Xerox Employee Extends Business Expertise To Help Hispanic Women In Washington, D.C.

Reveron Hill is in her eighth month of a paid, one-year leave from Xerox to volunteer full-time with My Sister’s Place – a Washington, D.C., organization providing services to battered women and their children since 1979.

Casa Gabriela Mistral, part of My Sister’s Place, is a shelter specifically for immigrant women – many of whom are Hispanic – and Reveron Hill is combining her business and language skills to help these women build stronger lives.

“I know how difficult it can be for Hispanic immigrant women to break free of the violence and abuse they sometimes suffer at home,” says Reveron Hill, who is of Puerto Rican descent.

With little command of English or the skills to help seek employment, it’s often challenging for the women of Casa Gabriela Mistral to find meaningful work, Reveron Hill says. As part of her yearlong project, “I’m working to bring together all the resources available to Hispanic women in D.C. to help them get jobs.” Described by her colleagues as “a real fire-starter,” she’s been busy working with the Latino Affairs Department in the city and various Latino organizations to help women gain employment in their communities.

During her tenure with My Sister’s Place she will conduct domestic violence awareness workshops at area corporations, and create a job resource guide for use by all the women in their journey out of the shelter and into a life of independence. She also is teaching women how to operate computers. How to develop a resume. How to write a job application. How to participate in a job interview. How to create a financial plan. And, she’s inviting speakers from different industries, including the typically male-dominated industry of auto repair, to speak to the women about different career options.

“When we work with the women and expose them to the different possibilities available to them, you can just see their self-esteem elevating,” she reflects. “They need so much, and I’m passionate about ‘giving back’ to my community and really making a difference.”

My Sister’s Place works in partnership with community-based organizations to provide its services, which include shelter, transitional housing, education and counseling. Reveron Hill also recently assisted in soliciting corporate sponsorships to help raise more than $130,000 as part of an annual fund-raiser.

Xerox, based in Stamford, Conn., granted Reveron Hill’s leave under the company’s Social Service Leave program, believed the oldest program of its kind in American business. Xerox began Social Service Leaves in 1971 to foster employee involvement and provide special volunteer assistance in communities where Xerox does business. Since then, more than 450 fully paid leaves have been granted to employees, who design projects of their own choosing.

Reveron Hill is one of nine employees nationwide selected for the 2004 program. At Xerox, she sells Xerox products and services to major corporations in the Washington, D.C., area.