We recently connected with Marissa Espinoza and have shared our conversation below.
Marissa, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
I had the opportunity to complete a summer of service while in college at the University of LaVerne. I was assigned to Camp Mariastella in Wrightwood as a Camp Counselor to work with young girls, ages 10-12 year olds that summer. And while I enjoyed working with the 10-12 year olds, on my days off, I found myself drawn to supporting the Counselors working with the teens. The teens that many of my colleagues found to be difficult with whom to work were the ones who intrigued me and to whom I felt connected. Fast forward a few years later when I graduated college and started seeking employment as a new college graduate. I received an interview with Aviva Center for a Resident Counselor. This agency was a residential treatment facility for young girls labeled “severely emotionally disturbed”. After learning more about the agency, I went home and cancelled all other interviews, even though I had not even received a job offer at Aviva. I knew in that interview that my life’s purpose was to work with those who have been “thrown away”, who were marginalized or otherwise disenfranchised. And for the last 30 years, that is what I have done. I cannot imagine doing anything else!
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Becoming the Executive Director of Alexandria House in July 2022 truly felt like all my previous professional experiences working with children and families, supporting transitional aged youth experiencing homelessness and human trafficking, providing comprehensive behavioral, emotional and mental health support to those youth deemed to have the most complex and intensive needs in Ventura County and developing programs and partnerships to support their needs all came together at Alexandria House. I felt like I came home to where I was meant to be.
What makes Alexandria House so special for me is that it truly embodies love and community. For the past 28 years, Founder, Judy Vaughan and our incredible staff, have built a community centered around the self-identified needs of women and women with children. Alexandria House has developed program after program based on feedback from the folks we serve. From childcare to afterschool programming, therapy to food distribution, affordable housing to entrepreneurship and job development programs, each component is intentionally crafted to support women and families overcome the trauma they have encountered, tap into their strength and resiliency, help them identify their road to success, and shore up the resources that will help them achieve housing and financial stability.
Oh, and an added bonus is seeing the babies and children having the opportunity to just be kids following some of the most difficult moments in their lives!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
They say follow your passion and you will never work a day in your life. Folks often ask me how I do what I do. Doesn’t it make me sad or hopeless? How do I not become jaded? Early in my career, I was humbled by learning that no matter how much potential you see in someone and how much you want for them, it has to be their choice and we need to honor self-sufficiency. The folks we serve do not need a savior or hero. They need someone who sees their worth and resilience, taps into their strengths and reminds them that they are worthy of a different life not determined by what has happened to them in the past. I learned the importance of relying on the team – no one person does it all and no one person carries all the responsibility. I also learned the value of persistence or unconditional regard. People who are in pain usually show their pain in the most unlovable way. And when that happens and you stay by their side, they begin to trust that maybe you are not like all the people that have abandoned them. Then the work can begin.
The biggest learning curve as a first time Executive Director has been all the administrative work that is required to keep operations functioning. In the last two years I have learned about renovating an apartment building and project managing that renovation, acquisition as we purchased the two houses we have called home. I have learned more about quickbooks and accounting than I ever wanted to and how to “friendraise” to eventually successfully fundraise. It has been a wild ride!
To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?
My parents are my heroes. Two immigrants from Mexico, who never had an opportunity to obtain an education past primary school, they met in my hometown of Pacoima, working at a restaurant. Together, they built a life, raised my three brothers and I and provided us with the best example of integrity, having a good work ethic, and social responsibility. Even though they could not help us with homework, they pushed us to do our best in school and to be productive members of our community. They role modeled social responsibility by creating a neighborhood watch group in the height of the crack epidemic to keep our neighborhood safe, graduating from the LAPD Community Policing Academy, and building coalitions with other neighborhood watch groups to ensure the police patrolled our neighborhoods so the kids in the neighborhood could be safe. My mom partnered with food banks and brought food to our neighborhood for our food insecure neighbors for almost two decades!
Today, at 80 years old, my parents still hold tightly to their independence and their work ethic. They are phenomenal human beings and I am so proud to call them my parents.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.alexandriahouse.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marissaesp/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissaesp/
Image Credits
Photo credit for #3 and #4 to Yvette Jones
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
