KODIAK WOMEN’S RESOURCE & CRISIS CENTER 418 Hillside Drive, Kodiak AK 99615 | 907-486-6171 | www.kwrcc.org

Crisis Line 907-486-3625 Toll Free: 1-888-486-3625 Teen Crisis Line: 907-942-9015

KWRCC April Newsletter

~ BOARD OF DIRECTORS ~

PRESIDENT: Heidi Barret-McNerney

VICE PRESIDENT: Debbie Olson

TREASURER: Karissa Stoecker

SECRETARY: Cassie Keplinger

BOARD MEMBERS: Kim Sibrel

Megan Ivanoff Selida Guitron-Padilla

Katherine Gronn Leilani Olivar

~ KWRCC STAFF ~

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Rebecca Shields

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT:

Mary Lund

SART/ SHELTER COORDINATOR: Penny Lampl

CASE MANAGEMENT:

Melissa Austin

OUTREACH ADVOCATES: Amber Frederick

Ellamy Tiller

IMMIGRANT ADVOCATE: Trinidad Ardoña

ADVOCATES:

Kimberly Dolph Debbie Eggemeyer

Marie Jmili Lisa Johnson Ann Kirven

Mari-Cris Miranda Rachel Putnam

Daisy Tua

KWRCC & COVID-19 Alaska has one of the highest rates in the country of family violence and those most vulnerable to domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse are at higher risk while they hunker down at home. Stress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic can make family violence situations even more volatile.

KWRCC has modified our services for safety and to reduce exposure, but with the exception of our Donation Room, all of our services are still open in one way or another. Modifications include helping victims or those in need over the phone and our shelter is still open and providing safety to those who need it. We are here to support victims, their families, and the community in every way we can.

Additionally, we have trained advocates available 24/7 to take calls for those in need of emotional support or assistance with crisis situations both involving family violence and if community members just need someone to talk to during these tense and trying times.

KWRCC is still accepting community donations. We cannot accept any clothing donations or items fabric in nature, but we still have a great need for unopened, non-perishable food items, paper products, cleaners, adult and child medications, and financial donations. The Kodiak Community has been a faithful supporter of our efforts to help victims and we gratefully still need that continued generosity.

In an effort to protect our clients and staff we do ask those both in need of assistance and those with a desire to help through donation, to please contact us by phone if possible before coming to our shelter. This will help us plan the safest way for each individual situation in how to provide services. Both our business line and crisis line are staffed 24/7.

Rebecca Shields KWRCC Executive Director

Kodiak Women’s Resource & Crisis Center April 2020

APRIL • Sexual Assault Awareness Month

• Child Abuse Prevention Month

• Filipino Magkaisa Sa Bagsulong Meeting (Filipino Women’s Group) CANCELLED for the foreseeable future due to COVID-19

• Soluciones Meeting (Hispanic Women’s Group) CANCELLED for the foreseeable future due to COVID-19

• Easter Sunday Sunday, Apr. 12th

• Orthodox Easter Sunday Sunday, Apr. 19th

• KMXT Community Calendar

Upcoming Events

KWRCC Board of Directors and Staff would like to thank all of our community partners for their efforts in supporting and organizing our 2020 Choose Respect March that would have been held on March 25th, but had to be cancelled due to COVID-19. We would also like to thank all those in the community that had planned to participate. All the support for this event and the message it sends is so appreciated.

In the United States April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM). The goal of SAAM is to raise public awareness about sexual violence and to educate communities on how to prevent it. Join us in wearing teal colors during April as we bring awareness to this crime.

“April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, a time to recognize that we each can plan an important role in promoting the social and emotional well-being of children and families in communities. Please join us in building community awareness that the future prosperity of our communities depends on our ability to foster the health and well-being of the next generation.” - alaskachildrenstrust.org

“It takes a village to raise a child. It takes a village to abuse one.”

- Spotlight (The Movie)

Kodiak Women’s Resource & Crisis Center April 2020

Recently KWRCC set up a Charity List for Shelter Supplies through AmazonSmile. With Kodiak currently “hunkering down” due to the COVID-19 pandemic, supporting KWRCC through the purchase of goods we need on this list becomes a quick, easy, and a very safe way to make donations of goods that ship directly to our shelter. To learn more about Amazon Charity Lists

To visit the KWRCC Amazon Charity List

Click Here

Click Here

DONATIONS DURING COVID-19 Due to the COVID-19/ Coronavirus pandemic and the state of emergency, we have temporarily closed our KWRCC Donation Room to the public. For families or individuals in need please contact us any time at 486-6171.

Additionally, we are temporarily unable to accept any clothing donations or items of fabric in nature in an effort to protect our shelter residents and staff. Once the state of emergency is lifted, we will begin accepting these donations again. We thank our generous supporters for their understanding. We are all in this together!

We are still accepting donations of unopened non-perishable food items, medical supplies, unopened toiletries, paper goods, laundry & dish soaps, cleaners, etc.

Additionally, we always accept financial donations and they can be accessed online from our website www.kwrcc.org

For questions about donations, please contact us any time at 486-6171. We greatly appreciate all the community support Kodiak provides to our shelter and clients or please visit our

KWRCC Donations webpage

Click Here

Kodiak Women’s Resource & Crisis Center April 2020

TALKING TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT SEXUAL ASSAULT Courtesy of RAINN www.rainn.org

It can be stressful to plan a big safety talk about sexual assault with your kid. The good news is, you don’t have to. Conversations about sexual assault can be a part of the safety conversations you’re already having, like knowing when to speak up, how to take care of friends, and listening to your gut. The key is to start these conversations when your kids are young, and have these conversations often.

Start conversations about safety when your kids are young

Teach young children the language they need to talk about their bodies and information about boundaries to help them understand what is allowed and what is inappropriate. These lessons help them know when something isn’t right and give them the power to speak up. • Teach children the names of their body parts. When children have the words to

describe their body parts, they may find it easier to ask questions and express concerns about those body parts.

• Some parts of the body are private. Let children know that other people shouldn’t touch or look at them. If a healthcare professional has to examine these parts of the body, be present.

• It’s OK to say “no.” It’s important to let children know they are allowed to say “no” to touches that make them uncomfortable. This message isn’t obvious to children, who are often taught to be obedient and follow the rules. Support your child if they say no, even if it puts you in an uncomfortable position. For example, if your child doesn't want to hug someone at a family gathering, respect their decision to say “no” to this contact.

• Talk about secrets. Perpetrators will often use secret-keeping to manipulate children. Let children know they can always talk to you, especially if they’ve been told to keep a secret. If they see someone touching another child, they shouldn’t keep this secret, either. Learn more about protecting a child from sexual assault.

• Reassure them that they won’t get in trouble. Young children often fear getting in trouble or upsetting their parents by asking questions or talking about their experiences. Be a safe place for your child to share information about things that they have questions about or that make them uncomfortable. Remind them they won’t be punished for sharing this information with you.

• Show them what it looks like to do the right thing. It could be as simple as helping an elderly person get off a bus or picking up change that someone has dropped on the ground. When you model helping behavior it signals to your child that this is a normal, positive way to behave.

When they come to you, make time for them. If your kid comes to you with something they feel is important, take the time to listen. Give them your undivided attention, and let them know you take their concerns seriously. They may be more likely to come to you in the future if they know their voice will be heard.

Read more on talking with kids about sexual assault.

Kodiak Women’s Resource & Crisis Center April 2020

Coronavirus isolation raises concerns for

domestic violence survivors, experts say

It can be “devastating” for people who have to shelter somewhere unsafe.

March 20, 2020 | By Daniella Silva | Courtesy of NBC NEWS

As people across the U.S. are told to stay home because of the coronavirus pandemic, domestic violence experts warn the isolation could be “devastating” for survivors forced to shelter somewhere unsafe.

“We know social isolation can really have devastating impacts on the safety, health and wellbeing of victims,” said Dr. Amanda Stylianou, a domestic violence expert at Rutgers University.

“Being able to wake up in the morning to leave their home to go to safe schools, workplaces, to visit family and neighbors is really critical and is a really important protective factor for them in a time where that protective factor is gone,” she said.

Katie Ray-Jones, CEO of the National Domestic Violence Hotline, said it was an "incredibly distressing" time for survivors, and her group had already heard ways the outbreak was impacting victims.

She said she heard from survivors of abusers who threatened to kick them out of the house, who made them wash their hands until they were "raw and bleeding" and abusers who made them stay home from work.

Ray-Jones encouraged survivors to call the hotline to discuss their unique situation and physical and mental safety planning. With the number of coronavirus cases around the U.S. growing and states taking stricter control measures, Stylianou said the virus has now kept families in homes in a time “when stress is high and likely to cause more anger and frustration even in families without abuse.” There are more than 15,000 cases of coronavirus across the U.S. with 201 deaths as of Friday.

About one in four women and one in seven men have experienced severe physical violence from an intimate partner, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Experts said those experiencing domestic violence have critical resources to support them.

“There are still volunteers across the country sitting at phones and computers waiting for them to reach out who deeply care about their safety and wellbeing,” Stylianou said.

Ruth Glenn, CEO of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, said when an abuser has more access to a survivor, it “increases their ability to control and manipulate and act out whatever their abuse is.”

Glenn and Stylianou encouraged people experiencing domestic violence to reach out to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, which has provided 24-hour, year-round support since 1996 for individuals affected by relationship abuse.

The hotline is confidential, anonymous and free and helps victims come up with a safety plan to escape abuse. It also connects them with area resources for legal problems and points to shelters that can offer them housing.

Experts also encouraged survivors to reach out to their local domestic violence program.

While times are scary for many, Glenn said, survivors of domestic violence are not alone.

“They’ve made it this far figuring out ways to say safe,” she said. “You’ve made it this far and as dark as it feels for all of us, there is hope.'

418 Hillside Drive, Kodiak AK 99615 | P.O. Box 2122, Kodiak AK 99615 Main: 907-486-6171 | Fax: 907-486-1264 | www.kwrcc.org

Crisis Line: 907-486-3625 or Toll Free: 1-888-486-3625

2020 KWRCC MEMBERSHIP FORM KODIAK WOMEN’S RESOURCE & CRISIS CENTER

PROVIDED KWRCC SERVICES

~ Member: Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault ~

• 24-Hour Crisis Line• Immigrant Women’s Program• Advocacy & Support• Outreach & Education including all Kodiak Villages

• Shelter for Victims of Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault• Support Groups for Women in Crisis & Transition• Community Coordinated Response Team (CCR)• Sexual Assault Response Team (SART)

TODAY’S DATE (MMDDYY): _________________

Yes, I want to support KWRCC in their commitment to improve the safety and status of women on Kodiak Island and to assist women and children who are victims of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault.

NAME:

MAILING ADDRESS: CITY/STATE/ZIP:

PHONE: WORK/CELL:

EMAIL:

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP OPTIONS:

o Family: $50.00

o Regular: $30.00

o Contributing: $100.00

o Senior/Student: $20.00

o Business: $100.00

o Lifetime: $500.00

* Memberships are valid through the day prior to the Annual Membership Meeting.If the membership fee is a financial hardship, please contact KWRCC.

I AM INTERESTED IN VOLUNTEERING AT KWRCC. ⃝ Yes ⃝ No ⃝ Maybe, please contact with more info.

IF ANSWERED “YES” OR “MAYBE,” PLEASE INDICATE WHAT AREAS YOU MAY BE WILLING TO HELP WITH:

o Crisis Line

o Newsletter

o Building/Office Maintenance

o On-Call Transportation

o Processing Donations

o Sexual Assault Advocacy

o Committee Work

o Other_______________________

I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE FOLLOWING WORKSHOPS OFFERED AT KWRCC: ____________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________

I HAVE THE FOLLOWING AREAS OF EXPERTISE OR INTEREST IN WHICH I COULD CONDUCT A WORKSHOP/TRAINING: __________________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________

I GIVE PERMISSION FOR MY NAME/BUSINESS TO BE PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGED? ⃝ Yes ⃝ No