Carmen Sharkey has a job she loves but she sometimes has to go "numb" to help her separate her work from her emotions.
 
Sharkey, who played and coached volleyball for La Pietra, is a case manager for the state's child welfare program.
 
"Since I cannot give specifics about cases due to confidentiality, I can really only say that the cases that involve sexual abuse, physical abuse, and substance abuse are the ones that really break my heart," said Sharkey.

 

 "Child welfare is basically our state's Child Protective Services. We receive reports of potential child neglect/abuse and our investigators try to confirm cases. If confirmed, the families are referred to different services depending on the abuse or neglect (drug use, domestic violence, etc.).

"If abuse or neglect is confirmed, the children are taken into our custody. From there case managers like me are given the cases and we are the support system for our clients and we make sure they’re completing their services in order to get their children back. We also help provide children with services that they need like therapy, counseling, etc.
 
Sharkey's eventual goal is to become a Honolulu Police detective. "I would start off as a patrol officer," she said. Sharkey said she is happy to work hand-in-hand with HPD as a child welfare case manager.

 She got her  Criminology/Criminal Justice B.S. in 2018 from Arizona State University and her M.A. from ASU in 2019.
 
Arizona's climate was certainly "warm" enough for the local girl. Sometimes too, too warm! "Like standing in front of an oven," she said. "It was 120 degrees on my freshman move-in day."
 
Sharkey noted that La Pietra, which she attended from 6th to 12th grade,  gave her excellent preparation for getting what she wanted out of college in minimum time.
 
"The block schedule and the academic curriculum were definitely great!"