Volunteer Spotlight: Marquez Gaskin

April is National Volunteer Appreciation Month and is in full-swing! We will be using the blog to highlight some of our most committed volunteers. This month, and every month, we want to say THANK YOU to everyone who supports PADV with gifts of time and energy!

Marquez Gaskin has been working with PADV since November of 2010. He came on board as an intern for our volunteer program but supports many departments in his work with us. Marquez is passionate about two things: social advocacy and fashion. When interviewed for the position, he was asked what he felt the correlation is between fashion and serving survivors of intimate partner violence. Without skipping a beat, Marquez said, “Fashion is all about empowerment and PADV’s mission is to empower survivors. It doesn’t matter who you are, or what you’ve been through, you deserve to feel good!”

Marquez brings passion to all that he does. He has assisted in the execution of every PADV training and special event since he started, giving up many hours above and beyond his agreed-upon schedule. Marquez also spends many hours on the phone interviewing potential volunteers. At our March training session, many of the volunteers he first spoke with came up to him and acknowledged the warmth he exuded in his phone interviews. Marquez is often the first point of contact for our newest volunteers and he works hard to make sure they are comfortable and excited about working with PADV.

When asked what the highlight of his experience at PADV has been, Marquez said, “The support I have felt from the staff in my personal and professional growth means so much to me. I also see that the work PADV is doing is really helping the community.”

Marquez also shared that the best thing about being a part of PADV is that the agency “is really all about its mission. It is not just words on a piece of paper but an agency that really impacts people.”

- Susan L.

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