Stuart Simms and Amy Petkovsek

Recorded May 5, 2021 Archived May 5, 2021 17:27 minutes
0:00 / 0:00
Id: mby020641

Description

Coworkers Amy Petkovsek (39) and Stuart Simms (70) talk about their childhood dreams, their careers, the advocacy work they are doing to serve the people of Maryland, and their future goals.

Subject Log / Time Code

SS and AP talk about their childhood dreams.
AP reflects on the different lessons she has learned from her clients.
AP and SS share career regrets.
SS shares the lessons he learned while working at a Cadillac dealership. AP shares why she is called the starfish lawyer.
AP and SS talk about the people who have influenced their lives.
SS and AP share their proudest moments.
AP and SS talk about their future goals.

Participants

  • Stuart Simms
  • Amy Petkovsek

Partnership Type

Outreach

Transcript

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00:05 Good morning. My name is Stuart Simms on 70. Today's date is Wednesday, May 5th. 2021. I'm in Baltimore, Maryland at the headquarters of Maryland. The legal aid. I'm here with Amy as my partner today and delighted to love to be there.

00:31 Great, and yes, hi. I'm Amy petkosek. I'm 39 years old. Today is Wednesday, May 2nd 2021 am also in Baltimore Maryland, here at Maryland, legal aid here, with Stu who I is our chief counsel, and I report to him. I'm our deputy chief one of our deputy chief.

00:52 I think that we will start off then with our questions. So I knew what did you want to become when you were a child? Usually are wanted to be a doctor and I think a couple of things happened on that Route 1. I got a job at Johns Hopkins and I realized it didn't like blood. I think the the amount of time that I realized was that I had to invest and I would have to take organic chemistry sort of waited me, not to follow through with that.

01:31 I just decision. How about yourself?

01:39 When I was a kid, I want to be a librarian. All I wanted to do was work in the library, and I used to practice library and I get the books out and we play, and I freeze and it's sort of ironic that eventually helped start the lawyers in the library program cuz I always sort of felt at home in library.

02:02 Question. So after I went to undergrad, I had a headache. So sure it's a lot of Injustice as I went to undergraduate Philadelphia and was in the streets of Philadelphia during the homeless Outreach over in Camden, New Jersey. Looking at some of the dichotomies. It's not in English as their primary language. Speaking population in Mexico and did two months of service work down there and just really felt like I needed to help with giving individual, the boys that doesn't have a voice and really went to law school with that as long as it was a total shift. I never had attorney even in my lens or frame work at all. And in the last two months, before I graduated college, totally shifted into the else. That's on a whim and I can go off.

02:53 Was to myself. I had three reasons, one was Perry. Mason episodes II was members of my family lived in Southwest Virginia, and Prince Edward County where the schools will close for three years. And they came up here that led me to thinking about the other third factor, which was Thurgood Marshall. So those things combined to serve, led me to to become a lawyer than the last song.

03:23 There's a case that I keep inside my desk all the time. It was when the first police Riot occurred in Baltimore after the Vinny brothers, were so up, from killing a policeman in 1965. So that, that is a daily reminder. I think of certain why lawyers are an important part of the of society, since we're in this business, what he considered to be the most important when working with vulnerable in March and I spoke. So that we sir.

03:56 I think for me the most important thing that I try and remember and keep for most is that I always learn more from the clients and end to it. Then then anything else in the relationship, you know, I try to do my best to be an advocate when I'm supervising other lawyers to do my best, but really the type to teach us so much to teach us about resilience. They teach us about bravery about survival skills about what we need in order to be good advocates in the courtroom. They're the experts on their own communities on the problems and their communities and on the solutions supposed problem. And when we try and start our own judgment about that, I think it becomes troubling. And so I just tried always remember to keep the phone number of the marginalized clients at the Forefront. How about you? What what do you think is the most important when working with them? Most important thing is to grab myself and listen.

04:49 Listen to, If you could do it all over again, would you still be a lawyer or would you be a doctor over at Hopkins? Or would you choose something totally different?

04:58 I think I'd probably still be a lawyer. I think engineering over the years, has become sort of a, an interesting sidelight, the whole aspect of architecture for a while in high school. I thought I was going to Baltimore Polytechnic. So I thought I thought that might be a thing to do, but I never got to Polly and, you know, the engineer was sort of went by the wayside.

05:24 Any guiding principles that you have throughout life?

05:30 In principle.

05:33 By my passion, my creativity, you know, to not lose that. I think we can get really. I can get at least really caught up in the busyness of things and distracted by a to-do list, but to really follow both of my personal life into my professional life. What when I'm passionate about, when I'm passionate about advocating for and end-to-end to push, that back to the Forefront and ends in my personal life, whether it be my family, my friends exercise, really making sure that I keep keep that my priorities. And then just also always to focus on compassion that we really never know what other people are going through an end to try. And remember that no matter if you're dealing with someone in a grocery store or out in the general public or here is an attorney. We don't really know what miles. Their shoes have walked. And so we need to meet with passion and everything else should fall in line behind that. How about you any guiding principles as I would want to be treated? That's number one. The second is I adopted.

06:33 There was a

06:36 Hospital administrator. I got to know very well. Who is the chief of a major Hospital in this area? And he approaches things as if how would you want your daughter to be treated? So I've tried to approach things from that, others other perspective that way as well.

06:58 Any personal regrets in terms of your career?

07:09 Remarkable career with amazing opportunities. That's far. I would say, I always add Apple to the idea of getting a degree in social work and it was a special child psychology, summer, camping work, and, and work here with children at legal aid, representing them and a lot of friends who are child, psychologists and social workers, and the social worker. Before she, I left my sister night full time. And I, and I have a lot of of my dad's work, as I put a lot of my mom's compassion and social work skills. And so I kind of regret a little bit. I didn't go for that dual degree in.

07:49 How about you? The only regret I think was the inability to do foreign travel, even though I had a just a few opportunities and the other was I did not pursue becoming a law clerk for judge and I probably should have pursued that. That was one thing. I think I may have we'll meet in in terms of the career that I met wanted to pursue. But other than that no regrets.

08:22 Best advice you've ever received.

08:26 Gangnam Style.

08:32 I was always the kid that really, like, if I got an a-minus, it wasn't really quite good enough cuz it wasn't an egg for my own perspective and my dad was like, you know, it doesn't matter what it is. If it was the best you could do. It doesn't matter at all and same like softball. Like I I wouldn't I was not a softball star, spoiler alert and he would say doesn't matter. That's the best you could do the best you could do. That was awesome. And so we would always like, you know get cakes and stuff to celebrate not individual achievements, which is just doing our best. And so I think that's probably good advice that I try and live by. How about you best advice?

09:06 Probably used to be a automobile, dealership in Baltimore call Chesapeake Cadillac. They sold, you know, obviously Cadillac automobiles. They were the largest Cadillac dealer in the state. And I worked there for two summers, moving cars around. And most of the gentleman who I worked with were older and they hadn't gone to school and they supported me greatly. Just in terms of that. Are you really learning how to drive and secondly, urging me to continue my education?

09:48 And they did it in a way. That was extraordinary, really has Porter. And so very much appreciate that about eight men to

09:59 Wise beyond their years.

10:01 How about some of the special guests? What's the most special gift you've ever received?

10:09 My two sons.

10:12 So precious.

10:15 I love that.

10:18 How about yourself by trying to think? I probably I represented. I hear it legal aid of family of children. I represented all six children under the age of 7 for 4 years, in a really litigious. Battle is really hard fought and they end up having an amazing success story and I kept in touch with them. And they gave me a starfish necklace, match. The story about the person who's walking on the beach and was throwing starfish, back into the sea one, at a time. And and someone said, you know, you're not going to be able to do that summer going to die and he's like, well, it made a difference to that one. And so each of the kids wrote me a letter about how it made a difference them the advocacy and and and they they call me there, starfish lawyer, and we've kept in touch. It's been an almost 7 8 years now, so I, so am I, and I always wear that when I have a tough day in court, or at work to remind me that it'll make a difference to that person.

11:15 Right, right.

11:17 How about the most influential person in your life?

11:22 Deceased or living.

11:24 Yeah.

11:27 My parents have had a very strong influence in my life, but probably might my men. Charged. I grew up where volunteering working as a kid and then an adult in the 4-H program focused on Youth Development skills, in leadership and Denise was my mentor and that program has been a lot of time together from when I was about twelve years old, all, the way. She passed away at age, 45 of cancer, on the day that I got a promotion here at legal aids. And, and I was with her when she passed, and she taught me a lot of things about being a leader about listening, and she was much better listener than I am. So I'm always always trying to use that influence that she had to be better at that.

12:14 Not you, who is the most influential person in your life? I would probably follow you and I think the parents have been extraordinary. Li at the, at the center was probably a high school teacher and Coach Redmond finis. Who was a Maryland? Kind of Wonder child. He was a Princeton graduate, and he was one of the few people that was a football All-American as well, as a little cross All-American. The only other person who did that was the famous Jim Brown of completely Browns. And one day I did have the chance to meet you and brown in Baltimore and he remembered my high school coach. The other was probably Jose RC Howard. Who was the judge here in Baltimore for a number of years.

13:05 The last was probably my first client, a gentleman. I had law school who was a car seat from South Boston? Who did not like me at first, but we got to know one another and he was very instructive as my first client, even though he disobeyed my advice and escaped from prison called me up.

13:31 Oh, that's awesome. Time. I want one, is one of your proudest moments.

13:38 I think watching the my two sons graduate from college each of them in addition to their birth. I mean that was a that was a big day for each of them and then enter in Turley for me.

13:53 Yeah, I bet well.

13:57 How much is self?

13:59 Proud moment.

14:02 I have a couple probably that it's hard to pick from the conclusion of that case. I referred to earlier was a pretty proud moment for fashion Ali. I personally, I was with my sister, when both of my nephews were born for the duration of that and she's, she's a tough cookie. And I was pretty amazing to be a part of and myself. I have had a number of house challenges and was able to run a marathon recently. And so I'm finishing those marathons, but we're pretty big deals for me.

14:31 Biggest fear.

14:36 So not having enough time. I think just in general. I think that I have so many dreams and goals, and passions, and Ambitions and people that I want to connect with, you know, right? I think that the days are may be long, but the years are short and just not having enough time with those that I love and and don't come with my goals is probably my biggest fear. How about you? Well, same just like yourself, but you're really off through I guess the end of last year, but my biggest concern at this point is mostly because of the pandemic, a lack of time with grandchildren.

15:20 What would you tell your your twenty-year-old self?

15:25 Oh, not to worry so much. That's pretty easy for me to have that answer. I am no worry about how things will turn out and how your career will turn out and you'll make the right choices and in the right spots and I know it it all works out and having more days and less fearful or sure, is what I would tell my twenty-year-old self. How about you? What would you tell your 20 year olds?

15:48 I guess a combination of things.

15:52 You know, mostly as is to try to stay focused. It was very hard because believe it or not. The military draft was still in process. Yeah, there are a lot of imponderables but I think a lot of it was simply to slow down and try to focus when I tell myself I'm to, where do you see yourself in 5 years?

16:23 5 years, I hopefully here still at legal aid professionally. I definitely working still fighting the good fight for your Justice for low-income marylanders and four children living in in tough situations for sure. Hopefully, still running marathons exercising and a little bit better balance than I have now between my personal in my professional life and and figuring that out. Hope we can move the needle a little bit and the next and the next five years on that. How about you five years down because of that balance, you know, I hope to whoever had the additional time with the grandchildren and to be healthy.

17:09 Beyond.

17:11 That's a great goal. Thank you for sharing so much with me and that been great to learn more interesting exercise. You came at the right time.