Denise Beckles

Director, Vocational Services

The Arc Middlesex County

What inspired you to get involved?

The People. They are some of the most wonderful people I’ve ever met. I am a Diversity Management Leader and an advocate for growth and development. I’m especially drawn to the under-served people. My heart is to make a difference in their lives. In my diversity leadership work—I’ve been especially moved by the tenacity, the warmth, openness, struggles and needs of those with disabilities and those who have health disparities. This demographic is the most underserved in our nation; yet they are resilient despite disparities. What I have discovered is that all people usually want the same things out of life, love, purpose, resources and security.

I have the privilege to use my corporate skillset, my compassion for the underserved and my love for teaching everyday as I provide leadership for the Vocational Program of the Arc Middlesex County

What keeps you motivated?

The People.  The Individuals who need support and have an expressed desire to learn vital life, community, safety, vocational, social skills, to live fuller lives. My Staff—who have a heart to serve those in need and advocate for their best interests to be achieved. My Leadership-who have a vision and mission to help Individuals achieve success and become their best self. Results motivate me; when I see tangible results, improvement in a task or happiness as a result of fulfillment. I believe to teach is to touch a life forever. My goal is to touch a life; one person at a time.

What are your hopes for the future of the organization?

My greatest desire is for the Arc Middlesex County to become the obvious choice when families and loved ones are seeking services, whether day programming/vocational, residential, employment support and family support. We are here to serve.

Lisa D. Banks

Preschool Program Director

Mercer Street Friends

What inspired you to get involved?

I have been inspired to work with young children from a very young age, I always wanted to be a teacher.  I was raised by my grandparents, being the oldest I was responsible for caring for my siblings at a very young age making sure they were clean, neat and loved, even teaching my baby brother to read.  I care about the young children in our care making sure they are safe and learning in a positive, nurturing environment where children can learn and have fun as they grow, I have an excellent staff, some of the greatest Preschool Teachers around and I could not do my job without them.

What keeps you motivated?

What keeps me motivated is watching the children grow, it’s an unexplained joy that I get watching the children and parents enter our doors, not sure of what to expect, then seeing them happy and comfortable leaving their children in our care and the children not wanting to leave.  It is beautiful to see the children transition from Preschool to Kindergarten and watching them learn throughout the year.

What is your hope for the future of your program/organization?

My hope for our program and organization is that we continue to make a positive difference in the lives of the children we teach.  It is a blessing when families keep coming back for the wonderful services that we offer.  Our greatest testimonies come by “word of mouth.”

Jennifer Amaya

Director of Outreach and Prevention

Visions and Pathways

What inspired you to get involved?

I’ve had a passion for working with at risk youth since I was younger. I always have and always will enjoy the grass roots interaction that I have with these youth. They are our future and we should all be working to lift them up to reach their potential.

What keeps you motivated?

I am motivated by every youth that takes the steps to make their situation better. Whether it is just making the call to us for food, hygiene or food, reaching out for housing, asking for employment assistance or getting back into school. These are big steps for the youth we work with and I am motivated by their courage, perseverance and willingness to do better, be better.

What is your hope for the future of your program/organization?

My hope for Visions and Pathways is that we will continue to help those youth in need and be the place they call for someone to turn to. I would hope that more and more people would use us as a preventative resource, to reduce the severity that situations can turn into and limit the amount of trauma that can accompany these situations.

Marla Higginbotham

Executive Director

Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Union County

What inspired you to get involved?

For the past 20 years, beginning with my senior thesis in college on alternative education choices for black inner- city students and my first job at the National Governor’s Association working with states to implement the National Education Goals, I have been steadfast in my commitment to the protection, safety, education and enhancement of young minds.  Currently, I am Executive Director of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Union County, leading a team of outstanding individuals in serving and advocating for the most-vulnerable individuals in the county — children placed in foster care after being removed from their homes due to neglect, abuse or abandonment. CASA staff and volunteers truly make a difference in the lives of young, deserving individuals who often have limited sources of assistance and no other inspiration in their lives.

What keeps you motivated?

Results. This is my most-important motivator. Each month when I look at advocate reports submitted to the court I see how we directly impact the lives of foster children right here in Union County and feel especially motivated. Every month there is at least one special case that inspires me on a greater level. Over the holidays, it was 7-year-old IQ, who had been in foster care three years and was formally adopted by his older sister, a young woman in her early 20s just becoming an adult herself; nevertheless, she was unwaveringly committed to bringing her family back together. Real stories. Real inspiration.

What are your hopes for the future of the organization?

My hope for the future of the organization can be summed up in one word: growth. We must continue to grow the number of fragile children served. The initial cause for a child’s removal from home and placement in foster homes or residential facilities is traumatic enough; yet it is compounded when the child is most often placed with strangers in an unfamiliar environment, and this can last average 18 to 24 months. There are 560 Union County children in foster care right now and CASA of Union County currently serve 262. There’s still more work to be done. For many of these children, no matter how many times a placement changes, their CASA volunteer is the only constant in their life. Every day we continue to strive to reach our goal of providing a CASA volunteer for every Union County foster child. That is CASA of Union County’s future.