10 Trudeau Truths with Early Intervention Speech-Language Pathologist Aimee Mello
You know them as the educators, caregivers and leaders who work to keep everything running smoothly so that our clients at the Trudeau Memorial Center can have the best experience possible. But what are they like when they’re off the clock?
Here’s a chance to get a more personal look at the people who make up the team at Trudeau… 10 questions at a time.
Meet Aimee Mello, a Speech-Language Pathologist in our Early Intervention program who’s been with Trudeau for 5 years (plus an internship!) She once kept a serious family conversation going while a flock of chickens broke through a baby gate and helped themselves to the crackers on the floor, and that’s before you hear about her dog Hopper, Sunday afternoons at her 95-year-old grandmother’s house, or her family tie to the Salem Witch Trials! Get to know Aimee in our latest 10 Trudeau Truths!
10 Trudeau Truths with Aimee Mello
1. What inspired you to pursue a career in human services?
I have had many close relationships and friendships with people with disabilities throughout my life. This, plus an Olympic-level commitment to yapping- as my elementary school teachers and current coworkers can attest to- led me to finding the most fulfilling calling I could ever hope to find!
2. What do you find most rewarding about your job?
I love empowering parents to feel like they are the agents of change for their children! In this specific role, I love that we are often the ones who are introducing a family to the world of disabilities. We have the opportunity to set the tone, and guide families to view disabilities as just a different way of being human, rather than a “tragedy” like some families fear or envision at first.
3. Can you describe a memorable moment or success story from your time working at Trudeau?
I’ve had quite a few memorable moments and success stories from my time here. One memorable moment I recall was having a very serious conversation with a family where they were sharing important and vulnerable feelings about their child’s future. In the middle of the conversation their flock of chickens (which until that moment I did not know they had) busted down the baby gate keeping them on the sunporch and started to come into the house, eating the crackers the child had smashed on the floor. The parent kept talking, as if none of that was happening behind them, and I had to meet them where they were in that moment. You never know what a day will bring on the road in EI!
4. What’s something about people with differing abilities (or working with them) that you wish other people knew or better understood?
I wish other people knew that people with disabilities are not “other”- they are us and we are them! Disability is a natural part of the human experience, and as we may all become disabled at any given moment it is closer to us all than I think the general public believes. Disability rights are human rights!
5. What’s your favorite way to spend a weekend?
My favorite way is to spend it at my grandmother’s house! She is 95 and our whole family uses her house as a “home base”. You can always find a cousin, an aunt, or an uncle hanging out by the pool, fixing something in the barn, or chatting with her on the porch. While looking for picture to go with this segment, I realized I take very few selfies, and most of my pictures have a cousin- or 3- in them, too!
6. Favorite book, movie, and/or TV show.
I love all things Sherlock Holmes and have read or watched most programs that come out about the character. I also love John Oliver- my aunt even arranged a surprise meet and greet for a Christmas surprise one year!
7. Do you have any pets?
I have 1 dog, Hopper! He is very friendly and goofy, especially around his dog cousins. We like to say he is half-lab, half-pointer, all crazy!
8. What’s your favorite food?
I love Indian food! Masala, pretty close to the main office, is a must try restaurant for everyone! Other than that, it is all the meals my grandmother made my family growing up, including “pois cache” (French cottage pie) and caçoila (Portuguese pulled pork).
9. If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
My mom and I have always wanted to go on a river cruise through Europe to see the Christmas Markets! They always seem so magical and like something out of a story book. I’d also love to go back to Minot, North Dakota where I went to grad school to have a reunion with friends from my cohort- I loved my time there with them!
10. What’s a fun fact about you that most people don’t know?
I am a direct descendant of Susannah Martin who was killed in the Salem Witch Trials. When kids acted up in our family my great-grandmother would say “There’s a witch in this family!” and my great-grandfather would reply “Not on my side!”.
