Vanessa leads communications and individual fundraising for Justice in Aging. She enjoys telling stories and building narratives that highlight the impact of complicated policy decisions on real people’s lives. Since 2014, she’s overseen the development of Justice in Aging as a visible force and national leader in advancing equity for low-income aging adults who have been denied access to wealth by inequitable systems and policies.
As the youngest child of older parents, Vanessa saw first-hand the struggles low-middle income people face to access health care, retain what little they’ve saved, and keep a roof over their heads as they age.
Vanessa is proud to be a first-generation college graduate and holds a Bachelor’s Degree from San Francisco State University. In past lives she was a waiter, bartender, chef, and cookbook author. She’s on a life-long quest to become fluent in Spanish. Formerly from the San Francisco Bay Area, she now lives in Port Angeles, WA. with her wife, Nancy and their dog, Noce, who is learning how to hunt truffles.
