Hello! See attached for our upcoming teen summer support groups!!

Safe Connections is hosting a virtual open public session called "Consent Conversations" in support of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. This will be held via Zoom on Tuesday April 29 at 12:00pm. This session is a lunchtime conversation about how we can all promote consent and respect in our relationships and friendships. Register to receive the Zoom link at the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/hmBQhoCDSGWgxoPTfRB9SA Please feel free to reach out to me (emily@safeconnections.org) if there are any questions!

See attached and feel free to forward onto any peers/groups interested.

Safe Connections is hosting on Thursday March 20, 2025 a free 8-hour all day course (9am-5pm) on the foundations of intimate partner and sexual violence support. This free course is designed for organizations' new employees, volunteers and board members.  The class will be conducted at Safe Connections, and it is endorsed by the Missouri Credentialing Board. For more information and to register (or for any questions), contact Robin Anderson (314.646.7500 ext.115 or robin@safeconnections.org).

Hello,   Safe Connections is starting another round of teen dialect behavioral therapy groups. This will be open to teens of all genders (11-19) and their caregivers. Enrollment closes February 19th. If they are not a Safe Connections therapy client, they can call 314-646-7500 x 118 to schedule an intake appointment. See attached flyers. Please feel free to pass along to anyone. Take Care!

Hello! The Advocates for Trans Equality created this "check-up" guide to ensure that our transgender community has documents and information to reduce vulnerability. There is a lot of unknown and fear currently about the future, and this can be a check-in list for survivors (also staff, interns, volunteers, etc.) to have if helpful to them. Trans Legal Survival Guide by A4TE_2024.pdf

Hello, Safe Connections is currently exploring other platforms for data collection and documentation. We are currently using Apricot. We are curious what platforms folks are using, and if they like those platforms. We would love any and all honest feedback about various platforms! Feel free to comment on this or email myself (emily@safeconnections.org) or Brigid (brigid@safeconnections.org)

We are thrilled to honor advocates, staff, interns, and/or volunteers who do so much behind the scenes and out of the public eye. Whether they are supporting survivors directly, educating the community on domestic/sexual violence, or providing the much-needed administrative support, our community and services are better because they are here. If you would like to nominate someone from recognition as an Outstanding Individual in our field, fill out the registration form at this link by September 17th-https://forms.gle/tDZgwXsuLpw7ireo8 Qualifications for nominations  • Individuals nominated must be connected to a domestic and/or sexual violence agency • Individuals nominated must be connected to agency for a minimum of six months (or three months for interns.) • This could include, but is not limited to, direct service staff, outstanding interns and/or volunteers, administrative staff, outreach and education individuals, supervisors, etc. • We encourage executive directors and chief executive officers to not be nominated, due to need to uplift those often out of public eye. • Committee welcomes all nominations and will not discriminate on basis of gender, gender identity, gender expression, sex, ethnicity, religion, ability, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, etc.   Individuals reviewing nominations may be nominated, but they will recuse themselves from voting on their nomination. Nominations will be reviewed by a minimum of three individuals from various SLEDSVN member organizations. Individuals cannot self-nominate. Committee will send confirmation email to individual who has nominated individual. Nominations form will close on Tuesday September 17. Individuals will be recognized by name in the October 2024 SLEDSVN meeting and will receive a certificate of appreciation. Contact Emily Stoinski (emily@safeconnections.org) with any questions.

Hello, I received the following email and wanted to pass this information along in case someone has a contact with our local BIPS. "My name is Storm Ervin and I am a researcher and technical assistance provider at the Urban Institute in Washington D.C.   Dr. Emily Wright and I are surveying BIP staff and leaders across the country and are hoping to hear from all providers, including Missouri providers! The goal of our study is to enhance safety for victim-survivors and improve the effectiveness of BIP interventions across the country by understanding programs’ core components and evidence-based practices. This study is funded by the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW).  If you would like for your program to be represented in this study, please follow the survey information below Providers can follow this link, or copy and paste the URL below into your internet browser: https://urban.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8e39McDYeFYJFkO      Also, if you know of BIP providers in Missouri or across the nation, please feel free to forward this information to them.   For any questions about the survey, please contact Storm Ervin at servin@urban.org or Emily Wright at Ewright@urban.org"

Happy Tuesday! Just wanted to let folks in our community know about various groups that we have upcoming at Safe Connections throughout the year. Flyers are attached! A few general questions and answers per our support services team-  1. Who should my client call if they are interested or have more questions? 2. Please feel free to have them call Support Services at 314-646-7500 xt118. The group flyers have this info listed as well. 3. Do people have to be a client of SC? 4. Yes. Anyone interested in a group has to go through Assessment/Intake in order to participate in our Groups. 5. Can I share Q4 schedule with my clients as well? 6. Of course! Please let them know that the relevant group flyers are not included and if they have questions about a group to reach out to Support Services at 314-646-7500 xt118.

See attached for information on Safe Connections upcoming support groups for this summer! Intakes required for participation.

In honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, Safe Connections will be hosting a virtual public education session on healing after childhood sexual assault. The impact of childhood sexual assault and abuse often can follow into adulthood. Healing is possible, even if it may look different for every survivor. Join us for an evening filled with conversation and activities on the impact of trauma, self-care, and how to heal after harm. Discussion will include mentions of abuse, harm, and trauma; participants are encouraged to care for themselves during and after session. Feel free to share with whomever. Registration is at the QR code on the flyer and also at this link- https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUrceytpjsiGtFLidnKvCAo_RguWaZQVmdp

We are so excited to announce Safe Connections men's therapy processing group! As Brigid mentioned in the SLEDSVN meeting today, this group was community driven as many community members have asked for this support. This group is for any men and masculine identified individuals (ie. including trans men, etc.) An intake is required, and interested folks can call our intake folks at 314.646.7500 ext. 118. Please reach out if there are any questions! Deadline to register is June 1. Group will be held July 9-August 27.

Hello, Happy Thursday! Many folks may have seen this already, but for anyone who is at a Missouri Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence organization, don't forget to fill out the membership survey. This is a change to share anonymously with the coalition your feedback on their work and/or what you would like to see in the future. Survey link here- Submit Form - Coalition Manager! If there are any questions, comments, concerns- please feel free to reach out! My email is emily@safeconnections.org as well as the St. Louis Members Services Specialist Nora Mosby can be reached at nmosby@mocadsv.org.

We are hiring!!! The Grants Manager leads the research, relationship cultivation, production coordination, writing, delivery, and follow-along/up for all grants. The Grants Manager is also the project leader for starting, sustaining, and growing our government grants (federal, state, and municipal) as well as a key contributor to the organization’s strategic Development and Marketing Plan. The Grants Manager is a full-time, exempt position with a flexible schedule requiring occasional evening and weekend hours. To Apply Submit cover letter, resume, salary requirements and contact information for at least three professional references to Robin Anderson, 2165 Hampton Ave., St. Louis, MO 63139 or Robin@safeconnections.org.(mailto:Robin@safeconnections.org)

For those that might not know, the Missouri Family Health Council has been distributing free emergency contraception. It can be mailed or picked up. Prevent a Pregnancy | Free Emergency Contraception (m(https://mfhc.org/for-patients/ec.html)fhc.org)(http://mfhc.org) (https://mfhc.org/for-patients/ec.html)(Link to mail form and list of pick-up locations!)

Hello! In the spirit of community and celebration, I want to invite anyone who wants to join to an informal meet-up at the City Foundry Food Hall (Food Hall (c(https://www.cityfoundrystl.com/food-hall)ityfoundrystl.com)(http://cityfoundrystl.com) (https://www.cityfoundrystl.com/food-hall)tonight at 5:00pm. The Food Hall has a variety of different types of foods and sweets! This will be a time to get to know folks more, share DVAM stories, and just generally celebrate our community! If there are any questions, etc., feel free to email me- emily@safeconnections.org!(mailto:emily@safeconnections.org) Hope to see you there!

(Content warning: loss, grief, death) I struggle with how to start to say this, but with the permission of someone who was very close to her, I wanted to ensure our community knew about an advocate who passed away this week. Sandy Brockman Gordon (you might have heard her name mentioned in our recognitions) was a domestic violence advocate, emergency shelter supervisor with ALIVE up until recently. I know there are many that worked with her and have stories and love to share. I can share that when I worked with her, she was so giving to clients- she would go out of her way daily to ensure that survivors had what they need, staff were supported, and they were never alone. So much of what she gave happened outside of anyone's view. After a long health struggle, she passed away early this Tuesday morning. Please keep her family, friends, and the advocates who worked with her in your thoughts. Obituary (including memorial information)- Obituary | Sandy Brockman Gordon of St. Louis, Missouri | Campbell-Lewis Funeral Home(https://www.campbell-lewis.com/obituary/sandy-gordon)

Hello! We are over halfway through October, and while I have chatted with a few folks about this informally, I wanted to go ahead and post here. In the spirit of community and celebration, I want to invite anyone who wants to join to an informal meet-up at the City Foundry Food Hall (Food Hall (c(https://www.cityfoundrystl.com/food-hall)ityfoundrystl.com)(http://cityfoundrystl.com) (https://www.cityfoundrystl.com/food-hall)on Thursday November 2 at 5:00pm. The Food Hall has a variety of different types of foods and sweets! This will be a time to get to know folks more, share DVAM stories, and just generally celebrate our community! If there are any questions, etc., feel free to email me- emily@safeconnections.org!(mailto:emily@safeconnections.org) Hope to see you there!

Next Monday, October 23, Domestic Violence Fatality Review Panel for the City of St. Louis will be hosting an Open House Meeting. With our review work beginnng in 2022, this panel seeks to prevent future domestic violence related homicides by reviewing past cases with the intention of learning from the past to prevent future harm. Many individuals in our community have asked to participate in a panel meeting to learn more about the process and our work, and for the past two years, we have had to decline these requests due to confidentaility. To give our communities more of an opportunity to learn about this panel's work and ask questions about this work, we will be hosting an open house meeting on Monday October 23 at 6:00pm at the St. Louis Public Library- Buder location (Buder Library | St. Louis Public Library (s(https://www.slpl.org/locations/5/)lpl.org)(http://slpl.org))(https://www.slpl.org/locations/5/) in their auditorium. At this meeting, we will have a mock review, offer a chance for questions, and provide a brief overview of our current findings (from cases 1-3.) If you are interested and able to attend, let me know by registering at this link-https://f(https://forms.gle/7RXUr42SMrQf7qdK8)orms.gle/7RXUr42SMrQf7qdK8 (http://forms.gle/7RXUr42SMrQf7qdK8)or emailing me (emily@safeconnections.org.(mailto:emily@safeconnections.org)) Individuals do not need to register to attend; it is just helpful for planning purposes. If there are any questions, please do not hesitate to let me know!