Meet Cami Fields, LMSW – Grant Halliburton Foundation’s director of outreach an education. Cami leads the Foundation’s outreach, education, and Thrive strategy efforts. She’s a passionate mental health advocate and has devoted her life to positively impacting youth.
A licensed master social worker, Cami has previous experience working in therapeutic foster care, inpatient hospital, individual therapy, intensive outpatient, and community youth programs.
She also has a mean volleyball spike.
Here are 10 things to know about Cami.
1. What was your first job?
At my first job, I was as a delivery driver for Jimmy John’s – we were freaky fast! But as my manager used to say, “fast on your feet, not on the street.”
One time, I was opening ham sandwich meat to start slicing and I dropped the entire hunk of ham in the trash can – they were slippery!
2. What’s your guilty pleasure?
I don’t know if I would consider this is a guilty pleasure, because I’m not ashamed of it, but I love to watch Beat Bobby Flay on the Food Network.
3. What advice would you give to your teenage self?
“It’s okay to take up space. You can speak your mind, you can have an opinion, you can not have an opinion, you can say no, and you can be yourself even if that makes someone else uncomfortable. You can take up space, and once you learn to, you can be intentional about making space for others and empowering them to do the same.”
4. What’s your favorite movie scene and why?
This is such a hard question! I have five or six favorite movie scenes I talk about often. One of my all-time favorites is in 500 Days of Summer when Tom comes to Summer’s house for a party and the whole scene is a split screen with “expectations” on the left and “reality” on the right. It’s dreadfully sad, incredibly relatable, and beautifully cinematic.
5. What’s one thing people would be surprised to know about you?
Depends on who we’re talking about. The Foundation staff knows quite a lot about me! Others might be surprised to know I was a Division I college athlete. I played volleyball at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee. Let’s go Peay! Yes, that really was our motto.
Oh, and I'm also newly pregnant!
“It’s okay to take up space. You can speak your mind, you can have an opinion, you can not have an opinion, you can say no, and you can be yourself even if that makes someone else uncomfortable. You can take up space, and once you learn to, you can be intentional about making space for others and empowering them to do the same.”
6. What would you name the autobiography of your life?
The Sun Doesn’t Ask Permission to Shine: A How-to Guide to Know Yourself, Be Yourself, and Love Yourself.
That’s a long title. No one is going to read that book. Alternate title: I Never Liked Animals Much… How Did I End Up Vegan with Four Pets?
7. What do you enjoy doing when you’re not at work (pre-COVID-19)?
I enjoy working out and being active, playing volleyball with friends, house projects with my spouse, Keller, and drinking whiskey with my best friend Jada. I also love being with family, whether that’s in Texas or in Kentucky. I really enjoy spending time at home with Keller and our animals. This whole work-from-home-pandemic-lifestyle thing has been pretty conducive to my life.
8. What are your top three TV shows you’re streaming right now?
As I mentioned, I love Beat Bobby Flay. I also recently revisited One Tree Hill, which was so nostalgic, and binge-watched Dickinson with Hailee Steinfeld.
9. Where’s your favorite travel destination and why?
To be honest, I haven’t traveled that much. It’s expensive, takes up a lot of time, and it’s always difficult to leave three dogs and a cat with someone. I enjoy visiting Austin for the vegan restaurants, food trucks, and beautiful nature adventures. In 2019, we went to the Austin City Limits music festival and had a blast. Lizzo was my favorite performer.
10. Why is Grant Halliburton Foundation’s mission important to you?
I’m a passionate mental health advocate and strive to make a positive impact on young people. I’m a suicide attempt survivor from when I was a teenager. During that time, I could see the gaps between what I needed and what I was receiving. I knew at 17 that I wanted to work with teens and make a difference. The quote, “be who you needed when you were younger” stuck with me forever. Grant Halliburton Foundation stands for everything I believe in and I know we’re making a difference every day.
