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W.O.M.A.N., INC. FALL 2014 NEWSLETTER
San Francisco City Hall
lights up in purple
for Domestic Violence Awareness Month

For the second year in a row, San Francisco’s City Hall was lit bright purple to recognize the star of October’s Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The San Francisco Department on the Status of Women, the San Francisco Domestic Violence Consortium, City leaders, and over 100 community advocates from the domestic violence field gathered to watch San Francisco City Hall light up in purple for the second time in two years. W.O.M.A.N., Inc. staff members Mariya and Mary attended the event to join with the community during this recognition. The crowd wore purple glow necklaces and held signs to showcase the achievements of the Justice and Courage Oversight Panel and to indicate San Francisco’s continued commitment to ending domestic violence.
If you weren’t able to attend the event, you can watch the event here:
Mayor Lee at “Shine a Light on Domestic Violence” Domestic Violence Awareness Month Launch
Blue Shield Foundation awards W.O.M.A.N., Inc. a grant
for the statewide expansion
of the Domestic Violence Information & Referral Center

 
W.O.M.A.N., Inc. is happy to announce that the Blue Shield         Foundation will provide financial support for making the DVIRC   system accessible to even more domestic 
violence service providers across California.The project will span two years and will include building a statewide expansion sustainability plan for the DVIRC project. With additional domestic violence agencies added to the system, domestic violence advocates across California will be better able to ensure survivors can locate shelters and other vital support services in a more efficient and timely manner. 
 
We’re excited about the next phase of the Domestic Violence Information and Referral Center project, and we expect to see positive outcomes of expansion for all survivors and advocates in California.

Read more on our W.O.M.A.N., Inc. blog by clicking here 
 
W.O.M.A.N., Inc. helps survivors of domestic violence feel empowered through therapy, peer counseling, and the creation of a healthy community. Please make a donation today and join our community of supporters who impact changes in the lives of survivors of all communities.   
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W.O.M.A.N., Inc. helps survivors of domestic violence feel empowered through therapy, peer counseling, and the creation of a healthy community. Please make a donation today and join our community of supporters who impact changes in the lives of survivors of all communities.   
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Faces behind the project: Introducing the DVIRC Volunteers
 
The DVIRC now serves over 40 domestic violence service providers in California, and with Blue Shield recently awarding W.O.M.A.N., Inc. an additional two year grant to further expand the system throughout California, volunteers play a crucial part in ensuring the success of the project. Currently, W.O.M.A.N., Inc. has two very dedicated DVIRC Volunteers, Bridget and Jun, who help to ensure all the day-to-day operations of the DVIRC project are taken care of!

Bridget (left) began volunteering at W.O.M.A.N., Inc. in February 2014, while Jun (right) started in August 2014. Both of them help ensure the DVIRC Events calendar and overall community wall resources are updated with the
 latest news regarding trainings, conferences, and job postings for advocates and domestic violence information for
 survivors and advocates working in the field. They also help in creating the DVIRC newsletters that are sent to all participating DVIRC member agencies every two months. To Jun and Bridget, we would like to say thank you for all of your tremendous support! The DVIRC community owes you two a big one!
W.O.M.A.N., Inc. presents Community Education Series

On Wednesday, August 27th, the W.O.M.A.N., Inc. Outreach Team presented "Teen Dating Violence," the third part of the Summer Quarterly Community Education Series at the San Francisco Public Library. We were thrilled to welcome representatives from San Francisco Women Against Rape (SFWAR) as well as community members including mothers & daughters! The interaction session dealt specifically with domestic violence and teenagers. As we wrap up our offerings in the Community Education Series for the Summer, we want to thank all that have supported our community-minded training series thus far and welcome all to join us when we start again in October as we go out into the community to educate and provide guidance for all regarding domestic violence and its effects on everyone from the survivor to our community as a whole.
The 16th Annual Nonprofit Expo at the University
of San Francisco

by Maureen Egan, Educational Development Manager
 
On Thursday, September 4, 2014, Mariya and I attended the 16th Annual Non-Profit Expo at USF. This annual event showcases nonprofit agencies working in various areas of the community in San Francisco. 
 
Hundreds of students, faculty, and community members attended the event to learn about volunteer, internship, and job opportunities. We were able to connect with nearly 75 interested students who were eager to learn about W.O.M.A.N., Inc. It was exciting to share with each of them the history of our agency, current projects we are working on, and information about volunteer opportunities. The event provided a wonderful opportunity to meet many enthusiastic and energized people who share a common goal of helping others in the community. We look forward to making this an event we attend annually and are thankful to USF for the invitation to participate!
The Healthy Babies Act Signed into Law by Governor Brown!
 
In a hugely positive development for pregnant women--especially victims of domestic violence--on September 26, 2014 Governor Brown signed into law Assembly Bill 1579, known as the Healthy Babies Act. 

The Act, authored by Assemblymember Mark Stone, allows pregnant women to obtain CalWORKs benefits as early as the second trimester of pregnancy. CalWORKs provides income and employment opportunities which help keep pregnant women financially independent. Currently, CalWORKs assistance is not available until the third trimester of pregnancy. 
Early access to assistance can help mitigate financial pressures and ensure better health outcomes for pregnant women and their infants. In fact, domestic violence is the most common health problem among pregnant women.CalWORKs is also lifeline to safety for survivors as many applicants apply to escape abuse. Allowing pregnant women access to this resource earlier in their pregnancies will help low-income survivors of violence and their children remain independent, healthy, and safe. 

W.O.M.A.N., Inc. is also a co-sponsor of the Healthy Babies Act, and we are thrilled to see it enacted and the benefits that it will bring to pregnant survivors of domestic violence.

Read more on our W.O.M.A.N., Inc. Blog by clicking here  
W.O.M.A.N., Inc. 2015 Pet Calendar Contest!
 
This month, we celebrated the wonderful relationship between loving pet-owners and their animal friends by hosting a Pet Calendar Competition and allowing the community to send in their pet photos for the chance to be featured in our 2015 W.O.M.A.N., Inc. Pet Calendar! There were 5 spots available for community members and those whose pets were chosen will be announced the first week of November! To check out the pet submissions, visit our W.O.M.A.N., Inc. Facebook Page

If you are interesting in purchasing a calendar, 
calendar pre-sales are available by clicking here or visiting http://www.womaninc.org/PetCalendar
W.O.M.A.N., Inc. WISH LIST 
 

These items can help W.O.M.A.N., Inc. support survivors of domestic violence in a holistic and relevant manner:

  • Gift cards for Walgreens, Safeway, Ross, local restaurants, etc. – for survivors and their children who must flee without funds to supply for their basic needs.
  • Motel vouchers – for those survivors who may only need one night in a confidential location as they prepare to enter shelter, or leave town.
  • Muni Passes or Muni Passport or Muni single ride tickets
  • BART Tickets – for those survivors who don’t have transportation, but desperately need to leave San Francisco.
  • Funds for documentation reproduction, court related costs and other costly, one-time needs.
  • Gently used clothing, household appliances, and other donations can be made in W.O.M.A.N., Inc.’s name at Community Thrift, 623 Valencia, San Francisco.
  • Please follow this link to see our our full Amazon wish list.
In addition, W.O.M.A.N., Inc.’s administrative office is in need of the following items: Small rolling luggage case for laptop, Digital camera with video, Room/Cubicle Dividers, Laptops, Used cell phones with batteries (no chargers, please!) If you (or your organization) are able to support our work through a donation of any of the above items, please contact Jill Zawisza, Executive Director, at (415) 864-4777 x306.
W.O.M.A.N., Inc. also has a wish list for its Adopt A Family Holiday Gift Card Drive. Through this wish list, you can easily buy gift cards to Safeway, Target or Walgreens. Please have them shipped to our physical location so that we can distribute them to survivors.


 

Copyright © 2014 W.O.M.A.N., Inc. All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
333 Valencia St., San Francisco CA 94103


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