Diana Erickson

 

Diana Erickson grew up in the Northwest, but has lived on the East Coast, in the Midwest and in Northern and Southern California, always accompanied by her feline (and sometimes canine) companions on her moves. All of her cats and dogs  have been rescues.

Diana’s first career was as a Presbyterian minister. While serving her congregation in Cleveland she decided to attend law school part time. After a year and a half, she recognized her calling had changed and chose to finish her degree at Seattle University, becoming a Public Defender in King County.  She and her late husband, Lee, moved to Port Angeles when they retired in 2019, along with their cats Sam and Stewart.

In 2020, Diana began volunteering at OPHS,  fulfilling her longtime desire to volunteer at an animal shelter. She focuses her time at Barkhouse, helping with Volunteer training, adoption events and community outreach programs as well as supporting staff in their tireless work with the animals. In 2022 she joined the Board of OPHS.

Diana is passionate about the work of OPHS and believes that there are no bad dogs (or cats).  Because of her professional experiences, she particularly focuses on dogs with trauma related behaviors, with the goal of  restoring their trust in humans and aiding adopters understanding of the dog’s needs.  She believes this work helps both the dogs and their humans create a happy forever home.