A career at Alaska Housing Finance Corporation has provided Trishta Blizzard with an outlet to pursue what she says is her primary career goal: helping others.
Before joining Alaska Housing, Trishta moved across the state, held a wide range of job positions and began a degree in sociology. Over time, her experiences showed her where her passion and talents intersected.
“I worked as an emergency dispatcher, a correctional officer and as hospital security in an emergency room,” she said. “Many of the people I met were in the worst possible situations and over time I realized I had a skill for staying calm in high-stress circumstances and helping people get back on track.”
The First Line of Support
Inspired by her previous job experiences, when Trishta saw AHFC was hiring a housing program specialist in Kodiak she felt she had found a potential outlet for her skillset.
“The job description aligned with my goal to help people,” she said.
Trishta joined AHFC in 2018 working for the Public Housing department in the Kodiak office. She held the role of Housing Program Specialist II for almost two years, then moved to the position of Asset Supervisor I. She worked for almost five years in the Kodiak office and found the work rewarding.
“I got to see, from A to Z, the full process of helping our clients,” Trishta said. “When you’re in that position, the volume of work can sometimes feel overwhelming, but seeing the success of my clients kept me going. I felt that I was part of something meaningful and larger than me.”
Part of Something Bigger
Trishta eventually moved to Anchorage and took a new position as Administrative Services Manager.
“I still feel like I’m part of something bigger,” Trishta said. “In Administrative Services, we keep the lights on, we keep information flowing through the mail room and the front desks, and we help make it possible for employees across departments to function successfully in their roles every day.”
Where once Trishta said she drew motivation from her desire to see her clients succeed, she now finds inspiration in the team that she manages.
“The success of my team is constantly on my mind,” she said.
“When I started in my current role, our department had several new employees and people taking on new roles. This allowed us to view existing processes with fresh eyes. I try to encourage the team to collaborate and be innovative. We have an opportunity to reexamine and improve our processes in order to leave the department better than we found it for future employees.”
– Trishta Blizzard, Administrative Services Manager, AHFC
“Walking through the office and seeing my team collaborating, and seeing their excitement when they create something new that will benefit other employees, that’s rewarding to me,” Trishta said.
Making a Difference
Having viewed the work of Alaska Housing from a public-facing position and now leading a team of employees behind the scenes, Trishta sees how every AHFC employee contributes to the mission to provide Alaskans access to safe, quality, affordable housing.
“When I was in Kodiak, I was able to participate in the process to build a new playground and make updates to the public housing properties,” she said. “I saw firsthand what a difference those improvements would make for residents. In my new role, I see the process from the administrative side of things and observe the procurement process. I continue to watch the progress of improvements for Public Housing residents.”
“This is my culture. It’s what I subscribe to, what I believe in. I believe I’m making a difference.”
Looking to join an innovative team that makes a difference for Alaskans? View our open job positions at ahfc.us.
