Jessica is Vice President of Yukon Words, responsible for Communications.

Jessica is a passionate advocate for community engagement and the power of storytelling. With a diverse background in public relations, graphic design and project management, she has dedicated her career to fostering connections and creating platforms for voices to be heard. She is a self-professed cinephile who lives with an excessive amount of plants and believes that gardening is the best thing next to therapy.

Erin is a Director of Yukon Words, responsible for Programming and Grants.

Erin has always loved a good story. From sharing local history as a walking guide, to exploring connections between people and places in Antarctica, she has spent her life pursuing the ways we use stories to share who we are and where we have been.

After some time spent in Academia, Erin turned to organizing and running community arts projects in the different places that she have lived - Aotearoa and Yukon. These projects generally reflected her interest in storytelling, the most recent of which have been a series of self-published zines. She is now working on a book exploring the strange world of grief.

She lives in Whitehorse with her husband, three kids, dog, and cat.

Jacqueline is the President of Yukon Words, responsible for Funding, Sponsorships and Donations.

Jacqueline transitioned onto the Board in December 2025, following a 20 month period as Yukon Words executive director.

She has an extensive background in management and post-secondary education administration within Canada, Japan and the US.

Jacqueline is now taking time to further build her writing craft, while exploring the outdoors with her partner, Cathie, and their dogs Louie and Lola.

Passionate about the environment and community engagement, she has been on the Raven ReCentre Board for 18 years, 12 as President and was one of the founding directors of 100 Women Who Care, Whitehorse.

Jerry is the Treasurer of Yukon Words, responsible for Finance.

Jerry is a Taiwanese-Canadian writer whose work explores themes of identity, belonging, family and culture. Born in Taiwan, raised in Canada, and educated in China and Japan, he blends multiple cultural aspects with unique angles of the immigrant experience, the clash of traditions, and the search for self in a multicultural world.

Although most of his readers read Mandarin, Jerry also writes in English upon request. His works capture the complexities of diaspora and family dynamics, offering readers a window into both Taiwanese and Canadian cultures.

He manages a Facebook blog with his wife and daughter.

 Michele (Miche) is a Director of Yukon Words, and its Secretary. responsible for offical records.

Miche writes mostly non-fiction and is the author of several northern cookbooks. For several years she was a freelance reporter on culture for the Yukon News and now writes regular food and cooking columns for TheYukon Magazine, Edible Alaska, and What’s Up Yukon. She co-edited, with Dianne Homan and Jenny Charchun, two anthologies of Yukon writing, Urban Coyote (Lost Moose, 2001) and Urban Coyote, New Territory (Lost Moose, 2003). Her work has been published in national newspapers and a few literary magazines, and she’s always aspiring to more of the latter. Miche has been a fan of Words Out Loud since its online inception, and especially loves the variety of voices we get to hear, in person, every third Wednesday of the month. Yay, open mike! She’s an avid skier, hiker, and berry picker, and has a very cute dog named Skilo, who barks a lot because really, he just wants to be heard.

Suzanne is our newest addition to the Board of Directors.

Suzanne began writing stories to understand or explain the world around her when she was a young girl; she has folders brimming with beginnings, middles and endings across a lifetime that are in need of some love.

In her early Yukon days - just before the internet made it to the outskirts of Whitehorse where she lived in a dry cabin - she published a nationally distributed magazine that explored women’s travel experiences through poetry, fiction and personal accounts.

For the last 20 years, Suzanne has published scholarly research as part of her academic career as a cultural geographer. Contributing to Yukon Words as a board member lends purpose to her strong belief that arts and culture are the threads that build and shape thriving, inclusive, and caring communities. She also hopes that being more involved in the territory’s writing world will encourage her to bring her own creative writing aspirations to life.

Jessica is Vice President of Yukon Words, responsible for Communications.

Jessica is a passionate advocate for community engagement and the power of storytelling. With a diverse background in public relations, graphic design and project management, she has dedicated her career to fostering connections and creating platforms for voices to be heard. She is a self-professed cinephile who lives with an excessive amount of plants and believes that gardening is the best thing next to therapy.

Erin is a Director of Yukon Words, responsible for Programming and Grants.

Erin has always loved a good story. From sharing local history as a walking guide, to exploring connections between people and places in Antarctica, she has spent her life pursuing the ways we use stories to share who we are and where we have been.

After some time spent in Academia, Erin turned to organizing and running community arts projects in the different places that she have lived - Aotearoa and Yukon. These projects generally reflected her interest in storytelling, the most recent of which have been a series of self-published zines. She is now working on a book exploring the strange world of grief.

She lives in Whitehorse with her husband, three kids, dog, and cat.

Jacqueline is the President of Yukon Words, responsible for Funding, Sponsorships and Donations.

Jacqueline transitioned onto the Board in December 2025, following a 20 month period as Yukon Words executive director.

She has an extensive background in management and post-secondary education administration within Canada, Japan and the US.

Jacqueline is now taking time to further build her writing craft, while exploring the outdoors with her partner, Cathie, and their dogs Louie and Lola.

Passionate about the environment and community engagement, she has been on the Raven ReCentre Board for 18 years, 12 as President and was one of the founding directors of 100 Women Who Care, Whitehorse.

Jerry is the Treasurer of Yukon Words, responsible for Finance.

Jerry is a Taiwanese-Canadian writer whose work explores themes of identity, belonging, family and culture. Born in Taiwan, raised in Canada, and educated in China and Japan, he blends multiple cultural aspects with unique angles of the immigrant experience, the clash of traditions, and the search for self in a multicultural world.

Although most of his readers read Mandarin, Jerry also writes in English upon request. His works capture the complexities of diaspora and family dynamics, offering readers a window into both Taiwanese and Canadian cultures.

He manages a Facebook blog with his wife and daughter.

 Michele (Miche) is a Director of Yukon Words, and its Secretary. responsible for offical records.

Miche writes mostly non-fiction and is the author of several northern cookbooks. For several years she was a freelance reporter on culture for the Yukon News and now writes regular food and cooking columns for TheYukon Magazine, Edible Alaska, and What’s Up Yukon. She co-edited, with Dianne Homan and Jenny Charchun, two anthologies of Yukon writing, Urban Coyote (Lost Moose, 2001) and Urban Coyote, New Territory (Lost Moose, 2003). Her work has been published in national newspapers and a few literary magazines, and she’s always aspiring to more of the latter. Miche has been a fan of Words Out Loud since its online inception, and especially loves the variety of voices we get to hear, in person, every third Wednesday of the month. Yay, open mike! She’s an avid skier, hiker, and berry picker, and has a very cute dog named Skilo, who barks a lot because really, he just wants to be heard.

Suzanne is our newest addition to the Board of Directors.

Suzanne began writing stories to understand or explain the world around her when she was a young girl; she has folders brimming with beginnings, middles and endings across a lifetime that are in need of some love.

In her early Yukon days - just before the internet made it to the outskirts of Whitehorse where she lived in a dry cabin - she published a nationally distributed magazine that explored women’s travel experiences through poetry, fiction and personal accounts.

For the last 20 years, Suzanne has published scholarly research as part of her academic career as a cultural geographer. Contributing to Yukon Words as a board member lends purpose to her strong belief that arts and culture are the threads that build and shape thriving, inclusive, and caring communities. She also hopes that being more involved in the territory’s writing world will encourage her to bring her own creative writing aspirations to life.

Jessica is Vice President of Yukon Words, responsible for Communications.

Jessica is a passionate advocate for community engagement and the power of storytelling. With a diverse background in public relations, graphic design and project management, she has dedicated her career to fostering connections and creating platforms for voices to be heard. She is a self-professed cinephile who lives with an excessive amount of plants and believes that gardening is the best thing next to therapy.

Erin is a Director of Yukon Words, responsible for Programming and Grants.

Erin has always loved a good story. From sharing local history as a walking guide, to exploring connections between people and places in Antarctica, she has spent her life pursuing the ways we use stories to share who we are and where we have been.

After some time spent in Academia, Erin turned to organizing and running community arts projects in the different places that she have lived - Aotearoa and Yukon. These projects generally reflected her interest in storytelling, the most recent of which have been a series of self-published zines. She is now working on a book exploring the strange world of grief.

She lives in Whitehorse with her husband, three kids, dog, and cat.

Jacqueline is the President of Yukon Words, responsible for Funding, Sponsorships and Donations.

Jacqueline transitioned onto the Board in December 2025, following a 20 month period as Yukon Words executive director.

She has an extensive background in management and post-secondary education administration within Canada, Japan and the US.

Jacqueline is now taking time to further build her writing craft, while exploring the outdoors with her partner, Cathie, and their dogs Louie and Lola.

Passionate about the environment and community engagement, she has been on the Raven ReCentre Board for 18 years, 12 as President and was one of the founding directors of 100 Women Who Care, Whitehorse.

Jerry is the Treasurer of Yukon Words, responsible for Finance.

Jerry is a Taiwanese-Canadian writer whose work explores themes of identity, belonging, family and culture. Born in Taiwan, raised in Canada, and educated in China and Japan, he blends multiple cultural aspects with unique angles of the immigrant experience, the clash of traditions, and the search for self in a multicultural world.

Although most of his readers read Mandarin, Jerry also writes in English upon request. His works capture the complexities of diaspora and family dynamics, offering readers a window into both Taiwanese and Canadian cultures.

He manages a Facebook blog with his wife and daughter.

 Michele (Miche) is a Director of Yukon Words, and its Secretary. responsible for offical records.

Miche writes mostly non-fiction and is the author of several northern cookbooks. For several years she was a freelance reporter on culture for the Yukon News and now writes regular food and cooking columns for TheYukon Magazine, Edible Alaska, and What’s Up Yukon. She co-edited, with Dianne Homan and Jenny Charchun, two anthologies of Yukon writing, Urban Coyote (Lost Moose, 2001) and Urban Coyote, New Territory (Lost Moose, 2003). Her work has been published in national newspapers and a few literary magazines, and she’s always aspiring to more of the latter. Miche has been a fan of Words Out Loud since its online inception, and especially loves the variety of voices we get to hear, in person, every third Wednesday of the month. Yay, open mike! She’s an avid skier, hiker, and berry picker, and has a very cute dog named Skilo, who barks a lot because really, he just wants to be heard.

Suzanne is our newest addition to the Board of Directors.

Suzanne began writing stories to understand or explain the world around her when she was a young girl; she has folders brimming with beginnings, middles and endings across a lifetime that are in need of some love.

In her early Yukon days - just before the internet made it to the outskirts of Whitehorse where she lived in a dry cabin - she published a nationally distributed magazine that explored women’s travel experiences through poetry, fiction and personal accounts.

For the last 20 years, Suzanne has published scholarly research as part of her academic career as a cultural geographer. Contributing to Yukon Words as a board member lends purpose to her strong belief that arts and culture are the threads that build and shape thriving, inclusive, and caring communities. She also hopes that being more involved in the territory’s writing world will encourage her to bring her own creative writing aspirations to life.

Charmaine Traynor-Ruitenberg (aka Charmaine Arjoonlal) is a first-generation Portuguese/South Asian writer and social worker who lives with her husband and two rescue dogs. Born in Toronto, she grew up in Southern Ontario, and her love for the outdoors drew her to Whitehorse in her late twenties.

While she's always had stories swirling in her head, it wasn’t until June 2020, that she drafted her first nonfiction story, “My Brown Skinned Mother.” It tells the story of meeting her birth mother at age forty at Yorkdale Shopping Centre, coincidently the same mall in Toronto where at 1.5 years old, she first met her adoptive parents. She was overjoyed when Maclean’s published it in their February 2022 print magazine.

Since then, she’s joined several writing groups and continues writing with abandon. She finds tremendous fun utilizing various literary techniques to create unique pieces and she’s been fortunate to have several published in literary magazines and anthologies

Charmaine’s creative nonfiction, poetry and fiction examine the themes of identity, transracial adoption, wilderness, disability and becoming.

She gets her kicks swimming in cold lakes and communing with trees.

You can find Charmaine at charmainearjoonlal.wordpress.com or hanging out at a local coffee shop. goes here