AAI Staff 2009

The AAI staff is proud to have been involved in the adoptive placement of thousands of children over the past 25 years. We believe that children belong in families and we are committed to processing each adoption with respect for the welfare of the child and concern for the emotional support of the adopting parents.

is founder and director of Adoption Advocates International. She has worked in the field of adoption for over 30 years. She and her husband, Ted, adopted 17 children in addition to the 3 born to them. They have many grandchildren and live near Olympic National Park, above Port Angeles.

Kathy Barner works as an adoption Counselor for AAI.

has worked for AAI since 1986. She helps families prepare dossiers for adoption from China and Thailand. She has two grown sons and two grandchildren and she lives with her husband in Port Angeles.

has worked for AAI since 1986. Kathy handles the bookkeeping and assists with the foster/adopt program for Washington families. She and her husband, Richard, have three children, two grown and on their own, and one in high school.

Gay Knutson has worked for AAI since its beginning days. She has been an adoption counselor, and six years ago she joined the office staff three days a week. She works on Washington State adoptions and she assists families who are having adoption adjustment issues. She has two grown sons and she lives on several acres west of Port Angeles near the community of Joyce.

Ky Patterson has worked in the office since 1996, having started while still in high school. She is in charge of the China Adoption program and she handles many other tasks in the office each day.

Susan Holmgren has worked for AAI since January 2006. She assists families with travel arrangements to Ethiopia and coordinates the volunteer program. Susan also enjoys completing home-studies and post-placement visits for Washington State families.

Linda Lyver has worked for AAI since 2005. She maintains the Ethiopian children's files and assists families with the referrals. She has one grown step son and lives with her husband in Port Angeles.

Yvette Nichols has been with AAI since June 2006. She assists with answering the phones and sending out waiting children DVDs, and other information including information on adoption grants. She also assists with ther Washington State Foster/Adopt program. She lives in Port Angeles with her husband and two teenage daughters.

Erin Henderson began working for AAI in January 2008 as the HIV Adoption Coordinator. She will assist families interested in adopting children who are HIV+. She lives in Wyoming with her husband and 11 children. They have children from Vietnam, Korea, the U.S. and Ethiopia and have adopted two HIV+ children from AHOPE through AAI.

Anita Gillespie joined AAI in April 2007 as our Ghana Adoption Coordinator. Anita has been involved in adoption since 2000. She and her husband live in Oklahoma and have three children by adoption (from Cambodia, Vietnam, and Ghana).

joined AAI in April 2008 as our Director of Fundraising. She coordinates all fundraising and other events from her home in Troy, New York where she lives with her husband and three daughters, including one adopted from Ethiopia in 2004.

Brooke Cole joined our office in 2007 and is now responsible for the Sponsorship programs as well as various office tasks. Brooke is also a massage therapist and Yoga instructor. In her spare time she teaches Yoga to youth at risk in the Clallam County Juvenile Detention Center, helping to promote healthy lifestyle choices.

Johanna Sculley, 18 years old and Kathy’s youngest daughter, has been working part-time in the AAI office since August 2008. Johanna received her AA degree in June and helps out in many different areas in the office including handling the mail and sending out the waiting parent DVD’s.