Education: Masters of Social Work - Columbia University, New York, NY

Jacquelyn Aamodt, LSCW, is the Director of Client Services at The Blue Bench. At The Blue Bench, Jacquie oversee client services, including individual and group therapy, the 24-hour sexual assault hotline, and case-management and advocacy services. Her philosophy in working with survivors of sexual assault is strengths-based, client-centered, trauma-informed and one that considers the whole person. She is inspired by the strength, resiliency and beauty of the human spirit and believes it is important to “trust the wisdom of the heart”. Jacquie came to The Blue Bench with over 15 years of experience in the Mental Health and Human Services field. Originally from NYC, Jacquie re-located to Denver in 2007, where she worked for 4 years as the Director of Residential Programs at Denver Children’s Home. It was through this experience that she had the opportunity to receive intensive training in the Neuro-Sequential Model of Therapeutics (NMT), and had the opportunity to learn and implement specific trauma-focused interventions based on brain development.

Recipe for Self-Care: When not at The Blue Bench, Jacquie enjoys outdoor activities, cooking and reading as well as spending time with friends and family.

Education: Mental health degree - McLennan College, Waco, TX

Herminia Martinez is the Bilingual Case Manager at The Blue Bench. She is responsible for working with The Blue Bench’s monolingual Spanish-speaking clients; coordinating each client with appropriate community services and resources. Herminia meets survivors of sexual assault at the hospital, police departments and court appointments to provide advocacy, emotional support, community resources, and to inform them of The Blue Bench’s services. She is also the primary contact for The Blue Bench’s 24-hour “Linea de Crisis” (Spanish-speaking) hotline. Herminia also conducts outreach to Spanish-speaking agencies and community members and organizations.

Recipe for Self-Care: When not at work, Herminia enjoys spending valuable time with her family, pets, traveling to Texas, and volunteering at her local church.

Education:
Bachelor of Social Work- Metropolitan State University of Denver, Denver CO
Masters of Social Work- University of Denver, Denver CO

Becca began her relationship with The Blue Bench five years ago working as a hotline volunteer and hospital advocate. Currently, she is a Case Manager, helping clients navigate the criminal justice system, access necessary community services and resources and accompanying them to the hospital, police departments and court appointments to provide advocacy and emotional support.

Previous experience includes case management and facilitation with The Bridge Project, where she served low-income families by providing after-school care for students K-12. In that role, she provided case management services for families, tutored students, and facilitated age-appropriate learning groups about respect, healthy relationships with others and our bodies, and social justice in communities.

Becca also worked as the Colorado Action Plan Team Lead and Community Engagement Advocate at The Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking. Her role was to engage communities in the anti-trafficking movement through training, education and community organizing. She was responsible for training community members and professionals all over the state of Colorado and organized the community to take part in the Colorado Action Plan- a roadmap with clear goals to end human trafficking in Colorado.

Recipe for Self-Care: Becca enjoys reading, hiking, yoga, working out, being with her husband and puppy, and hanging out with friends and family.

Education:
Masters in Counseling Psychology- University of Denver, CO
Bachelor of Science in Psychology - Colorado State University, CO

Carley is the North Office Therapist where she provides trauma-focused therapy for individuals and groups. A former intern at The Blue Bench, Carley rejoins the team with strong agency knowledge and particular skill in psychoeducation about sexual assault for secondary survivors.

Prior to working with The Blue Bench, she worked at Salvation Army Harbor Light where she provided individual and group addiction counseling for men in a relapse prevention program and case management to veterans regarding housing, budgeting and greater self determination. She also taught life skills and mindfulness classes and was instrumental in designing and implementing the curriculum. Carley has also worked as Clinical Intern at The Gender Identity Center of Colorado, providing services for individuals questioning or transitioning their gender identity and as a Crisis Line Volunteer at Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Nonviolence where she provided support and safety planning to individuals experiencing domestic violence. In this role, she also performed intake evaluations and screenings for individuals coming into the shelter.

Recipe for Self-Care:
Carley loves hiking, yoga, swimming, working out, playing with her Australian Shepherd, watching movies, camping, skiing, weekend trips around Colorado, and spending time with her friends and sister.

Education:
Currently pursuing a Master's Degree in Social Work - Colorado State University, CO
Bachelor of Science in Social Work - Metropolitan State University, CO

Casey is the Post-Conviction Victim Advocate serving Denver and the 2nd Judicial District. She provides representation and support for survivors of sexual assault as they navigate the probation system following their perpetrator’s sentencing in the criminal justice system.

Prior to working with The Blue Bench, Casey worked at Gateway Domestic Violence Services in roles spanning from emergency shelter advocate to legal advocate in Gateway’s Court Advocacy Program. In these variety of roles she assisted in educating and empowering survivors of intimate partner violence in many aspects ranging from seeking shelter, creating safety plans to understanding their rights within the courts.

Recipe for Self-Care:

Casey loves reading, hiking, spending time with friends but can also be found binge watching the newest Netflix shows in her downtime.

Education:
Masters in International Disaster Psychology- University of Denver, CO
Bachelor of Science in Psychology – Saint Joseph’s University, CO

Michelle is the Southeast Therapist where she provides trauma-focused therapy for individuals and groups. Michelle joins the team with a strong passion for providing services to sexual assault survivors and their loved ones. Michelle has a special knowledge about the impact of sexual assault in college settings and crisis intervention services.

Prior to working with The Blue Bench, Michelle worked at Aurora Mental Health Center providing individual and group services to those within the criminal justice system. Michelle’s interest in supporting sexual assault survivors began during her undergraduate education when she became a member of a sexual assault awareness and prevention program at Saint Joseph’s University. During this time, she provided psycho-educational presentations to a number of campus organizations. She also supported survivors through crisis intervention services via a 24/7 hotline and hospital accompaniments. Since then, she has strengthened her skills and knowledge in a number of different settings including interning at the Clery Center, SafeHouse Denver, Lutheran Family Services, and Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation. Michelle has also worked in residential settings providing trauma-informed care and crisis intervention to children who have experienced abuse and neglect.

Recipe for Self-Care:
During her free time, Michelle loves spending time outdoors, attending yoga classes, exploring different parts of Denver, and spending time with her friends.

Education: Masters in Gender and Women's Studies - University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC

Susie joined The Blue Bench team as the Director of Prevention and Education in 2014. She is responsible for expanding scientifically-supported approaches to prevention and education through community collaboration and effective communication strategies. She brings with her 13 years of experience in non-profit programming and workshop facilitation in the fields of sexual violence and mental health.

Prior to her current position, Susie served as the director of programs at the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) where she translated her passion for program development and evaluation into high impact public education and support resources for individuals and families affected. She has extensive experience as a campus sexual violence prevention workshop facilitator through the Sexual Assault Support Center in Vancouver, B.C. and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Recipe for Self-Care: When not working, Susie is off picking up new hobbies and enjoying the mountains with friends and family.

Education:
Bachelor of Arts in Sociology/Religious Studies - The College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA

Caroline is the Prevention Coordinator at The Blue Bench. In this role, she coordinates program logistics, working closely with schools and community groups to schedule The Blue Bench’s “Pathway to Prevention” programs and developing relationships with community partners. She also works in curriculum development and data collection, gathering data to assess program outcomes and areas for growth. She continues to facilitate Prevention workshops, with a particular penchant for the middle school curriculum.

Previously, Caroline was a Canvass Director for Grassroots Campaigns, Inc. in Philadelphia, PA and locally, working with a variety of national non-profits to raise funds and community awareness. She first began working at The Blue Bench in the canvass department and returned as a Prevention Specialist in October, 2014. Since then Caroline has taken on numerous roles within the organization including Prevention Specialist and Development Assistant.

Recipe for Self-Care:
Caroline enjoys singing with Safonia, a local women's choir and running.

Our Prevention Specialists are trained to facilitate numerous comprehensive, age-appropriate and scientifically supported prevention education programs in schools, businesses, bars and more.

Education:
Bachelor of Arts in Anthropologys - University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX

Sarah runs the Canvass Department for The Blue Bench where she manages a diverse staff who perform year round community outreach to ensure survivors have access to the crisis hotline and counselling programs. Her team engages public support for these programs through organizing financial contributions and recruiting volunteers.

Prior to joining The Blue Bench, Sarah did community organizing around environmental issues, including educating the public about water and air quality legislation. She has also been involved in extensive outreach and education around LGBTQ identities and experiences with the Peers for Pride Program. After five years of direct organizing and outreach Sarah is happy to be at The Blue Bench working to change the conversation around sexual violence one person at a time.

Recipe for Self-Care: Coming Soon

Our door-to-door canvassers are a team of passionate, full-time and highly trained community organizers who are committed to inspiring fellow community members to join us in our fight to end sexual assault.