Thank You HopeLine Verizon For Your Excellent Work

I recently bought an IPhone at my local Verizon Store and since they were out of stock they said they would send it to me.  A few days later it arrived in the mail along with this mailer for my old cell phone.

I was pleasantly surprised and immediately wanted to know more about Verizon’s HopeLine® program.  In visiting their website I learned that the program began in 2001 and since that time they have collected 8 million phones.  They have distributed 106,000 phones with 319 million minutes of free wireless service to victims of domestic violence.  Other phones have been refurbished and sold for reuse generating income for the program.  They provide domestic violence organizations and local government and law enforcement agencies donated phones for use with domestic violence clients.

I also found it interesting to know that if donated phones are not useable they are recycled in an environmentally sound way.  They are clearly fulfilling their mission of “turning no-longer used cell phones into support for domestic violence victims and survivors.”

I’ll be sending in my old cell phone and encourage others to donate their old cell phones to Verizon.

The Crisis Center of Northern New Mexico

As a Northern New Mexico organization committed to raising public awareness about women’s striving to overcome abuse we are always eager to learn of local organizations making an impact in the community.  In November, Board Member Lynette Montoya and I visited The Crisis Center of Northern New Mexico in Espanola, New Mexico.

The mission of The Crisis Center is “to educate people to make positive choices that help build and sustain healthy families and a violence free environment.”  They offer a variety of programs: an emergency shelter that operates 24/7; individual and group therapy; and educational programs.  Executive Director. Carol Merriweather suggested we meet with Ramon Garcia, their outreach coordinator.

We were very impressed with Ramon’s enthusiasm and dedication to his work.  In particular he described how The Crisis Center has partnered with the Espanola School District distributing DVD’s advocating for a violence free home.  We look forward to keeping in touch with Ramon and his work with The Crisis Center.

Healing Voices – Personal Stories Receives Grant from LANL Foundation

We are pleased to have just received a small community grant from the Los Alamos National Laboratory Foundation for our first interview of abuse survivors leading productive lives as role models for domestic violence victims.  The interviews, as completed, will be aired on Canal Seis, a community broadcast station serving Espanola and surrounding areas as well as other media outlets. Ten interviews are planned in all and while they will be aired separately they will also be edited into one documentary.

Our goal, particularly in this first project, is to provide motivation through film for domestic violence victims to move to healthier productive lives.

Filmmaker David Lindbolm who teaches in the Film/Digital Media Arts Department of Northern New Mexico College in Espanola will be directing the film working closing with Healing Voices – Personal Stories Board of Directors.  The first interview will be filmed in January and ready for airing by the end of February.

We are most grateful to the LANL Foundation and individual contributors who have helped to make this project possible.  If you would like to donate please click here!

CRIME AFTER CRIME – Outstanding Documentary Broadcast premiere on November 3rd on OWN

Healing Voices – Personal Stories is very excited to help spread the word about this outstanding documentary which will receive its Television premiere on OWN (Oprah Winfrey’s Network) on Thursday Evening, November 3, 2011 at 9 pm (eastern time) as part of OWN’s Documentary Film Club.

I saw the Film at a screening in Santa Fe and was very moved by it and cannot recommend it enough.  The film tells the story of two pro bono attorneys who wage an epic legal battle to free Deborah Peagler from prison, 20 years after she was sentenced for the murder of the man who abused her.

It has been shown at a number of film festivals and regularly wins prizes.  Please visit Crime After Crime’s website  for a list of festivals and prizes.

Please help spread the word and encourage others to watch it.  In fact you could even host a viewing party and the filmmaker has developed a Home Viewing and Community Action Guide which you can also download at the website.

The film is extremely well-made telling a moving story and is not to be missed!!

Sins By Silence Broadcast Follow Up

According to Director/Producer Olivia Klaus over 2 million viewers watched Sins By  Silence when it premiered on Discovery ID channel earlier this month.  I was glad to see it again and impressed with how well it documents the story of Convicted Women Against Abuse and how they were able to make a change in California.  Klaus recently sent out an email making suggestions on how we can follow up and be advocates for change and helping the women in prison with inappropriate sentences.  Here are some suggestions:

SHARE THE FILM with those who weren’t able to see it or if you haven’t seen it here it where to buy it:  

http://www.SinBySilence.com/Buy

JOIN THEIR OUR FACEBOOK PAGE to stay connected and join the discussion:  

http://www.Facebook.com/SinBySilence

WRITE TO THE WOMEN OF CWAA:  

http://www.sinbysilence.com/blog/articles/ways-to-help-a-friend/write-to-the-women-of-cwaa/

SIGN THE PETITION TO FREE THE WOMEN OF CWAA and let legislators know that these women deserve to be free: 

http://www.change.org/petitions/the-governor-of-ca-free-the-convicted-women-against-abuse

JOIN LITTLE BLACK DRESS SOCIETY and continue awareness activities:
http://www.LBDsociety.com  (enter “SIINBYSILENCE” as the promo code to receive a free DVD)

Story Teller Regina Ress Delights Guests at September 1st Event

The highlight of our Inaugural Event in Santa Fe was the insightful program of New York based professional story teller Regina Ress. She began by sharing with us that while personal stories are very powerful she hangs out in the metaphors of traditional stories and that this evening she would be sharing stories that evoke the theme and issues related to Healing Voices – Personal Stories: how to journey out of abuse, how to say no and how to help those in need.

Her first story was a traditional Grimm’s Fairy Tale featuring a Princess and Old Rinkrank.  When the Princess falls down into a cave and becomes a servant to Rinkrank she forgets who she is and even her own name.  The story ends with her learning to say “no” and finding her voice.   Next she shared a portion of an epic from Borneo featuring a mother crocodile who couldn’t lay her eggs and her husband who asks for help from a tribe’s woman.  Crocodiles are very dangerous animals and yet the woman helped by listening and birthing the new.  The story illustrated choices made when your worst enemy is at your door and that sometimes to get unstuck one needs someone to listen.

A Haitian folk tale featuring the character of Tapingi engaged the audience in learning and chanting several lines and demonstrated how important the community can be in helping save a young girl.  Regina concluded with a short Norwegian story about a woman seeking light in her house and how “to have light you have to be open to it.”

Thank you Regina for a thoughtful program.

 

Join us for Inaugural Event in Santa Fe

Join us for your Inaugural Event in Santa Fe!

Her Story, Your Story, Our Story: Making Connections

Featuring Award Winning Storyteller Regina Ress.

September 1 from 5 to 7

Call 505-982-3451 for details.