Tanya Brown is Honored for Outstanding Work with Trauma Victims

MISSION VIEJO, Calif. - April 27, 2018 - PRLog -- Dana Point resident Tanya Brown has had her share of trauma and adversity in life, including the loss of several friends in her teens, the murder of her sister Nicole Brown Simpson when she was 24, and, 10 years later, her wedding being called off by her fiancé four days prior to the ceremony.  This last event was the final straw for Brown, who suffered a mental breakdown and tried to take her own life.  During treatment, she realized that through all those hardships, she had never allowed herself to truly feel her pain and had kept everything bottled up.

Brown has turned her life's struggles into an opportunity to motivate others who are confronted with distressful situations and help them find peace and hope amid daily chaos.  She was selected as the March/April recipient of Fairhaven Memorial Services' Oliver Halsell Care Award, a program paying tribute to individuals who have demonstrated exceptional care in their profession and community, for her outstanding work with the individuals and caregivers she coaches.

"Tanya embodies the type of individuals the Oliver Halsell Care Award program wants to recognize, those in the community who create positive change and inspire others without expecting anything in return," said Michael Alarcon, managing partner at Fairhaven Memorial Services in Mission Viejo.  "We need more people like Tanya, who turned her own adversities into a learning experience and decided to pay it forward by helping others struggling with life's tragedies."

Brown has first-hand experience as a caregiver.  She tended her father for eight years as he battled Alzheimer's disease, while simultaneously caring for her mother who was fighting stage IIIC breast cancer.  With her master's in counseling psychology and a deep understanding of the struggles that caregivers face, she started a coaching program devoted to them.  Brown also began a grief and bereavement group and has worked in the hospice industry for two years.

"I am beyond honored to be nominated for this outstanding award," said Brown.  "I will not waste my hurt, pain and the struggles I endured. I am here for a reason and I will shout the message of life and hope until the day I die to educate, empower and inspire those who need it the most."

Outside of self-empowerment, one of Brown's other passions is keeping youth healthy and drug-free.  She volunteers with the Community Outreach Alliance, a San Clemente nonprofit that helps create opportunities for youth seeking a healthy alternative to drugs, and is involved with the "One Choice Can Destroy" outreach, which also aims to prevent substance abuse in youth.  Brown also is driven to empower crime and domestic violence survivors through advocacy work and by volunteering with the Santa Ana nonprofit Crime Survivors. She co-authored a book on this topic, "The Seven Characters of Abuse."

In November 2018, Brown will be recognized at the annual Oliver Halsell Care Awards banquet with five other local honorees. Additionally, Fairhaven will make a donation on her behalf to her chosen charity, Community Outreach Alliance.

Fairhaven is accepting nominations for the remainder of 2018 to recognize other outstanding individuals whose kindness and dedication to serving others is inspirational.  Fairhaven's Oliver Halsell Care Award winners come from many fields including private care, hospice, social work, counseling, assisted living, medical providers, nursing, therapy, volunteer work and more.  For more information and to nominate an outstanding citizen, call 714-426-0444 or email alvina@hkamarcom.com.

About Fairhaven

Founded in 1911 by Oliver Halsell to provide a peaceful and comforting place for families to honor their loved ones, Fairhaven Memorial Park & Mortuary is Orange County's most beautiful full-service mortuary, crematory and cemetery. With the memorial park and mortuary in Central Orange County and an elegantly appointed mortuary in South Orange County, Fairhaven provides funeral, cremation and burial services both at the time of need and through advanced planning, maintaining its steadfast commitment to care and compassion. Fairhaven is dedicated to celebrating the individual, providing services that are as unique and wide-ranging as the people they celebrate. Additional information is available at https://www.dignitymemorial.com/funeral-homes/missionviej.... Connect with Fairhaven at Facebook and Twitter.