Lyla Ross, Founder and Executive Director

Lyla Ross, LICSW, is a Seattle-based clinical social worker specializing in children, youth, and families. Her therapeutic work has focused on supporting youth involved in the juvenile justice system and providing family systems therapy in private practice.

In 2012, Lyla combined her expertise in social systems with her family’s businesses—Card Kingdom and Mox Boarding House—by founding their corporate giving program, Engage. This initiative emphasized a thoughtful, community-centered approach to philanthropy, listening to patrons and employees to guide giving efforts. Through its flagship event, The Gauntlet—an annual board game charity tournament—and other initiatives, Engage raised over $1 million for nonprofit organizations locally and nationally.

Today, Engage has grown beyond its beginnings as Card Kingdom’s corporate giving arm and has become Gamers Engaged, an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit since 2021. As Founder and Executive Director, Lyla is passionate about building cross-sector collaborations between the games industry and education, therapeutic gaming, game design, workforce development, and philanthropy. Gamers Engaged is committed to driving collective impact across these sectors—strengthening communities both locally and beyond.