Case Manager Spotlight

Kim earned a Bachelor's Degree from East Carolina University in Psychology with a Minor in Business. Her first career was working as a Retail Buyer for an Eastern North Carolina Department Store. Just as the family who owned the stores announced they were selling their stores, Kim was waiting to hear if she had been accepted to Graduate School. She had applied to ECU Department of Rehabilitation Studies to pursue her Master's Degree in Rehabilita- tion Counseling, Clinical Counseling and Substance Abuse Counseling. Over the past 7 years Kim has worked in private and public rehabilitation and a brief stint at a community rehabilitation program. She has also worked for the NC Division of Voca- tional Rehabilitation managing several caseloads including corrections, school, and developmental disabilities/mental health/substance abuse. She found each of these caseloads challenging and rewarding.

Kim is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor. She feels her wide array of experience has developed her skills in job development and job placement. She is also very involved with the National Rehabili- tation Counseling Association, currently serving her second year as membership co-chair. She has also served 2 terms as President of the North Carolina Chapter and 2 terms as the treasurer. Kim was awarded the Distinguished Service Award from the North Carolina Rehabilitation Counseling Associa- tion and from the National Rehabilitation Counseling Association in 2007.

Personally, Kim has been married for 12 years. She feels very fortunate to be married to her best friend, who also happens to be the best husband in the world. While she does not have any children of her own, she has 3 rescued dogs which she describes as “spoiled rotten”. Kim is the youngest of 5 chil- dren, including 3 sisters, a brother and 12 nieces and nephews. Having grown up in New Bern, she loves anything to do with water. This includes boat- ing, laying on the beach and boogie boarding. She also enjoys hiking, camping, reading, dogs and horses, and traveling. Something else near and dear to Kim's heart is cancer research and caring for cancer patients. Her mother lost a lifelong battle to breast cancer 11 years ago and her father died this past year with lung cancer.

Kim is thankful everyday for her health, family, friends, and to be a part of the CCM family.