Member Spotlight: Alenya al'Roran
Author: Jahily al'Karee
Published: February 26, 2021 Tar Valon Times Blog
This month, the Tar Valon Times is excited to bring you a bonus Member Spotlight, featuring our new Director of Membership, Alenya Al'Roran! Alenya is an Aes Sedai of the Brown Ajah, and most recently is coming off of a successful stint as Director of Marketing. She has also served as a City Council Greeter, Social Media Manager, and member of the Outreach Activities Team.
In real life, Alenya is married to Ken (Novice Kenith Sna'aps). They live in Central Florida with their two children, and their cat Chewy. In addition to raising children and facilitating their online schooling, Alenya describes herself as a professional volunteer. She runs Merchandising and Branding for a Star Wars costuming group; and said that when she joined TarValon.Net, she lasted all of about six months before jumping in and beginning to volunteer!
In addition to her WoT and Star Wars communities, Alenya likes to read, crochet, and cross-stitch. She has two Mandalorian costumes, and her Star Wars group normally has a large annual event.
Her journey with Wheel of Time began when she was given a copy of Eye of the World while serving in the Marine Corps. (Author’s note – Alenya and Ken are both Veterans, thank you for your service!) She discovered TarValon.Net then, but had little access to the internet. A few years later while doing a reread, Alenya remembered the site and decided to join. She thought she would be able to sit back and just enjoy, but her drive to serve kicked in quickly and she started signing up for positions.
Alenya was naturally drawn to the Brown Ajah, and those ties were formed easily as she made her way through the Tower. She attended JordanCon while Guesting, attended the Brown Toast, and “…it was pretty much over from there. Everyone I met was so great and they were clearly my family, and I Aspired as soon as I was able. Brown has always been my home because it just is.”
When the Director of Marketing position opened up in 2019, Alenya applied for it because she had prior experience. And she had a lot of ideas that would build on the foundation laid by the previous director, Jeffan Caliarthan. During her tenure, Alenya has made several changes, and worked to build a strong leadership team within the department. She spoke very highly of her leadership staff, and is excited to see where #teammarketing goes in the future.
The Marketing staff members also speak very highly of Alenya:
“Alenya is one of the hardest working, smartest, and kindest people I know (and I’m not just saying that cause I’m her first sister ). She has a ton of fantastic ideas for this community and I am so happy that she found her way here. I look forward to seeing her talents shine in the DoMem role as well as they did in Marketing!”
~ Stasia t'Andrei, Marketing Project Manager
“Alenya is one of the hardest workers I know. She gives everything that she does 110% and she leads by example. I have really enjoyed getting to know her through the Department of Marketing and I will sincerely miss having her as my boss. In two words, “She’s fantastic!”
~ Aleita Taviah, Tar Valon Times Editor
“What can I say about Alenya? Alenya is one of the most hard working people I know. If you looked up “get stuff done” in the dictionary, you would surely find a picture of her avatar. She is an amazing person, and I am proud to work for her as Mayor and also to call her my sister!”
~ Aintza Bisera, Mayor, Game Master, and TVT Staff
This leads up to the question, why make the move to Director of Membership? Alenya said that this is a dream job for her, and she already loves doing it. In her own words: “I actually have a lot of goals for the Department and there are a lot of things that will be coming out of my office down the road. We’re hoping for an influx of new members when the show comes out, so I’m planning to do everything I can, with help from all of the membership admins, to prepare the site for more members and create a welcoming environment for everyone. My personal goal is to be present and active. I can’t ask anyone to do something I don’t do myself.”
We here at the Tar Valon Times wish Alenya all the best as she completes her move; our membership will be in great hands under her leadership!
