THE September ADVOCATE OF THE MONTH IS:
darkess miller
Meet Darkess Miller—our September Advocate of the Month. A Zumba teacher and first-time grandma, she shares a radiant smile with each person she meets and possesses a joy that is contagious.
Darkess became an advocate in February 2024 and is assigned to her first case. The case has been open for three years and recently lost the original advocate due to an out of state job transfer. Though the children were closely bonded with the previous volunteer, Darkess quickly won them over and has begun to forge her own trusting relationship with them.
Darkess worked closely with the prior volunteer to create a smooth transition, and to learn as much as possible about the children and the facts of the case. Preparation leads to success, because when the case was completely turned over to her, she was able to immediately begin advocating for the children in very important ways.
One of the children has significant behavioral and mental health needs and Darkess has done a wonderful job ensuring that she is receiving appropriate care. She has not shied away from hard conversations with caregivers, which has resulted in positive outcomes for this child.
The other child in the case has also already benefitted from Darkess’s advocacy. She has asked probing questions regarding his placement, education, and family connections. In the short time that she has been his advocate, Darkess has learned what some of his favorite toys are and was able to take him a special gift for his birthday that he really wanted!
Both children are reaping the benefits of having Darkess as their new advocate. In recent documentation that Darkess has logged in the case file, it is apparent that she is communicating honestly, yet appropriately, with the children. She recounts one of their conversations this way: “We talked about our relationship and agreed we would always be honest with each other. She [the child] seemed to be happy to have someone to talk with.”
In a case that has been open longer than average, Darkess is doing what she can to reignite some momentum and move the case towards permanency. This will be achieved by many small steps that cumulatively add up to a large result. In the meantime, Darkess is a safe, stable, caring adult who will no doubt make a profound difference in their lives.