Congratulations to Doc Wayne Youth Services on being the 2019 Broadcast Your Love of Human Services photo contest winners!
First, you cast over 1,100 votes to narrow the field to three finalists. Then, last week at the Providers’ Council’s 44th Annual Convention & Expo: Everyone Counts., we displayed your top three photos to our convention attendees and asked them to pick their favorite. The numbers were tight but in the end Doc Wayne Youth Services came out on top, with The Key Program, and Vinfen in a close second and third place. Thank you to all those who submitted, viewed and voted in the 8th Annual Broadcast Your Love for Human Services Photo Contest.
A special thank you and congratulations to Lia, who submitted the winning entry from Doc Wayne! Lia joined their team as a Macro Social Work Intern in September 2017 and was hired in May 2018 as the Development & Special Projects Coordinator. In her current role, Lia supports all agency fundraising initiatives. She is responsible for grant writing and reporting, marketing and communications, donor engagement, event planning, and program monitoring and evaluation. Lia earned her bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of Connecticut and her Master of Social Work from Boston College. She is a dynamic individual who contributes significantly to the overall success of Doc Wayne.
Fun Fact: Lia is on an Estonian folk dancing team, Saare Vikat, which is based out of New York City. Around 40 members join together each month to learn, practice and perform traditional Estonian dance.
We interviewed Lia and asked her the following questions:
Why do you work in human services?
“I work in human services because I love people! That might be a corny answer, but it’s the truth. Every day I am surrounded by incredible folks who are all doing their part to make this world a better place. Like the rest of our staff, I am not willing to let hate, discrimination, inequity or fear win. I advocate for others because I have had people advocate for me; I wouldn’t be where I am today without continued support and encouragement from family, mentors or human service providers. This world can be really messy, but people are resilient. We are all strong and can go far on our own, but we can always go further together – there really is strength in numbers.”
What is your favorite professional memory?
“Since being involved with the organization, I have had many wonderful, amazing memories – most of which stem from a weekly tradition: Group Supervision. Every Wednesday morning, the entire Doc Wayne team joins together for a two-hour meeting. There might be a guest speaker, clinical training, team-building or open floor. Group Supervision is my favorite time of the week at Doc Wayne because I learn so much about my peers, myself and the world around me. I think this weekly tradition strengthens our team culture and highlights, yet again, that there is strength in numbers.”
What was your vision for the Broadcast Your Love photo?
“A lot went into the creation of Doc Wayne’s submission; each piece of the post was very intentional as I wanted to highlight different key features of Doc Wayne: inclusivity, happiness, sports, etc. Each quadrant is titled with one of our Core Four Constructs – which come from our curriculum: Creating Champions. The pictures were chosen to represent each of those constructs: Teamwork, Resilience, Communication and Confidence. Last but not least, I wanted to include the Caring Force and incorporate this year’s (convention) theme. The Doc Wayne team loves working in Human Services because each day is filled with countless smiles and positive energy. There are hard times, of course, but we strive to combat the stigma of mental health treatment and increase access to appropriate supports because Everyone Counts.”
Once again, thanks to all of you who Broadcast Your Love this year, if you want to look at their submissions you can visit our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!
Sincerely,
Ravi Simon
Project Manager
The Caring Force