| Margaret Ann "Peggy" Rossi, former Executive Coordiator of REACHH-FRC, tragically drowned on July 7th in the Pacific Ocean while on vacation in El Salvador. She attempted to reach her husband and their foster daughter's husband, both of whom where carried out by a rip current. Peggy was the motivating force behind the development of the organization over the past 10 years. Peggy had a BS from Cornell University and earned her MSW from West Virginia University in 1976. She practiced socal work in southern West Virginia for the past 25 years. Peggy served as the Secretary of the Board of Directors of WV-NASW. She was active in the Region IV Children's Summit, Greenbrier Community Collaborative, Summers County Family Resource Network, and the WV Coalition Against Domestic Violence Child Victimization and Mental Health workgroups. |
Peggy Rossi was named the WV National Association of Social Workers "Social Worker of Year" on April 10, 2002 at the 2002 Spring Continuing Education Conference for Social Workers held at the Charleston Civic Center. Peggy was a social work practitioner for over 25 years. She earned a BS at Cornell University, and an MSW through West Virginia University. She was a Certified Social Worker in the state of West Virginia, and a member of the National Association of Social Workers since 1988, serving on the Executive Committee of the Board, in the position of Secretary.
Her professional experiences were diverse, and involved working with senior citizens programs, adoptions, community mental health, developmental disabilities, human rights, social work instruction, domestic violence, child advocacy, and family support programs.
She served as Executive Coordinator of REACHH-Family Resource Center in Hinton since its founding 1991. This unique community-based agency currently provides a wide range of services to families and children, ranging from advocacy and education to daycare. It has grown from a small outreach arm of the Women's Resource Center in Beckley into an independent, multi-faceted organization with a local Board of Directors. This effort has been accomplished piece-by-piece, grant-by-grant, and for years required vigilance on Peggy's part for its survival.
In addition to her work with REACHH, Peggy was widely respected for her numerous community and state affiliation, including membership on boards, steering committees, planning teams, workgroups and community collaboratives. She worked quietly, night and day, to bring about change in her community and throughout the state, particularly in the areas of child abuse and domestic violence.
In presenting her award before an audience of 1,300 social workers, Barbara K. Heasley, ACSW, DCSW, Member NASW Chapter Committee on Nominations and Leadership Identification said, "This year's Social Worker of the Year has NEVER said no to an opportunity to advance the goals and agenda of NASW, and has served the state chapter in numerous ways over the years. She has been a major supporter of WV-NASW's political action committee. As co-chair of the NASW's legislative action network she was instrumental in helping to coordinate the chapter's first VERY successful "Social Work Day at the Legislature". She was smart, ethical, conscientious and dedicated. Her petite physical stature belied her toughness and her tenacity. She was a true visionary, and she possessed the commitment and skills to follow through on whatever she believed needed to be done. Peggy viewed her involvement with the social work profession as a calling and as a mission. She cared passionately about what she did, about the clients she served and about the difference her work made.î
Peggy died as she lived, trying to reach out to someone in trouble. We miss her.