That’s all Denise Caraballo asked of people as she reflected on winning the Distinguished Citizen Award from the University of Arizona Alumni Association. The award honors alumni who have distinguished service in nonprofit organizations or other outstanding volunteer services.
“I was just really surprised,” Caraballo said of receiving the award, which she was presented with Friday. “I just kept thinking about everybody else that does this job, really the piece that I do is very small compared to the whole machine.”
 Denise Caraballo receives the University of Arizona South Distinguished Citizen Award for 2008 from the University of Arizona South Dean Skip Jubb on Friday. Carballo is the Benson and Willcox regional manager of the Juvenile Court Services. (Ed Honda-Herald/Review) |
Caraballo is the regional manager in charge of the Benson and Willcox juvenile probation offices, where she supervises and mentors juvenile probation officers, a position she once held.
Caraballo made her way into her position starting first in the Army, where she was a Spanish linguist and translator. She then became a state-certified police officer in North Carolina. But her eyes were always set on Arizona.
“My goal just all the way throughout was just to get back here and graduate from the University of Arizona,” she said.
Caraballo graduated from University of Arizona South as an Outstanding Academic Achievement Honoree in 1996 with a degree in political science. From there, she worked in programming for troubled youth in Douglas, Bisbee, Sierra Vista, Benson and Willcox.
She was also the first victim rights coordinator that Cochise County Juvenile Court Services had, and from there made her way to a juvenile probation officer.
“To be honest, I am a product of that system here in Cochise County,” Caraballo said. “I did have a broken family situation and thankfully it all worked out for the best.”
Caraballo said she received a lot of help as she was growing up, and feels like her career has put her full circle.
“There are a lot of things that the kids have gone through that I can identify with,” she said.
But the thought of receiving an award for her life’s dedication to serving others isn’t something the humble recipient believed was necessary.
“I get paid for what I do,” she said. “To me, I feel like I’m very lucky to be working in the field that I do. There is a lot of talent and a lot of hard work by a lot of people in our department that’s going unnoticed.”
She said she wants “recognition for the other juvenile probation officers out there.”
“Their efforts deserve recognition,” she said.
Skip Jubb, associate vice president and dean of UAS, said it’s always great to see graduates recognized. “We’re proud of our graduates,” he said. “They all make important contributions to the communities they settle in.”
Herald/Review reporter Katie Evans can be reached at 515-4611.
