Some career paths follow a straight line. Mona Fox’s took a few unexpected turns — and every one of them led her exactly where she needed to be.
Mona is currently pursuing her Master of Social Work at the University of Pacific, interning with our Alameda team under the leadership of Program Manager Ki’ev Harris. But long before she set foot in a nursing facility as an Ombudsman intern, Mona’s path started on a very different stage — literally.
A lifelong love of theatre took Mona all the way to New York City, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Broadcasting with a minor in Psychology from Emerson College. After graduation, she made her way to California and landed a job at KTVU, where she spent the next 19 years building a career in the marketing department. It was work she loved — but over time, she found herself craving something more purpose-driven.
That shift became personal three years ago, when Mona relocated her mother, who is living with dementia, to Oakland so she could be closer and help manage her care. Navigating the process of placing a parent in a long-term care facility gave Mona a firsthand, unfiltered look at a system many families don’t understand until they’re standing in the middle of it — and it planted the seed that would eventually bring her to social work, and to Empowered Aging.
While searching for an internship placement through her graduate program, Mona learned about the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program for the first time. Given everything she had just been through with her mother, the opportunity felt like it had found her as much as she found it. She jumped at the chance to learn more about the work — and hasn’t looked back since.
“Before this internship, I had no idea a resource like this even existed,” Mona shared. “Now that I’ve seen this work up close, I understand how much of a difference an Ombudsman can make for a resident and their family — because I needed that voice myself, and I didn’t know where to find it.”
Since joining the team, Mona has brought exactly the kind of energy and heart that defines Empowered Aging — showing up ready to learn, ready to advocate, and ready to do the work. Alameda Program Manager Kiev Harris, who has watched her grow throughout her placement, put it best:
“Oftentimes we can spend years looking for the perfect baseball glove as it relates to sports. You look for a glove that’s going to be durable, dependable, great quality, but most importantly, a great fit. This is exactly who Mona Fox has been to the Alameda County Empowered Aging Team. She has been the perfect fit that we’ve been looking for in an intern. We could not have chosen a better fit to catch an intern turned into an Ombudsman.” – Ki’ev Harris, Alameda Program Manager
Mona’s internship runs through December, and while we’re grateful for every month we get with her, the Empowered Aging team already knows she’ll be deeply missed when it wraps up. Please join us in thanking Mona for the passion, purpose, and heart she’s poured into this work — and for reminding us all why this mission matters.
“My background in news marketing has been surprisingly relevant to my work as an Ombudsman. At its core, marketing is about understanding people: what matters to them, what they need to know, and how to communicate in a way that will reach them. In Ombudsman work, I use those skills to help residents and families make sense of a system that can feel unfamiliar and overwhelming. I also draw on my communications experience when I need to take a complicated concern and express it clearly while keeping the resident’s wishes at the center.
Knowing how to shape a message is also helpful when working with facilities. Advocacy often requires being direct without closing the door to collaboration. I think carefully about how to raise a concern so that the seriousness of the issue is understood and the conversation can still move toward a solution. That may mean helping a resident prepare for a meeting, clarifying what a family is asking for, or making sure a care team does not lose sight of the person behind the complaint.
As I transition into social work, I do not feel that I am leaving my former career behind. I am learning how to use many of the same strengths for a different purpose. Marketing taught me how to find the heart of a story and help others understand why it matters. Social work is teaching me to approach that story with greater attention to ethics, power, self-determination, and the broader systems affecting a person’s life. Most importantly, Ombudsman work has taught me that the goal is not to speak for residents when they can speak for themselves. It is to listen closely, help remove barriers, and make sure their voices are taken seriously.”
-Mona Fox