Employee Spotlight – Kathy Hammonds

Lutheran Community Services Northwest (LCSNW) is a local non-profit with multiple locations around the Pacific Northwest; they offer various services at each site. For example, in Spokane, they provide a 24-hour sexual assault support line and a crime victim support line; they also provide services to anyone who self-identifies as a survivor with a goal to help crime victims and loved ones regain their personal power. In addition to Crime Victim Services, LCSNW provides Behavioral Health, Family and Community Support, Refugee and Immigrant Services, Child Welfare, and Aging and Independent Living Services.

LCSNW is where Career Path Services employee Kathy Hammonds volunteers her time as a Crisis Response Advocate. She helps staff the sexual assault crisis line at night and on weekends. Kathy also accompanies victims of sexual assault and other crimes during exams at Spokane area hospitals. In addition, she provides crisis intervention, support, referrals, and information to survivors, their families, and loved ones. It was their mission, “Making our world a safer, healthier and more hopeful place to live,” and the tremendous need for advocates in the Spokane community that drew Kathy to volunteer her time. Kathy said, “Providing crime victims support in the early impact stage is a crucial component of recovery. The Sexual Assault and Family Trauma Advocacy Program at LCSNW supports over 2000 crime victims a year, meeting them in hospitals, police stations, and their own homes to provide immediate assistance after a trauma.”

Kathy has worked with Career Path Services for just over five years; she is the Spokane Resource Center’s Program Operator. Before working at Career Path Services, she worked at a partner agency organization; allowing her the opportunity to interact with the incredible staff, who demonstrated Career Path Services values in every interaction; making her want to work for the organization. She started with the Career Path Services as a Career Specialist working at the Next Generation Zone; in 2020, she applied for the Program Operator position at the SRC. Kathy says her favorite part of her job is serving customers, “I can honestly say that I enjoy every aspect of my job, and I hope to retire from Career Path Services!”

When Kathy isn’t working or volunteering at LCSNW, you can catch her spending time with her friends, family, and her pets. She also enjoys studying genealogy and visiting art shows as well as museums. One day she hopes to visit Italy and check that off her bucket list, but, for now, she will continue to dedicate herself to Career Path Services customers and support victims of crimes in Spokane. Thank you, Kathy, for all of your “heartwork!”

To learn more about Lutheran Community Services Northwest and their services, please visit their website https://lcsnw.org. If you or someone you know has been the victim of a crime, you can call Sexual Assault 24-hour Support Line: 509-624-7273 or the Crime Victim Support Line: 509-747-8224; Survivors of all other crimes may call this number during business hours and ask to speak with an advocate.