For the month of June, we'll be featuring LGBTQIA+ staff and residents in the LabCentral community. This month features Amy Ripka, CEO and Founder at Lucy Therapeutics.

How do you celebrate Pride and what does it mean to you?

PRIDE to me means reflecting on how far we’ve come and and looking to what is ahead. - My celebration is both personal and community-focused. The accomplishments of the past have yielded a world where LGBTQIA+ rights have expanded but present struggles reveal that we still live in a world where opportunities or rights can be volatile and are not always extended equally or willingly. The struggles in the future and what their results will be remain unknown - we need to remember that hope is not a strategy – and map a path forward rooted in principles of equality for all. This month is a time for me to celebrate that equality, renew my commitment to have discussions with those who don’t understand, to support those who are hurting and to blaze a path to provide the embers of light for those who will follow.

What is your favorite part of working with Lucy Therapeutics?

At Lucy Therapeutics I work with an amazing, diverse, funny, intelligent and hard-working group of people! We come from so many different backgrounds, cultures and experiences. While many look to hire people who are like themselves, at LucyTx we are striving to build a team who fill gaps which are required to reach our company goals. Because of this, we look for different temperaments, tendencies and talents, and know that as a whole we will be able to support each other to achieve our goals because of this diversity.

What was the last book you read?

The last book I read was Team of Rivals. Lincoln is often lionized, but this book gives a more comprehensive picture of his challenges:  To wait or to act? To follow the majority advice or forge your own decisions? To teach a lesson or to let someone shine? I think anyone interested in leadership could learn a lot from this biography.