Staff Spotlight: Cinder Sonis

​My name is Lorenza Sonis and I am known as Cinder Sonis in my COFA community. I have been with the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii for 5 years and work as an Outreach Specialist where I primarily help clients with applying for medical insurance and intake those who need services that LASH provides. 
 
One of my most memorable experiences working with Legal Aid is when I would do hospital bedside outreach, helping sick and dying people who could only speak in Chuukese. These people relied on me to help them with applying for medical insurance and their documentation.
 
What I love most about this work is connecting and reconnecting to families, friends, and others. I enjoy meeting and helping other people.
 
The most challenging part of my work is saying NO to the great demand that my community needs from me. My work requires more than just me -- I always say, "I wish I were an octopus who has 8 tentacles to work with." I wish I could further my reach.
 
LASH is a place where our staff work tirelessly to help ensure that the community has access to services, justice, and fairness. 

Although my community faces racism, I am not embarrassed to say that I am Chuukese.  I love helping my community as well as other people, and have a respect for my host island (Hawaii). It is my culture that makes me who I am, with a big heart in helping others and I love the aloha spirit that my host island of Hawaii has. My culture places responsibility on my shoulders as the eldest girl in the family, to take care of the immediate family as well as the extended family with respect for all. 
 
- Cinder Sonis, Outreach Specialist
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