Reflecting on two years of Community Mediation

Most people connected with the Center know that I will be leaving at the end of this month, to move with my family to Pittsburgh. This transition has caused me to reflect on my experiences here at the Center. This has been a time of tremendous personal and professional growth for me. I have had so many positive experiences, but I want to take this space to mention two things in particular that will stay with me forever.

The first is the incredible spirit of volunteerism I have seen at the Center. Our volunteers show such dedication and enthusiasm in their connection with the Center and its clients. Many of our volunteers juggle our cases with their full-time jobs and family responsibilities. Many others use precious time from their well-earned retirement to give back to the community by volunteering here. And another large group of volunteers goes above and beyond – not just mediating cases – but also doing community facilitation work, coaching at our mediation training classes, serving on committees, and helping with events and work around the office. The Community Mediation Center is so lucky to have them all.

Second, I have been fortunate to work with a great group of staff and Americorps volunteers. Everyone working here embodies the spirit of the best community organizations – doing so much with limited resources; always thinking creatively about expanding our capacity to serve clients; working together to provide the highest level of customer service to our clients; and helping our volunteers be their most effective in helping us. I will take away with me much that I have learned from each individual here – about how to be the best mediator I can be, about how to always take the unexpected step to help others, and about how to be a great team! Thanks to all my colleagues for making me a better person.

Judi Teeter

I was recently asked to facilitate a discussion among several local high school girls who were threatening to fight each other after school. There were about 20 girls present, representing three different groups, neither one able to get along with the other. The discussion was often loud and emotionally charged, with lots of interruptions and confrontations. However, they all stayed in the meeting and were able to come up with some guidelines to help them coexist in the same school and concentrate in their studies. They agreed to ignore rumors and always address issues as soon as they arise, so they don't get bigger than necessary. It was hard work, but I truly enjoyed the experience!

Andrea Palmisano

Lately we have been very busy in the mediation services area. We have been helping many individuals and families in Hampton Roads resolve their conflicts. We have been working very hard to make mediation available for individuals who have criminal disputes with each other. Ideally the ones who will benefit most from our services have misdemeanor complaints against each other and both are looking at fines and possibly jail time/community service for an incident that started as a neighborhood dispute. Most of our mediations recently have ended with resolutions between people. We even had a seven hour mediation the other weekend that helped resolve a 28-year old dispute! We were very proud of our volunteer mediators Cecile Davis and Charles Broadfield. It definitely will become one of our legendary mediations.

Mandy Stallings

Recently I participated in a 22 hour Basic Conflict Resolution and Mediation Skills Training course for a local social service agency. Basic mediation training is a great refresher and reminder of the Center’s roots in facilitating conflict through reflective listening and open ended questioning. With 14 participants, the group was dynamic and energized. They participated in every exercise and asked insightful questions that proved they were thinking about the mediation process and its transformative nature. The most striking thing about this training was that every person admitted (privately or as a large group) that they could use the communication skills in every aspect of their life. When teaching reflective listening, people thought of their teenagers. When explaining open ended questioning and brainstorming, people thought of their co-workers. And, when speaking on the philosophy of mediation as a client lead process, they thought of their clients and how self-determination truly supported their mission and reenergized them to give 100%.

Amanda Burbage
Community Outreach