About

“She made broken look beautiful and strong look invincible.  She walked with the Universe on her shoulders and made it look like a pair of wings.” ~ Ariana Dancu

Meggie is an advocate, educator and survivor of power based violence. When she became heavily involved in the nonprofit world fighting to give others a voice, she was going through her own struggles. For roughly four years, from October 31, 2018 to January 1, 2015, she was involved in two different abusive relationships where she experienced physical, sexual, verbal and emotional abuse.

“For those 4 years, I struggled trying to understand what was going on.  The abuse I experienced wasn’t like what I saw in the movies.  I wasn’t attacked by a stranger in the parking garage, I wasn’t struggling and fighting back the scary man in the bushes.  I was hurt, I was abused, I was coerced by the person who was supposed to love, respect and care for me. I share my story, to put a face to the terrifying, confusing, misunderstood, difficult issues, to break the myths and to tell others that it CAN get better.”

You can read Meggie’s full story here!

Meggie also created a photo series for survivors of power based violence.  “I strive to capture survivors showcasing their power, strength and beauty providing a place to share their story focusing on the after affects of trauma, an aspect that is so rarely talked about.“ You can learn more about my photo series here.

Experience

Meggie began as an intern in March 2013 at an anti-trafficking nonprofit in Naperville. She quickly became the event coordinator, planning numerous events each month. She was also a prevention educator, traveling throughout Northern Illinois to present programs on human trafficking. In January 2014, she began training at Mutual Ground, a domestic violence/sexual assault shelter in Aurora, to become a certificated domestic violence and sexual assault advocate. At Mutual Ground, she volunteers to provide child care when needed. Later in 2014, she received her CSEC (Commercial Sexual Exploitation of a Child) training provided by the Salvation Army. Meggie has been part of the Family Shelter Service Speakers Bureau since 2016 and a member of Pillars’ Smak’d program since 2017. She continues to attend trainings and seminars to keep up to date on all issues that intersect power based violence. Meggie has become a requested speaker in the Chicagoland area, providing her own workshops and presentations as well as partnering with a vast network of nonprofits, advocate, lawyers and supporters.

If you’d like to have Meggie speak at an event or host a workshops, please email reclaimingme1@gmail.com and click here to learn more about her programs.