Current Pro Bono Award Recipients
Bryan P. Timbers Pro Bono Awards
Each year Alaska’s pro bono service providers select the recipients of the annual Bryan P. Timbers pro bono awards. 2025 marked the 36th anniversary of this award and recognition of excellence in our community’s access to justice efforts. The 2025 award recipients are Stephanie Rhoades, Eric Glatt and Ashburn & Mason.
INDIVIDUAL AWARD:
Eric Glatt
Eric Glatt had gone on inactive status after taking a position in 2019 to lead the launch of a permanent supportive housing project, Home for Good, at the United Way of Anchorage. Kick-started by a grant from the Departments of Justice and of Housing and Urban Development, the goals for Home for Good included reducing recidivism and use of emergency services by providing housing and case management to some of the most challenged homeless residents of Anchorage. Its funding mechanisms also included a first for Alaska—a “pay for success” performance-based contract with the Municipality of Anchorage, whereby taxpayer money is only spent after a third party verifies that agreed-upon, objective outcomes have been achieved. The project overcame the unanticipated challenges of the COVID-19 crisis and continues to successfully house and support scores of Anchorage residents.
In 2023, Eric took advantage of Bar Rule 43.2, the Emeritus Attorney rule that allows inactive and retired attorneys to have their bar dues waived if they provide pro bono service to a qualified legal services provider willing to sponsor them. Sponsored by the ACLU of Alaska—the employer that first drew him to Alaska, in 2015—Eric began serving as pro bono co-counsel in litigation, including to challenge “prohibited camping” laws for violating unhoused Alaskans’ state constitutional rights. While similar claims have been brought on behalf of unhoused persons Outside, many of these are questions of first impression under Alaska’s Constitution.
Eric’s advocacy on behalf of unhoused Alaskans extends beyond the walls of the courtroom. He is dedicated to a community-centered approach to this work and can frequently be found at encampments across Anchorage. In these visits, Eric is keenly attuned to the needs of the people living outside and is dedicated to connecting them to local resources wherever possible. He also advocates before the local legislature, with administrative agencies, and among the nonprofits and individuals who play important roles confronting this challenge.
Finally, Eric is the Executive Director of Borealis Legal Services, a non-profit legal services organization that he and two other attorneys incorporated in 2024. Though its current footprint is small, it has high hopes for its mission to advance economic justice in Alaska by developing creative solutions that help bridge the Access to Justice Gap.
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT: Stephanie Rhoades
Judge Rhoades has spent her career serving the people of Alaska with unwavering dedication. She was appointed to the Anchorage District Court in 1992 and was instrumental in founding Alaska’s first Mental Health Court in 1999, a pioneering effort that provided alternative approaches for individuals with mental illness involved in the criminal justice system. For 25 years, she presided over cases with wisdom, compassion, and an unrelenting commitment to justice. Yet, retirement was not an end to her service—it was simply the next chapter. Rather than stepping back, she chose to step forward, continuing to serve Alaskans in need.
Judge Rhoades has provided thousands of hours of pro bono legal services since leaving the bench. While many in her position might choose to travel, relax, or serve as a pro tem judge, she instead committed herself to ensuring that individuals of limited means receive the legal help they so desperately need.
Judge Rhoades is known for her willingness to take on any case. At Alaska Legal Services Corporation she has handled bulk administrative appeals to address the ongoing SNAP crisis, served as Attorney of the Day, drafted Wills, provided family law consultations, and volunteered at Veteran’s Stand Down.
At the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, she has represented clients in several family law cases pro bono, providing survivors of domestic violence with compassionate, forthright, and dignified support through their legal challenges.
Beyond her work with in-person legal services, since 2021 Judge Rhoades has been a dedicated volunteer with Alaska Free Legal Answers, which is an online legal clinic where Alaskans can ask three civil legal questions per year and have an Alaska attorney answer for free. She has spent 423 hours answering 745 client questions, ensuring that individuals who may not have access to traditional legal services still receive the guidance they need. She has singlehandedly answered over 75% of the questions asked on Alaska Free Legal Answers, and recently received recognition from the American Bar Association for her outstanding pro bono work with Alaska Free Legal Answers.
Her contributions have not gone unnoticed. She has been recognized as Volunteer of the Month by the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, by the Alaska Legal Services Corporation with the SNAP Volunteer Recognition Award, and by the American Bar Association for her dedication to volunteering for Alaska Free Legal Answers. Her work has touched the lives of countless Alaskans facing legal challenges.
Judge Rhoades exemplifies what it means to serve with both head and heart. Her impact extends beyond the cases she takes—she has set a standard for what pro bono service can and should be. She is an inspiration to us all, reminding us that justice is not just a career but a lifelong calling.
LAW FIRM AWARD:
Ashburn & Mason
Recently, two attorneys from Ashburn & Mason, Ben Farkash and Dylan Hitchcock-Lopez, accepted 4 pro bono cases from the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (ANDVSA). Ashburn & Mason attorneys have also taken on asylum cases at the Alaska Institute for Justice, and many of them dedicate their time each year to volunteering at the MLK Day Free Legal Clinic and the Elizabeth Peratrovich Legal Clinic. In the last year alone, Ashburn and Mason PC have taken on 23 pro bono cases at Alaska Legal Services, that vary from complex family law issues to public benefit delays and denials. Their willingness to review high need cases and step in swiftly is critical to meeting ALSC’s high need for impactful, driven, and compassionate pro Bono attorneys from all levels of legal expertise.
Ben Farkash previously clerked for the Honorable Dani Crosby on the Anchorage Superior Court and joined Ashburn & Mason in 2021, focusing on civil litigation. He has donated substantial pro bono hours to clients from ANDVSA, Alaska Legal Services, and AIJ, in addition to volunteering at the Bar’s free legal clinics. In 2023, Ben flew to Bethel to launch an MLK Day Free Legal Clinic there, bringing legal services to rural Alaskans who face even greater barriers to access.
Dylan Hitchcock-Lopez was born and raised in Alaska, and he clerked in Fairbanks with the Honorable Bethany Harbison on the Alaska Court of appeals before moving to Anchorage to join Ashburn & Mason in 2023. Dylan has volunteered with ALSC and ANDVSA doing SNAP and family law cases. Dylan estimates that around a third of his workload is dedicated to pro bono work, and he credits Ashburn & Mason for making this possible since the firm “unequivocally supports us in the amount of pro bono work we do.”
Ben and Dylan both say that Ashburn & Mason’s strong commitment to pro bono service was one of the things that drew them to the firm. Dylan says, “pro bono work is not something we do on the side, but part of what we do and part of our practice,” noting that they “don’t distinguish between a pro bono client and a firm client.” Ben adds that the “ethical obligations are not different depending on whether they happen to be paying for legal services.”
Ben and Dylan are quick to acknowledge that they are “not outliers at the firm” and that many attorneys at Ashburn & Mason work to expand access to justice by taking on cases, serving on nonprofit boards, and sharing their valuable experience and expertise with others. They also point out that support from the non-attorneys at Ashburn & Mason is critical to their pro bono work and emphasize how “heartening it is to be in a place where everyone pulls together to make this work possible.”
Thank you again Ben and Dylan, along with the rest of the Ashburn & Mason team, for your dedication to pro bono service in Alaska!
