Michigan

Brina Wiliams, Age 22 Pronouns: They/Them Brina has a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Social Work and is an alum of the Seita Scholars program at Western Michigan University. They also earned an Associate’s degree from Lansing Community College and partook in their Fostering Stars program. Brina has been... Read more

Mackenzie Drake, Age 19 Pronouns: She/Her/Hers Mackenzie is currently in college pursuing her passion of nursing and anticipates graduating in 2026. When she’s not studying, Mackenzie loves to walk and hang out with friends. One thing she is extremely proud of is graduating high school with a 3.9 gpa. Currently... Read more

Jordan Masala, Age 22 Pronouns: He/Him/His Jordan Masala is currently in Michigan originally from The Congo. He is a senior at Grand Valley State University and loves playing basketball, writing songs and making new friends. He is excited to start his journey as an advocate for youth in care and... Read more

Ovvarshia G She/Her/Hers 24 Years Old Michigan “I’ve always wanted to help people, give back to the community, provide resource education and connect people to local agencies that will assist their everyday needs to improve their livelihood.” Ovvarshia made the decision to pursue social work as a career, because she... Read more

Gabriella M She/Her/Hers 25 Years Old Michigan “I can help advocate for change by continuing to be an ambassador, going to speaking engagements and local campaigns to help advocate for former and current foster youth.” Gabriella is the co-chair of a youth leadership ambassador board in her community, where she... Read more

Carissa Makielski, age 21 Pronouns: She/Her 4 years in Michigan foster system Carissa is from Big Rapids, Michigan. She is a student at Ferris State University and plans to pursue a Master’s in Social Work. Carissa plans to become a child welfare social worker, and will strive to keep siblings... Read more

Fawziah Jouni, age 22 Pronouns: She/Her 6 years in Michigan foster system Fawziah is from Detroit, Michigan. She is Lebanese-American, and is focused on helping other Arab-American foster youth feel supported. Fawziah intends to give back to her communities in the future through being a social worker. She is also... Read more

Izzy Rodriguez 6 years in Foster Care 19 years old She/her/hers Izzy Rodriguez is working toward a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology with a focus on Law, Justice, and Social Change at the University of Michigan. Once she graduates, she plans to pursue a Master’s degree in Public Administration and continue... Read more

Jayonna Yahsha She/Hers/Hers 20 Years Old Michigan Foster Care System Jayonna Yahsha, spent over ten years in Michigan's foster care system including placements in foster homes, getting adopted and then placed back in the system until she aged out into voluntary foster care. Jayonna would describe her experience in the... Read more

Aya Altantawi 18 years old She/Her/Hers Michigan Foster Care System Aya currently attends Michigan State University as a sophomore. She is currently majoring in Criminal Justice and Psychology and minoring in philosophy of law as well as law, justice, and public policy. Always having had a passion for law, she... Read more