In 2018, Aimee Goddard became an adoptive parent. The learning experience led her to create a foster care ministry, become an advocate in her community for children in the foster care system, and ultimately became a foster parent, too.

As a long-time attorney, when Aimee saw a posting for an attorney at Legal Aid of WV (LAWV), she thought it would be a perfect fit and applied.

That position was for a partnership with Aetna health insurance, designed so legal needs for Aetna members could be addressed directly by an attorney. Within that, Aimee did a lot of advocacy for children in foster care, particularly those experiencing abuse and neglect.

“As the Aetna attorney I most often worked within the abuse and neglect process, but generally as counsel for foster parents or relatives seeking intervention and placement,” Aimee explains. “I was often disappointed by the guardian ad litem’s efforts to protect vulnerable children.

“When the opportunity came up in October 2025, I applied to be the project supervisor for the new guardian ad litem program, aptly named ‘Voices for Kids.’”

Within the project, Aimee now oversees a team of 10 attorneys and 2 paralegals spread across LAWV’s offices.

“Over the last few months, I have worked with management to build the program and to ensure that my team is properly trained and prepared to handle the representation of children in abuse and neglect cases. These children deserve strong advocates who will fight for them throughout the process.”

Voices for Kids also has an arm dedicated to preventing abuse and neglect. This operates similar to other LAWV programs that address legal needs families have that can put children and families into crisis.

Beyond her work at LAWV, Aimee also reaches out to families through her “foster closet.” Through this, she provides necessary items like clothing to children in foster or kinship care (living with a non-parent relative as their caregiver).

“My family is wonderful and has been supportive. My husband recently agreed to move the foster closet into his law office, and he regularly goes with me to pick up donations or drop off large items to families,” Aimee says. “My kids know how much my work means to me, too, and have always been very supportive.”

Aimee’s home office at LAWV is in Clarksburg, where she has a found family similarly dedicated to service.

“No offense to other offices, but I think Clarksburg is simply the best,” she says. “We are like a family, and each of us as a heart for service. My own family and my Legal Aid family often provide meals and support for Friends Feeding Friends, a non-profit that provides a large weekly meal for the unhoused and disadvantaged members of our community.”

Outside of work, Aimee is equally busy.

Though she admits she wouldn’t call it free time, her non-work time is spent at pub trivia, participating in fantasy football, bible study, cooking and baking, and traveling around her area to support her children’s various endeavors.

“Honestly, I love my job, and I appreciate my Legal Aid family,” says Aimee. “Doing this work has opened my eyes to the everyday difficulties in our communities. At LAWV, our programs help stabilize families and strengthen communities by making the legal system work for EVERYONE!”