Zeke Spier, Executive Director
Magdaleno "Leno" Rose-Avila
Uma Rao, Membership & Grants Manager
Melissa Miller, Office Manager
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Zeke Spier,
Associate Director |
| Zeke has been working at Social Justice Fund for three years. Over that time, he has engaged hundreds of people as donors and helped to move millions of dollars to grassroots organizing in the Northwest. Zeke has experience both as a manager in the corporate sector and as a community organizer, working on issues from the just reconstruction of New Orleans to criminal justice issues in Philadelphia. He is currently sits on the Steering Committee of the Seattle chapter of Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy and is a member of the leadership team of the Coalition of Anti-Racist Whites. Zeke was born in Portland, Oregon, and enjoys reminiscing about his cross-country bicycle trip on his 2-mile ride to work. |
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Magdaleno Rose-Avila
Executive Director
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| Leno brings over forty years of experience an organizational manager, community organizer, and human rights advocate. He has served as United States Peace Corps Country Director for Nicaragua and Guatemala, and as the Executive Director of the Colorado Migrant Council, the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation, Homies Unidos, and the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project. Most recently, Leno was the Miami Project Director of International Relief and Development, an organization that reduces the suffering of the world’s most vulnerable groups and provide tools and resources needed to increase their self-sufficiency. |
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Uma Rao,
Membership & Grants Manager
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| Uma Rao has been an active part of the anti-violence and feminist movements for 12 years. She currently serves as the board chair of the King County Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Her roles have been to organize communities, serve on boards, train, and to raise funds. Her passions have been fed by her mentors and peers. Her interests in building stronger movements include grassroots philanthropy, community-based research & strategies, and leadership development. Uma came to Social Justice Fund as a grantee and member in 2005, and has since served on and chaired the Cultural Grants and Basic Grants committees, as well as the Grants Oversight Committee. Having been a fan of Social Justice Fund, she is excited to join the staff as the Membership and Grants Manager! Uma enjoys hot cups of chai, chats with her mother, great stories and dancing to loud music in the mornings. |
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Melissa Miller,
Office Manager
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Melissa began working with the Social Justice Fund as a volunteer in 2007, joining the staff part-time that summer. After leaving for 8 months to volunteer in Kolkata, India, she returned and is happy to be working with SJF again.
Melissa moved to Seattle from California in 2005 and is eager to be a part of the Pacific Northwest's network of activist organizations. As SJF has provided her with her first job in the non-profit sector, she is excited to learn all she can about organizations working on progressive issues in the Pacific Northwest and across the country.
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