Our Leadership
Ruth Daugherty – Director of Financial Coaching
Ruth Daugherty joined Northwest Access Fund in March 2022. Ruth has worked within the disability community for over ten years as a Special Education Teacher and as a Community Service Provider for adults with disabilities. Ruth is passionate about providing education, resources, and support needed for people with disabilities to live joyful and fulfilling lives, and is excited to bring her teaching experience to the financial coaching program. Outside of work, Ruth enjoys reading, cooking, and playing outside with her husband and two young children.
Email: [email protected]
Lisa Jones – Director of Outreach and Partnerships
Lisa (Zimmerman) Jones is new to the Pacific Northwest but no stranger to microlending and financial coaching. Joining NWAF in June 2022, Lisa brings over almost 2 decades of experience in asset development and program management. She has developed multiple programs to assist in poverty alleviation including a Women’s Business Center, Youth IDA program, and a public transportation system. Lisa has worked extensively in rural markets to develop Community Development Financial Institutions like NWAF, focusing on keeping rural communities and their residents thriving instead of just surviving. Lisa enjoys music festivals, karaoke, camping, floating, and fishing.
Email: [email protected]
Ellie Vainker – Executive Director
Ellie Vainker has been with Northwest Access Fund since 2017. She served as Director of Development and Outreach, Deputy Director, and COO before becoming Executive Director in 2026. Ellie first came to the Pacific Northwest as an international exchange student at the University of Washington in 2006 and loves getting to know more people and places across Washington, Oregon, and Idaho through her work here. Ellie brings a varied background to Northwest Access Fund: she has worked as a researcher on a number of documentary and film productions, as a manuscript editor and communications consultant, and as a classroom assistant working one-on-one with students with disabilities. She holds a Ph.D. in sociocultural anthropology from Rice University, where her research incorporated disability studies, anthropology of development, and nonprofit studies. She is an affiliate of the University of Washington’s Disability Studies Program.
Email: [email protected]
Erin Williamson – Director of Lending
Erin Williamson is an entrepreneur and advocate for inclusive economies. For more than a decade, Erin has helped Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and public agencies pair capital with people. As Director of Lending at Northwest Access Fund, she leads the design and delivery of all loan products and supports the organization’s capital access strategy. Prior to joining Northwest Access Fund, Erin served as Director of Capital and Advocacy at Ventures Nonprofit, a Seattle-based CDFI that supports under-resourced entrepreneurs with funding and training. Her belief that financial tools should serve real people shows up throughout her career, from co-creating a first-of-its-kind matched-savings loan product to supporting the deployment of over $250 million in micro-capital across four states. Erin is also a hands-on entrepreneur, having founded a community coffee shop, a nationally distributed cold brew company, and a supply chain tool connecting women-owned farms with food producers.
Email: [email protected]