Awake Welcomes Four New Members to Our Survivor Advisory Panel
Awake first established its Survivor Advisory Panel back in 2020, as part of our efforts to center the voices of people who have experienced abuse in the Catholic Church. Members begin their service with a one year term from October to the following September, with many choosing to remain on the panel beyond that initial term. This diverse group is invested in Awake’s work and offers honest feedback about the organization’s ideas, programs, and goals.
This week we extend our gratitude to Jennifer LaVoy and John Heffernan, who have completed their service on the Survivor Advisory Panel, as well as Lisa Cusmano and Lucy Huh, who now serve on Awake’s Board of Directors.
We’re also honored to introduce Awake’s four newest members, who will join returning panelists Amy Pearce, Deborah Rodriguez, Deborah Schiessl, Gino Wolfe, Maria Silvers, Mike Hoffman, Vince Pérez, and Wendy Mitch. Several of these new panelists are publicly identifying themselves as abuse survivors for the very first time today; we thank them for their courage, and we invite you to pray for them as they take this brave step.
Thank you to all past and current members for sharing your time and wisdom with our community!
April Smith
An educator by profession, I've stepped away from the classroom to tend to my own healing. I enjoy performing in the theater and taking ballroom dancing classes. I also love spending time in nature. One of the things I treasure most about Awake is that they've not only permitted me but also encouraged me to take up space and access the resources I need. They've given me a firm foundation of compassion, understanding, and community upon which to stand while helping me balance nurturing a Mary heart in a Martha world. My hope is to help other survivors feel welcomed and loved, to be seen, heard and validated, and to take up the space they need and deserve on their healing journeys. I'm humbled to be a part of this community.
Jennifer-Marie Burchell
I am a practicing Catholic widow who lives in La Crosse, Wisconsin. I work as a parish secretary, but my passion lies in my work as an ecclesiastical seamstress, creating vestments for priests. I am a survivor of 4 years of ritual abuse by a priest involving the sacraments when I was aged 12 - 16 years. I left the Church for more than 35 years and reverted 3 years ago after spending time working toward healing the deep wounds and fear of the Catholic Church and its clergy that my abuse left me with. Through Awake I have realized that I am not alone - particularly as a female survivor who has frequently had my story ignored or dismissed. I look forward to being a part of the mission of Awake as an Advisory Panel member.
Timothy Quigley
I am from Lancaster, PA, and was raised in a conservative Catholic homeschooling family, the oldest of ten children. I felt called to the priesthood at age nine, which led to sexual abuse within parish life and later in the Legion of Christ. I left seminary and married quickly; it fell apart after eight years when I had a mental breakdown. Years later, I went to therapy to try to understand what happened, and I finally faced the betrayal of my fathers. Awake was a lifeline when other Catholic spaces were cold and distant. Moved by the Gospel, I seek to serve my Father, especially in the poor, by sharing the gifts I have received in my own poverty.
Megan Wickard
I come to Awake from Pennsylvania, where I'm often found seeking beauty and the goodness of God - in nature, my work in healthcare, my family, and especially in the lives of the people I've met through Awake. Within Awake, I've experienced the hope that comes when isolation is broken and survivors experience community. Additionally, I've had the great gift to travel on pilgrimage around the world in the years since the abuse, and I bring to Awake what I carried to those sites - lament and prayer within the heart of the Church, compassion, love, and a hope that I am still able to recognize light and goodness. I have found that goodness and hope repeatedly through Awake's circles and retreats, and I am grateful to be involved in a new way.
Awake is a community that strives to be compassionate, survivor-centered, faithful, welcoming, humble, courageous, and hopeful. We thank you for choosing your words with care when commenting, and we reserve the right to remove comments that are inappropriate or hurtful.
