Meet the Crew: Angie
Meet Angie, the new Operations Coordindator in Roanoke! Angie was the Founder and CEO of St. Vincent's Home and the Blue Ridge Autism and Achievement Center, serving the Roanoke, Lexington, and Lynchburg, VA areas. Angie is married to Alan and the mother to three grown children, one of whom has autism. She began working in the autism field in 1998 with The Autism Program of Virginia, now known as Commonwealth Autism Services, where she provided training and consultations to families, professionals, and school divisions. Formerly a public school teacher, her passion began as a mother who sought to educate her son fully. She quickly transitioned her passion into a drive to help other families and educators who had very little knowledge or training. In 2002, she opened the Blue Ridge Autism Center, and in 2009, she merged the center with The Achievement Center to further develop the organization's role in serving individuals with Learning Disabilities and later providing employment services for adults. Angie has coordinated and participated in ten international trips to provide the underserved with training in special needs education/autism, including Africa, Haiti, Kazakhstan, Central America, and the Middle East. Angie has served on the Virginia Autism Council, the Advisory Board for the Virginia Tech Center for Autism Research, as a board member for Katie's Place, Healing Wheels, and the DisAbilities Resource Network, where she was a founding Board member for GTO-Growth through Opportunity Program with the Roanoke City Police Department. She was also a founding board member and chair for Diamonds in the Ruff of Virginia, which matched and trained shelter dogs for people with disabilities and veterans.She was appointed by Governors McDonnell and McAuliffe to serve on the Virginia Interagency Coordinating Council and by Governor Northam to serve on Virginia's State Rehabilitation Council. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, reading and spending time with her children and husband.
What do you go by? Angie (my legal name is Angela)
How old are you? Too old to want to answer this!! But 59 tomorrow
Where did you attend college or school? Elon University in NC
Where did you grow up? Botetourt County
Favorite outdoor activity? Spending time on the water (ocean, river, or lake)
What's your guilty pleasure? Ice cream
What is your favorite type of BB trip? White water rafting
Favorite band? All time? Boston and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Current? I really like Chris Stapleton (I like a lot of different genres!)
Favorite food? Italian
How did you get involved with BB? I met Shep and BB via a grant I wrote with DWR to bring a group of people from Roanoke up to experience white water rafting. That’s all I needed! I initially joined the board and have now joined the organization as an employee.
Why does BB's mission resonate with you? I have worked with so many people with unique abilities, including my own son, for over twenty years and I had big doubts regarding their abilities to access high adventure activities on their own. Beyond Boundaries proved me wrong and enabled me to see so much potential in these individuals.
Fun fact about yourself? I’ve visited 16 different countries on five continents and five territories. I helped start special education programs in 3 of these places.
What does adventure mean to you? Experiencing the best of life with people of other cultures in faraway places
Favorite animal? Dog
Favorite place you've traveled? Either Italy or St. John, USVI. Hard to decide!