Jenny Shamoon

Texas RioGrande Legal Aid – Virtual

I applied for TRLA after I saw the Telephone Access to Justice Project in CORE. I was immediately interested in the mission of the TAJ as they aim to help those who cannot afford legal help on their own. I have always been interested in helping low-income communities so working with the TAJ seemed to be the perfect fit for me.

What did you like most about your job?

My favorite part about my job is the feeling clients have after completing an application for free legal aid. So many people call each day with legal problems you could never imagine. Helping them complete an application for free legal aid and hearing the stress leave their voice makes it feel like I’m truly making an impact. Each client leaves our phone call feeling like someone is actually working to help them, which is the goal.

How did your job change in a virtual workplace? How did you interact with your co-workers?

Working remotely has definitely been a challenge but one that I’ve actually come to enjoy. Since we all work from home, we typically use Microsoft Teams to communicate. I’m a very friendly person who loves to make friends and build connections but working remotely had made that a little more difficult. However, me and my coworkers actually built a deeper bond as the conversations that we do have tend to be more meaningful.