Our Team

Our Board Members

Elizabeth Echevarria

Founder and CEO


Elizabeth Echevarria is the founder and CEO of Living in Liberty, a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit focused on providing services for victims and survivors of sex trafficking in Western Pennsylvania. Her first exposure to sex trafficking was when a visiting missionary from India shared about her work with Project Rescue in Calcutta, India. After hearing her speak, Elizabeth felt she had to do something and started Living in Liberty. Elizabeth has also worked in the streets of Belgium with trafficking victims, where she worked with Breaking Chains on a short-term mission trip. She has worked in the non-profit world over her career overseeing the human resource and financial management aspects of various organizations.

Elizabeth began working on her MSW at Slipper Rock University in the fall of 2022, where she is learning skills in animal-assisted therapy to incorporate into the work of Living in Liberty. She plans to graduate in the spring of 2024. She completed ministry school at the Reach Northeast Ministry School at Allison Park Church in June 2010. She has been involved with ministry to women in some capacity for over 20 years. She has always been passionate about helping underserved and underprivileged women or those going through a challenging time. In 2018 she received the Women of Courage award for her work with Living in Liberty.

Deanna Budziszewski

Board Member


Deanna is a proud mom of two awesome boys, Evan 15 and Owen 11 as well as a rescue pup named Petie! Deanna has been in banking since 1994, starting her career with Mellon Bank. She is currently an AVP and Branch Manager for First National Bank, serving two offices in the Wexford area. Deanna is an active member of the Pittsburgh North Regional Chamber of Commerce, growth coordinator for her local BNI chapter, and is Regional Director for Christian Business Partners in Pittsburgh. She also heads up the Homeless Outreach Group for Network of Hope, where they plan monthly outreach events to help the homeless in Pittsburgh. Deanna loves to serve those around her with her whole heart and can’t wait to make a difference for Living in Liberty!

Tammy Friday

Board member


Tammy Friday is a hometown girl with a big heart. As a daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, and real estate professional, Tammy always focuses on helping others, following her Christian principles. Before her career as a professional agent in Pittsburgh and Naples, Florida, Tammy studied sociology at West Virginia Wesleyan, has a degree in Piloting and Air Traffic control, and was volunteer extraordinaire at her children's schools and through their activities mainly focused on fundraising efforts. Tammy was also involved with the Butler County Association for the Blind; she is a founding member of the North Naples Rotary Sunset and a member of Saint Kilian Church. Tammy is excited to bring her skills to Living in Liberty, which has tugged at her heartstrings since she became aware of the organization and the wonderful work they do to help women trapped in human trafficking.

Michael Hess

Board Member


Mike Hess considers himself to be the luckiest guy in America as he is married to the girl of his dreams and is a new father to a beautiful baby girl. Mike has worked in medical sales for the last ten years following his graduation from Grove City College in 2009. An avid runner, snowboarder, and hiker, Mike loves the outdoor adventures. Mike has been engaged in advocating for victims of sex slavery for the past seven years with several organizations and has a heart to see radical revival take place in America and abroad which puts an end to this horrific industry. Mike is a believer and follower of Jesus Christ and believes that with the mighty power of the Holy Spirit active and at work through our lives that we will see victory in this war against human trafficking..

Bruce Schelenke

Board Member


The Rev. Bruce H. Schlenke is a retired Presbyterian minister. He is an active member of Pittsburgh Presbytery and has served churches in Akron, Ohio and in Greenville and Wexford, PA. Bruce’s wife of 38 years, Libby, is a retired elementary music teacher. They are parents of two grown sons, both public school teachers, and grandparents to two pre-school age young ladies.

Bruce is a die-hard Pittsburgher who loves the city’s streets, hillsides, sports teams, and capacity for invention and the arts. Even more, he deeply values the network of ministries that have been engendered in and faithfully serve our region.

Kim Reuss

Board Member


Kim Reuss is a serial entrepreneur, having opened her first business when she was 22. Since that time she has owned several businesses, starting some from scratch and purchasing other existing businesses (both franchise and non-franchise). Kim believes that it is every business’s responsibility to give back to the community. She has been on several non-profit boards and hopes to bring that experience with her to help Living in Liberty in any way she can. In her free time, Kim loves spending time with her family, which includes her husband of 35 years, Brian, their three children, two sons-in-law, and one granddaughter.

Our Staff

Bonnie Nichols

Director of Street Outreach


Bonnie Nichols is known as the Mother Teresa of Pittsburgh from a Pittsburgh Post Gazette and has been working with Living in Liberty since 2013. With her roots in rural Pennsylvania, Bonnie comes to the streets of Pittsburgh by way of India. It was in India on a short term mission trip that she first confronted human trafficking first hand in a red light district and had her conception of the world turned upside down. When the reality that this happens in Pittsburgh became her reality, she drove to New City Fellowship in St. Louis to see what her denomination was doing about commercial sexual exploitation. After spending several days there, she continued learning with them through online trainings and classes. Married for fifty years, mother of five, one of whom is adopted and comes out of a traumatic childhood, and grandmother of twelve, she takes a nurturing spirit to the streets to help build loving community for women engaged in prostitution.

Pittsburgh post gazette article about Bonnie Nichols http://www.post-gazette.com/life/lifestyle/2018/05/04/Jefferson-Award-finalist-Most-Outstanding-Volunteer-of-the-Year/stories/201804300024

Mandy Reedy

Bookkeeper


Mandy Reedy has been the bookkeeper since May 2022. Her duties include managing payroll and donor contributions, as well as balancing the checkbook. Mandy has a heart for children in the foster care system, and many of the women we serve have spent significant time in the system.

Kellee Wheeler

Awareness and Prevention Lead


I am A National Account Manager for a global hospitality company. I have been with the company since 2016 and love problem solving and finding solutions for my customers. I have a Master's degree in Business administration and a passion for education both for myself and those around me. Human trafficking became real to me as I was in discussion with a hotelier who was partnered with law enforcement in the hotel for this very reason. It was eye opening and sat in my mind for a long time. I had no idea that this activity was happening in my own backyard. I came to LIL as an internal call to action to shed light on a very dark subject. I took on the role of the awareness and prevention lead and could not be more excited to be a part of something so meaningful. I have been married for 10 years and I have 3 doggos.

Tania Thompson

Safe House Lead


Tania Thompson is our Safe House Lead. She has been a teacher all of her life and a mom for the last 30 years. She comes to Living in Liberty with a God-given desire to seek justice, serve hurting women, and share what God has taught her over her lifetime. He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8

Gary Volz

Director, Repurposed Store


Gary came to us with an extensive background in the grocery industry. His goal is to provide our shoppers with a wide variety of popular items along with unique, hard-to-find items at below market prices in a clean and easy to shop store. He is very customer-centric and encourages feedback from our customer base.

Karen Robinson

Prayer Leader


Karen is a respected Women’s leader in her church at Allison Park. She is retired from a 30-year career in Retail Management. Her first exposure to trafficking was a short-term mission trip to India, working with the Daughters project. She saw the effects of young women trafficked in the streets of India. She oversees the Prayer ministry of Living in Liberty, hosting weekly prayer meetings to pray for the work of Living in Liberty, its volunteers, staff, and the women we serve.

DONATE