ACRS Tabling Event on April 19th

[H&R Block? Come on. I mean, I don't even know what they do!]

Hey folks, on April 19th we need one  volunteer to help us table at an event sponsored by the Asian Counseling and Referral Service. Here are the details:

What: "The Children, Youth & Families Program, specifically the Teen Peer Advocate Program (TPAP), is hosting a youth event to promote awareness and provide resources on issues surrounding sexual assault, sexual harassment, and dating violence. We are expecting 75 youth, and the target audience is middle and high school young men and women.  It is also open to interested parents and other adults." 
When: Tuesday, April 19th, 2011. From 10am-11am (short commitment!)

If you like to engage youth about these important issues, this is the event for you. You'll be there with our Prevention Educator extraordinaire, Rebecca Goldberg. Contact me in the comments or by email to sign up!

Extree, Extree - Volunteer Newsletter!

[March Madness]

Volunteer Training!
Our next volunteer training starts on May 3rd. If there are trainings that you’ve missed in the past or some you’d like to take again as a refresher, take a look at the listing below. Let me know which you’ll be attending. As always, the trainings are Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6-9pm at our admin conference room.

May 3rd – Welcome! DV 101
May 5th – Teen Dating Violence and Boundaries
May 10th – Help Line I
May 12th – Help Line II
May 17th – Kids, Teens and DV
May 19th – Legal Advocacy
May 24th – Creating Social Justice I
May 26th – Creating Social Justice II
May 31st – Chemical Dependency and DV
June 2nd – Help Line Revisited and Topic TBD
June 7th – Suicide Intervention and Shelter Life
June 9th – Survivor’s Panel, Potluck and In Her Shoes

February Volunteer of the Month! - Ally Jurkovich

[All right meow, hand over your license and registration]

Hey folks, we're very proud to announce our February Volunteer of the Month winner - Ally Jurkovich! Ally has been with New Beginnings for about a year volunteering on New Beginnings' 24 Hour Help Line as well as speaking at fundraisers, hosting an information booth as well as slew of other volunteer duties. Here's what some of our staff had to say about her:

It has been inspiring to watch Ally as a volunteer. Her passion to be involved in this work was evident from day one in volunteer training. She embodies the term fearlessness and is always ready to step up especially in new and innovative ways. We are fortunate to have Ally and her wonderful spirit volunteering at NB...Ally has been volunteering on our helpline for about a year now.  She works two mornings a week, and she always brings a bright smile and her amazing positive energy.  Sometimes she even brings the latest issue of People Magazine!!  In addition to just being totally cool, Ally is also amazing at answering calls on our helpline.  She provides survivors with a calm, listening ear and always makes sure that their needs are met before ending the phone call.  We appreciate Ally’s smiling face and her warm heart, and she brings so much to our agency.  We are lucky to have her with us twice a week!

Q: Who are you and what do you do outside of New Beginnings?
A: My name is Allison Jurkovich but everyone calls me Ally :) I'm 23 and have been living in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood for the past two years. I graduated from Occidental College in Los Angeles in 2009 with a degree in Gender Studies and am looking forward to starting graduate school this fall! I'm currently working part time as a nanny until I start school for my MA in Social Work. I'm in the middle of trying to figure out what school and which city I will be in, but really excited for the future!

That's Pretty Low

[It's like the kids at the Sea-Tac airport who harass passersby asking for "donations" for a local school]

Hey folks, a word from our Executive Director about a current scam going around:

A group calling itself Project Reach (led by Minister Herman Akins) is soliciting cash donations for domestic violence. They are currently operating on Whidbey Island, but I expect will be operating in other areas in the future, since they are advertising themselves as a statewide group. A complaint has made to the Attorney General’s office, and one of the local TV stations that did an investigation on a similar-sounding group a few years ago is starting another investigation.


Since the group is listing New Beginnings as a resource, I wanted to make sure that you knew that New Beginnings is not soliciting donations door-to-door or in parking lots, nor are we the recipient of such donations.

Please let me know if you receive any calls on the Help Line regarding the group, or if you spot them in Seattle.

Yikes. Say it with me now, That's Pretty Low!

International Women's Day 2011

[Mark your calendars]

Hey folks, wishing everyone a Happy International Women's Day tomorrow! New Beginnings' offices will be closed in observance. Our staff meeting/training is also moved to the 22nd so stay tuned for that training topic.

Check out their official site to learn more. It's a bit slow navigating through their pages but maybe that's just my connection? It's like using AOL back in the 56k modem days.

Spring/Summer Volunteer Training is Set!

[It's time to buy chips and salsa]

The staple of New Beginnings volunteer training is that we serve chips and salsa while volunteers are encouraged to bring snacks and drinks. You don't realize how good of a snack chips and salsa is until it's there in front of you every day and you just end up eating it all the time.

Anyways, our Spring/Summer volunteer training is set! Training goes from May 3rd to June 9th, every Tuesday and Thursday from 6-9pm.

Topics for each training are forthcoming. Remember to tell your friends if they're interested in becoming a volunteer!

Community Vigil for victims of domestic violence

Hey folks, we'll be at Asian and Pacific Islander Safety Center's Community Vigil on Thursday.

Please join us for the Community Vigil for Victims of Domestic Violence.

The 16th annual Vigil, organized by the Safety Center, serves to commemorate all victims of domestic violence, but is focused primarily on the slayings of Susana Remerta Blackwell, her unborn daughter, and Phoebe Dizon and Veronica Laureta, friends of Susana who were there to support her in the King County Courthouse on March 2, 1995. On that day, as they waited in the courthouse for Susana's divorce proceedings, her estranged husband entered the building, shooting and killing all of them.

When: March 3, 2011, 4pm - 6pm

Where: King County Courthouse Lawn, 3rd Avenue & Yestler Street, downtown Seattle

We at the Safety Center have committed ourselves to holding an annual candlelight Vigil to remember these women and others whose lives have been destroyed by violence. The Vigil will be followed by a reception and cultural performances to inspire community members to take action in their own lives to prevent domestic violence and sexual assault. Our Vigil is supported by local judges, politicians, police officers, lawyers, businesses, and most importantly the community at large.

The Vigil begins outside the King County Courthouse, then moves inside. Refreshments will be provided.

Hope to see you there.