ALABAMA REGISTRY OF INTERPRETERS FOR THE DEAF Leading the interpreting profession, serving the interpreting community, connecting to the Deaf community. |
This ALRID Board of Directors are just like you - active and dedicated ALRID members from across the state who have volunteered to represent you in making decisions and leading ALRID's growth into the future. Board members may be practicing interpreters, students, public agency and private organization staff, and/or representatives from the Deaf community who utilize language service providers. |
| 2022-2024 Board Of Directors |
2022-2024 Regional Representatives |
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President: Belinda Montgomery Vice President: Lisa Gould Secretary: Stephen Cain Treasurer: Kris Courson Member-at-Large: Lori Pituk Member-at-Large: Janice Rogers AAD Representative: Becky Ripley Immediate Past President: Wendy Darling
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North: Robin Sweeney Central: Rosemary Chappell Southeast: Josh Brewer Southwest: Daniella Lesley Student Representative: Kaneesha Stallworth See the Regions Page for more information on ALRID Regions. |
President: Belinda Montgomery (Montgomery) Belinda Montgomery began her professional practice of and involvement in the Interpreting field in 1984 and became a member of ALRID and RID that same year. She has since served on the ALRID board in many positions throughout the years. She was President of ALRID, when the Licensure Law was debated before the House Legislative Committee and then signed into law in 1998. Belinda’s early interpreting experiences were as a CODA but later extended within her community, this lead to opportunities for statewide experiences in a variety of settings. She holds certification with RID, NAD, and the EIPA. She is also certified as a Master Mentor. She has been honored to serve for more than 20 years on the Alabama Licensure Board of Interpreters and Transliterators (ALBIT). Belinda retired from the Alabama Department of Rehabilitation Services in 2015. Upon retirement, she re-opened her interpreting agency, Montgomery Interpreting Services, LLC, in earnest and has enjoyed providing quality interpreter services for most of Alabama. She is also currently serving as an adjunct professor at Troy University in the Interpreter Training Program. A native of Montgomery, she enjoys traveling with her husband and gatherings of her family which includes her 9 grandchildren. |
Vice President: Lisa Gould (Mobile) Lisa Gould has been an active ALRID member since she became nationally certified in 1996. She holds national certification from RID CI/CT, NAD IV and QMHI. She graduated from Georgia Perimeter College, Interpreter Training Program in 1995. As a student, she was selected as a Region II Student Representative at the RID National Conference. She has served ALRID in various positions as Secretary, Vice President, Regional Representative, Member at Large and currently Vice President. Lisa recently received the Mary Lou Bingham Award from ALRID. She is currently the Interpreter Coordinator at the Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind, Mobile Regional Center and has been there since 1999. She works in medical, legal, mental health and other settings in the community. She has previously served on the Alabama Licensure Board for Interpreters and Transliterators. Lisa grew up signing with her Deaf brother and has a huge passion for equality of communication access for the Deaf community. Lisa is married to her husband, Randy and has two sons, Nikko and Brock. Lisa believes strongly in continuing education as an Interpreter and attends numerous workshops and conferences. She believes ALRID has the same goal of providing top quality educational opportunities for members and will strive to support that goal. |
Secretary: Stephen Cain (Talladega) I have a brother who is deaf, but I didn’t start really signing and being involved with the Deaf community until starting college in 1997. I began interpreting in 1998, mainly for Jacksonville State University. Upon graduation from college, I accepted the position of Staff Interpreter at the AIDB Talladega Regional Center in 2005. I have also been the staff interpreter at EH Gentry and the lead interpreter at JSU. I have held CI certification in the past and currently possess NIC certification through RID. I am currently the interpreter at the Alabama School for the Deaf and have been since 2015. Beginning in the fall of 2022, I will be attending the University of North Florida and working toward a MS degree in ASL/English Interpreting with a concentration in General Practice. When not interpreting, I enjoy reading, working with the Deaf ministry at my church, playing the banjo (not well, mind you), and spending time with my dog, Izzy. |
Kris has served as an interpreter since 1981 in Texas, California, overseas, and in Alabama since 2012. He currently provides interpreting services in Alabama through his agency, Sign Language Interpreting Services, LLC. He currently holds NIC and Ed:K-12 certifications. Kris states, "I plan to continue to serve the board as Treasurer by maintaining accurate financial records, working as a team member with our Board, and supporting our members." |
Member at Large: Lori Pituk (Mobile) Lori Pituk first became interested in learning American Sign Language over 30 years ago as a young woman in college. Several years after her fascination with the language began, Lori started a family with her loving husband Paul Pituk. The young couple would have three boys, and as fate would have it, the oldest and youngest were born Deaf. Since that point in her life, she has continued to further her knowledge of the language and Deaf culture in order to give her children the best possible environment to thrive. Lori started her professional interpreting journey in El Paso, TX where she earned a degree in ASL Interpreting. She moved to Mobile, AL in 1998 and has served the local Deaf community there ever since. She holds national certification CI/CT with RID, and has been an active member of ALRID and RID for the past 25 years. Previous positions include serving on the board of ALBIT for ten years, as well as serving on the board of ALRID as Treasurer. Currently she serves on the board of ALRID as Member-at-Large. In 2005, feeling an even greater need to serve the Deaf community, Lori decided to open a sign language interpreting agency. She has owned and operated LBP Interpreting ever since. In her spare time, she loves attending live music concerts and festivals, being with friends, and is a Jersey girl at heart! |
Treasurer: Kris Courson (Birmingham)
Central Region: Rosemary Chappell (Talladega) Rosemary Chappell Guy has been a Sign Language Interpreter for 40 years. Her vast experiences include Community, Legal and Executive level, as well as serving as an evaluator for sign communication and interpreting. -served as a mentor to numerous interns and up and coming Interpreters. -NAD-V Master level -awarded Interpreter of the Year In 2020, swapped full-time interpreting, part-time caregiver to full-time caregiver, part-time interpreter. Love those you love now, for they may not be here to love tomorrow. |
Southwest Region: Daniella Lesley (Mobile) Daniella Lesley is a CODA with several other Deaf family members. She graduated in 2018 from Troy University with a Bachelor's degree in Interpreting and more recently graduated in 2021 with a Master's degree in Master of Science in Management with a focus in Leadership. She started working professionally as an interpreter in August of 2015. She went on to take the NIC and passed it in May of 2018. She currently works as a full-time staff interpreter at Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind, Mobile Regional Center. She also works for Sorenson Communications. She serves on the ALRID board as the Southwest Region Representative as well. Dani lives in Mobile with her husband, 3 wonderful children and 2 fur babies. She is excited to see what the next few years will bring for ALRID and cannot wait to see what workshops ALRID will have! |
North Region: Robin Sweeney (Huntsville) Robin Sweeney, is a Nationally certified interpreter, currently working as the AIDB- Special Projects Interpreter Coordinator at the North campus in Decatur, AL. Robin has been a community interpreter for approximately 20 years with a desire for continuous growth opportunities to better serve the Deaf community. Robin is married to her husband David, who is a retired MSGT in the Marine Corp. Their travels throughout his career, provided many opportunities to learn from a variety of different regions in the interpreting field. They have a beautiful family of 3 daughters, 4 grandchildren and the 5th one on the way. Robin enjoys spending time traveling with her husband and enjoying every moment of time she can with her sweet grandbabies. Please reach out to Robin for your needs in northern Alabama. |
Southeast Region: Josh Brewer (Montgomery) Josh Brewer is a native of the Montgomery area and has been interpreting professionally since 1997, after attending the Basic Interpreter Training Program (BITP) at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He attained national certification in 1999, and has interpreted in educational, community, mental health, and vocational settings. He has been working as an interpreter with the Alabama Department of Rehabilitation Services since 2013, and is currently serving the agency as State Interpreter Coordinator out of the State Office in Montgomery. Josh married his high school sweetheart, Jennifer, and they have 6 children together. When he’s not working, he enjoys being active with his children in their Scout Troop, riding his motorcycle, and working toward attaining his private pilot’s license. |
