Welcome to New Staff

Leigh Kirchner, Development Coordinator

Join us in welcoming two new members to the Appalachian Voices team!

Leigh grew up in beautiful Rockbridge County in the heart of Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, where her roots go back many generations to a Monacan Indian on one side and German settlers on the other. A first-generation college student, she earned a B.A. in English at Virginia Commonwealth University and an M.A. in Appalachian Studies at Appalachian State University. While in graduate school, she developed an interest in protecting the Appalachian region from exploitation. She will be working with our development team to manage development projects and bolster our membership program.

Maya Viknius, Controller

Maya was born and raised in Kiev, Ukraine, and spent her summers in a rural country village where the residents were mostly self-sustainable. She moved to the United States at the age of 21, living in the Midwest and on the West Coast before settling in the mountains of North Carolina in 2011. She earned a minor in economics from Kiev’s University of Economics, a B.S., in business administration/accounting from Southern Oregon University, and completing the CPA examination in 2013. She currently lives with her husband Brian and two sons, Nicholas and Souren, near the beautiful Watauga River in Sugar Grove, N.C.
Maya will serve as our controller overseeing the financial operations of the organization.