Alison Trenk, grew up in New Jersey but has resided in Manhattan, New York for over seven years with her husband Michael Trenk and golden retriever Cooper. He presently is a restaurant entrepreneur in many NYC businesses. Both Alison and Michael utilize the businesses to be able to give back to the community by donating food for local Manhattan events and raising money for multiple nonprofit organizations, such as the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and the Ace of Good Organization.

In 2007, Alison’s step father, Ross Clark, woke up one morning and was paralyzed from the hips down. There was no injury or accident to blame. For the next two years, Alison, Michael and her mother, Bridget Clark, were in and out of hospitals attempting to understand what had caused the paralysis. It was extremely grueling since Ross would start to feel better and show signs of improvement, and then the next week be admitted to the hospital again. In 2009, the family finally had a working diagnosis, and healing was able to begin, but the paralysis was not going to improve. Throughout the process, the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation were a beacon of hope and support to the family. Alison volunteers for the organization and raises money for their partner organization, Victory over Paralysis.

After completing her Masters in Psychology and Masters in Social Work, Alison pursued a career in clinical social work.  For two and one half years, she worked at the Office of the District Attorney’s Office of Kings County as a program coordinator for the Victim Services Unit. She oversaw a program that specifically worked with people who had experienced human trafficking and sexual exploitation. Alison is a licensed clinical social worker who is trained in trauma focused cognitive behavior therapy and trauma treatment. She also has worked as the Project Manager for a nonprofit organization that empowers young adults with criminal justice backgrounds with employment/education skills and job opportunities.  Presently she has her own practice as a psychotherapist in Manhattan.

Alison and Michael enjoy balancing their laborious schedules with healthy activities, such as cycling and taking long walks with Cooper. In fact, Cooper and Alison raised money for the Morris Animal Foundation by walking in a national virtual walk in 2015 and look forward to doing it again in 2016. Alison also enjoys running 5Ks and 10Ks for charities, early morning barre classes and just “danced her tail off” for the See Spot Rescued organization. Alison attempts to cook vegan meals on Sunday nights for the both of them. At the same time, they also love discovering new restaurants and innovative food in Manhattan.