Board of Directors

Debbie Fagnant, President

Debbie came to Alaska in 1973 to begin her elementary teaching career in St. Mary's, an Eskimo community off the Yukon. She has three wonderful children with husband Dick Fagnant and delightful grandchildren. Debbie retired from the Juneau School District in 2011 and now has more time for ceramics, hiking with friends, visiting family, and reading good books. Debbie wears many hats for NAMI Juneau and is committed to supporting others through NAMI's various family education and support programs.

Elizabeth Giudice (they/she), Vice President

Elizabeth first moved to Alaska in 2021 with her partner and husky. She likes to joke that she moved here to make her husky happy, though she fell in love with her new home almost immediately. Elizabeth lived and worked in the Interior as the director of a rural library, promoting programs for community-building, education, and inclusivity. She identified a severe lack of diverse materials in the collection and worked over the course of the next two years to fill those gaps. During this time, she enrolled at the University of Alaska Fairbanks where she became very indecisive about her major.

In early 2023, Elizabeth and her little family moved to Juneau where she assumed a number of roles. As a trans woman who has struggled with mental health all her life, she feels charged to help those who may be suffering. Elizabeth is passionate about ensuring that no person falls through the cracks and believes firmly that intervention, advocacy, and education are the keys to strengthening her community. She serves as a director for two other non-profit boards in Juneau and currently works as a case manager at a social services agency. She enjoys hiking, chess, and cooking/baking new and exciting dishes.

Elizabeth is a Junior at UAF where she is on track to graduate with degrees in both Social Work and Justice next Spring, with aspirations of pursuing her Master’s. In the meantime, she is honored to have the opportunity to serve her community in support of NAMI’s mission. She fully credits similar organizations for supporting her through some of her most difficult times and feels uniquely privileged to be able to give back to others.

Betsy Brenneman, Secretary

Betsy Brenneman has lived in Juneau since late 1977 and in Bethel, Fairbanks and Anchorage before that. She currently does contract work as the owner of Brenneman Communications and Consulting. Formerly a reporter, editor, producer and manager for various Alaska radio and television stations and newspapers, she also worked for Sealaska Corporation and Big Brothers Big Sisters of SE Alaska, created the B.A.M. afterschool program at Juneau’s two middle schools, and most recently coordinated a needs assessment and strategic plan for the state’s early childhood system for the Association of Alaska School Boards. . Family members’ mental health challenges, as well as her own, opened a whole new area of learning for her, a fascination with brain science and hope for new norms and paradigms for discussing, managing and treating mental health. As a board member, she would focus on advancing those new paradigms by increasing public awareness and confidence in NAMI’s work while moving board priorities forward. Betsy is married, has a grown son and likes spending time with friends and family, hiking, yoga, travel, skiing, creating, and almost anything outdoors.

Michelle Martin bio coming soon!

Dara Rilatos

I am from Wrangell Alaska and a tribal citizen of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians in Oregon. For as long as I can remember I have fought a personal battle with my own mental health, now more than ever I am in a position where I am able to help others succeed in getting the tools they need to fight their own battles, NAMI Juneau drew my attention for the advocacy and work that is being done in the community and I am excited to join the team. I am a musician and along with solo performances I am in a band called The Planktonics, a Soul/Funk band that brings me tremendous joy.

Laurine Araneta bio coming soon!

Leah Bennett bio coming soon!

Corey Murphy bio coming soon!

Ray Pastorino bio coming soon!

Staff

Aaron Surma (he/him), Executive Director

Aaron has received mental health services for over twenty years. During this time, he has experienced first-hand the power of peer support. In particular, the role of peer support in helping people find their voice as it relates to their own recovery. His goal is for people in Juneau to feel the confidence to make decisions about their mental health care while making sure the proper resources are available to them. Before joining NAMI Juneau in 2020, Aaron worked for the Juneau Suicide Prevention Coalition and a variety of community mental health providers. He also has a degree in social work.

Dani Alston (she/her), Deputy Director

Dani grew up in Colorado and has spent the majority of her life in Florida until coming to Juneau in December 2022. Her career has taken her across a few different fields, starting in habitat restoration, then to working in medical labs, transitioning to direct patient care in the medical and behavioral health fields, and now working more behind the scenes to support Community Mental Health needs with NAMI Juneau. Dani is currently working on her Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and is scheduled to graduate in the fall of 2027. Dani is an avid reader, amateur gardener, novice fly-fisherwoman and archer, and all around lover of the outdoors.

Karen Lipson (she/her), Office Manager

I recently retired from a 37 year career working for the State of Alaska in the Departments of Fish & Game and Education and Early Development. This work allowed me to experience life in both remote Alaska and Juneau. I have a loved one who lives with mental health challenges and my journey with them brought me to the NAMI Family-to-Family class more than 10 years ago. Since then, I have stayed involved with NAMI as an instructor for the NAMI Basics course and a facilitator for the Family Support group. I enjoy these volunteer opportunities very much. In 2020 I was pleased to begin working for NAMI as the office manager. This has proven to be a great retirement job. When not engaged with NAMI I enjoy walking the local trails with friends and visiting with my grown daughter in Washington.

Meryl Connelly-Chew (they/them), Program Coordinator

Meryl grew up in Tenakee Springs. They have enjoyed a career of social service work, including years at domestic violence and sexual assault programs, supporting LGBTQ2+ community, and has been the Program Coordinator at NAMI Juneau since 2022. In their current role Meryl supports many of NAMI Juneau's program, including peer support and LGBTQ2+ specific programming. They feel lucky to work somewhere that values lived experience and sees building community as a form of promoting mental health and suicide prevention. They address their own mental health challenges in a variety of ways, and value working at an organization that supports that.
Meryl enjoys building and growing community partnerships, expanding the reach of programming, and prioritizing inclusivity and cultural relevance in all that NAMI Juneau does.

When not at work, Meryl can be found reading, playing outside, and spending with with their partner, pets, family, and friends.

Charity Anderson (she/her), Youth Program Coordinator

Charity graduated from Juneau-Douglas High School and stayed in Juneau to support her community. She spent about eight years working with people with physical and intellectual disabilities before moving into the mental health field as the Program Associate for the Juneau Suicide Prevention Coalition (JSPC).

Having received mental health support and seen how it benefited her family, Charity discovered a passion for using her experiences to help others. She earned a Behavioral Health Associate certificate from UAS during her first year of employment. Now, as the Youth Program Coordinator, she’s focused on educating and supporting local youth and hopes to continue learning and growing in the mental health field.

When she’s not working, Charity loves spending time outdoors with her little family. She enjoys paddling around Auke Bay to explore tiny islands and beach comb, especially when the weather’s nice. She’s an animal lover with dreams of owning a farm someday. Charity also has a knack for crafting, DIY projects, and organizing.