Women at the Helm 2015
RACHEL EINBUND
Principal Attorney at the Law Office of Rachel Einbund, Esq.
The passage of the Marriage Equality Act in 2011 marked the end of one battle, and the beginning of many others. Rachel Einbund understood that from the start, and it's what led her to create her own legal practice, focusing on marriage-based green cards, work visas, domestic abuse victims and family-based immigration, to name but a few of her many specialties. Einbund, a graduate of NYU and New York Law School, prides herself on taking clients from all over, and on her belief in religious, political, gender and sexual freedom. In addition to running her own firm, she mentors law students; holds free workshops on the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) immigration policy; writes about immigration issues on her firm's blog, The LORE Review; and does pro-bono work for minors and unique cases. (She’s registered as a marriage officiant, too, as if all that weren't enough to keep her busy.) For her dedication to the law and our community, Einbund has received numerous honors: Just this year, the National LGBT Bar Association named her one of America's best LGBT lawyers under 40 and The International Women's Leadership Association called her a Woman of Outstanding Leadership. We here at GO simply call her "amazing."
Meet 16 dynamos who are true models of success
BIRNA HRÖNN BJORNSDOTTIR
Co-Founder and Owner, Pink Iceland
Birna Hrönn Bjornsdottir has been quite active in Iceland’s queer movement. She was the head of the local gay youth group, ran the educational program for Iceland’s LGBT organization and is on the Reykjavík Pride committee. So it was only natural for her to take that passion and turn it into a business. Pink Iceland is an LGBT travel, wedding and event company Birna runs with her girlfriend and a friend. The company has been recognized by Iceland’s president, who presented them with the Travel Industry Association’s Innovation Award in 2012, and TripAdvisor, who recently gave them a Certificate of Excellence. As if running her own business weren’t enough, Birna also works at the National Hospital in Iceland as a registered nurse and is a DJ with her girlfriend, who she calls her greatest inspiration. “If you are honest and your heart is in the right place,” she says, “you will feel good about what you are doing and enjoy going to work. I think that is reflected a lot in our company. We are three friends that own and run the company together with queer passion, straight from the heart.”
