Tonight’s Rose Café talk was given by Laura Rodriguez de Simons who works at The Advocacy Center of Tompkins County. The talk was very serious and serious because The Advocacy Center of Tompkins County focus on sexual assault and domestic violence. Through the talk I gained a better understanding of certain problems facing Tompkins County. I was somewhat surprised to learn about the poverty problem in Tompkins County because I mostly live in the bubble of Cornell University were this problem is not apparent.

While the talk was sobering and serious I was inspired by the passion and commitment of Ms. Rodriguez de Simons. Through her description of her work and career progression it was clear that she is very passionate about her work. I was surprised at the path that she took to her current career in social justice. Based on her description of her work, I assumed that she came from a psychology of social work background, but she actually studied economics and received a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) before entering the social justice space. It is interesting that a business background could lead to a career in social justice. Ms. Rodriguez de Simons did say that her business degree was helpful for her job because she needs to manage teams and budgets.

I was also interesting to learn that many of the clients of The Advocacy Center of Tompkins County are addicted to heroin or related to someone who is. This is one example of the negative effects of addiction. I hope that public health officials, government officials, and advocates like Ms. Rodriguez de Simons can find solutions to reduce the current heroin addiction epidemic effecting Tompkins County and many other areas of the country.