In August, Prevent Child Abuse Arizona welcomed a new board member, Rick Griffin. In just a couple of short months, Rick has already enriched our organization’s work in several ways.
Rick Griffin is the Director of Training and Curriculum Development with Community Resilience Initiative (CRI), a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a citizenry conversant in trauma and resilience. Rick has committed his life to the education of others. After completing his master’s degree in education, Rick became a founding member and executive director of Jubilee Leadership Academy, a therapeutic boarding school for struggling teens. Under Rick’s leadership, Jubilee was World Magazine’s 2014 winner of the Hope Award for Effective Compassion.
Rick enjoys speaking to thousands of individuals worldwide and is widely recognized for his work in trauma-informed care. Rick’s vision to educate the masses about the impact of trauma inspired him to establish a national trauma and resilience conference held annually in Washington. He is currently working on his latest passion, Purpose-Driven Play, a series of games designed to equip individuals with the skills to overcome adversity.
Rick is currently working with Prevent Child Abuse Arizona to facilitate focus groups for the Lean On Me AZ Campaign. This project, funded by Casey Family programs, aims to generate ideas, tips, tools, and actions that community members can take to build protective factors and support families in their communities. Rick’s experiences, sincerity, and skilled relationship-building infuse these focus groups with a sense of trust and understanding.
When asked why he gives so freely of his time, Rick explains, “My service is the tax that I owe for being a citizen. If we do not step up to make a difference, then who will? It is hard to frame my service as generosity.” Rick’s selflessness is reflected in every aspect of his talents. As a keynote speaker at the fourth annual Home Visiting Supervisors’ Institute, attendees felt his heartfelt desire to instill hope in those heroes who serve alongside families.
Prevent Child Abuse Arizona Executive Director Claire Louge describes Rick’s unique leadership: “Rick puts relationships first in everything he does. He builds a relationship before he seeks to influence or share. He looks at life and all people within it with fascination.” Rick will speak about the power of relationships in resilience in his closing keynote presentation at the Child Abuse Prevention Conference and ACEs Summit, taking place December 15-17, 2020. View workshop descriptions and register at pcaaz.org/cap2020.