Justin Ruffridgge was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives in 2022 to serve the Kenai/Soldotna area and was re-elected in November 2024. He expects to serve on the Health and Social Services Committee in the coming session. His parents, both educators, moved their family to Alaska in 1994, where they taught at a small Christian school. Justin graduated from high school in 2001 and Washington State University with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 2008. He married his wife Jessie in 2004, and after graduation, they moved back to the Kenai Peninsula to help care for Jessies terminally ill mother. Justin began his pharmacy career at Soldotna Professional Pharmacy. In the years since, he and a business partner acquired the Soldotna Pharmacy, the Juneau Drug Company in downtown Juneau, and the Alpine Apothecary Pharmacy in Girdwood. Justin was briefly on the Soldotna Planning and Zoning Commission before serving on the Soldotna City Council. He has advocated for those struggling to find housing and worked diligently on COVID-19 prevention, mitigation, and treatment efforts during the pandemic. He enjoys coaching Little League.

Andrew Gray was elected to the Alaska State House of Representatives in 2022 to represent the UMED District in Anchorage and was re-elected in November 2024. He is expected to chair the House Judiciary Committee and the Joint Armed Services Committee and to serve as Vice Chair of the Health and Social Services Committee in the new Legislature. During his first term in the Legislature, he brought forward legislation related to housing and homelessness. He carried Senate Bill 119 in the House, which requires the Department of Corrections to provide valid photo ID to all incarcerated people upon their release; the bill passed both chambers unanimously. He also served as co-chair of the Freshmen Caucus with Rep. Justin Ruffridge of Soldotna. That Caucus is not currently active, but the relationships established there remain intact. Outside the Capitol he is a physician assistant at Alaska Urgent Care. He hosts a podcast: the East Anchorage Book Club, which features interviews with Alaskans of political interest. He and his husband Jay and their 11-year-old son Waylon have been members of AUUF since 2017.

Peg Tileston has been active in Alaska public policy and conservation issues since arriving in the state 51 years ago. She is on the board of Alaska Common Ground, a non-profit, non-partisan organization whose mission is to build coalitions and consensus on matters of importance to Alaskans. She is also on the board of Trustees for Alaska, a non-profit legal organization. Peg spent many years with the Alaska Center for the Environment, co-founded the Alaska Conservation Foundation, and served on the Chugach Electric Association board from 1983 to 1993 and several state and local advisory commissions. Since 1999, Peg has distributed What’s Up, a weekly newsletter listing natural resource and conservation information via email to over 2600 Alaskan addresses. Over the years, she mentored many young women leaders. Peg is married to Jules and has three children and two grandchildren.

Alaska Common Ground website - https://akcommonground.org/

Alaska Humanities Forum sponsored community conversations - https://www.akhf.org/programs/kindling-conversation

NYT article about our challenges with building connections and community - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/13/magazine/robert-putnam-interview.html?unlocked_article_code=1.lE4.vGM2.8s8qagUIRrts&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Rev. Lise Adams Sherry is the settled minister for the Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. She grew up in Oregon as part of a blended family. Her main interests growing up were dancing and theatre--she performed a lot! Another highlight was learning French and spending her junior year in France. Lise is married to Nelson, and together, they have two boys (Kennen and Derek) and a daughter-in-law, Maria. They’ve lived in Alaska, British Columbia, Oregon, Illinois and Massachusetts. Lise received her M.Div. from Meadville Lombard in Chicago. Nature, Buddhism, and the Judeo-Christian tradition inform her religious life. Her favorite parts of ministry are social justice, multi-generational worship services, and pastoral care. Lise also enjoys hiking, bicycling, reading, gardening, watching movies, traveling, and learning about other cultures.