By: Kalie Date: 09/10/2015

We have been growing! While it has been amazing to see new programs launched and clients growing through mentoring and classes, these changes also bring challenges. So many people have been calling to receive services that currently there are no available mentoring appointments until December. The need for more volunteers continues to increase. Our staff has been juggling multiple responsibilities while working alongside volunteers to impact women and families in our community.

That is why we are so thrilled to welcome Sandra Vejar, Operations Director, to our team! Sandra was born and raised in Ecuador. Her ability to speak Spanish will be a great asset to AWC as we continue recruiting more Spanish-speaking volunteers. Sandra previously worked with World Vision in Ecuador and, for the last 23 years, has worked for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Ecuador, Mexico and Thailand. Sandra has been married for 20 years and has three children: two boys and one girl. She and her family moved to Michigan last year. Although she survived her first winter, Sandra says she is still afraid of the cold!

With the addition of a new staff member and the beginning of training next week, we’re excited to see AWC continue to thrive. We have 12 new mentors signed up to attend training, and can’t wait to have them start working with our clients! So many of our volunteers express how much they learn and grow during their time at AWC. We are sure working at AWC will be just as rewarding for our new volunteers and Sandra, too.

There’s still time to join our training! If you are interested, click here to send us an email or call Kalie at (616) 742-0242.