Staff Spotlight

Michele Yoder, Counselor III Kwawachee Counseling Center

By Clare Jensen

For Puyallup Tribal News
cjensen@tacomaweekly.com
Published on: May 15, 2008

Michele Yoder may have been destined to be a counselor.

Growing up, she was always a great listener, and in high school, she was the go-to girl for friends who needed a compassionate ear and advice.

“I’m fascinated by people – everyone has a story,” she said.

Michele Yoder has been working in the mental health field since 1996. She started as a child and family counselor, which fit into her degree of family and marriage counseling.

“When I was growing up, I was seeing a lot more divorces,” she said. Her strong belief in the importance of family led her to the field of family counseling.

Now, at Kwawachee Counseling Center where she has worked for five years, she primarily counsels adults and her views on family have changed.

She still has a very strong belief in the importance of family, but after being ingrained in the Puyallup Tribal community, her definition of the word is different than it was when she was in college.

“Now I’d define family more as community, rather than strictly biological,” she said.

Michele Yoder said she has always valued exposure to other cultures, and when she started working for the Tribe, culture was one of the things that struck her the most.

“It has touched me on a spiritual level,” she said, adding that she often takes advantage of the Tribe’s traditional healers.

“I find it all to be a very valuable experience,” she said. “[Working at Kwawachee] is the first time I’ve experienced spirituality outside of religion.”

Not only does the Puyallup Tribe’s cultural practices help Michele Yoder personally; it also helps her understand the patients she is helping.

In addition to counseling adults at Kwawachee, Michele Yoder spends about half of her time screening new, or returning clients.

She said the favorite part of her job is when those clients really open up to her while telling their story.

“It’s great when I make that connection with someone and they open up to me,” she said.

Michele Yoder also coordinates the clinical teams’ involvement in community outreach events, such as the community dinners and the Peace Rally, among other things.

Michele Yoder has two sons, a 10-year-old and a 6-year-old, and a husband of 12 years.

In the future, she would like to travel as much as possible – in order to hear the stories of people from all over the world.

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