New Social Advocates Supporting Red Cross Heroes

For the first time in our Red Cross region, and throughout the Red Cross nation-wide, local social media power is pulling together to support the Red Cross and Heroes Awards winners. Using their own digital capital, this new team of Social Advocates will share our Northern Minnesota Region’s Heroes stories of helping others in a great time of need. This work, which the Social Advocates are doing freely as good will for a great cause, will promote the Red Cross mission to alleviate human suffering in times of emergency.

Please join us in welcoming the new Social Advocates. Follow them. Like them. The Social Advocates will be on hand at the 2014 Heroes Breakfast in Minneapolis on June 5. Go here to read more about the 2014 Heroes. Our event hashtag is #MNHeroes14. 

Liz Heinecke – Science Extraordinaire | Educator | Writer | Mom

After working in molecular biology research for ten years, Liz Heinecke left the lab to kick off a new chapter in her life as a stay-at-home mom, sharing her love of science with her three kids and journaling their science adventures on her KitchenPantryScientist.com website.  Before long, she was demonstrating science on TV and had co-created KidScience app for iPhone/iPod Touch. Her book, Kitchen Science Lab for Kids (QuarryBooks.com) shares 52 fun science experiments for all ages and will be on shelves Aug.1, 2014.

Liz graduated from Luther College and received her master’s degree in bacteriology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. You can find her at home in Minnesota, wrangling her kids, writing for her website, updating KidScience app, teaching microbiology to nursing students, singing, playing banjo, painting, running, and doing almost anything else to avoid housework.

Follow Liz on Twitter: @KitchPantrySci

Like Liz on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KitchenPantryScientist

Stephen Litel – Writer | Blogger | Father

Stephen Litel is a father of two and a former sports writer who now blogs at Stephen Says. His blog focuses on the pursuit of happiness—acknowledging his own battles with depression—and how only true happiness can come from an internal pursuit, not chasing things outside of yourself. Between writing about happiness, being a parent of an autistic child, stretching his comfort zones and the life lessons learned from each, Litel has a lot to talk about.

Follow Stephen on Twitter: @StephenLitel

 

Aly Wallberg – Healthcare Marketer | Public Speaking Expert | St. Paul Tweetup Coordinator

Aly Wallberg is a communicator, speaker and volunteer. She brings experience in health care, nonprofit development and post-secondary teaching to her current role as Marketing Account Specialist at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota. A proud Saint Paulite, she currently coordinates the Saint Paul Tweetup, a casual networking group that meets monthly to celebrate all the fair city has to offer. She has served as a mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters since 2011. Aly also loves reading, yoga and hanging out with cats and dogs.

Follow Aly on Twitter: @AlyWallberg

Scott K. Johnson – Diabetes Advocate | Writer | Speaker

Scott K. Johnson was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in April of 1980. He has been writing about his struggles and successes with diabetes since late 2004. He is currently blogging at Scott’s Diabetes, working as the Communications Lead, USA for mySugr, and contributing to many other diabetes related projects.

Scott works full time in the diabetes space as a freelance writer, speaker, and consultant, and says, “Living my life and telling my story allows me to bravely advocate for type 1 diabetes awareness and give back to a community that has improved my life in so many ways.” Scott lives with his family near the Minneapolis, MN area.

Follow Scott on Twitter: @ScottKJohnson

Like Scott on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scottkjohnson.diabetes

Tami Cabrera – Small Business Owner | Community Volunteer | Mother | Lover of all Things Cheesecake

Tami Cabrera grew up in the restaurant industry and is the owner of Muddy Paws Cheesecake Co. After moving here from the Chicago area in 1991, Tami could not find the cheesecake she’d grown up with. After searching several years for it, she decided to make and sell her own. She rented a small hourly kitchen and within a year her business had grown enough to leave her job to take the business full-time. Today they produce some of the finest cheesecake in the nation and have won dozens of local awards including Best Cheesecake Minnesota by the viewers of WCCO. She has been featured on the Food Network, WCCO, Kare 11, Twin Cities Live, and was chosen in 2011 to go to the White House for her work in social media. Cabrera won the Minnesota Social Media Marketer award for 2010. When she’s not at the bakery, she spends time with her four small children, her three dogs, a second small business, and she volunteers at Perspectives Inc. as a guest chef. Tami also is on the Program Advisory Committee at Le Cordon Bleu.

Follow Tami on Twitter: @TJCabrera

Like Tami on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MUDDYPAWSCHEESECAKE

Dr. Kevin Schreifels – Chiropractor | Father | Educator | Blogger | Runner

Dr. Kevin Schreifels is the Owner of Lyn Lake Chiropractic, the Official Chiropractor for the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon, Clinical Faculty of Northwestern Health Science University, Guest Lecturer at the University of Minnesota on running injuries and prevention, and Blogger on health issues and prevention.

Kevin has run more than 10 marathons, 10K’s and triathalons, and has raced with the Kenwood Cycling Team. His first date with his wife was a run around Lake Harriet. He’s a father of 3 beautiful girls and everyone that knows his family knows that on any given day or weekend they are all either running around the lakes, biking or skiing. Kevin spends a great deal of volunteering at local schools, running clubs and businesses educating people about health and awareness.

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @lynlakechiros

Like Kevin on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LynLakeChiros

Abigail Harrison – Future First Astronaut to Mars | Student | STEM Classroom Educator | Motivational Speaker

Abigail Harrison aka Astronaut Abby is a junior who attends South High School and the University of Minnesota. Abby has a dream to be the first astronaut to Mars. She has taken her dream online and built a community of over 150,000 followers and fans who support her dream. In turn, Abby has setup a worldwide outreach program in which is speaks to schools and events near and far about space, STEM and reaching for dreams. Abby has taken a leadership role in the space community promoting the Future of Space. Recently Abby was invited to give a TEDx talk in Tampa Bay and as she stated in her talk her Tedx dream was that each member of the audience would leave with inspiration to Dream Big, Act Big and Inspire Others.

In Abby’s spare time, she is a committed athlete training year round in gymnastics, loves reading science fiction and has developed a keen interest in extreme sports, such as her recent experiences of bungee jumping and becoming a certified scuba diver. She looks forward to her next experience, which she hopes will be parachuting, parasailing, skydiving or pretty much anything that includes flying.

Follow Abby on Twitter: @AstronautAbby

Like Abby on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AstronautAbby

Jamie Heil – Pediatric Intensive Care Nurse | Blogger | Mom

My name is Jamie and I am the proud mom of four kiddos- two of which were born to me, one of which is 4-legged, and the other is my hubby….because let’s be honest, sometimes husbands take as much work as kids and dogs do! My husband and I have been happily (for the most part) married for 13 years and our girls are in preschool and second grade. Our four-legged daughter is a French Bulldog.

During the week I am a blogger at ToysInTheDryer.com and a social media addict. On the weekends I am a pediatric intensive care nurse. Yes, you read that right, I work on the weekends so I can stay home with my girls during the week. I am a true extrovert, lover of wine, photography, frogs, and the colors pink and yellow.  I am a tom-boy at heart, but don’t mid getting girly every now and then. I really wish I could play the violin.

Follow Jamie on Twitter: @ToysInTheDryer

Like Jamie on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ToysInTheDryer