Our POETIC Family | Meet Our Heart And Soul

Maria Flores-Akinwunmi
Parent Advocate & Case Manager

Maria Flores-Akinwunmi is a bilingual mentor and advocate for youth and parents in crisis, connecting them to resources and collaborating with social services agencies, local government agencies, private entities and the faith community to serve their needs. Maria coordinates POETIC’s weekly Parent-led Support Group and provides case management support to POETIC parents. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and has served with social services agencies for more than 15 years as a crime victim’s liaison and family advocate for children, youth and adults. A proud graduate of Lubbock Christian University, she is a Texan at heart and is married with two inspiring daughters. She has a strong faith in God and believes that God has a purpose for everyone: “It’s not our past that defines us; it is where we are going that defines us!”

Contact

Amber Wersonske. LPC

Amber is a Licensed Professional Counselor on the POETIC team. She received her
bachelor’s degree in psychology from Baylor University and went on to earn her master’s
degree in counseling from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Amber has extensive
experience working within the juvenile justice system. After graduation, she had the
privilege of starting her career as a detention counselor at Bill Logue Juvenile Detention
Center. In addition to working for McLennan County, she served as the Partnership Sub-
Committee Chair for the Heart of Texas Human Trafficking Coalition and the Member-at-
Large for the Heart of Texas Counseling Association.

Most recently, Amber worked as the
psychotherapist for a non-profit neuro rehabilitation facility. Amber has experience
working with adolescent and adult populations that have experienced trauma such as
abuse, complex trauma, sexual exploitation, and traumatic brain injury.

Contact

If you are a match with one of the skills below and want to learn more about joining our volunteer team, we would love to hear from you!

● Food Assistant: Sign up to pick-up critical food donations and deliver to Thanksgiving Tower (a drop location blocks from POETIC). Also could assist with grocery shopping, cleaning and stocking kitchen, preparing any of the three daily meals. Daytime, evening, and weekend opportunities.

● Office Assistant: Dedicate set hours each week to assisting with office coordination to include administrative support. Daytime opportunity. Assumes commitment of 4-8 hours per week.

● Teacher’s Assistant: Assist our teacher in helping students complete their specific coursework. Ability to tutor in various subjects at the junior high and high school level. Interest in teaching specific skills class (ex. nutrition,
cosmetology, etc.). Daytime opportunity.

● Graphic Design/Social Media/PR: Use your creative skills to support POETIC marketing materials and social media content. This volunteer opportunity is done offsite. Flexible hours. Engagement with staff only.

● Salesforce Guru: Help staff fully utilize and troubleshoot our CRM software, Salesforce, to be most effective for POETIC.

● Photographer: Donate your photography skills to help capture images for POETIC’s photo library. Flexible hours. Daytime and evening opportunities.

● Fitness Professional: Seeking certified fitness professionals to lead classes for POETIC girls. Classes will happen on-site at POETIC. Background check required.

● CPA: Donate your time to assist with POETIC’s accounting needs. The request is to take a working role owning execution of monthly accounting tasks. Flexible hours. Work can be completed offsite.

● Cleaning Crew: Sign up to help maintain a warm and welcoming environment for POETIC girls by donating time on Friday to clean and aid in ongoing organization at POETIC. Engagement with staff only.

●Cleaning Crew: Sign up to help maintain a warm and welcoming environment for POETIC girls by donating time on Friday to clean and aid in ongoing organization at POETIC. Engagement with staff only.

● Lead a Donation Drive: Rally your friends, family and network to gather much needed supplies for POETIC girls in the areas of personal care items, art supplies, school supplies, groceries, beverages, and snack food. Engagement with staff only.

● Build Welcome Bags: Support POETIC girls by creating welcome bags with essential items like toiletries and clothing for every girl we serve. POETIC staff will provide a list of recommended items. Engage a group of friends and build these fun bags for POETIC girls to enjoy.

● Retail Relationship Builder: Become an ambassador for POETIC girls and engage local retailers to donate gift cards, in-kind items and more to provide supplies critical to program delivery. Templated materials provided along with staff support.

● IT: Help POETIC staff with troubleshooting IT issues and concerns. Research potential technology donations and install new computers, programs, printers, etc. Background check required. Daytime and evening opportunities.

Volunteer With POETIC