September 28, 2021

Employee of the Quarter Spotlight: Mela

News

We sat down with our employee of the quarter Melanie “Mela” and asked her some important questions about her time at CASA:

1. How long have you worked at CASA?

I have been with CASA for 10 months now.

2. What is your favorite part about working here?

My favorite part of working here is interacting with our survivors. It is really fulfilling to be a part of our survivor’s emotional support system and healing journey. My aim is to take our participants from victim to survivor and from surviving to thriving, so it’s incredible to see participants move from one side of the healing journey to the other.

3. What is your favorite part about your role in particular?

My favorite part about my role in particular is facilitating our domestic violence support groups. I really enjoy helping heal survivors in a group counseling session, educating them on abuser’s tactics and red flags, and watching them encourage and support each other. It’s a very uplifting space. There is so much solidarity among our support groups because they all realize they have gone through such similar experiences and are all working hard to heal and thrive together.

4. What have you learned about domestic violence since working here?
Domestic violence effects people of all races, genders, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic statuses. Although domestic violence occurs in higher rates in some groups compared to others, domestic violence can happen to anyone at any time.

5. What is something you think the community should know about domestic violence?

Domestic violence is not just physical violence. It’s also emotional, verbal, financial, psychological, and sexual abuse. You don’t have to be battered to experience abuse. Domestic violence comes in many forms.

6.How do you hope to grow during your time at CASA?

I hope to grow at CASA by elevating my role and developing my impact on the community. I’m working towards having the opportunity to mentor other aspiring and onboarding advocates so that we can be a unified force in CASA’s mission to challenge societal acceptance of domestic violence and supporting our survivors through our services.

Mela, thank you so much for your work at CASA! You are such an incredible advocate, and we look forward to seeing all of the amazing work you will continue doing.