“‘Why do you stay in such difficult work?’ The answer is simple, love.”
Diana, Women’s Advocate at Saint Martha’s
When and why did you get involved with Saint Martha’s?
In 1996, when I started at Saint Martha’s I never imagined my time would span four decades, two centuries, and two millennia. I am so thankful for every moment. I’m often asked, “Why do you stay in such difficult work?” The answer is simple, love. I love who I serve and the people I serve with. Every day that I am invited to enter someone’s world is a gift.
While my “job” may be to help people find their way to safety, my calling is to truly be with them as they recognize they are strong, brave, courageous, and resourceful. It’s beautiful and I never grow tired of it. I look forward to adding more decades at Saint Martha’s. I’m not sure about centuries or millennia though!
What does the staff at Saint Martha’s have to say about Diana?
As the longest tenured Advocate at Saint Martha’s, Diana has given, and given, and given again. Every time, she rises to the challenge, finds ways to learn and give back, nurtures open lines of communication with her co-workers, and maintains strong ties with the community. She does all of this while also contributing to the development of programs and services at Saint Martha’s, ultimately improving what we do for the women and children we serve.
She’s our very own in-house archivist! She remembers the origins and development of most of our policies and decisions and is often able to provide a concrete context and historical narrative. The kind of recall she provides has been so very important through the years, as Saint Martha’s moved forward with new projects, new staff, new policies, and new roles.
When I think of Diana, three words come to mind – calm, cool, and collected. She brings lightness and a sense of humor to our team and the work we do. She is refreshing, filled with love, and incredibly wise. We learn from you, Diana!
Diana is such a wonderful model of not just advocacy, but of love in action. She consistently goes above and beyond for the women we serve. She has such a big heart full of love that is constantly overflowing to the people around her. Diana’s steadfastness inspires me to keep moving forward with the mission of Saint Martha’s every day.
Diana is indeed a woman of valor.
When the drop-in center program first opened and we had new staff coming on board, Diana was pivotal in helping ensure the essence and culture of Saint Martha’s was present and alive. She shared insight and wisdom of the “Saint Martha’s Way” to us newbies and continues to safeguard our history.