Social Impact Heroes: Why & How Aledia Murcia of Safe Harbor Counseling Institute Is Helping To Change Our World
In my opinion, leadership means sharing a common vision with your team and working alongside them to achieve this mission. I like how our director is passionate about our work and how she instills this passion in our hearts. When we organize events, the board of directors delegates responsibilities to all the volunteers in our organization. I enjoy seeing how each person contributes from their own personal and professional expertise to ensure our events are a success.
As part of my series about “individuals and organizations making an important social impact”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Aledia Murcia for Safe Harbor Counseling Institute.
Safe Harbor Counseling Institute has a simple mission: to provide mental health resources to anyone struggling, particularly the under-resourced Hispanic Community. Offering services in Spanish and English, Safe Harbor is passionate about offering services to the most vulnerable in the community. Providing everything from emotional wellness workshops to parenting education, Safe Harbor is a nonprofit who relies on funding to make our vision happen.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
I became a social worker because I grew up in a very dysfunctional family. I developed anxiety and depression as a teenager, and due to the lack of education about mental health in my community, I never received help. It was not until I became an adult that I started working through my trauma and mental health issues. Then, I decided I wanted to help others who have gone through the same thing I went through.
Can you share the most exciting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
I have worked alongside our Director, Rocio Reyes, for many years. Safe Harbor has been able to help hundreds of people. One of the most exciting things I have seen through the years is how we get more and more volunteers willing to support our activities. Our volunteers donate their time, talent, and treasure to help children and families needing mental health services.
Can you describe how you or your organization is making a significant social impact?
For example, Safe Harbor wants to provide accessible mental health services to families who do not have medical insurance due to their legal status or cannot afford medical insurance and co-payments. In addition, Safe Harbor seeks to educate our Hispanic community, making them more aware of the importance of taking care of our mental health. As a result, we have been able to help hundreds of individuals in crisis, and we continue to share a message of hope and healing in the language and culture of our people.
Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?
Unfortunately, I cannot disclose details about our work with a specific client due to confidentiality regulations; however, as a therapist, I have helped families get back together after all the communication bridges have been burned. I have seen individuals reach sobriety after many years of dealing with substance abuse. I have seen children being able to have a healthy life after dealing with the aftermath of abuse and neglect.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
We need more funding for our programs. As a non-profit organization, we struggle with the financial resources to provide our services. We need more support from the governmental agencies and private sector to continue serving families on a broad scale. We ask that any parties interested in funding our mission contact us at: contact@safeharborcci.org.
How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?
In my opinion, leadership means sharing a common vision with your team and working alongside them to achieve this mission. I like how our director is passionate about our work and how she instills this passion in our hearts. When we organize events, the board of directors delegates responsibilities to all the volunteers in our organization. I enjoy seeing how each person contributes from their own personal and professional expertise to ensure our events are a success.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.
How to get funding. Applying for grants has always been a challenge.
All the work that requires to start a new non-profit. We have been working for years on getting our organization up and running, and it takes a lot of discipline, time, and effort from everyone who shares the common vision.
The big bumps on the road- Rocio and Victor had this vision many years ago. They shared their vision with a group of friends and colleagues, and we decided to start Safe Harbor. In 2020 after we lost our dear leader and friend Victor to Covid; it was hard for us to understand the why behind this situation. He was such a great human being, and he was so invested in our mission. We learned that life is not easy, and we always will find big bumps on the way. We continue moving forward, providing services to honor Victor and to help others find peace, healing, and happiness, particularly in the Hispanic Community.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I think we have started the movement already: finding peace through healing, taking care of our mental health. We will continue sharing this message of hope and transformation with other people. No matter what you have gone through or are going through, there is always a path toward healing, forgiveness, reconciliation, love, and happiness.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22;39). I resonate with this bible verse because it is the foundation of the work we do in Safe Harbor. We want to love others by providing them with the tools they need to achieve self-actualization. Most of the time, we do not know who they are, but we know they need help, which is our motivation to continue working hard in our mission.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
I would love to have breakfast or lunch with Oprah. Through her example, she’s demonstrated to the world that healing is possible. Her influence and power is palpable, and I’m pretty sure she would support our cause!
How can our readers further follow your work online?
They can connect with us at our Website:Safeharborcci.org or contact us at contact@safeharborcci.org for donation information.
This was great, thank you so much for sharing your story and doing this with us. We wish you continued success!
Social Impact Heroes: Why & How Aledia Murcia of Safe Harbor Counseling Institute Is Helping To… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.