Dear members of BALIF,

My involvement in the LGBTQI+ community has always been through acts of service.

In my pre-law life, I worked as a Volunteer Coordinator for a Queer Arts Festival in Vancouver, Canada (my hometown), where I had my first taste of event planning and nonprofit work. As a law student at Berkeley Law, I served as a Board Member for the Queer Caucus student group, where we planned the last Drag Night fundraiser before the COVID-19 pandemic (we had 0 positive cases). And during my 1L summer, I had the privilege of working at the AIDS Legal Referral Panel (ALRP) to serve people living with HIV and AIDS in the Bay Area.

I am currently an Associate at Donahue Fitzgerald in Oakland, focusing on Employment Law.

As a board member of BALIF, I will use my experience and expertise to serve the members of our community, and to strengthen the organization, its mission, and its members.

Thank you for considering my candidacy. I look forward to the opportunity to serve you on the board.

Melanie

My name is Lindsey Kincaid, I am a current board member seeking re-election.

I am a Legal Secretary for Gibbs Law Group, a plaintiff’s side law firm seeking to protect individuals and class members from corporate misconduct. I’m a member of the firm’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Task Force, and the Diversity Fellowship teams, promoting diversity and inclusion in and outside the firm through employee engagement, training, and outreach.

Prior to joining the board, BALIF’s Gala provided me an entry point where my personal and professional identities could intertwine. As a BALIF board member, I hope to continue building connection with other legal professionals and create a space that provides services and community for the LGBTQ+ community at large.

As a non-licensed legal professional, volunteering for BALIF has given me an opportunity contribute to my community while also engaging with my interest in law. I hope to continue working alongside the board and BALIF members to build robust programming, develop a strong social media presence and invite legal support professionals to enjoy the vibrant opportunities BALIF provides its members.

On a personal note, I like to spend my free time outdoors, hiking, camping, and backpacking. You’ll often find me on the trails with my trusty camera seeking the perfect shot. When I’m not outside, I’m in the studio editing. My art is primarily focused on identify formation and has been featured in galleries that promote BIPOC artists, folks in the LGBTQI+ community and women identifying artists.

My personal experiences as a gay Latino immigrant have instilled in me a profound understanding of the intersectionality within our community and the importance of amplifying voices that have historically been marginalized and silenced. That’s why I am passionate about fostering inclusivity and representation within the LGBTQI community. I firmly believe that diverse perspectives are essential for creating meaningful change and advancing the rights and well-being of all individuals.

I am driven by a desire to ensure that all members of the LGBTQI community feel seen, heard, and supported. If given the opportunity to serve on the board, I would like to work to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and to bring more members to our organization. I will strive to create spaces where individuals of all backgrounds feel welcomed and valued, and where their experiences are acknowledged and respected.

I also bring to the table a diverse skill set and a strong dedication to community service. While a student at UC Law SF, I served as the Internal Vice- President of the Latinx Law Student Association and worked at the Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic. Before law school I volunteered at the Frameline Film Festival, Under One Roof, political campaigns, and citizenship drives. Now that I am in my second year of practice, I feel it is time for me to return to work with my community and contribute to creating a more inclusive and equitable community for us all.

Thank you for considering my candidacy.

I would be thrilled to contribute to a community in which I have longer desired to immerse myself: Bay Area LGBTQ members of the legal profession. As a first-generation attorney and gay man, I have come to understand the initial difficulties many members of our community may face in connecting with others like themselves in the legal profession. The process of networking can be an intimidating and unwelcome experience for newcomers, particularly for those who identify with groups that have historically been excluded from these opportunities. Nonetheless, we uproot this problem through our intentional and concerted efforts to give our LGBTQ peers a sense of belonging and empowerment that enables us to better establish ourselves in the broader legal community.

I am currently a resident of the Castro and often find myself erecting a wall between my neighborhood and the office. I tend to feel pressure to screen parts of my identity from exposure in the workplace and have difficulty finding the opportunity to discuss professional diversity with regards to sexual orientation and gender identity. Taking an active leadership role in BALIF would not only embolden me to navigate those conversations with my own employer, but also strengthen our BALIF community to similarly provide others the confidence, skills and inspiration to do the same.

I am most interested in planning social and community events that allow LGTBQ lawyers to connect and bolster each other. I am also interested in extending our outreach to LGBTQ folks beyond the legal profession to contemplate and share how we as lawyers can better serve the LGTBQ as a whole. I imagine achieving this goal through local engagement and volunteering activities, including an expansion of BALIF's visibility and participation at established LGTBQ events and programs in the Castro and beyond that are already staples of our community.

Thank you for your consideration of my candidacy.

I’d like to seek another term as a BALIF Boardmember to continue to develop on the successes of expanding on the in-person programming, furthering membership growth and benefits to all members, and building our network of sponsors and partners since the onset of the pandemic. And, I would like to continue serving our Membership and Gala Committees and help with the fundraising efforts that support our org, the nation’s oldest LGBTQIA bar association and the friendliest, most collaborative, and diverse group of legal professionals, to put on regular, well-attended, quality events.

I’ve been a member of BALIF for nearly 15 years and am glad to have served with the Board in recent years. It’s been good to use the broad professional network with local law firms and in-house legal departments that I have cultivated from my dozen year career as a legal recruiter (Robert Half Legal) as well as from my long-time participation in BALIF to give back to our association in raising more sponsorship funds for the Gala and promoting membership with all queer and allied attorneys, paralegals, legal support staff, and other legal industry professionals throughout Northern California. I look to double these efforts in another term.

I’m looking to serve you again for another two years as a BALIF board member. I am currently one of your Co-Chairs and have also co-chaired the Programming Committee this past year. I have previously worked with BALIF’s Governance, Diversity, Community Activism, and Amicus Committees. I have experience leading the Board, organizing CLE events, organizing and hosting the Halloween Community Fundraiser, co-hosting the BALIF Gala. I remain proud of updating BALIF’s demographics questions, helping to reform BALIF’s personal data collection, and in helping to update BALIF’s bylaws. I look forward to continuing to assist the Board as we continue to emerge into our post-pandemic world.

Professionally, outside of BALIF, I am a litigation partner in the San Francisco office of Squire Patton Boggs (US) LLP where I work on internet and data privacy matters as well as matters involving foreign sovereigns. I maintain an active pro bono practice.

I presently Co-Chair the National Trans Bar Association and look forward most to continuing to serve as a liaison between the BALIF Board and the National Trans Bar Association.

I would be honored if you would vote for me to continue serving on BALIF’s board.

My name is Virginia Millacci (they/them). I am the Executive Director of Family & Children’s Law Center in Marin County, the only legal aid non-profit in the Bay Area providing direct representation in general family law matters. As the Executive Director, I am skillful and experienced in board functionality. I offer unique insight to board governance, recruitment, finances, and fundraising. My objective is to bring these skills to BALIF to grow membership and fundraise to give back to our LGBTQ legal community.

Giving back to communities is a key motivator for the work I do. Since I graduated law school, I have worked mostly in the legal aid sector, representing survivors of domestic violence. Majority of my clients were/are low-income immigrants where English is typically their second or third language. In 2023, 70% of my clients had 2 children and were living off $3,000 gross monthly income. As a first-generation Filipinx-American, I know how giving back is a monumental way to lift up and support communities.

While in law school, I served on the BALIF board. During my tenure, I sought to celebrate and engage the law student community, and created the Julius Turman Award. While on the Board, I became familiar with the influence BALIF has on the next generation of attorneys and legal community. Now, as the manager of a non-profit, I have a stronger appreciation and knowledge for the skills necessary to maintain board excellence. I am excited to bring my knowledge, skills, and experience to BALIF.

My name is Euni Elisabeth Lee (she/her) and I’m a rising 2L at Berkeley Law running for Law Student Representative! I am a queer Korean-American woman, the proud daughter of immigrants, and a first-generation law student. I am a recent graduate of Columbia University, where I received the LGBTQIA+ Legacy Award for my on-campus advocacy serving BIPOC LGBTQ+ students. At Berkeley, I received recognition as a Henderson Center Scholar for my steadfast dedication to BIPOC LGBTQ+ community advancement and liberation. As a 1L, I continued serving the LGBTQ+ community by joining Queer Justice Project (a student-led pro bono initiative) and working with Transgender Law Center’s Legal Helpdesk. As a 2L, I’ll take on a leadership position in Queer Justice Project to expand our impactful initiatives.

As Law Student Representative, I hope to foster increased and intentional connections between BALIF and current law students by promoting BALIF’s community-building events and incredible resources. Since becoming a member in August 2023, I can attest to the power of these resources myself—I’ve created an invaluable connection with my BALIF mentor and joined a strong community of lawyers who share my lived experiences. I know firsthand that community support is essential when entering the legal profession as a marginalized individual. This truth will motivate my work as Law Student Representative: I will ensure that LGBTQ+ law students—especially those with intersectional identities—are connected to BALIF’s thriving community of lawyers to foster meaningful relationships based on mutual support and shared identity. Thank you for your consideration!

Hi all! My name is Keerthi (Kiki) Yalamanchili (she/her). I’m a queer 1L at Berkeley Law, involved in our Queer Caucus. I am passionate about promoting diversity in law, which is my prime motivation in running for the BALIF Board.

Primarily, my experience is concentrated in increasing diversity in academic environments. I am Co-Leader of the Foster Education Project at Berkeley Law, which is charged with providing pro-bono legal services to foster youth and representing them in their respective school districts. I was also involved with the For People of Color Conference, and in my capacity as a law student, I helped organize this event for prospective, minority law school applicants. Additionally, prior to law school, I was Head Counselor multiple summers, for a minority-student camp for high-school seniors across the U.S.. This was hosted at business schools across the country, with a goal of encouraging minority students to envision their futures in college and in business.

My goal in running for the BALIF board is to strengthen the connection between law students and the BALIF professional community, similar to that of my law school board representative predecessors (BALIF representative Emily Hunt, notably!). I am confident that my prior experience will provide a new perspective on how to best facilitate my goal.

In addition, I was able to attend the BALIF Gala and conceptualize what legal, queer representation looks like in the Bay Area, and I am very interested in being involved with the Gala next year.

My name is Caleb Krywenko (He/Him), and I am running (again) for a Law School Rep position on BALIF’s Board for the 2024-25 year. I’m currently wrapping up my 2L year at UC Law San Francisco.

Over the past year, BALIF has proven to be a great resource for mentorship and professional development. I’ve met many incredible, talented, and passionate advocates, and I hope to continue to build relationships within this community. I’ve had the chance to organize several events for BALIF, including a law student mixer, the Mock Interview and Resume Review Workshop, and the annual Gala. I would be honored to serve as a member of the Board again so I can continue to advance and iterate on the work we’ve done this past year.

I care deeply about BALIF’s mission and would be honored to earn your support. Thank you.