Marja
Marja (she/her) was born in South Korea and was adopted to the United States as a young baby. Throughout her upbringing growing up in a predominantly white community as a BIPOC and as a Deaf person, she has developed a vast cultural understanding of intersectionality barriers as a BIPOC and a Deaf person.
With the lived experience and deep understanding of her intersectionality, she moved to New York and Colorado to advance her education and career in the social services field. With 18 years of experience working in various roles working on multiple projects, working with external and internal teams and maintaining an extensive community network Statewide and Nationally, she is excited to bring her experience and knowledge to her role as the Community Empowerment Advocate to build and sustain community relationships with DOVE and survivors.
Outside of work, you will find Marja cooking or baking, taking her dog out on a walk, going on an adventure somewhere new or traveling the world.
Karina
Karina (she/her) was born and raised in New Mexico. With a vibrant personality and being a survivor of domestic violence, Karina has passion to stand beside others. Karina believes in sharing existing knowledge while indulging in new growth and information from people surrounding her. As the Program Director at DOVE, Karina’s goals are to build and sustain collaborations with community agencies, and to learn, engage, and advocate for all DDBDDHH individuals.
Karina accomplished her Bachelors and Masters in Social Work at Gallaudet University. With 8+ years of experience in the mental health and social services field, more recently, as a mental health therapist and advocate, Karina continues to find herself advocating for her community. This includes working with a variety of age groups, and children and families. She also has dedicated experience within recruitment, outreach, and marketing.
Outside of work, you will find Karina at the gym hitting the weights. She also loves exploring new coffee shops, getting tattooed, and listening to R&B music. Karina surely loves spending quality time with her two dogs and her partner, going hiking, camping, and exploring the world.
Sabrina
Sabrina (she/they), with 15 years of experience working within the Social Services field as a case manager, advocate, and forensic social worker, one of the most valuable things she has carried with her is the ability to be mindful of variations in perspectives. Being able to respect various perspectives allows Sabrina as an advocate to wholeheartedly provide support that takes into account other service providers’ perspectives along with the perspectives of DDBDDHH individuals.
After graduating with a Masters degree in Social Work from the University of Denver, obtaining her Animal-Assisted Therapy Certification, and completing certification training to certify her Deaf dog as a Therapy canine, becoming involved with DOVE as the Program Director only felt natural for Sabrina. She feels blessed to be a part of an organization that has an amazing mission and vision, and is very fortunate to work with a great team. 4.5 years later, as the Executive Director, it is Sabrina’s responsibility to ensure the successful delivery of all DOVE programs and activities as well as grant compliance.
On the days Sabrina is not working, you can find her out on the open road as she loves taking road-trips and exploring untouched parts of the country. Otherwise, Sabrina is often gardening, crafting, or on hikes with her furry ones.
