Donor spotlight: Heather Vlieger

Legal aid attorney Heather Vlieger recently paid off her law school student loans and decided to celebrate the occasion by donating to two important causes: the Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) of Minnesota and Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid’s (MMLA) Bowen Scholarship. 

Vlieger is a long-time public interest attorney. She currently works as grants manager at MMLA and previously served as executive director of LRAP Minnesota and program director at the Minnesota Justice Foundation. These experiences fostered her dedication to public service work. In her words, “It’s really impactful to be able to help our neighbors in need gain access to justice.”

Her current and prior work experience informed her decisions to donate. LRAP is a critical component of the legal aid infrastructure in Minnesota, Vlieger explained. The organization helps legal aid attorneys repay some of their law school loans and manage their family finances. LRAP also helps legal aid providers understand how to access the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. 

MMLA’s Bowen Scholarship supports law school scholarships for MMLA’s support staff of color. The recipients of the scholarship have already demonstrated their commitment to legal aid clients and added to the diversity of the legal profession. “I’m really excited to support these colleagues in joining our ranks as attorneys,” Vlieger says. 

Vlieger notes that private donations from the legal community are needed now more than ever:

“Especially with the uncertainty of future federal funding, there’s a great need to fill the gap with donations from the legal community.”