The Haven is excited to welcome Blaire Russell as our new Community Relations Coordinator. She was born and raised in Arlington, VA and spent summers in the Northern Neck with her family. Her father's family is originally from the Northern Neck and her great-grandmother ran the Rice Hotel/Hughlett's Tavern.
Blaire comes to us with a wealth of fundraising knowledge. She has spearheaded successful galas with silent and live auctions, done fundraising and volunteering for her children's schools, participated and chaired fundraising for non-profit organizations, applied for and received grants to fund reading programs for underprivileged students and so much more. Blaire has numerous connections with larger agencies and other people from out of town who are already on board to host fundraisers for The Haven. Locally, she has a vast amount of connections and has already reached out and started raising funds. She is not afraid to put herself out there and get to know new people and keep in touch with old friends and acquaintances. Needless to say, Blaire is a very social person and thrives off building relationships with others.
Not only does Blaire have a vast amount of fundraising experience, and a large social network she has already begun to share her experiences with, but she is also a domestic violence survivor. Having a solid understanding of what domestic and intimate partner violence entails, makes Blaire passionate about helping others who have experiences like hers. She is open to sharing her story with others to give them an honest perspective about the effects of intimate partner violence and how her network has helped her through the toughest times in her life. These experiences will make her an asset to the organization in many ways.
We look forward to you getting to know more about Blaire. If you should need to reach her prior to our next event, her email is blaire.russell@havenshelter.org.
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The Haven works to meet the needs of each family at the Shelter through identified services that support them by offering programs like summer camp to offer experiences in creative and expressive arts; nature, gardening, and observational skills; STEM projects; and healthy lifestyles as well as yoga and mindfulness activities.
This year's summer camp was a success with many of the children excited to participate. We had several folks from the community help out at our 3 week-long summer camp including students from Rappahannock High School who supported the younger children as "buddies" to the younger children and Carolyn Rhiner, a Chemistry teacher at RHS, who did a science activity with the children.
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Volunteers at The Haven make a huge impact on the lives of our program participants. One of the many ways that volunteers can support The Haven is by being a Volunteer Driver like Lois and Mikayla Barr who were able to provide much-needed transportation and childcare so a program participant could take their GED test.
Volunteers who work directly with program participants are required to attend The Haven's Foundations of Advocacy (FOA) Training Series that provides them with the skills to provide trauma-informed services. To register for the Fall FOA, go to havenshelter.org/volunteertraining.
If you are interested in becoming a Volunteer Driver or would like to learn more, please contact Brittany Clayborne at brittany.clayborne@havenshelter.org or (804)333-1099.
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Volunteers were extremely helpful this month by folding and stuffing envelopes promoting our Just Gardens event scheduled for September 13th and 14th. Because of their help, a mailing that was thought to take 4 or more hours to complete was done in less than two hours. The Haven is appreciative of having such a great group of volunteers.
If you would like to learn more about Just Gardens please visit thehavenshelter.ticketleap.com/justgardens2019/.
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The Haven's Youth Resilience Coordinator, Dawn Brooks, and participants in The Haven's Do You Program attended a free arts and creative expression-based retreat for young advocates, activists, & movement builders throughout the state of Virginia called The Honeycomb Retreat.
This retreat was organized by the Virginia Sexual & Domestic Violence Action Alliance to create a space for young advocates to build creative and organizing skills, invest in personal and community healing, and join Virginia’s movement against sexual and intimate partner violence. Participants left the retreat feeling energized and ready to bring the skills they learned back to their communities.
"The Action Alliance's Honeycomb retreat was absolutely amazing! We talked about who can be an artist, what is art, and why is it important - what does it do? My answer was that anyone can be an artist and art is anything we put out energy into - a painting, a conversation, a rally, ANYTHING. This retreat was so fulfilling and opened my eyes to how art brings people together. Art opens up the doors to so many different conversations and in this case, activism. The young people that attended with me were able to see that they can make a difference and they matter." -Dawn Brooks
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The Haven is in need of volunteers who are willing to assist in providing meals such as lasagna, pizza, tacos, chili, or other kid-friendly foods plus a veggie side dish for approximately 15 program participants on Monday evenings. (For example, food for 15 individuals could look like 2 large pans of lasagna and a salad.)
These meals support the women and children who attend the support groups facilitated by Haven staff. If you have additional questions or would like to support our meal program please contact Brittany Clayborne at (804)333-1099.
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The Haven is looking for more volunteers!
Volunteers are essential to accomplish our mission of preventing and eliminating all types of sexual and intimate partner violence within the Northern Neck and Essex County. The Haven could not provide free, vital services to individuals who have experienced violence without the hard work and effort of volunteers!
Not only do our volunteers assist us with completing everyday tasks such as childcare, shelter maintenance, data input, mailings, and processing donations, but their hours are used to meet match requirements of our state and federal grants.
To learn more about becoming a volunteer for The Haven or if you would like a representative of The Haven to talk to your organization about volunteer opportunities, contact Brittany Clayborne at 804-333-1099 or visit havenshelter.org/volunteer.
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The Haven will be having a volunteer meeting at 11 am on Wednesday, September 11th at The Haven Administrative Office. Staff members will be sharing their experiences facilitating discussions with women at the Northern Neck Regional Jail on the dynamics of intimate partner violence as well as the resources available to those who have experienced violence once they are released.
All current volunteers are strongly encouraged to attend and should RSVP by contacting Brittany Clayborne at brittany.clayborne@havenshelter.org or (804)333-1099 no later than Friday, September 6th.
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Now in its 20th year, Just Gardens will feature 3 private gardens and one public garden during their annual tour this coming September 13 and 14. Three of the gardens are in downtown Reedville and 1 garden is nearby. The tour, which benefits The Haven Shelter & Services, combines garden design ideas with plant information.
“It’s such a great way to see what grows in the area and how other gardeners put it all together. There’s no right or wrong way to garden. It’s all about your own style and what suits the site you live on and the way you live”, said Anne Olsen, chairwoman for the tour. “If you live in the area or are just visiting, take some time to relax and visit these amazing private gardens. Maybe a garden plan or a plant combination will resonate with you. I’ve been to hundreds of gardens over the years and I always learn something new.”
Purchase tickets today at thehavenshelter.ticketleap.com/justgardens2019/.
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The Haven Shelter & Services is offering a FREE comprehensive 3-session course designed to familiarize the community on the services of The Haven and how to provide trauma-informed services to survivors of sexual violence and intimate partner violence.
These training sessions will be held on Saturdays (October 5th, October 19th, and November 2nd) from 8:30am-4pm at The Haven's Administrative Office located at 102 Walnut Street in Warsaw.
For more information, contact Brittany Clayborne at brittany.clayborne@havenshelter.org or call 804-333-1099.
To register, go to havenshelter.org/volunteertraining.
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