Meet the ACT Staff

Thomas Azzarella is the Executive Director of the Alaska Afterschool Network. He has over 15 years of managerial experience in afterschool and summer programs. Thomas is a 2018 Top 40 Under 40 recipient, 2016 White-Riley-Peterson Policy Fellow, and a 2010 Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America Ambassador. He has extensive experience working with community collaborations to increase youth protective factors throughout Alaska. After being a little sibling his whole life he recently became a big brother through Big Brothers, Big Sisters. During his free time, he enjoys exploring Alaska by hiking, camping, gardening, skiing, and growing his beard. He is still slowly renovating his house and spends a lot of time hanging out with his pet chicken named Joan Rivers.

Mirna Estrada, born and raised in Guatemala, was introduced to life in Alaska in 2008 as an AmeriCorps member serving refugees. Her deep love for and fascination with Alaska stem from her work as a public servant, her engagement with the vibrant tapestry of voices in the community through volunteerism, and her experiences in its wilderness.

Mirna's professional journey is highly driven by her academic pursuits and extensive experience in the nonprofit sector. Holding a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Alaska and a Master’s in Communications and Cognition from the University of Copenhagen, Mirna has cultivated a profound understanding of human behavior and communication, which she views as integral to igniting healthy communities. She is committed to improving the quality of life of children and families through effective communication strategies and community engagement.

Mirna enjoys hiking, rock climbing, ice climbing and skating, fishing, and long-distance swimming.

Jen is a public policy and advocacy professional focusing on child-serving systems. While living in Idaho, she spent eight years supporting the redesign of the state’s children’s mental health system as a parent advocate and consultant. Since moving to Alaska with her family in 2021, her policy work has been focused on child care, early education, and youth mental health.

She has a Bachelors in Elementary Education, a Masters in Library Science and is currently working on her Doctor of Law and Policy degree through Northeastern University. Her passion is encouraging solution-focused policies that make a tangible difference for children and families. She and her husband, Danny, have been married for 26 years and have the privilege of parenting seven amazing children - including five teenagers - who are always ready for an adventure.

I am Maree, and I want to show up for people. That would be the short and sweet of me. The other little details of my personality are: if it’s outdoors, 99% of the time I will say yes with a smile; if it’s scary but rewarding, I will raise my hand to go first. My personal goal is to become a cook who makes my kids' friends eagerly ask, "Is your mom cooking dinner tonight?" I love, love my family and see my kids as my greatest teachers, which brings me to one of my favorite perspective-changing quotes: "No man is my friend, no man is my enemy, every man is my teacher" (exact origin unknown). I am a lifelong learner and teacher.

My name is Xaviera, pronounced suh-vair-uh. I have lived in Alaska for pretty much most of my life. Supporting and advocating for youth became a passion of mine after taking an “Intro to Early Childhood Education” course when trying to determine what my college career path would look like. I found myself with a strong desire to support children’s growth and learning, and soon immersed myself into the education world to learn as much as I could, spending a few years teaching at a day care and working as a kindergarten teacher’s aide. After I received my B.A. in Elementary Education from the University of Alaska Southeast, I taught in the Anchorage School District for three years at the primary grade levels and then went on to Girl Scouts of Alaska. I believe that all youth should be equipped with the tools to lead a happy and successful life, and I hope to continue playing a role in that. It is incredibly rewarding work for me, to be able to make a positive impact on our youth.

In my free time, I enjoy making memories with my many family members, reading fictional novels, traveling, and exploring the outdoors.

Hollis Long is originally from the beautiful Washington State, where she developed her love for nature and community. She recently graduated from Yale University with her bachelor’s degree in English, and she has made a commitment to empowering youth in adverse environments. Hollis worked with CLICC (Connecting Through Literacy: Incarcerated Parents, Their Children, and Caregivers) where she mentored children of incarcerated parents in Connecticut. She also spent three summers on Mayhew Island in New Hampshire where she supported “at-risk” youth. She then fell in love with working inside classrooms when she began mentoring a journalism program at public New Haven elementary schools. In her free time, Hollis enjoys reading, painting mediocre landscapes, and hiking.

Originating from Western Massachusetts, Anna received her B.A. in Political Science and Chinese from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA. Post-grad, she found herself falling in love working in education spent the next several years working with youth in a variety of capacities ranging from a teacher, afterschool provider, camp counselor and a coach. in 2014, the military relocated her family to Alaska where she served as an AmeriCorps VISTA. As with many Alaskan transplants, the one-year plan quickly turned into a 7+ year as she fell in love with Alaska and nonprofit work.

In her free time, she likes to try and tame her three- and one-year old boys, be outdoors, staying active, reading and binging true crime podcasts. Anna is excited to be working with the dedicated and passionate youth workers of Alaska and is excited to be a part of the Alaska Afterschool Network team!

Erin came to the Alaska Afterschool Network from Anchorage School District, where she served as a Site Coordinator for 21st Century Community Learning Centers. Erin grew up in a small town in Wisconsin and health was a prominent value in her family, which inspired her to get her bachelor’s degree in Community Health Education. Erin served as a Nutrition Educator with AmeriCorps for a year before coming to Alaska to complete her master’s degree in Outdoor and Environmental Education, and then becoming an afterschool program coordinator. Erin is thrilled to continue serving afterschool programs as a Program Specialist with the Alaska Afterschool Network.

Through her life experiences, Erin found her passion to help people thrive and prepare children for a healthy life. People and children come from all backgrounds with all different experiences, skills, and needs. Erin is a strong believer that when we learn to meet people where they are and identify the best ways to support them, we can improve outcomes and help children and communities thrive. In her free time Erin enjoys knitting, gardening, and recreating in Alaska's great outdoors.

Kaila Pfister has a fierce love of Alaska, a love that stemmed from an admiration of its natural beauty but grew as she experienced more and more of life here and developed a deep love for the diverse and resilient group of people who call Alaska “home”. She feels incredibly privileged to have joined that group and to live on Dena’ina land with her partner and stepson. As a previous Park Ranger with the National Park Service, Kaila loves engaging with people and enjoys her role in Communications with ACT and how it allows her to get to know the community and uplift positive messages and alert other parents to helpful resources and supports. Kaila completed her master’s degree in public administration and has a great love for working with children and youth and advocating for them. She joined our team because, “I want to make a difference in my community and know that starting life with a well-built support system of caring adults has rippling effects for generations to come.”

Sharon first came to Alaska in 1993 to work as a cook at a lodge on the Kenai Peninsula. She returned every year during college, and later, while teaching, continued to spend summers in Alaska. In 2001 she moved to Girdwood to work year round for Alaska Wildland Adventures.

After many years in tourism on the Kenai Peninsula and several out of state adventures Sharon settled into the Alaskan non-profit sector. First, as a longtime volunteer and later Program Associate at the Four Valleys Community School Program. This was followed by work for the Alaska Community Foundation, most recently as the Vice President of Administration. While working in the non-profit sector, she has especially enjoyed collaborating with Alaskans to make our community a better place.

Her favorite things to do are cook, garden, ski, travel, volunteer at local nonprofits, and hike and camp around the state with family and friends.

Samantha Sharkoff is a recent graduate of the University of Oxford, where she earned her master's in Economics. She previously worked for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in Washington, DC, where she contributed to economic research on the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)and guest lectured at Howard University. Samantha graduated from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Science in Economics/Mathematics and a Bachelor of Arts in English. While at USC, she interned for both of her US Senators: Senator Barbara Boxer in Los Angeles and Senator Dianne Feinstein on Capitol Hill. On campus, she taught calculus to fellow undergrads and volunteered with underserved local children as a mentor with Troy Camp. Her pastimes include reading, traveling, hiking, and visiting museums. Passionate about public service, Samantha hopes to use her skills to contribute to economic stability through policy making. She is excited to join the Alaska children's Trust as their Community Resilience Fellow and is looking forward to contributing her skills to the advancement of the ACT's theory of change.

Trevor Storrs has called Alaska home for a quarter of a century. He grew up in Alberta, Canada and moved to Washington, D.C. to attend graduate school at Gallaudet University (the only deaf university in the world). After graduation, Trevor ventured to Alaska and began his career working with children who were deaf attending the state school for the deaf. His professional career has included over twenty years of extensive background working for and with nonprofits. Trevor joined ACT as its sole employee when it completed its transition from being a state organization to an independent nonprofit in 2012. He is an avid triathlete and loves to travel and explore the world with his husband.

Lily is our Afterschool STEM Expansion VISTA. She works to increase the number of STEM opportunities in our network. Lily first developed an interest in STEM education while teaching at Family Science and Engineering Nights with the Chemical Engineer’s student club at Oregon State, where she saw firsthand the impact afterschool experiences can have. She applied to VISTA for the opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives, and is very excited to join the Afterschool Network team and help expand STEM education.

Justin Williams hails from Anchorage, Alaska. An arts and sociology graduate of UAA, Justin has spent the majority of his adult life traveling the world, discovering new platforms of artistry and storytelling, and learning new ways to serve and love his communities. Formerly the lead host of Alaska Public Media's radio show Hometown Alaska, he now co-leads a podcast with local influencer Blaze Bell called What’s Up, Alaska?!, owns his own small graphic design and audio editing businesses, reviews restuarants under the Justin Eats Alaska brand, and is the single father to a wonderful eight-year-old girl.

Teresa was born and raised in Fairbanks, Alaska, and now calls Anchorage home. Teresa has always been drawn to education advocacy and youth harm reduction and leadership. At UAA, she served in government liaison roles with her local student government and assisted in leadership for two university student fly-ins to the Alaska legislature. She has since sought a plethora of advocacy experience, participated in two legislative internships in the federal and state governments, managed a campaign for state representative, and recently served as Program Director for a voter engagement organization, training and leading teams of organizers on issue-based campaigns for voter rights, independent expenditure slate candidate promotion, and helped lead the front-end rally for supporters of smarter environmental organizations.

Teresa is incredibly honored to return to ACT as the Policy & Advocacy Specialist and help garner the growing base of supporters in strengthening needed opportunities for Alaska's children and future.