Monique was born and raised in New Orleans. After seeing the destruction from Hurricane Katrina, she started a non-profit to help replace the 100,000 trees that were lost in New Orleans due to the storm. To that end, she started Hike for Katreena, with the goal of planting one tree in New Orleans for each of the 2,175 miles of the Appalachian Trail. In the months after the storm, she quit her job, sold her house and hiked all 2,175 miles of the Trail and started planting trees in New Orleans. In five years, Hike for Katreena planted over 8,000 trees. Monique then handed over the leadership role of the organization. Monique then began working with All Hands Volunteers, a non-profit that responds to natural disasters around the world. She started as a Team Leader and worked her way up to Director of US Recovery and Repair for All Hands Volunteers. Wanting to contribute more to city she grew up in, Monique accepted the position of Executive Director of Louisiana Green Corps, where she helped young adults on their path to employment. Monique is excited to have recently accepted the role of Director of Operations with STEM Library Lab and is looking forward to helping empower educators!