Staff - Acres of Diamonds

Jennifer Paddock

Executive Director

Jackie Siochi

Senior Director of Programs

Cheryl Gingerelli

Resident Care Director

Kerstin Grant

Director of Operations

Paige Shope

Development Director

Doug Engberg

Director of Donor Engagement

Robbin Hastings

Finance Director

John Hall

Building Committee Chair

Hannah Alemayehu

Associate Director of Operations

Paula Bordenet

Executive Assistant

Valarie Kemper

Operations Administrator

Cathryn Klein

Bookkeeper

Megan Crawford

Senior Community Engagement Manager

Brittany LaBossier

Capital Campaign Manager

Farnaz

Volunteer Engagement Manager

Shauna Lane

Program Administrative Assistant

Sarah Ryser

Senior Case Manager

Jessie Schubert-Hall

Case Manager

Shanna Kissling

Case Manager

Amanda Hale

Senior Adult Program Manager

Cassi Frickelton

Intake Coordinator

Christina Kobayashi

Kids Program Manager

Calvin Song

Kids Program Manager

Pam Warnick

Interior Design Lead

Jeff Priest

Senior Facilities Manager

Matt Gombossy

Facilities Assistant

Executive Director

Jennifer Paddock

Jen was born and raised in Bellevue, Washington and currently resides in Redmond Ridge with her husband, Lee, and her two Great Danes, Holly and Kirby. Before coming to Acres of Diamonds Jen served as the Director of Community Outreach at First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue. It was in this role she discovered a passion to advocate for the homeless. After many years of supporting non-profit Executive Directors and investing in local charities, Jen decided she couldn’t sit on the sidelines anymore and decided to jump into what God was doing on behalf of the homeless in King County. This decision led her to Acres of Diamonds in 2014 as the Executive Director and she still wakes up each day with a passion to help moms make lasting change in their lives.

Photo Credit: Amy Wimber Photography

Senior Director of Programs

Jackie Siochi

Jackie was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, with time spent overseas in the Air Force. After her military service, Jackie attended college and became a Certified Public Accountant, working in the corporate world for 10 years ending in Senior Management at Boeing Corporate Audit. After spending 5 years in small business, Jackie began to explore what God was calling her and her family into. Jackie decided to spend the next 10 years homeschooling her two smallest children. It was during this time of volunteering that Jackie found Acres of Diamonds. Her passion for helping all women, especially those at Acres of Diamonds, was a natural path from her own experiences with domestic violence and poverty. Jackie volunteered at Acres of Diamonds for about 4 years as a companion, budget coach, and finally as a Mental Health Counseling Intern while obtaining her Master’s Degree in Mental Health Counseling. Jackie lives in Redmond Washington, has been happily married for almost 20 years, and has three kids.

Resident Care Director

Cheryl Gingerelli

After raising my children, I returned to school to complete my bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in counseling psychology. During my studies, I had the opportunity to help women rescued from human trafficking, eventually leading to working with women and children coming out of homelessness, addiction, and domestic violence. Through this work, I was blessed to witness healing, redemption, and the transformative work of God. In addition to this work, I have a small private practice supporting parents of children with special needs and learning differences, and I enjoy spending time with my children and grandchildren.

Director of Operations

Kerstin Grant

Originally from Boston, Kerstin has lived all over the US and the world. While attending Hope College in Michigan, Kerstin and her friends formed a group studying issues of justice. She became impassioned to educate the church about the needs of the world, and upon receiving her Bachelor’s degree in Communications; she got a job at World Relief in Baltimore, telling churches about issues of health, poverty, and disaster. In that role, she had the opportunity to travel to World Relief’s program sites around the world. Eventually, she moved to Cambodia to take the lead on communications for the World Relief Asia offices. Desiring to move from communications work to designing transformational programs, Kerstin landed in Duvall to work with the youth ministry staff of Adventure Church. In that role, she experienced the joy of working with a team that shared mission, community, and watching God transform lives. She also started work on a Master’s degree in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary. She is married to Dan, and they enjoy living in community, playing Frisbee, traveling, hiking, and camping.

Photo Credit: Tashina Rachel Photography

Development Director

Paige Shope

Paige moved to the PNW after spending time overseas in a desert, and she instantly fell in love with the area. She lives in Edmonds with her husband, daughter, and golden retriever. If you stop by her house, odds are you’ll be greeted with some baked goods! Paige is passionate about building a community dedicated to creating lasting change for moms and kids affected by homelessness and she knows the best way to do that is to invite donors, volunteers, and community partners into this work. Paige brings her experience working and consulting with over 50 nonprofits and businesses as she leads the Community Engagement team. She loves learning about people’s passions and how they align with Acres Vision, especially if there’s coffee involved!

Director of Donor Engagement

Doug Engberg

Doug Engberg has been in the nonprofit sector for over 25 years working in senior management and development roles. Doug’s passion is to see nonprofits exceed in doing great work in the area of donor development. He has served on various boards such as Breakthrough Partners, Prodigals International and Lift Up Africa. Doug is married to Margo and they have four children: Gabe, Tycie, Jazzmyn and Mia. They are the owners of Pinkabella Cupcakes in six locations in the Seattle area.

Photo Credit: Amy Wimber Photography

Finance Director

Robbin Hastings

Robbin is delighted to serve Acres of Diamonds as Finance Director, providing financial leadership and promoting a culture of fiscal stewardship. She is responsible for the development and execution of financial systems, policies, and procedures. Her duties include funds management, forecasting and budgeting, and financial reporting and analysis. Robbin is a certified public accountant with extensive experience and a diverse background serving nonprofit organizations as well as individuals and corporations, most recently as the Finance Director of Center for Children & Youth Justice. Formerly an auditor with KPMG, Robbin is also a businesswoman, owning her own small firm since 1992.

Photo Credit: Tashina Rachel Photography

Building Committee Chair

John Hall

Associate Director of Operations

Hannah Alemayehu

Hannah Alemayehu graduated Magna Cum Laude from Western Washington University with a Bachelors of Arts in Sociology and minors in Women’s Studies and German. As the Associate Director of Operations, she handles all resident and donor data – a passion of hers! At Acres she gets to combine her love for people and data at the same time. In her free time, she enjoys cycle classes and spending time with her friends and family. She and her husband Gabe have a very naughty labradoodle that fills their time as well.

Photo Credit: Tashina Rachel Photography

Executive Assistant

Paula Bordenet

Paula is a native to the area having lived most of her life on the Eastside. Prior to working at Acres, Paula was with The Bear Creek School, before which she worked as a personal organizer and worked as a project manager for technology companies. She has made service a central part of her family’s life and has volunteered at the Hopelink foodbank and in the meals program at her church for many years. Paula first learned of Acres through Timberlake Church, and after attending the Acres of Diamonds auction a few years ago, she felt drawn to their mission of helping mothers and children and began volunteering. She is thrilled to be working at Acres and looks forward to supporting Christ’s mission of helping the families here.

In her free time, Paula enjoys time with her family and friends, traveling, finding new coffee shops and cafes, traveling, trying new recipes, getting outside with her dogs, and traveling. The more travel, the better.

Operations Administrator

Valarie Kemper

Valarie has always been active and passionate about helping women and children. She recently retired from the insurance industry and is excited about being able to utilize her skills and experience to help women and children build a new, happy life.

Valarie lives in Duvall with her husband, Dale. She enjoys spending time with her family including her 5 wonderful grandchildren and her spoiled dog named Piper. She also enjoys camping, traveling and gardening.

Bookkeeper

Cathryn Klein

Senior Community Engagement Manager

Megan Crawford

Megan is a long time Duvall resident. Wife to Dustin and mother to June and Jack, she is grateful to live and work in a beautiful, thriving community. In her free time she enjoys the outdoors with her family, beautifying her home or meeting friends for coffee. Megan’s path to Acres included her journey into motherhood. After having her daughter at 23, Megan discovered how critical it was for moms and kids to have support. That led to volunteering and contributing to local organizations whose mission is to serve moms and kids by sheltering, equipping, and empowering them. Megan’s passion translates into her work by connecting the community with moms and kids previously devastated by homelessness now residing and thriving at Acres.

Photo Credit: Tashina Rachel Photography

Capital Campaign Manager

Brittany LaBossier

Volunteer Engagement Manager

Farnaz

Program Administrative Assistant

Shauna Lane

Shauna was born and raised in Montana on a farm where she competed as a barrel racer before moving on to cheer-leading as the top of the pyramid. She moved to the Tri-Cities area in Washington state with her husband after they graduated from Montana State University where she discovered you should avoid the orange (radio active) tumbleweeds. She received her masters degree in Elementary Education and after teaching kindergarten, third grade and Jr. High she used her skills to home school her own daughter thru high school. Now that her daughter if off to college Shauna is ready to get back to working hands on with kids to help them discover their full potential. She lives in Sammamish with her husband, her dogs Tabitha and Peanut, enjoys reading, walking, and fair weather motorcycle rides where her husband is a captive audience.

Senior Case Manager

Sarah Ryser

Before working at Acres of Diamonds Sarah was studying for her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and working full-time as an EMT running 911 calls with local fire departments.

Sarah’s story started like many of the moms at Acres with a lot of family mental illness and domestic violence. What helped her get through those challenging times was supportive relationships that helped her to heal and change her life. At Acres Sarah has been the Kids Program Manager, Intake Manager and now the Case Manager for the women. Her Psychology background and her personal experience give her the skills and empathy to pay it forward and walk alongside the families as they heal and grow.

Photo Credit: Amy Wimber Photography

Case Manager

Jessie Schubert-Hall

Case Manager

Shanna Kissling

Shanna is thrilled to bring her personal and professional experience to the Acres community! She has worked in case management and poverty reduction for over 15 years, serving foster youth, survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking, along with populations struggling with addiction, mental health issues, and those experiencing homelessness. Shanna has a BA in Communications from the University of Maryland and an MA in Social Justice & Human Rights from Arizona State. As a survivor of domestic violence, Shanna’s heart is especially tender toward women, desiring that each one would see herself as Christ sees her. A native of Southern California, Shanna fell in love with the PNW and currently resides in Woodinville with her sweet pup, Bug the Pug. In her free time, you can find her lost in a good book, searching for a burger that rivals In & Out (an impossible quest?), cheering on her LA Dodgers, or seeking a joy-filled adventure with friends!

Senior Adult Program Manager

Amanda Hale

After graduating with honors from Northwest University, Amanda moved abroad to work for a small NGO serving children impacted by poverty. Through this experience, Amanda quickly discovered a passion for the non-profit world and for working with families in need. This passion eventually led her back to Seattle, where she has had the privilege of developing and implementing programs to support families on their journey out of homelessness, addiction, and broken parent-child relationships. As a native of the Woodinville-Duvall area, Amanda is thrilled to serve families in her home community through the work at Acres.

Amanda is an active member of her local church where she serves as a youth leader. She enjoys spending her spare time with family and friends, taking up new hobbies, and wrangling her Australian cattle dog, Rowdy.

Intake Coordinator

Cassi Frickelton

Kids Program Manager

Christina Kobayashi

Christina grew up in the Duvall and Monroe church communities and loves the small town, country life! She currently lives in Monroe, WA. Christina attended Eastern Washington University and has a B.A. in Children’s Studies with minors in Sociology and Applied Development Psychology. Since completing school, Christina has had experience working with children in a wide range of settings. This includes early education programs, medical settings, private childcare and behavioral health treatment, always with the goal of helping children and adolescents through difficult and hard times. She is passionate about caring for and supporting children and their family unit! In her free time, Christina loves to travel, spend time with friends and family, be outdoors with her animals, and drink a good cup of coffee!

Kids Program Manager

Calvin Song

Calvin grew up in the north Seattle area and currently lives in the Bothell. He has extensive experience working with kids of all ages through volunteering at his church and coaching basketball for almost a decade. One of Calvin’s passions is to help the next generation grow up in a healthy, safe and loving environment. He’s currently interning at his church in order to grow his skills and knowledge to sow good seeds into the Acres families. He enjoys exercise, bonfires and delicious food!

Interior Design Lead

Pam Warnick

Pamela Warnick is an interior designer with over 25 years’ experience in residential design. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Interior Design from Seattle Pacific University and went on to work for Masins Fine Furniture and Interiors before founding her own design firm, Warnick Design, back in 2001.

Pam strives to create unique interiors that will have a positive impact in her client’s lives. She is known for always collaborating with her client so that their style and personality shine through.

Photo Credit: Amy Wimber Photography

Senior Facilities Manager

Jeff Priest

Jeff is excited to join Acres as the Senior Facilities Manager. He brings a diverse mix of experience to the role including engineering design, construction, safety, and facilities management. Jeff is passionate about using his skills to make a difference in the world, and he is particularly drawn to Acres’ mission of helping homeless women and children.

In his free time, Jeff enjoys spending time outdoors. He is an avid hunter, fisherman, and camper. Jeff also loves spending time with his extended family, which includes more than 30 nieces and nephews!

Facilities Assistant

Matt Gombossy

Matt grew up in the greater Puget Sound area and currently resides in Monroe, WA. He has many years of experience in the logistics and deliveries industry. After seven years with Fedex Express he decided to make a change. Desiring more time for ministry and music. Since the beginning of 2021 he has been very involved serving the homeless population in downtown Seattle and has a heart to see people saved, healed, and set free. Matt often helps with worship on the streets of Seattle. He loves to meet people right where they are at no matter what they might be going through. He is a son, brother, proud uncle, and friend of many amazing people. With his free time Matt enjoys working on projects around his house, songwriting, watching baseball, weightlifting, golf, gardening, and spending time with friends and family.