Meet the Research Team

Grace Morales

Grace Morales was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico. She is currently a BSW student at Arizona State
University School of Social Work. After graduating with her BSW, she plans on pursuing an MSW. She is
passionate about helping others, understanding other cultures and advocating for marginalized
communities. She is particularly interested in working with children with developmental disabilities. In
her free time, Grace likes spending time with her family, friends and dog. She loves listening to music,
watching cartoons and attending concerts.

Emma Richards

Emma Richards is a junior majoring in Kinesiology at Arizona State University. She is interested in helping
people improve their quality of life by managing pain and regaining mobility/strength through the use of
exercise and joint/tissue manipulation. She is working towards becoming a Physical Therapist. She is in
Barrett, the Honors College. For her honors creative project requirement, she created the program
Brave Bears, working under Amanda Hope Rainbow Angels. She loves to spend her time outdoors;
running, hiking, swimming, sailing, and kayaking. She also loves working with clay; wheel pottery
specifically.

Ariel Baber

Ariel is a Public Ally serving in a full-time position through AmeriCorp. Through this program, Ariel was
placed with the Boys and Girls Club of the Valley as a Program Training Liaison. In 2018, Ariel
received her B.S. in Mathematics and her B.S. in Biological Sciences from Barrett the Honors College at
Arizona State University. She recently completed her Masters of Public Health through Southern New
Hampshire University. In her free time, Ariel researches the various late-life cancer treatment related
effects among childhood cancer survivors under the guidance of Dr. Kristina Lopez and the Amanda
Hope Rainbow Angels organization. She hopes that this research will allow local nonprofits to better
advocate for newer and safer childhood cancer treatments. In her free time, Ariel likes to read and hike
around Arizona.

Reyna Avina

Reyna Avina is from Glendale, Arizona. In 2018 she received her BS in Psychology from Arizona State
University. Currently, Reyna is pursuing her MSW from Arizona State University. She is interning with
Amanda Hope Rainbow Angels and their Family Life program. Reyna will be working with other interns
to train mothers to become Promotoras for families of children with cancer. After the Promotoras are
trained and meet with families, Reyna will debrief and be there to answer any questions or concerns
they may have.

Elda Castrejon Ramirez

Elda is from Orange, CA. She received her A.A in Liberal Arts from Phoenix Community College.  She is passionate about helping others and is currently undergoing her bachelor’s degree in social work at Arizona State University. After completing her BSW, she plans to continue her education with a master’s degree. She is interested in working with children and trying to make the world a better place for them. In her free time, she enjoys walks in nature and likes to hike. Elda also likes to paint rocks and donates them to non-profit organizations for children to take home.