New hires support court work
Two fresh faces from Kahnawake have joined the team at the Native Para-Judicial Services of Quebec, ready to lend a helping hand to Indigenous people navigating the provincial court system.
“With our team and the way we work together, we’re making people feel better because they know that they can reach out to us and we can guide them through the process of finding the support they need,” said Bobby Patton, the organization’s court worker supervisor.
His team of around 12 people have recently welcomed community members Valerie Loft and Shauna Goodleaf, who have been hired as the victims’ services court worker and Native court worker respectively.
Valerie Loft is the new victims services court worker. Courtesy Valerie Loft
“It’s a big adjustment and it’s really fast but that’s what I enjoy about it, every day is different, and no two days are the same,” said Goodleaf, who was previously the employability development case officer at the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK). “It’s a lot of information to take in but I’m already looking forward to what more will come.”
Loft comes to the role having worked at an art therapy centre, where she supported clients seeking mental health support. It was the first time she’d worked with adults before, having previously worked in a daycare, and the experience led her to apply for the victims’ services role, where she hopes to continue helping clients. She’s replacing Amy Patton, who stepped away from the role for her maternity leave.
“It’s been really, really interesting, it’s a different field to learn about, and I really like it so far,” Loft said.
Bobby said he’s particularly excited to have two new workers from Kahnawake on his team - the team helps a large number of clients in Kahnawake and in Montreal, and he said it’s meaningful to have some local faces involved.
“It gives me hope now that we can really help individuals within the community, because it was mainly myself and my daughter Amy before, but now we’re transitioning and we’re growing things,” he said. “There’s a really high number of Indigenous people throughout Quebec that find themselves in court, and here within our community we have large amounts of people that are appearing both as victims and as the accused.”
Shauna Goodleaf joins the team as the Native court worker. Courtesy Shauna Goodleaf
He said that having Loft and Goodleaf involved will help the team manage caseloads more efficiently.
“Prior to these two coming on board, it was kind of overwhelming. But now we have this extra woman power we can move forward, and we can assist more clients effectively,” Bobby said.
The work is stimulating, but it can be draining at times. Bobby Patton said that the team plans to work hard to manage mental health throughout their work weeks.
Loft and Goodleaf said they’re appreciative of how the team prioritizes that wellbeing.
“Any questions or concerns I have when I come back to the office, I know I have a great team there that I can debrief with, and we can get that support from each other,” Loft said. “I know that the experiences Bobby and our other workers have been through means that they can reassure me and help us keep our heads up and keep going.”
In the first few weeks, both Goodleaf and Loft have been learning about the facets of their role, and meeting with clients that they’ll be helping throughout the coming months. They’ll assist clients with understanding the court systems, including appearances, filings, and deadlines, as well as supporting victims, who are dealing with their files moving through the courts.
“A lot of it is really eye opening, and you don’t really realize what’s out there until you get here and see it all. I’m looking forward to just being able to support people and being able to help them through some of the toughest times that they’re going through,” Goodleaf said.
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It’s rewarding work, Bobby said, because of the sheer number of people who need help.
“It’s overwhelming how many people there are who are really struggling. There are homeless people, abused people, people with different types of traumas and mental illnesses,” Bobby said.
He added that he’ll be playing an active role in supporting both workers through their new roles.
“We have to take care of ourselves mentally and emotionally too, and my word of advice to them both is to leave it at the office at the end of the day and try not take it home,” he said. “Sometimes it’s hard, but that’s where I’m always open, and if anything’s up, I’m here.”
