Board of Directors

David Balmer

President

Dave began serving as a board member for MY House in May of 2022. He first arrived in Alaska in 2003 as a Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. Since then, he and his family have served all over the country and then finally settled in Eagle River in 2010. He is currently a part time Air Force Reservist and also has an office with Edward Jones in Midtown Anchorage. Dave met his wife, Susanne in 2006 and they married the next year. Susanne is a proud teacher and owner of a private preschool in Eagle River. They have three sons who love to ski, fish, go camping, play baseball and soccer, not to mention lots of LEGOS! They love the adventure that living in Alaska brings. Dave is proud to be a MY House board member and is passionate about being a part of the organization. He has had observed on multiple occasions the difference MY House makes in the community and wanted to increase his volunteerism to this non-profit. At several venues, previous MY House clients have run up and thrown their arms around the CEO, Michelle Overstreet, thanking her for saving their lives. Those experiences were the proof in the pudding for Dave. Now, his desire is to participate in MY House’s mission to value homeless youth and to treat them as assets, empowering them to become self-supporting, thereby bettering the community.

Michael Carson

Vice President

Michael is a 35-year retired Mat Su School Teacher and taught eight years at Mat-Su College. He was part of the first Outreach Team for Covenant House when it launched its homeless youth services in Anchorage over 30 years ago. He has conducted recovery meetings in various venues in the Valley, including 20 years as a volunteer at Mat-Su Youth (Detention) Facility in cooperation with the Department of Juvenile Justice. Michael has 37 years of sobriety and experience working with youth of all ages in homeless and substance abuse recovery situations. He had been on the Operating Board for the local Housing and Homeless Coalition before joining MY House. He continues to take a leadership role with youth and in the recovery field in the community. Michael joined Michelle in founding MY House right after retiring and has been hard at work since that time. Michael has chaired the Mat-Su Opioid Task Force for the past five years. Michael was Senator Dan Sullivan’s ‘Alaskan of The Week’ and First Lady’s (Donna Walker) ‘Volunteer of the Year’ during that tenure.

Stephanie Berta

Treasurer

Stephanie, her husband, Brandon, and their 2 children have lived in Wasilla since 2003. Stephanie got her BSBA in Business Management, Administration & Economics at the University of Southern Colorado. While in Colorado, she worked as a licensed insurance representative as well as in the banking industry. Her career as a banker continued when she moved to Alaska and continued working as a business and commercial lender. Through this, she established numerous relationships throughout the Mat-Su Community. Switching careers in 2020, Stephanie established a small business of her own as a grant writer. Additionally, she has worked with the City of Wasilla’s Finance Department as a grant reviewer. She has previously served as Secretary on the Greater Wasilla Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, the Advisory Board for Valley Performing Arts, an officer of the MTA Foundation Board of Directors, and the MTA Foundation Donation Committee. Stephanie felt called to be a part of MY House in 2014 and has grown increasingly passionate about her volunteer work there through the years. She is privileged and honored to serve as the MY House Board Treasurer.

Cathy Cottle

Secretary

Cathy Cottle made Alaska home in 1989 when she came from the Midwest to work for a summer in a gold mining camp. Like so many others, she fell in love with the beauty of this great land and stayed. Cathy lived in Salcha and then Valdez, where she worked in hotel and banking management. Cathy served on numerous Boards and Commissions, as well as owning her own Bookkeeping business before moving to Wasilla with her husband in 2011. Cathy currently serves on the City of Wasilla Planning Commission. She is the proud mother of four and has been blessed with many, many “bonus” kids throughout the years who have called her mom.

“I watched MyHouse grow, flourish, save, and change the lives of many of our youth through the eyes of my husband, the late Wasilla Mayor and MyHouse Board member Bert Cottle. He constantly spoke about and supported Michelle Overstreet’s vision and passion for helping our youth, and the MyHouse philosophy of “a hand up, not a hand out”. He always said “these are all our kids” and that is so true. It is truly now my honor and privilege to serve as a MyHouse Board member. To support and strengthen our youth is vital to supporting our own future.”