Mobilization Committee
As our Negotiating Committee returns to the bargaining table this week, our Mobilization Chairs are getting ready to answer your questions if an agreement is reached with management. Continue reading to get reacquainted with your base Mobilization Chair. If you see them out on the line, be sure to say hello! In addition to your LEC President and the Negotiating Committee, your Mobilization Chairs are a great resource for answers to questions about the negotiations process.
To read more about the Mobilization Committee, click here.
ANC Mobilization Chairperson
Rebecca Owens
Raised in Anchorage and a graduate of the University of Alaska, Rebecca began her career as a ground and flight paramedic, where she also spent years serving as a Legislative Liaison advocating for public servant special interests. Since joining Alaska Airlines in 2022, Rebecca has been an active and dedicated member of AFA Local Council 30, serving as Mobilization Chair, Membership Education and Engagement Chair, Grievance Representative, Government Affairs Representative, and an AFA Spokesperson. Rebecca is also the recipient of the 2024 Alaska AFL-CIO’s Young Union Member Award.
Rebecca’s passion for union work stems from her lifelong dedication to advocating for others and improving quality of life for workers. Her deep commitment to education, advocacy, and representation ensures that every member’s voice is heard, and she takes pride in building a strong, united future for all Flight Attendants.
Rebecca lives in Anchorage with her husband, an active union volunteer with SWAPA, and their menagerie of rescue dogs, cats and reptiles.
Email Rebecca at ANC.Mobilization.Chair@afaalaska.org
LAX Mobilization Chairperson
Kelese Richardson
Kelese started her career at Alaska Airlines in 2006. While having always been based in LAX, she flew out of LAX, LGB, BUR, ONT and SNA at the beginning of her career while on reserve. She became involved with AFA in 2010 because she was frustrated with how her fellow Flight Attendants were being treated, including the downsizing of the LAX base and some being furloughed and forced out to other bases. She started out volunteering on the Grievance Committee and then in 2013, became the LAX LEC Secretary.
During her first term as LEC Secretary, Kelese assisted with organizing leafletting and picketing at LAX during contract negotiations. After her term ended in 2016, she took some time off from volunteering for health reasons and to plan her wedding. She then returned to union work in 2017 in the role of LAX Scheduling Committee Chair and is now the Mobilization Chairperson for the base.
Kelese wants to make sure Flight Attendants are well informed and show that our union is constantly fighting for them, whether it’s one of their LEC officers or someone on a committee. She is proud that she can still keep fighting for our work group. Before she started flying, she worked for non-profits in the inner city of Los Angeles. Her educational background is in Liberal Arts. During her spare time, she enjoys spending it with her husband and daughter in Austin, Texas.
Email Kelese at LAX.Mobilization.Chair@afaalaska.org
PDX Mobilization Chairperson
Ahnawake Kriese
Ahnawake is in her 29th year at Alaska Airlines and all but 2 of the years have been in Portland. She’s married to PDX Captain Steve Kriese. They live in Lake Oswego with their two boys and the world’s sweetest yellow lab, Cooper.
Ahnawake has truly enjoyed serving as the Portland Mobilization Committee Chairperson and working with the dedicated volunteers on the committee. She believes it is vitally important to get accurate information to our Flight Attendants so that everyone can make informed decisions during contract negotiations.
Most of her free time over the last 10+ years has been spent volunteering at her boys’ schools in a variety of capacities…everything from classroom help to sitting on a superintendent advisory committee. However, most of her volunteer time has been putting her accounting degree to work as the elementary school parent club treasurer. Now that the boys have moved on to high school and the University of Oregon, she wants to refocus on the flying family she loves.
Email Ahnawake at PDX.Mobilization.Chair@afaalaska.org
SAN Mobilization Chairperson
Joey Lawrence
Joey’s career with the Alaska Air Group began in 2011 as a Customer Service Agent with Horizon. It wasn’t long until he made the move to Inflight in 2013 and he’s felt at home ever since. During his time flying with Alaska, he has been based in LAX, SEA, and SAN.
Joey began volunteering with the Mobilization Committee in July of 2023, inspired to improve working conditions for his peers and do his part to get a new contract for our membership. In November of 2013, he became the SAN base Mobilization Chair and has led his volunteers through numerous picketing and leafleting events as well as the Strike Authorization Vote in which Alaska Flight Attendants voted 99.48% in favor of a strike. In his free time you can find him hanging out at the beach, attending live music events, or working out at the gym.
Email Joey at SAN.Mobilization.Chair@afaalaska.org
SEA Mobilization Chairpersons
Andrew Stinson (Chair)
Andrew has been a Flight Attendant with Alaska Airlines since 2015. During the events of the COVID pandemic and wanting to be more involved with our employee’s rights, he joined the Human Rights and Equity Committee, as well as the Government Affairs Committee. In 2023, he then volunteered to become the Seattle Mobilization Chairperson.
While he is fighting for our workgroup at the local level, he also works closely with other organizations such as CWA Pride Caucus, Pride@Work, and other labor organizations. He is also a delegate to the Washington State Labor Council and the Pierce County Central Labor Council, representing our AFA local, SEA Council 19.
Andrew’s passion for union work comes from the strong roots that his mother and father both had in the union world; his mom being a retired teacher and his father a retired Custodian. When Andrew is not working, he spends his time traveling, (mainly somewhere with Disney, or a beach) with his partner of 13 years, Gino, as well as their families.
Email Andrew at SEA.Mobilization.Chair@afaalaska.org
Tracy Pettit (Vice-Chair)
Tracy has been a Flight Attendant for over ten years, the last few years has been with Alaska. In 2018, she was elected LEC Secretary at her former airline and served as the MEC Government Affairs Chair and Communications Chair. After her former airline closed because of COVID, she wasn’t sure she’d fly or be a part of AFA again. Thankfully, she was hired at Alaska and joined the Mobilization and Government Affairs Committees as soon as she was able.
Tracy feels that our union has given her a lot of purpose and she knows that we as a whole can make a positive impact on people’s lives. We just have to do the work.
When she’s not flying or doing union volunteer work, she is a certified homebody who prefers the company of her beloved dog over anyone else. She has a lot of hobbies such as art, crafts, and birding. Her greatest belief of being an AFA volunteer is that we don’t just deserve a livable wage and livable work rules, we deserve a job that gives us the freedom to thrive.
Email Tracy at SEA.Mobilization.Chair@afaalaska.org
SFO Mobilization Chairpersons
Trista Vanta (Chair)
Trista has been a Flight Attendant for over 13 years. She started out flying for Air Wisconsin for about 2 years before joining Virgin America, which she counts herself lucky to have been a part of for 6 years. She is now celebrating almost 11 years here at Alaska Airlines.
Trista graduated with a degree in Medical and Scientific Illustration. Prior to being a Flight Attendant, she worked for the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History as a Scientific Illustrator. She was an intern for an amazing lady who designs our US currencies today. Trista is also the designer and illustrator for our iconic Alaska Don’t Care Bear! She is super proud that she is able to use her talents and skills for a good cause.
Besides doing art in her free time, she also loves tending to her rainforest at home. She is a collector of rare and uncommon plants and loves everything about a bright space surrounded by greeneries! Her boyfriend and her little munchkin cat, Senna, equally enjoy her plants.
Trista became a union volunteer because she is passionate about fighting for what is fair. As we all know, being a Flight Attendant is a great career, and a “career” requires good work and life balance, decent benefits, adequate retirement and of course, financial stability that is supported by a strong contract with robust work rules and pay.
Email Trista at SFO.Mobilization.Chair@afaalaska.org
Virginia Fritz (Co-Chair)
Virginia Fritz has been a passionate Flight Attendant since 2015, starting her journey with Virgin America. In 2018, she became deeply involved with AFA and has taken on several leadership roles in her local council 35 in San Francisco. For Council 35, she served as the Scheduling Chairperson, and on the Grievance and Hotel Committees. Most recently she has served C35 as Mobilization Co-Chair. Her other current positions are: C35 Vice President, Vice Chairperson for the MEC Scheduling Committee-PBS and is gearing up for her recent appointment to the Joint Contract Negotiations Committee.
Virginia is committed to achieving a fair contract and is passionate about advocating for her fellow flight attendants, ensuring they understand their rights under our current and future contracts.
Outside of work, you might find her with her grandmother and her dog, Strudel, participating in picket lines to support other labor unions in their fights for fair contracts. She resides with them and her wonderful, supportive, husband, in Los Gatos, CA.
Email Virginia at SFO.Mobilization.Chair@afaalaska.org
Refresher: The Negotiations Process
Since negotiations began in 2022, we have welcomed hundreds of new Alaska Flight Attendants to the line. Now is a great time to read about the negotiations process and where we are now. Click here to read more.