“I love telling the story of what brought me to Voce—not just once, but twice! I always had an interest in law but didn’t become a paralegal until later in life. After my kids were grown, I went back to school at Penn College in Williamsport. Initially, I took courses to work in the medical field.
The medical program was not speaking to me. One day I was walking across campus and saw something about the college’s paralegal program. I was completely surprised, and the next thing I knew, I was talking with the professor in charge. He said, ‘You can start tomorrow!’ So, I did.
At that time, the school had paralegals from different specialties come in to share their job experiences with the class. That’s when I met a ‘lovely woman’ who also had attended Penn College. She shared she worked as a paralegal in child welfare, which I had never considered possible. I have an undergraduate degree in psychology and had worked as a caseworker, so to me this was two perfect worlds colliding.
I put the experience out of my mind, but after I had earned my paralegal degree, I came across Voce’s child welfare paralegal job posting. ‘How can this amazing job exist,’ I wondered. I quickly applied and during my in-person interview, to my surprise, there was the ‘lovely woman’ again! I was then hired, and that lovely woman became my supervisor.
I was the sole paralegal in Clinton County’s Children and Youth office, working there through Covid. I’ve never worked harder or loved my job more. After several years, I moved and that made my work commute tough to handle. I made the difficult decision to leave. I worked elsewhere for two years but really missed working with children in need. Amazingly, as I was turning in my resignation, the ‘lovely woman’ contacted me to let me know a paralegal position was opening closer to my home in Centre County. Short story: I came back to the job I love!
My work is necessary, meaningful and often misunderstood. People don’t realize that abuse takes place everywhere and can affect anyone. And children often don’t have a voice or a choice in their situation. Achieving protection and permanency for them is everything.”
- Liza, Paralegal
We Are Voce is a series featuring the unique voices of Voce staff, highlighting the experiences, perspectives, and passions of the people who make a difference every day. This series celebrates the people and stories that bring our mission to life.
