Outstanding Child Welfare Worker Award Nominees Announced
In our continuing celebration of National Social Worker Month, we are excited to announce the nominees for the inaugural Sarah Duncan Champion for Children and Families Award!
For those who submitted a nomination, thank you so much for taking the time to recognize one of your valued colleagues. For those who didn’t get a chance: Don’t worry! We are already taking submissions for next year’s award.
And the nominees are…
Brittlyn Foster, El Dorado County: Brittlyn was nominated by several colleagues in recognition of her tireless work both in the Ongoing and ER units of the South Lake Tahoe Child Welfare office in El Dorado County. “One of Brittlyn’s greatest strengths is digging into the real issues at hand,” noted one of her nominating colleagues, “even if it doubles or triples her work, [or requires] having very challenging and vulnerable conversations with clients, support networks and community partners.”
Shirley Fulks, Mendocino County: Shirley is described by one of her nominating colleagues as a “magician,” particularly when providing extensive needs and services to some of Mendocino County’s most vulnerable children and families. She has been described as a perfect liaison for all of the essential treatment programs and a calming presence in those rare moments when she is in the office rather than out in the field serving her clients.
Jean Hobbs, Yuba County: Jean Hobbs is praised by her nominating colleague as someone who is constantly looking for opportunities within and outside the department to grow as a champion for children and families. She has demonstrated that she can handle more than one difficult case at a time, can be counted on to provide exceptional, detailed reports, and can affect positive change at the System level with the children- and families-first mentality.
Jorden Lancaster, Mendocino County: One of the colleagues who nominated Jorden praised her incredible communication and organizational skills, as well as her ability to form positive relationships with the children and families she serves. She has been frequently recognized for handling incredibly challenging cases, all while also putting in extensive hours as a student and intern in pursuit of her M.S.W.
Melissa Morin, Mendocino County: During the past year, Melissa has engaged as a facilitator and more in Mendocino County’s Wraparound Program. Her nominating colleague noted that her calm and caring demeanor, and her ability to listen with the goal of understanding, helps to diffuse even the most challenging situations, making her an invaluable asset to her team and the children and families they serve.
Patricia Vaccaro, Sacramento County: Currently working as a courtesy worker (which means she is called upon to manage cases when the assigned social worker cannot due to a variety of reasons), Patricia sometimes takes on whole caseloads for another worker while they are out, often being called upon to conduct investigations and write reports with little advanced notice. She frequently works after hours and on weekends to ensure that timelines are met, the information is complete, and that children are safe. Despite the difficulty of such a position, her colleagues noted that her work is incredibly thorough and accurate, and that her engagement with families is impressive, particularly because she is often working with families she’d only recently met.
Some highly honorable mentions!
We received some additional nominations for human services professionals who are not currently line workers, or do not currently serve the Northern California training region. While these individuals were not eligible for this particular award, it didn’t feel right not mentioning them at all! Please join us in thanking the following outstanding human services professionals for their ongoing contributions to California’s children, adults and families, and keep an eye on our Facebook and LinkedIn pages to learn a bit more about these outstanding individuals.
- Cristal Amigon, Kings County
- Edward T. Lewis, Sacramento Housing & Redevelopment Agency
- Veronica Carillo, Sacramento County
- Nichole Williamson, Alpine County
And the Winner is..
…going to be announced soon! Stay tuned to our social media pages and/or our News Blog, where we’ll announce and feature the 2022 Sarah Duncan Champion for Children and Families Award winner.
About Sarah Duncan
To learn more about the Sarah Duncan Champion for Children and Families Award and the outstanding social worker it is named after, please visit this page.