Join us on Thursday, May 25, 2023, and find out more about the amazing work that LifeWire is doing in our community to prevent and end domestic violence. RSVP today! If you would like additional information, please contact Sukai Gaye, LifeWire Communications and Events Manager, at 425-229-5305 or sukaig@lifewire.org.
LifeWire Gala & Auction
Join us Saturday, October 14, 2023, at our annual Gala & Auction which brings together over 600 community guests for an evening of glamour and giving. Evening highlights include a dazzling wine reception and silent auction followed by a gourmet dinner and entertaining live auction. Sasha Summer Cousineau is our fabulous auctioneer! Check back for more details!
Your support makes a profound difference – providing compassionate services, safe housing, and hope – to domestic violence survivors, children, and families when they need it most.
Historically, women have been underrepresented in leadership roles due to various societal and cultural factors, including gender biases, stereotypes, and discrimination. Gender-based inequalities are addressed at LifeWire by promoting diversity and inclusivity at all levels. Our commitment to the representation of women in leadership positions continues. Women have the talent, skills, and experience to be amazing leaders. We are committed to breaking down gender-based barriers that prevent people from reaching their full potential. We are proud of the talented women in all positions at LifeWire. We will continue to support and empower all people to be successful. During Women’s History Month, we would like to introduce you to LifeWire’s Women in Leadership:
On behalf of LifeWire’s Board of Directors and staff, I am thrilled to announce we have hired our Co-Executive Director of Survivor Driven Services — Karlah Ramírez-Tánori!
Karlah Ramírez-Tánori, LifeWire’s Co-Executive Director of Survivor Driven Services
Over the past 20 years, Karlah has held multiple leadership roles dedicated to social justice, crisis intervention, and prevention in the non-profit gender-based violence field. She has held leadership positions working collaboratively with state and national organizations and she has for-profit leadership experience as a business owner.
Karlah has been the recipient of two leadership fellowships supporting the elevation of women of color in nonprofits and has served on multiple boards and state committees focused on improving services for survivors, children, and families affected by domestic and sexual violence.
In 2022, Karlah served as LifeWire’s Services Director and in 2023 has been promoted to LifeWire’s Co- Executive Director of Survivor Driven Services.
It’s an absolute honor to be chosen as the Co- Executive Director of Survivor Driven Services at LifeWire. I am so impressed by our staff, our Board, and the survivors we serve every day. This is an exciting time to lead LifeWire as we expand our emergency shelter, transitional housing, and comprehensive onsite services for survivors who face the greatest safety risks and highest barriers to safe housing in our community.
Working together, we can create a world where every person lives in a safe environment, free from oppression, and with the opportunity to thrive. – Karlah Ramírez-Tánori
Thank you for your continued support of LifeWire and the survivors we serve throughout this transition as we continue to move this incredible organization forward. We are committed to providing every possible resource to ensure the safety, security, and well-being of the survivors we serve.
Gratefully,
Theresa Anderson President, LifeWire Board of Directors
The Seattle Times Fund for Those in Need: Neighbors helping neighbors since 1979
“I remember what it felt like when somebody answered the phone, when somebody gave me hope when I had none. Somebody cared. I knew I needed to get to the other side to one day provide that for others,” said Karlah Ramírez-Tánori, LifeWire Services Director.
English Los inmigrantes sobrevivientes de violencia doméstica presentan más barreras para poder escapar de sus agresores y obtener estabilidad que otras comunidades culturalmente específicas. El movimiento político y las estrictas políticas de inmigración implementadas en los últimos años aumentaron el sentimiento anti inmigratorio en todo el país que, combinado con las secuelas de la pandemia de Covid-19, ha impactado negativamente a esta población.
Aunque muchos casos no se denuncian y las cifras posiblemente sean mucho más altas, se estima que una de cada tres latinas ha sufrido violencia doméstica. Según un estudio realizado por la Encuesta Nacional de Violencia Sexual y de Pareja Íntima, el 26.9% de las mujeres hispanas/latinas experimentarán violencia doméstica o sexual al menos una vez en su vida.
Immigrant survivors of domestic violence face more barriers to escaping their abusers and gaining stability than other culturally specific communities. Strict immigration rhetoric and policies implemented in recent years have increased anti-immigration sentiment throughout the country, which, combined with the Covid-19 pandemic, has negatively impacted this population of survivors.
Although many cases go unreported and the numbers are possibly much higher, an estimated one in three Latinas have experienced domestic violence. According to a study conducted by the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 26.9% of Hispanic/Latina women will experience domestic or sexual violence at least once in their life.
An Interview with LifeWire’s Prevention Intern Evelyn
Evelyn has recently become an intern with LifeWire’s Social Change Team. They describe this internship as “a lot of work on education for youth—going into schools, working on curriculum for young people about teen dating violence, sexual violence, and allyship. It’s really important because these are common, but most teens don’t recognize them or aren’t able to identify and respond to them.”
LifeWire Healthy Relationship Training hosted by Evelyn (Prevention Intern), Isabella (Youth Prevention Specialist), and Sam (Youth Advocate)
Domestic violence is a leading cause of homelessness for women and children. Survivors of domestic violence are four times more likely to experience housing instability than people who haven’t experienced abuse.
Beginning in 2009, LifeWire participated in a three-year pilot project called Domestic Violence Housing First. The goal was to get survivors into stable housing as quickly as possible and then provide them with the support they needed to rebuild their lives. The pilot was wildly successful. Eighteen months after entering the program, 96 percent of participants had stable housing. Today, countless other organizations across the country have adopted the DV Housing First model.
You must be logged in to post a comment.