"I feel privileged to be a part of Moving To End Sexual Assault [MESA] and able to offer my support, my ear, and my heart to callers of our 24-hour hotline," says Jessica Ladd-Webert, a volunteer with this organization since the spring of 2004. As Boulder County's only rape crisis center, MESA provides services to sexual assault survivors and runs prevention education programs.

Melody Wollgren of MESA raves, "Jessica has devoted her time, energy, and passion towards assisting sexual assault survivors… [and] has handled this incredible task with compassion and enthusiasm."

Having held many positions with MESA, Jessica now works in Contract Therapy, giving individual sessions and running a support group. As a supervisor with a weeklong shift every other month, she volunteers "about 60 hours" per month. Jessica also holds a full time job as a victim assistance advocate, and credits her work with MESA as "what led me to want to get my Master's in counseling and be able to help victims with the trauma." In addition, she has been volunteering with the Boulder County Sheriff's office as an outreach advocate for five and a half years.

Through her volunteer work, Jessica has come to understand "how prevalent an issue [sexual assault] is in our community and world," and has developed the skills for "being able to listen and support sexual assault survivors." She has also learned about "working on a big team" of seven professional staff and 40 volunteers at MESA.

A particularly memorable moment of her volunteer work with MESA, says Jessica, "was the first time I ever went to the hospital to support a survivor; I got to hold her hand during the rape kit… I felt honored to be with her and support her during such a tough experience."

What Jessica enjoys most about volunteering is "working with the other committed volunteers and the new volunteers - I see it as another way to get people involved in an issue that is so prevalent… I enjoy knowing that 24-7 a survivor or a friend or family member can get support - there is always someone available to talk to."

For information about volunteering with Moving to End Sexual Assault or other agencies, call the Volunteer Connection at 303-444-4904.