Her Story
About Kaila
I am a victim advocate with OneFire at Cherokee Nation, where I work with people who have been through domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, harassment, and human trafficking. When people call us, I go over their situation with them and discuss what options are available. I help with protective orders and accompany clients to court. I also assist them in finding shelter or new housing, and help get them on their feet with rental assistance, groceries, and sometimes even clothing, because they often have to leave everything behind. Before this role, I was a Cherokee language teacher after graduating from the Cherokee Language Masters Apprentice Program, where I was immersed for 40 hours a week learning Cherokee language for 2 years. From 2012 to 2019, I was in a domestic violence relationship for about 7 years, and I am also a recovering addict, 6 years clean and free as of October 15th, 2019. I wanted to be a therapist, so I talked to Cherokee Nation's human resources recruiting and told them my goals. They put me in touch with OneFire, and with me having gone through it and also being in school to further my education, they felt this would be a good match. Within the first month, I was able to take on my first client after training. I love being able to help people get out of situations that I have been in, but I didn't have anyone to get me out. It's a very rewarding job, but it's also a heavy load. I just got my Associate's degree in Psychology on May 12th of this year, and I'm currently enrolled for the fall to start my Bachelor's. Then I will be off to get my Master's, because I am going to be a licensed therapist.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Kaila
01What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say that you have to come in with a sense of compassion, and you're not just listening to survivors tell their story, you're trying to hear them as well. It's not just about how much education you have in this field, it's a lot of what they would say is customer service, but you have to learn not to victim blame, which happens a lot. Learning how to navigate that would be where I would start if you have no experience in domestic violence or sexual assault. But this job itself is more than just a paycheck. It's learning yourself through helping them. You learn more about who you are, and you grow mentally while helping these people get back on their feet, or get their kids back, or a lot of life-altering things that go on. But it's, all in all, 100% worth doing.
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