HAMFT values and supports professional growth!  Recipients of the scholarship are asked to share what they gained from their chosen experience.  Here's what our Wyn Fox has to say about attending the AAMFT conference in September, 2015:

I want to sincerely thank the HAMFT board for awarding me the Warm Hearth Scholarship. This generous scholarship allowed me to attend the AAFMT annual conference held in Austin, Texas in September. I attended the conference from September 3-6, the full length of the conference. I enjoyed a wonderful stay at JW Marriott where the conference was held and had an opportunity to indulge in local food and fun. 

My first day of attendance I had the privilege to hear a keynote speech my Mr. Morris Dees activist and civil rights speaker. Mr. Dees co-founded Southern Poverty Law Center. This law center is a non-profit specializing in lawsuits involving civil rights violations, domestic terrorism, and hate-motivated crimes. This speech had a great impact on me as he discussed how we should love and respect on another. I was truly enlightened by his heart-felt cry for justice for all.

On the second day I had the opportunity to attend a workshop titled, “Resiliency and Spirituality”. This workshop definitely informs my professional work as many of my clients offer their spirituality as the reason for them to fight against all odds. This workshop allowed me to clearly see how the two intersect. I will continue to respectfully explore this area with my clients, armed with new and refreshing insight. Another memorable workshop was titled, “Couples in the Military”. This workshop offered a deeper look into military deployment and reintegration of soldiers that return from combat. This workshop was personal, as I was once that soldier. This workshop gave insight into ways to prevent and intervene with soldiers for some of their most prominent concerns.

My final day at the conference I debated about leaving a little early so as to get home to be with my family sooner rather than later. I decided to stay and I am so glad that I did. The last workshop that I attended that day was one that resonated with me professionally and personally. This workshop was titled, “Black Men and Women in Therapy”. I feel that this workshop challenged therapists to deal with the difficult dialogues that black men and women deal with, such as black inferiority, white privilege, the impact of slavery on relationships and shame based racial trauma, among others. We discussed how racism may adversely affect black couples but there is not enough research in this area. This sparked a great deal of interest for me.

Overall, this was a wonderful enriching experience. I plan to attend the conference next year. I appreciate HAMFT for giving me this opportunity. I will continue to apply what I learned from this conference as I continue on my journey as marriage and family therapist.

Many Thanks,

Wyn Fox