Post from San Joaquin County Office of Education
When Cathy Long walked into the “staff meeting” held at the Child Abuse Prevention Council SJC (CAPC) Administration Office today, she had no clue that she was actually walking into a surprise celebration in honor of her work with CAPC’s The Lisa Project.
The Lisa Project is a unique multi-sensory exhibit experience allowing the visitor to hear, see, and experience the reality of the world of child abuse. The result of the experience is a community that is made more aware with positive and helpful steps given at the end of the tour to protect children and strengthen families.
Long, a project liaison with the SJCOE’s Early Childhood Education department, was recognized by CAPC for her contributions to The Lisa Project, which have helped expand its reach to more than 100,000 people across the valley.
The Lisa Project Award that Long was presented with, also known as the “Crazy Award,” is the first of its kind. When presenting the award to Long, CAPC Director Gene Hardin referenced the iconic 1997 “Think Different” Apple commercial narrated by Steve jobs in which he states:
“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
Congratulations on this well-deserved award, Cathy. And thank you to both you and the CAPC for being change-makers in our community.
To learn more about The Lisa Project, visit https://thelisaproject.org/.