My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens fighting for sobriety, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year on Mother’s Day. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

My name is Jessica Vaughn and my life has not turned out at all like I planned. Twenty-one years ago, I took a job working with foster children in emergency situations. It was supposed to be a temporary position for up to six months. I was a first-time mom and had no intention of working with children long-term. I had already spent the summers of my teen years working at summer camps for low-income youth, been a live-in nanny, and worked as a head teacher at a local preschool. I was absolutely sure this would be a stepping stone towards a different vocation. After two months, I was asked to stay on permanently. By then, I had already seen that the need was great and that there weren’t enough people doing something about it. Two months turned into much longer. After eighteen and a half years working with two- to twelve-year-olds at Sally’s House, I was offered the position of Program Manager at its sister program for teenagers. I was apprehensive but had just become the first woman in my family history to buy a home in her own name, and decided to embrace the new adventure. I went from someone who was nervous to work with teenagers to someone who would happily do TED Talks about how awesome teenagers are, very quickly. It was here, in this space, that I finished my undergraduate studies and became the second person and first woman in my family history to hold a bachelor’s degree. I learned so much about our community and the need for mental health services by serving this population. It has been such an honor to get to be even a small part of creating safety for the marginalized. It was there, over the last twenty-one years, that I decided to become a therapist. The need is vast, and our community has so many vulnerable children and adolescents who are being put on waitlists for up to two years before they can begin to process their stories. While I have spent the past two decades advocating, completing assessments, sending mental health referrals, facilitating appointments, finding local support systems, and sitting with hurting children and teens, I want to do more. I am so excited to bring the knowledge and experience that I have gained from social services into the field of counseling. I am ecstatic that I get to be a part of the trauma-focused child and family services provided within Spokane. I’ve also begun writing children’s books with topics of mental health so that we can normalize processes of healing. Words are so important and children are always listening. I plan to finish the series and make them available to everyone. I direct a local storytelling event each year. I witness firsthand each year how women are empowered by sharing their stories, and how audience members find relief, tears, and laughter by commiserating with the speakers. I will take these things with me into my practice. I plan to combine Social Work, Play Therapy, Art Therapy, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and Frankl’s theories about purpose and meaning, to help the clients I serve. I will continue to provide mentorship, inclusion, and advocacy on campus and in our community. Life doesn’t usually turn out how we plan. I have found it to be far more challenging, rewarding, and beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Being awarded this scholarship would allow me to focus on my graduate studies, volunteer work, and my family, with less financial pressure and would mean the world to me.

Have you ever felt like everything you knew crumbled around you and you were left holding the pieces? In many ways, my life has felt like walking into the china shop thirty seconds after the bull, and being responsible to pick up the broken parts and put them together again. At 40 years old, I found myself returning to college out of necessity. I was going through a difficult divorce, working full-time, and doing my best to protect my five children and myself from our abuser. I didn't know my self worth, and I didn't know if I deserved an education, but I knew my children were watching. I knew that I needed to find a way to pay our mortgage, and I knew that I wanted to help my community. I had already been working with foster children in emergent situations and knew there was a lot of need without enough solutions. So I took the first step. It was shaky and humbling, I thought my knees would give out from the pressure- but they held me. Now three and a half years later, I am still continuing my education. While I grieve the moments I have missed with my family while doing homework, I am so proud of my accomplishments. Working full-time with foster children, going to school full-time for trauma-informed psychology, and being a single mom who was awarded full custody and protection orders- this is what healing looks like. It looks like rising above what other people have done, and coming into my own. It looks like second chances and completing things on a different timeline than society says we should. It looks like learning in and out of the classroom that I have worth. My arms have healed, my children are thriving, and we have a peaceful home. Two years from now, I will be a licensed therapist. Helping to bridge the gap for those who have been stripped of their voice. I will work tirelessly for the marginalized of our community, as I have been for almost twenty years. They are worth continuing forward, and so am I. This scholarship would help me to stay in school, achieve my dreams, and show myself and my children that women can do hard things. That we can be tougher than the hands we are dealt. And that it is possible to change your life. Leaving an abusive marriage took a lot of courage. In many ways that time served as an intermission between my life's Act One and Act Two. I won't be throwing away this chance for a better life. And I will continue working to bring as many people as I can into safety with me.