By Jamey Sheesley
Stephanie Soliz is on the outreach committee for Break the Silence Against Domestic Violence (BTSDV). Not only does she do her part with volunteering, but she is always checking up on her fellow volunteers to make sure they are mentally and physically okay. Her caring and strength show through all of her actions.
Aimee Powel, a BTSADV Facebook ambassador, says, “She always remembers everything and will always check in with you.” Aimee receives positive messages from Stephanie before and after anything major, like interviews.
“No matter how much Stephanie has going on in her life she will always make time to talk to you and support you,” said Aimee.
Stephanie first learned about BTSADV from a friend and found our pages on Facebook. She felt the need to be a part of this group, so she applied to volunteer. At that point in her life, Stephanie felt brave enough to share her story and felt like it was time to give back. Stephanie instantly fell in love with all of the other volunteers and the organization. “It’s been life-changing,” Stephanie said.
“While volunteering with this group, I have worked with some of the most incredible and strongest women on the planet,” said Stephanie.
She loves that she has been able to watch volunteers grow and become a voice to their community. BTSADV gave Stephanie courage and pushed her out of her comfort zone. This group gave her the passion to go out in the community and educate people about domestic violence.
When she’s not volunteering, Stephanie spends time with her family. She volunteered for BTSADV for well over a year when she made the hard decision to step back and take a break in order to focus on her family. She felt it was time to focus on being a better wife and a better mom since she found herself in a more positive place thanks to BTSADV.
After her break, she is back volunteering and still reaching out to the community to educate about domestic violence. She came back with a different title, which has a little bit less stress, to give her time to spend with her family. This gives her more opportunity to go out into the community and reach out to people. She is also working behind the scenes transcribing videos for BTSADV, which gives her the chance to hear other survivors’ stories. Her passion to help with these videos comes from her friends in the deaf community, who have stressed to her how important it is for people who are deaf or hearing impaired to have equal access to educational videos.
According to Samantha Ives, BTSADV ambassador coordinator, Stephanie helped her come back to volunteering after taking a step back.
“Stephanie is always very helpful, always checking on me, and always organizing BTSADV stuff,” said Samantha.
When Stephanie had to step back and be with her family, Samantha stepped up to the ambassador coordinator position. She feels she has big shoes to fill and hopes she is half as good as Stephanie was in the role.
KayLa Allen, the BTSADV marketing director, stated that Stephanie is a kind, supportive, empathetic, passionate, and helpful person always willing to help others in any way possible.
“She is the kind of person you want to have in your circle in any capacity, she is a gift, and we are thankful to have her in our little family,” said KayLa.
This group is super thankful for Stephanie. She is an amazing and caring person who is always there for everyone whether it has something to do with BTSADV or with their personal lives.
