Bio for Joyce Boaz, Executive Director of Gift From Within, as published on this page in 2019.
Joyce Boaz founded Gift from Within in 1993 and has been the Executive Director ever since, transforming an idea into a robust reality, an organization that serves people touched by trauma and human cruelty.
A graduate of Queens College in New York City and a resident of Camden, Maine, she has owned and operated a greeting card business, volunteered at local soup kitchens, and learned the craft of documentary film making on the staff of the Emmy Award winning company, Varied Directions International. In 1995 a film based upon her idea and talent won the AMA film festival first place award in the category, “Prevention and Training.” The video, ER: LIFE ON THE EDGE, ran for a year on public television, and is currently used to train trauma center medical staff. Joyce Boaz’s philosophy is to respect those who have survived catastrophic stress and to help them help themselves and others.