications. 

Stephanie combines the science of quality improvement, the art of storytelling, and the application of data to help organizations scale for growth and long-term success. 

She holds a master’s degree in non-profit leadership from Seattle University, is a board member for Columbia Lutheran Home, and volunteers as the home visit coordinator for the Snorri program, an Icelandic/North American exchange. 

Stephanie and her husband Paul, a nurse, explore the beautiful Pacific Northwest with their two children and revel in nurturing family and friends with delicious food and lively conversation. They go on family adventures to experience other cultures, reduce fear of the unknown, and deeply appreciate how people live and love.