Afraid to open up?
Think no one will listen?
Survivor-to-thriver, Marcella Maggio knows what it feels like.
In 2018, Marcella started It’s My Life, providing violence prevention education to people who’ve been harmed & caused harm in relationships to show up differently & C.H.A.R.M.© them all, creating lasting change in the lives of youth, adults & the systems that serve them.
Why dig up the past?
When ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) happen in the home, #ABCs🚦 (Awareness, Boundaries & Consent) are rarely taught, resulting in repeated patterns and unhealthy relationships.
No blame, no shame.
Adults don’t know what they don’t know. Same with youth. Which is why Marcella’s Trusted Adult Mentorship program teaches youth and adults — parents and children, teachers and students, advocates and clients— how to build a Community of Trust through communication & collaboration.
The C.H.A.R.M.© Model: In 2014, fellow Preventionists Alejandra Aguilar & Marcella Maggio created a set of guidelines to charm their most resistant participants into conversations about healthy relationships. Read full story here.
Inspired by the success Marcella saw & heard, in 2019 she developed an ongoing violence prevention curriculum to reinforce the C.H.A.R.M. Model via mentorship sessions, real talks, & workshops.
Services
Mentorship Sessions, Real Talks & Workshops
Blog
The Hell that was Home: Confessions of a “Bad Girl”
Marcella Maggio Advocate, Speaker, Writer
In 2010, Marcella was introduced to the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC’s) ACE study & discovered her childhood trauma contributed to adulthood drama: victim mentality (blaming others & shaming herself) & survivor mode (self-sabotaging behavioral patterns), until she learned how to Thrive through prevention education & community support.
Today she connects professional studies with personal stories to elevate and motivate audiences to Show up Differently & C.H.A.R.M. them ALL©.
Marcella’s expertise on survivorship and supporting survivors in the violence prevention field come from lived experiences coupled with being a certified PAIP (Partner Abuse Intervention Program) Facilitator, SART (Sexual Assault Response Team) Advocate, and Preventionist.
As a graduate of Mid-City CAN’s (Community Advocacy Network) Resident Leadership Academy, and a member of the California Department of Public Health’s Essentials for Childhood (EfC) Initiative, Marcella has worked as an Advocate, Prevention Educator, Program Director, and Storyteller for local, state and federal organizations, supporting the development of their advocacy, intervention & prevention programs, sharing real talks about her experiences as a survivor, creating innovative curriculum & writing interactive stories for trainings & story circles, while helping found committees, conferences, and programs where youth, survivors & people who have caused harm can share their C.H.A.R.M. stories & wealth of Self.
“Impressive, engaging, and super informative. Marcella is a passionate speaker and it truly shows she loves what she does, helping and inspiring others.”
~ Program Manager (McAlister Institute)