Today we’d like to introduce you to Maisha Colter.
Hi Maisha, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I am a social worker and attorney by education. I received a master’s in social work from New York University and my Juris Doctorate from Rutgers University. I have been purposeful about pursuing work that allows me to draw on the strengths of my educational training in social and law. More importantly, I come from a family where my parents emphasized the importance of doing acts of service as far back as I can remember. Both my parents were in the military. My mother retired from the Army. We volunteered in our community initially through our churches. We were also part of an organization that emphasized service. For a brief time, my parents were foster parents. These foundations are the drivers for my interest in serving others and choosing a career path that made that simple to achieve daily.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No, it has not been a smooth road. It is a road paved with sacrifice and challenge. Sacrifice because there are probably more lucrative financial opportunities I can pursue and have passed up. It is challenging because the nature of this work is, at times, stressful. I feel the burdens of the clients we serve. I recognize vicarious trauma is real and have heard many horrifying experiences my clients have lived through. Over the years, I have learned to build appropriate boundaries and incorporate a self-care regime that keeps me capable of doing the work.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
AVDA is a non-profit, serving the greater Houston community for forty-three years. The mission of AVDA is to end family violence by advocating for the safety and self-determination of victims, promoting accountability for abusers, and fostering a community response to abuse. AVDA is dedicated to providing multilingual, transformational, life-saving services to survivors of abuse and their families. We advocate for survivors literally by providing them with free legal representation in all aspects of family law. We provide representation to obtain protective orders, divorces, custody, child support, and adoptions when a fatality occurs due to domestic violence. We hold abusers accountable by providing the state’s largest Battering Intervention and Prevention Program (hereinafter BIPP). BIPP is psychoeducation through support groups facilitated by mental health professionals. Our community response is facilitated through our Community Awareness and Prevention Program. They educate adults and youth alike about how domestic violence affects us all. They train first responders and provide evidence-based curriculums to young people in school districts all over the greater Houston area.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
The best mentors are the people you see doing the thing you think you want to do. Make sure they are people that are striving and loving what they do, even if it is tough at times for them. Make sure they are interested in helping you along your path and will give you their time and attention when needed.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.avda.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avda_tx/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/houstonavda
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AVDAHouston002
Image Credits
Roe + Poe Photography
Daniel Ortiz
