Lansing Staff
Nancy Cannon
Director of Central Michigan Offices
Nancy joined AAI in 1994 as an intern and was hired on in 1995. She graduated from MSU with a bachelor’s degree in social work. Nancy is also a mom by adoption and has been active in the field in some capacity for 20 years. She lives with her husband Gordie in Grand Ledge and has an abundance of energy she shares with all who come her way. Nancy considers her three grown children her greatest work of all.
Says Nancy, “Watching an adoption plan come together is truly a wonderful experience. Seeing children have loving homes, adoptive couples become parents, and birth mothers allowed to follow their dreams has blessed me in so many ways. There is never a dull moment working in the adoption field.”
Brenda Ruddy
Adoptive Family Caseworker
Brenda joined AAI as a home study caseworker in 1998. She holds a psychology degree from Central Michigan University, and her experience includes serving as a social worker in a retirement center for eight years and also working in a hospital setting before joining AAI. Brenda and her husband live near Lansing with their three children.
Because her family has been formed through adoption, Brenda says her work with home studies is much more than a job to her. She feels she can relate to the challenges most adoptive couples have experienced before choosing adoption.
Kris Burow
Adoptive Family Caseworker/Guatemala Consultant
Kris Burow has been with AAI seven years, working in the central Michigan office as an international home study caseworker and consultant. She also assists with home studies for domestic adoptions. Kris received her social work degree from Valparaiso University. Prior to coming to AAI, Kris worked in medical social work and in a refugee foster care program—licensing foster homes for teens and children coming to the United States from Vietnam, Haiti, and China.
Watching children become connected to families who give them a loving home and a future filled with opportunity brings great satisfaction to Kris. She believes families are both influenced and enriched as they are given the opportunity to see the world through the eyes of a different culture.
Kimberly Burns
Birth Mother Caseworker
Kimberly joined AAI on September 11, 2006, as a birth mother caseworker. Kimberly holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Eastern Michigan University and comes to AAI with three years of experience as a foster care caseworker. However, Kimberly likely gained her most practical work experience through the adoption of her daughter, who joined her family in February of 2006. As an adoptive mother, Kimberly is sensitive to the emotional needs of both birth parents and adoptive parents. Kimberly also enjoys being a part of building families.
Kimberly lives in the Lansing area with her husband of nine years and her daughter. She enjoys reading, exercising, and spending time with her family.
Kris Dickens
Adoptive Family Caseworker
Kris started working at AAI in September of 2006 as a home study caseworker. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in sociology with a concentration in social work from Central Michigan University. Kris was previously employed as a social worker at a long term care facility, as a pharmaceutical sales representative, and, most recently, was a full-time at-home mother.
Kris and her husband, Mark, have two daughters. “AAI helped us to complete our family through international adoption,” says Kris. “It’s so gratifying to be able to assist other families through their own adoption journey. This position feels nothing like a ‘job’; it feels like a blessing!” Kris’s hobbies include biking, reading, and traveling.
