I was born with the heart of an advocate. As a child, I was always standing up for the little guy, the person that needed the most help, the one in the crowd whose voice needed to be heard. I know that those skills brought me to where I am today and have led me down a path that is far better than anything I could have ever imagined.
I graduated from Michigan State University in 1995 with a bachelor’s degree in French literature with the intent of becoming a teacher. Having been told by an advisor that “teaching was a calling that [you] don’t have,” I was sent out into the professional world with a strong desire to find my purpose.
That purpose came quickly. In 1996, I went to work in the office of Governor John Engler, which gave me an invaluable education in public policy and government. I moved on to work in the office of the Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives, and from there my life changed forever; I met Jamie, got married, and we started a family. In 2002, I received a master’s degree in public administration from Grand Valley State University, and shortly after that, Jamie and our young daughter Olivia moved to Washington, DC, where Jamie served as Congresswoman Candice Miller’s chief of staff.
With work experience in the corridors of state government and an education validating those skills, I endeavored to use my lifelong talent of advocating for others in our Nation’s Capital. Coming from a family of medical professionals, health care policy was of a great interest to me. When I saw an ad for a position within the state government affairs department at the American Academy of Physician Assistants, I knew it was the right fit. I worked in various roles at AAPA for 11 years, including serving as a director of state advocacy.
In 2014, our youngest daughter was diagnosed with dyslexia, a learning difference that once again put me in the role of advocate as I navigated her learning experience. I decided that it was time to use my talents and skills in a different way, through fund raising and development. After working as Development Director for Lutheran Special Education Ministries for three years, I founded Liz Roe Solutions to bring both my advocacy experience and my talent for grant writing to a new audience. Since then, I have been able to serve nonprofit organizations in applying for grant funding for worthy projects while continuing my work in issue advocacy working on behalf of state PA organizations such as the Missouri Academy of PAs and the Indiana Academy of PAs.
My ability to articulate to a specific audience the wants and needs of an organization and the people they serve is a God-given talent for which I am most grateful. My role at Team Roe is to help organizations find their unique voice in the public, private, or nonprofit arena. If you work with me, you will find that while my work is serious, I don’t take myself seriously. I loathe showboating; my greatest joy is bringing out the inner rock star in others!
On one of our first dates Jamie said to me. “I know we’re going to make a great team!” He was right. Jamie is not just my business partner but the love of my life, and our daughters Olivia and Mia are why we do what we do. When I'm not working, you can find me on the couch knitting or walking the dog with Jamie while we work to solve the world's problems.
My guiding principle in life has always been Matthew 5:16: “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
