‘You are not alone’
5th annual Women’s Empowerment Conference set for Friday
For domestic violence survivor Jane D., the inaugural Women’s Empowerment Conference was an event where she not only found resources, but support as well.
“One of the main things to know is you are not alone and you are surrounded by all these women from completely different walks of life who have all gone through similar things,” she said. “It’s empowering because you hear where they started, what they have gone through and how they have overcome it. A lot of these women have made it their mission to let other women know that they are not alone. There are so many times you feel so isolated and you think you are the only person going through this and it just can’t be happening.”
But, she added, conference attendees will be in a room filled with women who have similar experiences.
Free to attend, the 5th annual Women’s Empowerment Conference, presented by The Healing Journey: Trauma Recovery Center, will be held on Friday, May 4, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Goodwill Career Center, 3097 S. 8th Ave.
Continental breakfast and lunch will be served. Additionally, there will be free raffles, informational booths set up by nonprofit agencies, health screenings by Sunset Community Health Center, massages, vendors selling various goods, Reiki (Japanese technique for stress reduction) and more.
According to CEO of Healing Journey Estrella Fitch, Rep. Charlene Fernandez, D-Yuma will also be in attendance. She noted that the theme for this year’s conference is “Moving Pass Trauma.”
“It’s so important for women to know that there is treatment for them and there is support,” Fitch said. “It’s not only geared for domestic violence (survivors). It’s for women who have experienced trauma in their life. It could have been as children, as youth or as women.”
This year, Fitch said she expects over 100 women to be in attendance.
“The conference will have different speakers of all walks of life,” Fitch noted. “We have women that survived domestic violence, we have women who have survived child molestation and we have women that are going to be there as a support system. We have our state legislator talking about new laws that hopefully Arizona will implement to protect women’s rights. We have Lynne Pancrazi with the Board of Supervisors to talk about what Yuma County is doing to protect women’s rights as victims of crime.”
Empowering women, Fitch said, is key, thus the quote for this year’s conference is “I can, I will, watch me.” Jane added that being uplifted is an important part of becoming a survivor.
“Speaking from a mom’s perspective, you are coming out of a situation and you have kids watching and this is the perfect opportunity to do something not only for yourself, but for your kids,” Jane said. “The women at the conference and at The Healing Journey are there to hold your hand and to help you as yo move forward from victim to survivor. Your children, most likely if you are leaving a domestic violence situation, your children watched you. They watched you be broken down.
“Estrella, The Healing Journey and this conference, they help lift you up so your kids watch you go from your lowest to watching you climb back up,” she continued. “It’s one of the best examples you can show your kids.”
The event is sponsored by the Cocopah Indian Tribe, Cenpatico Integrated Care/Health Net, Sara Powell-Victim Rights Attorney and Blake Doten-Allstate Insurance.
Presenters at the conference include but are not limited to:
• EMCEES — Ginny Takesuye and Shelley Mellon
• State Rep. Charlene Fernandez
• County Supervisor Lynne Pancrazi
• Keynote Speaker Eve Scarf — vice president of Foothills Bank and board member of YRMC Foundation
• Maria Rodriguez-Border Patrol — speaking on how not to be a victim
• Shara Martin — CEO of Yuma Community Food Bank-speaking on community service
• Kella Price — fitness, nutrition and life coach
To register for the event, visit https://events.goodwillaz.org/43F355E2B34143 AB8791815F7D76F5C6
For more information, call (928) 920-6220.