A Farewell Message from Allie Bones

11 years.  So much has changed in the last 11 years.  Barack Obama hadn't even been elected President of the United States yet when I first started at the Coalition.  I had a not quite 2-year-old, and he was my only child.  We were the Arizona Coalition Against Domestic Violence, and we had 11 staff in the offices off of Bethany Home, with the turtles and the ducks outside.  It was most definitely a different time.
 
When I think back on these last 11 years, though, the thing that comes to mind the most is the people.  The work has been transformative, there is no question about that, to both my life and to the organization.  But the hundreds, if not thousands of people that I have had the chance to meet, work with, laugh with, cry with, lament with, collaborate/conspire with, celebrate with (and for), and yes, even argue with are what keep coming up in my mind.  And if you are reading this newsletter, and this message, there is a good chance that you were one of those people. 
 
Last Thursday, the staff of the Coalition honored me at my last public appearance as CEO of the Coalition, at the first ever Statewide Sexual Violence Prevention Conference (this whole post could be just about the fact that THAT happened, but I digress). The whole thing was so moving - the words and the gift obviously meaningful and which I will forever cherish, but the fact that all of the staff wanted to publicly say thank you, in front of so many of the people I have had the honor of doing this work with for so many years, was moving beyond ways I have words for.  I knew there was applause, and that people were standing, and I was so overwhelmed by the love and support of so many people.  I wanted to say thank you, but at the moment I couldn't speak, mainly because I was crying, but really because I was filled with so much love and gratitude.  
 
So, THANK YOU, from the bottom of my heart. I take all of you with me into my new role at the state.  I am excited to get to work for the people of Arizona in a role that I couldn't have imagined a little over a month ago.  It is obviously a big change, but I take all of your love and support with me as start this next chapter in my career.
 
I am excited for the future of ACESDV.  The Board has selected Tasha Menaker and Juana Galeno to be Co-CEOs of the Coalition for this next phase in it's nearly 40 year history.  Creating a shared leadership model is a reflection of the Coalition's values around equity and dismantling systems of power and control.  Really, it is an outward declaration of an inward reality - we have been practicing shared leadership in many ways, big and small, and this allows the organization to truly live into it.  I know that Juana and Tasha will put in the work to ensure that the Coalition's members, partners, stakeholders, funders, donors and the public at large know that there is strong leadership at work.  They know and live the mission of ACESDV just as I have, and I have the utmost confidence in their passion and commitment to continue to lead the organization in a transformative way.  I can't wait to see where the Coalition goes next.  I know under their leadership that the organization will continue to do great work throughout the state!
 
At some point, I need to bring this to a close, so now is as good as any.  I have appreciated all the warm thoughts, notes, emails, cards, gifts, special surprises (there was an awesome "swearing out" ceremony in Seattle that I will never forget), hugs (especially the hugs) and shared tears over these last several weeks.  You all certainly know how to let a person know they are loved.  I am proud of all we have done together over these last 11 years. 

Thank you for being a part of my Beloved Community,

 
Allie Bones
ACESDV CEO, 2008-2019
Winter 2019 - IN THIS ISSUE:
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Announcement from the Board of Directors
Dear Trust Partners and Supporters,
 
It is with a mix of sadness and gratitude that we say farewell to our friend and fearless leader, Allie Bones.  For over a decade, Allie has served on the frontline and has fought tirelessly for victims and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.  She has been a voice for the voiceless, an advocate for allies, and she has opened the hearts and minds of the political and business community. Her legacy in this space will carry on through the ACESDV staff and our two Co-CEOs Juana Galeno and Tasha Menaker.  
 
On behalf of the The Arizona Coalition to End Sexual & Domestic Violence Board of Directors, we congratulate Allie and we wish her tremendous success in her new endeavor. 
 
Christina Martinez, Board Chair
Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence
Meet Our New Co-CEO's

Juana Galeno joined ACESDV in July 2010 as a temporary employee to fulfill the job of Administrative Assistant/Bookkeeper. In January 2011 Juana was hired as the full time Administrative Assistant/Bookkeeper, by July 2012 Juana was promoted to Finance and Administration Manager and subsequently to Chief Financial Officer in May 2018. Juana oversees all internal administration, including finance, human resources, office administration, and grant management. In January of 2017 Juana became a certified professional accountant with concentration in nonprofit and government. Juana is a member of ACESDV Leadership Team and the staff Liaison of ACESDV Communities of Color Committee (COCC) Juana is also a member of ALAS a national Latinx-led membership network of victim advocates working to address and prevent sexual violence and currently participates in the Communities of Color Leadership Cohort that is led by the National Sexual Assault Coalition Resource Sharing Project. Juana lives in South Phoenix and is very involved in her community with conversations about sexual and domestic violence, racism, oppression and the challenges and barriers that communities of color face on a daily basis. Juana shares her home with her husband and her two dogs. Juana's native language is Spanish.

Tasha Menaker, Ph.D.  started at the Coalition in May 2015 as the Forensic Nurse Coordinator. She transitioned to Sexual Violence Response Manager later that year and was promoted to Director of Sexual Violence Response Initiatives in 2016. In these roles, Tasha provided training and technical assistance to sexual assault responders and service providers across Arizona, and assisted communities with developing sexual assault response teams and forensic nursing programs. She became the Coalition's Chief Strategy Officer in 2018, where she was responsible for grant management, overseeing day-to-day operations, and ensuring initiatives aligned with ACESDV's mission and strategic goals. Tasha has an MA in Clinical Psychology and a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice, and has been conducting research on sexual and domestic violence and trafficking since 2005. She has five years of experience doing psychological assessments and counseling in Texas, and has published a book chapter and several peer-reviewed journal articles on gendered violence, with particular focus on correlates of victim blame. Tasha is passionate about social and gender justice and community consciousness-raising, and enjoys reading, traveling, and hiking.
Simple Ways to  Support ACESDV
Fry's Community Rewards - Did you know you can support ACESDV just by shopping at Fry's? It's easy when you enroll in Fry's Community Rewards. To get started or to double check if you're card is linked to ACESDV, sign up with your VIP Card via the instructions here, and select our organization to support. Once you're enrolled, you'll earn rewards for the Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence every time you shop and use your VIP Card. Last quarter, your  Community Rewards points gave ACESDV nearly $200 ! Thank you for those who are already shopping at Fry's in support of our organization!

 

A mazonSmile -  Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Arizona Coalition To End Sexual And Domestic Violence whenever you shop on AmazonSmile. AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know. Same products, same prices, same service.  Sign up here  to support ACESDV while you shop on Amazon. 

Thank you for your support!
ACESDV Welcomes New Staff!

Danielle Wright
is the Victim Services Manager for the Helpline at the Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence.  She has a Bachelor's in Psychology from the City University of New York at York College.  She previously worked at UMOM New Days Centers for 12 years and provided direct services to survivors/homeless families and supported staff through supervision and empowerment.  She has experience in grant reporting and compliance through managing DES, OVW and VOCA domestic violence grants.  Joining the leadership team has afforded Danielle the opportunity to continue to assist survivors indirectly through staff support and empowerment.
 

Nora Espino
is a Bilingual Victim Services Specialist in the Helpline at the Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence. She has a Bachelor's in Social Work from the Arizona State University. She previously was an AmeriCorps member serving at the Arizona Immigrant and Refugee Services providing case management and also helping create a Women's Empowerment group. After her year of service, she applied for another AmeriCorps member position and served it at the Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence. She was involved in the Coalition's Annual Thrive Gala and helped collect donations for the fundraising event. After the Thrive Gala, Nora joined the Helpline and continued her passion for helping victims/survivors in the form of direct service.
Sex Turned Up


Starting conversations that matter with the people in your life. When it comes to affection, sex and sexuality, we all have boundaries - the lines that define where we stop being comfortable and start feeling uneasy. Boundaries are tricky because they're invisible. And because they're unique to each of us. One person's idea of a joke can be another person's hurtful insult.

Sex Turned Up is a campaign to start conversations with the people that matter in your life about where your lines lie, and what is and isn't ok.

It's about talking, and it's about listening. And it starts now.


Communities of Color Committee
The Communities of Color continues to meet the second Wednesday of every other month. The Communities of Color exist to create advocate support systems and to increase awareness within communities of color; by collaborating with various agencies to create one voice to end sexual and domestic violence, and to create a safe space for communities of color to have a voice, as well as to have meaningful conversations, collaborations and resource sharing.  The committee also engages in conversations that deal with issues of racism, prejudice and discrimination. The Communities of Color Committee welcomes advocates of Asian/Pacific Islander, Arab/Middle-Eastern, Black/African, Native/Indigenous and Hispanic/Latinx descent, as well as Immigrant Communities and Refugee Communities. For more information please contact Juana Galeno at [email protected]. The next Communities of Color Committee meeting will be on Wednesday, March 13th, 11am-1pm at the Coalition office.
Allstate Moving Ahead Through Financial Management Update
The Purple Purse fundraising challenge happened in October. We are excited to report that we raised over $500 from this fundraiser. Thank you to all the wonderful supporters who contributed. We are hopeful that next October we can fundraise double that money!

During the final months of 2018, we have been busy planning for the next Financial Empowerment webinar series that will take place in early 2019. This train-the-trainer curriculum is perfect for service providers looking to facilitate this course for survivors while also honing their own financial management skills. Stay tuned for dates.
S.H.A.R.E. Survivors Committee & Speakers Bureau
The S.H.A.R.E. (Strength, Hope, Respect and Education) Committee has been meeting monthly except for December of 2018. This is a committee for survivors of sexual and/or domestic violence who are ready to explore ways to get more involved in the work of the Coalition. There are 15 - 20 survivors that meet regularly to network, talk about current issues, discuss challenges and successes and expand their support systems. The Speakers Bureau was very busy in 2018 especially during October. We delivered many Survivor Speaker Panel Presentations to ASU, at the Sexual Violence Core Advocacy Training, the Sharing Experience, Paradise Valley Police Department to name a few. We are having a Survivor Speaker's Bureau training on Saturday, February 9th, 2019. Please see additional information here. For more information on either committee please contact Doreen Nicholas at [email protected].
Men Against Patriarchy and Oppression (MAPO) Committee Updates
Men Against Patriarch & Oppression is a space for men to actively engage in challenging societal norms and stereotypical ideals of masculinity and create innovative solutions for positive culture change. MAPO will resume meeting monthly at the end of January and discuss its 2019 strategic agenda. The agenda includes engagement goals, committee objectives and activities for the entire year. This year, MAPO will focus on a message of "Intention vs. Impact". This messaging will have heavy influences from "We Are the Work", both a book and a concept which centers men stopping violence. Additionally, the theme of the 2019 Arizona Sexual Violence Prevention Conference is "Moving our Communities Upstream". These two themes heavily influence this year's MAPO's strategic agenda. The first two meetings of the year will be held on the fourth Monday of the month (January 28th & February 25th) all subsequent meetings will be held on the 3rd Monday of the month beginning in March. Please check acesdv.org for meeting dates and times. This group is for male and masculine identifying persons, should you wish to participate, please contact Jamal Brooks-Hawkins at [email protected]. If you would like to be put on the email distribution list, to receive updates and meeting minutes, please contact Jamal as well.
Gender and Sexual Minority Committee
The ACESDV Gender and Sexual Minority Committee (GSM) is entering the New Year with excitement and energy. The committee's task is to raise awareness issues of violence in the LGBTQ community, increase support systems within the sexual and domestic violence community, and collaborating with community members to end sexual and domestic violence. This year the committee will be working towards this aim through implementation of a committee developed plan centered on enhancing services for LGBTQ survivors. In addition, the committee is inviting LGBTQ organizations and stakeholders to present resources from within the community for survivors. Interested in supporting LGBTQ survivors of sexual and domestic violence? The committee meets every other month at ACESDV.

Support our work by making a donation:

2019 Thrive Gala and Awards Dinner
On Saturday, May 11, 2019 at The Scottsdale Resort at McCormick Ranch ACESDV will present the ninth annual Thrive Gala and Awards Dinner. The only one of its kind in Arizona, the Thrive Gala is designed to honor and celebrate sexual and domestic violence survivors, advocates, and allies. The evening includes a cocktail reception with a unique silent auction and raffle experience, dinner, the presentation of the state's only awards for survivors and those working to address sexual and domestic violence, with live entertainment and dancing! Nominations for the 2019 Thrive Gala Honorees are open! For more information, please visit our Thrive Event page on our website.
Domestic Violence Response Department Updates
The DV Response department was very busy the last few months of 2018. October was packed with activities making for a successful Domestic Violence Awareness Month. There were more than 25 trainings given and nearly 600 people attended.

Our partnerships with the Department of Child Safety and the Department of Child Support Services continue to be productive in training staff on domestic violence topics and appropriate survivor support. Our partnership with Arizona State University's School of Social Work/Americorps program has also been quite successful. In the fall semester, BSW and MSW students successfully completed the Domestic Violence certificate course. The DV Response team will be busy assisting ASU SSW with creating a comparable online course to cater to students needing it in the spring semester.

We are also looking forward to 2019 training opportunities! We have some solid trainings in the works for the upcoming year; please visit our training calendar for scheduled workshops, webinars, and meetings.

With that said, if there is a training need or topic that you are interested in, please let the DV Response team know. All we need is a minimum of 20 people registered to attend for us to train in your community. Visit our training request page to submit one.
AZ Gives Day

Save the Date for Arizona Gives Day on Tuesday, April 2nd! This is a day where Arizonans come together to support their favorite local nonprofits. Please visit our page  here   which will be open for pre scheduling  your donation shortly.
Public Policy Updates
The ACESDV Public Policy team works for system and legislative change that benefits survivors of sexual and domestic violence. Since the close of the last Arizona legislative session, the team has continued to work on federal issues such as Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) funding, shelter and housing funding, Rape Prevention & Education funding, the Supreme Court nomination, proposed Title IX changes and immigration justice issues. Locally, the policy department partnered with grassroots organizations, including Poder in Action, 1n10, and Trans Queer Pueblo to host a Phoenix Mayoral Forum at the Maryvale Community Center, the first mayoral forum to take place in Maryvale in 10 years. In addition the team facilitated a voter registration campaign with education, outreach, and a registration events. In addition, the team has conducted research and stakeholder outreach to determine the best policy agenda for the upcoming Arizona legislative session, which began on January 14, 2019. To view the sexual violence and domestic violence agendas, please visit us here. In addition to our proactive agenda, ACESDV has been working with partners on criminal legal reform and reproductive health justice to support these important efforts. Finally, the policy team has been facilitating educations and webinars around policy issues and getting involved in policy advocacy. Want more information? Please sign up for public policy action alerts!
Sexual Violence Response Department Updates
The Sexual Violence Response Department continues to provide training, technical assistance, and support to sexual violence responders and service providers, as well as sexual assault response teams and forensic nursing programs.

The Department hosted a variety of educational opportunities this quarter including ACESDV's 40-hour Sexual Violence Core Advocacy Training (SVCAT), a 4-hour workshop on working with men who have experienced sexual violence, a training to healthcare providers on appropriately responding to sexual assault survivors, and two trainings to correctional personnel on providing advocacy to survivors who are incarcerated or detained. The Department also trained approximately 300 students at Copper Canyon High School on sexual violence and healthy sexuality and held a community training at City Square Church on how to talk to kids and young people on sex and healthy sexuality. To request a training on any of these topics please click here.

In October, Jamal Brooks-Hawkins, Sexual Violence Prevention Coordinator, had the opportunity to present at the Unity Through Diversity Conference, Arizona Health Equity Summit, and was the keynote speaker at the Prescott Sexual Violence Awareness Conference. Victoria Riechers, Sexual Violence Response Coordinator, wrote a blog on serving immigrant survivors and participated in a panel discussion at Glory Temple Christian Church on child sexual abuse. In November, Victoria and Lindsay Ashworth, Sexual Violence Response Manager, co-hosted a webinar on serving sexual assault victims with Justice Clearing House.

Jamal continues to provide training to staff in alcohol serving establishments on how to detect sexual aggression and intervene appropriately in order to prevent sexual violence. He also attended a 5-day train-the-trainer program on implementing Green Dot. Green Dot is an empirically supported sexual and intimate partner violence prevention program for teens and young adults. If you know an alcohol serving establishment that is interested in free training for their staff or a school or community-based youth organization interested in implementing Green Dot, please contact Jamal at [email protected].

The Sexual Violence Response Department wants to bring education and awareness to your community! To learn more about how we can work together to increase service provision and support sexual assault survivors, please email Lindsay at [email protected].

Lindsay is the staff liaison to ACESDV's Community Partners Addressing Sexual Violence Committee, comprised of sexual violence responders, service providers, and educators from across the state. CPASV is an opportunity to network, share program updates and challenges, and contribute to statewide efforts to enhance services for victims and prevent sexual assault. For more information, please contact Lindsay at [email protected].
Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month
February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. For high school students, 1 in 3 of them experience physical or sexual violence or both from a dating partner (CDC). Learn more about Teen Dating Violence here. ACESDV will be posting information throughout the month on our social media. Be sure to wear orange, the awareness color of teen dating violence, on February 12, 2019 and post your picture on social media using the hashtags #Orange4Love and #TeenDVMonth. By wearing orange you are standing in solidarity with teens experiencing violence and are promoting healthy teen dating. 


Intimate Partner Homicide Project Update
ACESDV is happy to be partnering with ASU's school of Social Work and Jill Messing, PhD on the Intimate Partner Homicide project. We are continuing to work closely with medical examiner's offices to collect data assessing risk factors for intimate partner homicide and to be able to conduct interviews in the community. To reach the Intimate Partner Homicide Project Coordinator, please email [email protected] or call 602-279-2900 ext 425.
Sexual and Domestic Violence Helpline Updates
The Sexual and Domestic Violence Services Helpline provides information and guidance on a variety of legal and other sexual and domestic violence related issues in English and Spanish. The helpline also provides resources that can assist survivors, professionals, concerned family and friends.

From October - December, the Sexual and Domestic Violence Services Helpline responded to 371 requests. Of which, 303 were Helpline calls and chats, Technical Assistance calls were 68. One of these calls was a Technical Assistance call from an Advocate at a local Family Advocacy Center assisting a survivor hospitalized due to a domestic violence incident. Our Victim Services Specialist connected the advocate to a financial resource and the victim was relocated out of state to their family. A survivor that was assisted through the Helpline earlier in the year is now using their voice to advocate for victims in collaboration with the ACESDV policy department. The Helpline will be collaborating with Ability360 in February 2019 to provide an overview of the Helpline services and a specialist stationed in the Ability360 office for walk in availability.

The Helpline and chat are available Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. excluding holidays at (602) 279-2900, (800) 782-6400 and TTY (602) 279-7270. All calls are confidential. 
Chat is available through our live chat service here on our website: www.acesdv.org/get-help-now/ . Callers receive the same one-on-one, real-time, confidential support from a trained specialist as you would on the phone. Chat is available Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. excluding holidays.
Human Trafficking Awareness Month & Stalking Awareness Month
January is both Human Trafficking Awareness Month and Stalking Awareness Month. ACESDV is sharing information about both of these issues on our social media. Visit the Stalking Awareness Month page which has great information about Stalking statistics as well as social media graphics promoting the month: here. This year for  the first time, the AZ Capitol Dome was lit blue, the awareness color for human trafficking early in January to honor the month. January 11th was also named Human Trafficking Awareness Day.