SASO

SASO Staff

Michael Rendon-Executive Director

Born and raised in Colorado, Michael has lived in Durango since 1993. Michael is the first male director of SASO and has been with the agency since October 2008. Aside from being the Director, Michael sits on the Durango City Council, and currently serves as the Mayor for the city of Durango. Michael is the Vice-President of the La Plata County Regional Housing Alliance providing affordable housing through the City of Durango, and is a Board member with the Unity Project, providing inter-cultural understanding in the Durango area. For fun Michael plays violin with his Gypsy band, Carute Roma, and is the Ringmaster for Durango’s Salt Fire Circus.  Michael enjoys hiking, gardening, and reading with his Partner, Minna Jain.

Emma Salazar-Community Education Coordinator

After graduating from Fort Lewis College in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Human Services,  Emma began working with community organizations dedicated to empowering young people culturally, academically, and socially.  Her career goal continues to be teaching young people how to identify their strengths and use those to become self-sufficient and confident.  She has worked with young people in a variety of settings, and has studied development of children from birth through adolescence.  She has also completed requirements for Teacher Education at the middle school/high school level. 

Olivia Donaji-de Pablo-Community Organizing Coordinator

Born and raised in Mexico, Olivia Donají moved to Durango in 1993 after finishing a BA in Business Administration from the University of Morelos, Mexico.   During 1997-99 she attended Fort Lewis College and earned her teaching certification. Currently, she is working in obtaining a Sociology Degree at FLC.  Her first encounter with SASO was in 1997 when she became the Latino Outreach Coordinator and volunteered for the hotline for a couple of years. She has worked as the Program Coordinator for the Companeros Latino Resource Center, the Latina Outreach Coordinator for Alternative Horizons, a Bilingual Elementary School Teacher for the Farmington School District, and the Interim Coordinator for the Colorado Immigrant Rights State Coalition.  She is also the Founder of the Ballet Folkloric of Durango, as well as an active and engaged community member. All of these positions have prepared her to embrace her passion for working with Social Justice Issues.  She has been SASO’s Community Organizer since 2007.  In her personal path she enjoys: Activism, traveling, local colors, people, family, poetry, writing, painting, nature, and dancing.

Allison Hiam-Advocacy Services Coordinator

As a sixth generation Coloradoan, Alison Hiam comes from a long line of strong mountain women. Born and raised in Durango, Alison was compelled to leave Fort Lewis when she had obtained enough credits for nearly three degrees and she begrudgingly accepted her diplomas in Psychology and Humanities with emphasis in Sociology, Philosophy and English. She has worked for Colorado Legal Services, Community Connections, Volunteers of America Community Shelter, Southwest Colorado Mental Health Center, and has volunteered with SASO for a number of years. When she is not trying to fight social injustice she loves to create art –working with the FLC theatre department, Penumbra Theatre Company, and Pellucid Escapades. Most recently you may have seen her masks in the latest Salt Fire Circus production. Someday she hopes to ride a motorcycle across the country and sail a boat around the Mediterranean. Until then you will either find her covered in glue, glitter and feather or trying to change the world.

Fernando Mendoza-Communications Specialist

Raised in Durango, Fernando is the youngest member of our team. He is a graduate of Durango High School and he is passionate about working with grassroots, non-profit organizations. He has volunteered and worked for several non-profits in Durango, including: Del Alma, Companeros, Latina Initiative, Unity Project, and now SASO. Fernando volunteered with SASO for two years prior to becoming a member of the SASO team in October of 2009.

Ruby Jo Walker-Support Group Therapist

Ruby Jo Walker has been a social worker for over 30 years and has been working in the field of trauma for over 20 years.  She is certified in EMDR and Hakomi, a mindfulness-based, body-centered method of therapy, and has advanced training in MatrixWorks, using a group as a living systems model.  Ruby Jo is in private practice specializing in trauma, growth work, and supervising psychotherapists.  She is currently getting certified in Somatic Experiencing, an advanced trauma technique developed by Peter Levine.  She has passion and excitement about therapy—working with both clients and helping therapists to further develop their skills.  Ruby Jo was in the first CAPP training in Durango and is a past Board member of SASO.  She has one daughter who always keeps her on her toes.  She loves being a parent, and loves outdoor activities including hiking, snowshoeing, x-country skiing, and biking.  Ruby Jo is passionate about personal growth and professional development—and brings this love to all of her work and her life.

Emily Newcomer-Support Group Therapist

Emily Newcomer, MEd has called Durango home for over five years being brought here by the opportunity for outdoor adventure and to fulfill her desire to work towards social justice and the prevention of sexual violence in our world.  From 2005 until 2009 she was the Community Education Coordinator for SASO providing prevention education for students of all ages only leaving SASO to continue to grow her private psychotherapy practice.  With a leaning towards mindfulness and body-centered psychotherapy, Emily specializes in trauma and disordered eating as well as grief and loss and life transitions and growth.  She is trained in EMDR and accepted to the Hakomi Comprehensive 2-year Training coming to Durango in 2010.  Emily has worked with numerous groups in various settings including as an instructor for Outward Bound on the desert rivers in Utah with students aged 14-80. She has co-facilitated support groups during her Master’s program at the University of Utah and here at SASO with Ruby Jo Walker, LCSW as her supervisor and co-facilitator.  Residing in the woods around Durango she is supported by her family to make her dream of being a psychotherapist come true while having as many outdoor adventures as possible.

Dawn Haney- Executive & Program Associate

Born and raised in the Midwest, Dawn made her way to Durango in 2004. Soon after, she joined SASO as the Prevention Coordinator, applying her master's degree in Health Promotion to educate students about sexual violence prevention. In June 2005, she was promoted to Executive Director, where she was fortunate to work with an amazing team of staff, volunteers, and board members. Some of her proudest accomplishments at SASO involved the agency's shift to recognize how sexual violence is used as a tool of multiple oppressions. She helped build SASO's Council on Sexual Violence Prevention, worked on immigrant integration with the Unity Project, and co-chaired Out on the Colorado Plateau, a conference to raise LGBTQ visibility. She took an "early retirement" from SASO in October 2008, and soon learned that you can never truly leave the SASO family. She continues to work with SASO as the Executive & Program Associate, helping out with a variety of administrative and program tasks for the agency. Now that she has free time, she also enjoys writing, studying Buddhist meditation, and finding new ways to organize for social justice.