Ali Abid is an Assistant Attorney General. Ali joined Attorney General’s Office in January 2023 and is assigned to represent Department of Children, Youth, and Families through Tacoma office. Before becoming an attorney, Ali owned and operated a 7-11 franchise in Olympia from 1996 to 2010. While in law school, Ali worked as an extra hire at Pierce County Assigned Counsel where he helped individuals dealing with dependency petitions regarding their children through Child Protective Services.

Ali joined the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (TCPAO) and was appointed as a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney in September 2013. He served the TCPAO in that capacity for almost ten years. During his career as a prosecutor, Ali’s focus was on cases involving individuals with substance use addiction and mental health issues. As such, he observed the Thurston County Treatment Courts via various assignments in Drug and Mental Health Courts. In addition to General Felony caseload, Ali enjoyed participating in Juvenile Court with the goal-oriented prosecution to transform the lives of youth entangled in criminal justice system. Ali is currently a member of 2023 class Leadership Thurston County.

Tonia McClanahan is a contracted Social Service Worker with the Washington State Office of Public Defense Parent Representation Programs and formerly the Parent4Parent Program Director for Thurston, Mason and Lewis Counties. She has been working collaboratively with attorneys, parents, and stakeholders to help parents navigate the Children's Justice Systems and come to a resolution in the Dependency Court process.

Tonia also sits on various committees and boards at local and state levels. She has been mentoring parents in the Dependency process since 2005 and has testified to help support Legislative work to improve child welfare systems since 2006. In 2013 she became the first Birth Parent to sit on the Washington State Supreme Court Commission on Children in Foster Care. Tonia also is a member of Family Recovery Drug Court teams in two counties, State SafeBabies Design Team, a local Executive Dependency Advisory Group, Strophy Foundation, State Background Check Workgroup, and Statewide Reunification Steering Committee. She champions the Protein for All program and Hangry Carts as well as the local Mockingbird Society Chapter.

Tonia believes in helping parents regain hope in rebuilding their families.

Priscilla Terry has recently retired from a 40+ year career in the commercial real estate business. During this time, she has worked with local jurisdictions on matters involving land use, zoning and other issues.

Since 1997 she has been involved in hospital and community health care as a Providence St Peter Hospital board trustee and chair of Quality and Safety. Priscilla was a founding director of South Sound Bank, a community resource for small business. She served on the editorial board and writes a column for The Olympian newspaper.

In retirement, Priscilla sees a way to bring different perspectives to issues confronting the legal system as it tries new approaches to help vulnerable and mentally ill populations increase their quality of life and begin a more rewarding and fulfilling existence. She sees this as one of the few subjects that unites people and policy makers. She wants to be part of the search for solutions that make a difference.

Garrett Cady, a descendant of a family deeply rooted in the Thurston County area with a history spanning the past 160 years. A graduate of the Yelm High School class of 2012, Garrett provides unique insights into the challenges faced by communities situated further from the county center. His personal journey demonstrates a commitment to sobriety as a means of overcoming addiction challenges, while still maintaining an open-minded approach that acknowledges the individuality of recovery, recognizing that each person has a unique story and interpretation of what recovery means to them. With a certification from the completion of the Washington State HCA peer counseling program, Garrett is now equipped with the tools to better understand the adversity faced by both individuals and communities struggling with mental health and substance abuse. Having personally navigated the justice system in the past, he now approaches it from a distinctly different vantage point, offering insights into the complexities of the court system from both sides. Since the fall of 2023, Garrett has been serving as a Deputy Clerk at the Thurston County Superior Court. 

Diana worked for over a decade in direct behavioral health services care, then moved to Public Health and Social Services overseeing behavioral health, and since 2015 at the state as a leader in behavioral health specializing in serving young people and their families.  Her work is driven by experiences of youth and families who shared their sacred stories and who needed and deserved trauma informed, whole person, whole family care. System configuration created barriers to quality coordinated whole person care and Diana realized to ‘be the change’, would mean moving inside the system to find keys to support care driven by ‘people centered’ v. ‘system centered’.  Diana holds a MA in Psychology and substance use disorder professional certification and serves as section manager for prenatal through age 25 mental health and substance use in state service. 

Diana is a member of Gateway Rotary,  has served Lacey Fire District 3 as chair of the Citizen’s Advisory Committee, is past chair of the National Assoc. of Mental Health Directors Child Youth and Family Division, co-chair of the Prenatal through age 25 Strategic Planning Advisory Group through WA Child Youth Behavioral Health Workgroup, member of the WA Partnership Council on Juvenile Justice, Advisory member of HearMeWa, writing team member on the upcoming Adolescent pregnant parenting chapter of the American Society of Addiction Medicine Adolescent volume coming out next year,  and grateful member of Thurston County Treatment Sales Tax Committee where she looks forward to connecting deeper with her local community. 

Jennifer Creighton is a 35-year resident of Thurston County and the immediate past Court Executive Officer for Thurston County District Court.  At District Court, she oversaw the running of the Thurston County Mental Health and Veterans Courts.  These courts address the behavioral health issues a defendant may have and strive to divert people from the criminal justice system.  She has consulted with the Center for Court Innovation conducting implicit bias training for judges in the state and as far away as Guam.  

Jennifer also volunteers with the Dispute Resolution Center of Thurston County and with Providence SoundHomeCare and Hospice.  People in court or on hospice care are at their most vulnerable and Jennifer believes in supporting them however they show up.  This advisory board funds organizations that do the same.