COLAGE Board of Directors

Tobi Hill-Meyer, 25, Eugene, OR - Chair

Tobi grew up in Oregon with her lesbian moms and younger brother. While a student, Tobi was the Finance Senator of the Associated Students of University of Oregon, and has continued sharing her financial expertise as Board Treasurer of a local PAC, Equality Network. Tobi is a Technical Writer by profession. She also self-publishes a sex-positive zine series, leads workshops and presentations on a wide range of issues such as trans inclusion, linguistics, sexual and gender identity, and queerspawn issues. She originally connected with COLAGE through online listserves and communities.

Aaron Sachs, 28, Berkeley, CA - Vice Chair

Aaron is currently finishing a PhD in Media Studies at the University of Iowa, and is writing his dissertation on hip-hop in the 1980s. Born with the help of anonymous donor insemination, Aaron was raised by lesbian moms in Berkeley, CA. After his parents separated when he was 8 years-old, one mother came-out as bisexual and was involved with a man until recently. Four years ago, Aaron was contacted by his donor and the two remain in touch. Aaron identifies as culturally and spiritually Jewish; as male, but not masculine; as straight, but queer; as a person of color without a particular color to belong to; and as an anti-racist white ally who isn't really white. Aaron recently joined COLAGE by marching with the New York chapter in NYPride 2008 and working at Family Week in Provincetown.

Deanna Makinen, 15, Exeter, NH - Secretary

Deanna lives with her two moms and her brother in New Hampshire and spends time with her father on weekends. While her favorite activities include theater, making jewelry, and writing, Deanna also enjoys spending time anywhere outdoors, especially the beach. In addition to advocating for gay rights issues, Deanna is involved in national and local politics. In the future, Deanna wishes to be a child psychologist, and to be able work with children who have chronic illnesses or are a part of the GLBTQ community. Deanna has been involved with COLAGE for 8 years, since attending her first Family Week in Provincetown, Massachusetts.

Steve Sanchez, 46, FL - Treasurer

Originally from the north, Steve has lived in sunny Florida for the past 10 years. He and his family, which consists of his partner of twenty five years and their newly adopted son, live ten minutes away from "the happiest place on earth" (Disney World), where Steve works for Mickey Mouse. Besides being actively involved in diversity initiatives for Disney, Steve is the Facilities Manager and Administrator at a middle school in Seminole County and serves as both secretary and treasurer for his homeowner's association. Steve learned about COLAGE's outstanding accomplishments through participation in a COLAGE workshop presented at an Out & Equal conference in 2007.

Kelly Densmore, 25, Oakland, CA

Kelly, a two-time COLAGE intern, is originally from a small town north of San Francisco. A graduate of UC Santa Cruz with a degree in Feminist Studies, Kelly has a lesbian mom, a straight dad, a step-mom, a brother and two stepbrothers. Kelly works as an artist making jewelry. She also volunteers with Just Cause Oakland, a social and economic justice organization, conducting research for an anti-gentrification campaign.

Michelle Duso, 39, Cranston, RI

Michelle is a dynamic leader who brings nearly two decades of nonprofit and community building experience to the COLAGE board. She is the former executive director of a statewide nonprofit working with and for LGBTQQ youth in RI. Michelle is the founder and director of POWER4GOOD, a consulting firm specializing in youth development & engagement, strategic planning, and coalition building. She is also co-founder of inFOCUS, a firm that designs and conducts trainings and consultation that inspire LGBTQQ inclusion. She lives with her partner and their three children, and became involved with COLAGE after enjoying Provincetown Family Week activities for several years.

Asha Leong, 31, Atlanta, GA

The proud product of many parents and a southern belle at heart, Asha identifies as a queer, femme, multi-racial, immigrant, organizer with a passion for social justice. Asha lives in Atlanta and has had the good fortune of working in LGBT allied communities, on several legal and political campaigns with a range of local, state and national organizations, for the past 10 years. Asha founded the Ad Hoc Committee for Racial Justice to help challenge racism within our own LGBT community. In recognition of this work, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force awarded her their Community Service Award in the fall of 2000. Asha has been involved with COLAGE for 9 years, as a SpeakOUT member and Family Week facilitator, and otherwise indulges her artistic side through writing, dancing, and performance art.

Caitlin MacIntyre, 19. Houston, TX

Caitlin is the proud daughter of the most stupendously radical ally mom and two wonderful gay dads, Daddy and Daddy Tony. A resident of New Jersey, she currently attends Rice University in Houston Texas where she serves as president of her school's LGBTQQA Association. Most recently she was privileged to have the life-changing experience of the 2008 Soulforce Equality Ride where she non-violently spoke truth to power and built wonderful relationships with oodles of people from all different walks of life. Community organizing and anti-oppression activism are her joy and her bliss and she is always looking for exciting new ways to advocate for justice and liberation. She looks forward to working with COLAGE, learning, growing, being challenged, and continually empowering young people to be voices for their own liberation.

Cathy Sakimura, 29, San Francisco, CA

Cathy Sakimura is an attorney at the National Center for Lesbian Rights. She coordinates NCLR's Family Protection Project, which supports free and low-cost family law services for low-income LGBT parents and their children, with a focus on increasing services to families of color. Before she became a lawyer, Cathy worked at Gay-Straight Alliance Network, where she empowered young people to combat homophobia and transphobia in their schools and participated in a multi-organization project linking work against homophobia with work against racism. Cathy and her partner Ellen coordinated the COLAGE Pen Pal Program as volunteers for 7 years, starting after Cathy worked with COLAGE on their Bay Area programing in 2001. Cathy is hapa (half-Asian) and grew up on the Big Island of Hawaii.