Sara Landaverde
Director of Survivor Advocacy & Outreach Programs, YWCA of Western Massachusetts: Age 31
Sara Landaverde has always had a passion for working with children.
“Growing up, I always wanted to work with kids who experienced trauma, who went through a hard time,” she said, adding that, while earning her undergraduate degree at American International College, a discussion with one of her professors left her convinced that social work would be the lane she would travel down.
“And I’ve been in that lane ever since,” said Landaverde, director of Survivor Advocacy & Outreach Programs for the YWCA of Western Massachusetts, where she started as a clinical intern while completing her master’s degree in social work at Boston College.
Early on, Landaverde displayed “something special that made her stand out,” said Elizabeth Dineen, the agency’s CEO, who nominated her for this award. “Sara distinguished herself because of her intelligence, empathy, and creativity. She had the drive and ability to figure out how to reach a child who had literally closed down due to profound trauma.”
After completing graduate school, Landaverde was hired as a child and family clinician. Four years later, she was named a director, and she now supervises more than 20 employees.
In this role, she oversees four programs — the domestic violence counseling program, the sexual assault counseling program, the 24/7 hotline, and the data program — and while doing so, she mentors younger employees and interns and conducts many different forms of outreach to inform the public, and potential partners, about the many programs and services provided by the YWCA. And while doing all that, she still manages a small case load herself.
Active in the community, she is a board member of Holyoke Children’s Museum and a member of the Elms College social work advisory board. She’s also a guest speaker at colleges and churches throughout Western Mass., educating others about sexual assault, domestic violence, and human trafficking. And when not working, volunteering, or public speaking, she’s a devoted dog mom who puts aside time to spend with family — her mother, five brothers, nieces, and nephews.
Although her work at the YWCA is challenging, Landaverde considers it rewarding on many different levels, especially the opportunity she and others have to change the course of survivors’ lives.
“My goal has always been to make some little change in someone’s life,” she explained, “so that they were able to change the paradigm and be able to change their family history with regard to any childhood event they may have gone through.”
—George O’Brien
