2022 WSRID Board
(From left-right, top to bottom: Anna Mansell-Karagiannis, Krystal Sanders, Mark Hoshi, Elizabeth Bass, Caroline Allen, Gabby Hopkinson, Kristin Deverin, Claudia Kienholz, & Rhesa Durgin)
"The Board members of WSRID are committed to action that will promote and ensure equity and inclusion of all diverse people, and we know this is not possible until we can ensure that racism has no presence in our organization. We strive to work in partnership with organizations and individuals who share these same priorities, and we welcome the participation of all members in this process." Equity Commitment Statement WSRID Officers:President Anna Mansell Karagiannis
Vice President Krystal Sanders
Secretary Elizabeth Bass
Treasurer Mark Hoshi
Deaf/DeafBlind Community Representative Gabby Hopkinson
Immediate Past President Caroline Allen
Current office term: JAN 2021 – DEC 2022
WSRID Directors:Kristin Deverin
Claudia Kienholz
Rhesa Durgin
Student Director [position vacant]Are you currently an ITP student or do you know one? If so, consider inquiring about this position for next year! |
Anna Mansell Karagiannis, NIC, is a freelance sign language interpreter living in Seattle. A Wisconsin native and graduate of the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (2007 BFA), Anna tries to never complain about the weather here in the PNW. Returning to ASL several years after college, Anna feels fortunate to have graduated amongst the “last class” of ITP students at SCCC in 2013. She is excited to continue her journey on the WSRID board, focusing her efforts on community strengthening and professional development for interpreters here in Washington. Prior to joining the board in October of 2017, Anna helped coordinate the Professional Development Committee-West (2014-2018), was a contributing member of the Bylaws Committee (2016-2018), and served as one of the Conference Co-Coordinators for our “Make it Matter” joint conference with WSAD in 2019. She is honored to be serving her second year of her term as President, but she misses group hugs and interacting with the community. For now, she is trying her best to balance working, parenting, WSRID, and daily living throughout the pandemic.
Krystal Sanders was born and raised in the Kansas City, Kansas metro area. In 2018, she put on her ruby slippers and moved to the Emerald City, Seattle, to work for her current employer as a staff interpreter. She started her interpreting journey in 2013 as the first and only Deaf student in the Johnson County Community College’s ASL to English Interpreting Preparation Program where she graduated and became certified in 2015. As a mother of four, Krystal is a firm believer of the tripod of life: Family (lungs), work (brain), and community (heart). She started serving the community on boards at JCCC as a first-year representative for the Student Kansas Association of Interpreters in 2013, and she hasn’t stopped. Since then, she has served on several boards and conferences in different capacities. Today, she serves as a board member for DBSC and vice president for WSRID. Let’s meet for coffee!
As a Navy wife and mother, Elizabeth has had the opportunity to experience many different “mini” careers, mainly involving art, computers, and (believe it or not) mechanics. A new opportunity presented itself every time her husband transferred to a new duty station. These experiences have worked together to give her a unique background. After graduating ITP in 2011, Elizabeth went to work at the Deaf-Blind Service Center to increase her language and cultural experience while using her previous office and Braille skills to support the DeafBlind community she dearly loves. In 2015, she started working as an educational interpreter. She looks forward to what the future holds as a wife, mom, grammie; and, as an interpreter and friend to the Deaf/DeafBlind Community! 
Mark Hoshi has served multiple terms as a WSRID director (starting back in the 80's and 90's) and has also served as the WSRID Deaf/DeafBlind community representative. He is a former ASL instructor at SCCC and is formerly RSC (now called CDI) certified. Mark is also a staunch supporter of the interpreter’s process and growth and demands professional integrity and continuous self-assessment. In addition, he is a licensed commercial electrician who enjoys surfing, fishing, camping, traveling, concerts, and reading books. Mark runs the children’s program at the Deaf Family Retreat (Ellensburg) and is co-director and senior facilitator for the Deaf Teen Leadership camp at CISPUS. And last, but not least... he has been to over 225 Grateful Dead shows!
Gabby Hopkinson moved to Seattle from her home state of California 13 years ago and has been heavily immersed in the Seattle and Washington scene ever since. She has a bachelor’s in psychology from Gallaudet and a master’s in rehabilitation counseling from San Francisco State, and has enjoyed involvement in local organizations namely Deaf-friendly, Deaf Spotlight, ADWAS, HSDC, and more. She left her 9-5 gig as the Human Resources Director at HSDC to become a stay at home mother to her three Deaf sons and that was when a long time DeafBlind friend threw her the idea to become a Deaf Interpreter. She’s never looked back. She’s been working steadily as a Deaf Interpreter in different settings, and is eagerly working towards her certification. As a Deaf person and a Deaf Interpreter, she has experience being on both ends and one of her goals is to continue to bring all the communities closer together. She gets a kick out of traveling, being outdoors, photography, running her Etsy shop Happy Shock, being a mother to her amazing sons, and much more.
Kristin Deverin, NIC, is a freelance interpreter living on the Olympic Peninsula. Her first ASL classes were in a rural city in northern Nevada. After earning a BA in criminal justice, she made her way up to Washington, where she meet a Deaf women who encouraged her to pursue interpreting. She started volunteering with WSRID while she attended ITP at SCCC. After finishing ITP with Sorensen’s School to Work program, Kristin relocated to San Diego to be with family. There she was involved with SDCRID Bylaws committee and Young Professional Interpreting Network (YPIN) committee. After returning home a few years ago, she is now ready to roll up her sleeves and give back to the interpreting and deaf communities by joining WSRID. When she is not with her partner backpacking in the Olympic Mountains, or trying to get her passport full of stamps, Kristin enjoys spending time with friends and hosting Airbnb guests on her farm.
Originally from southern California, near the National Center on Deafness at CSUN, Claudia started taking ASL classes while in high school and graduated from ITP at LA Pierce College. She moved to Seattle in 1984, began working and volunteering as an interpreter in the Deaf and DeafBlind communities and earned IC certification in 1985. She later returned to school and worked as a registered nurse in a variety of settings while still doing some interpreting work part time. She returned to interpreting full time in 2010 and is preparing for recertification. Claudia began working on WSRID's Bylaws Review Committee in 2015. She has served on two other boards in the past and is looking forward to working with WSRID's board to serve all members and the Deaf and DeafBlind communities around the state. Claudia loves community, cats, and homegrown veggies. She is grateful to all of the Deaf, DeafBlind, and interpreting mentors who have shared so generously over the decades. She is also grateful to her mother, who passed on a passion for social justice, a commitment for volunteering, and a respect for the nitty gritty details of organizational documents. And she is in awe of, and inspired by, the transformative and life-giving power of the earth.
Rhesa Durgin grew up with a HOH mother. At 13, she asked her mom to learn sign language with her. While her mom was only able to attend a few classes, Rhesa fell in love with sign. After that, she continued taking ASL classes - jumping to four different colleges as each discontinued their program. After a seven-year intermission, a Deaf woman encouraged Rhesa to rejoin the Deaf community. This led to her meeting the state standard for the EIPA, attending many workshops and Deaf gatherings to improve skills, and to establish a proud career as an educational interpreter. Rhesa loves to spend time with family and friends… and to learn. She’s honored to serve on WSRID’s board and give back a little of what the Deaf and interpreting communities have given her!
| DONATE |
