AJ Kircher serves as the Director of Innovation and Collaboration for Alliance for Empowerment.  The Alliance is a non-profit administrative hub, offering HR, IT, Finance and Compliance support to local and regional non-profits.  Prior to this role, AJ served as the Executive Director for Capabilities in Elmira, NY for 15 years.  Capabilities focuses on employment and training support for individuals with barriers (intellectual disabilities, mental health, and substance use disorders).  AJ brings over 30 years of non-profit experience to the Board of Directors of Truth Pharm.

In 2021, AJ lost her only son to fentanyl poisoning following a year of sobriety.  She has many years of involvement navigating the array of services, and associated barriers, that individuals with substance use disorders (SUD) experience.  Following her son’s death, AJ began advocating on behalf of individuals with SUD in Tompkins County and was invited to serve on the Opioid Task Force for the county.  The committee was responsible for distributing money from the Opioid Settlement Fund to local organizations.

 AJ currently lives in Trumansburg, NY with her husband John and their daughter Marley.