A very
happy new year to all of you! We hope that 2007 brought you all the peace, joy,
and fulfillment that you hoped for. We are celebrating Chaya’s successes from
the past year, learning from our struggles, and looking ahead to an amazing
year with new hopes and challenges. We wanted to share our excitement with you
as we reflect and continue to envision.
Our hope
for 2008 is built on community strength, shared understandings, trust, and
challenging ourselves and each other to make a difference. Our South Asian
communities are powerful and diverse, and we look forward to radical new ways
of engaging each other to change societal conditions that enable oppression,
especially violence against women. We invite you to join us as we work towards
our vision: to realize a just and equitable world free of violence!
-The Chaya
Team
1) 2007 at a glance
2007 was a wonderful
year in Chaya history. We doubled in
staff size, broke some records in foundation funding and event attendance, and
organized some great community events. Here are some of the highlights:
Direct Services
- Chaya provided advocacy services to 88 women facing domestic violence, of whom 35 received long-term and in-depth advocacy services. 12 of these women were new to Chaya in 2007.
- Chaya provided support, information, technical assistance and referrals through the helpline to 110 family members or friends of survivors, and 248 service providers or community members working with survivors of violence.
- Chaya fielded a total of 1027 calls to its helpline.
- Chaya organized monthly Women’s Groups for its clients, in which survivors participated in facilitated discussions on topics such as abuse, history of immigration and celebrating women. The participants shared their experiences, watched and discussed a music video on domestic violence, and did a library scavenger hunt with their children.
Community Engagement
- The Women’s Health Committee held two events on the UW campus to engage South Asian women and allies in discussions on domestic violence, violence prevention, and physical and mental health.
- The Peaceful Families Conference was held at the Iman Center in October. Attended by 70
community members and service providers, the Conference examined domestic violence in the Muslim context and provided Quranic models for healthy, violence-free families.
- The South King County Women’s Group held a seminar in February called “Women’s Health Matters.” This volunteer-led group holds interactive seminars on various topics that promote women’s holistic well-being and offers creative ways to overcome barriers in surviving abuse.
- Chaya collaborated with Tasveer, a local South Asian film
association, in its community events. During “Aaina”, Tasveer’s women-focused event in March, Chaya played a particularly active
role. We co-sponsored the festival, facilitated post-film discussions, and coordinated the first “Yoni Ki Baat” performance and Q&A discussion. In October, Chaya sponsored two films during Tasveer’s fourth Independent South Asian Film Festival – “View from a Grain of Sand” and “The Widow Colony”.
- Last spring, the Seattle Public Library invited Jhumpa Lahiri for their “Seattle Reads” reader discussions and events. As part of a South Asian panel, Chaya representatives facilitated three discussions around the theme of family in Lahiri’s book “The Namesake.”
- The Chaya staff and 15 volunteers appeared in a Public Service Announcement on KOMO 4 TV during Northwest Afternoon on September 11.
- Chaya held an all-day volunteer training in December and inducted 11 new volunteers into the Chaya family.
- Chaya provided culturally specific trainings to Family Services (King County), New Beginnings Shelter and the Kirkland Police Department’s Domestic Abuse Response Team (DART).
Events
- The Chaya Annual Dinner and Auction was held on June 9, 2007 at the Westin Bellevue. It was attended by 400 people and Chaya raised over $150,000.
- The annual Chai with Chaya brunch at the Flying Fish restaurant was held on November 18, 2007. It was attended by 80 people and Chaya raised about $7000.
2) 2008 – What to look out for!
We have
many exciting events and programs planned for this year, here’s a glimpse of
what to expect….
March:
Aaina 2008
Tasveer,
an independent film organization in Seattle, will be hosting Aaina
from March 28-30, proudly co-sponsored by Chaya. The event will take place at
the Central Cinema on the occasion of International Women’s Month. Aaina, which
in Urdu means mirror, focuses on and celebrates the artistic work around South
Asian women. Although, the main medium is film, it also includes performance
art, visual art, and speakers aimed at the empowerment of South Asian women. There will also be a fresh performance of
the popular “Yoni ki Baat” (South Asian adaptation of the Vagina Monologues). Please check out http://tasveer.org
for more information.
April:
Volunteer Training
Starting
in 2008, Chaya will be conducting 3 volunteer trainings spread out over the
year. We are excited to offer more opportunities for involvement and raising
awareness about domestic violence in our communities. The training is usually
one whole day, with breakfast and lunch provided by us as we discuss issues of
violence in the South Asian context, and how we can make a difference from
where we are. It will be interactive, powerful, and fun! Look out for more
information about our next training in April.
May:
Auction
We will
be holding our annual auction, our largest fundraiser of the year, in May 2008.
It is a celebration of the work that Chaya does, and an event that brings
together the amazing efforts of our volunteers. It is a night of recognition,
inspiration, and hope towards realizing Chaya’s vision. The funds we raise
through our annual auction enable us to do our programs, events, and continue
to serve survivors of abuse.
Women’s Groups
With
new energy and an expanded budget, we are excited about continuing Chaya’s
Women’s Group for clients, now on a monthly basis. We are currently working on
adapting a curriculum that will be specific to South Asian communities. The
group will have their first meeting at the end of January, and all staff will
be involved in various roles.
Advocacy
Volunteer Committee
Chaya
will be creating a new committee that engages volunteers to support our direct
service work. In the past, we have had volunteers help advocates with language
interpretation and childcare. After realizing the extent of interest and high
level of skills in our communities, we are looking forward to expanding the
roles and leadership of our volunteer base, in order to get closer to our
mission of creating violence-free communities. Look out for opportunities for
involvement!
3) Community
Events coming up – Get Involved! Ask us about them….
1. Restore Due Process for Immigrants & Refugees!
Press Conference and Rally
Tue, Jan. 8th, 10am – Noon
Federal Building: 915 Second Ave, Downtown Seattle
On Tuesday, January 8, 2008, Khmer in Action and the Refugee Justice Project
will hold a press conference and rally at the Federal Building to raise
awareness around detention and deportation in refugee communities. Refugees
from Laos, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Somalia and many other war torn countries may face deportation to places they fled in
fear. The demands of the action are to reinstate due process and judicial
review, so that those facing deportation can have their cases heard by an
immigration judge. The action is timed to coincide with a rumored shipment of
deportees to Cambodia sometime in January. Family members of refugee families affected by detention
and deportation will speak on how deportation hurts families and communities.
After the press conference we will have poetry and hip-hop performances by
community members. We hope to engage and inspire those at the rally to take action
to help restore fairness and due process to the immigration system.
Please
attend this event and bring your friends and families! Every person’s presence
makes a difference. If you would like more information, or if your organization
would like to endorse this event, you can contact:
Many Chout
Uch
Refugee
Justice Project c/o Hate Free Zone
206-723-2203 x204 or 206-679-2084 (cell).
*We ask that each endorsing organization please contribute
$50 and bring five people to the rally *. THANK YOU!
2. ZUMBA FOR C.A.R.A (Communities Against Rape and Abuse)
Saturday,
January 12th, 12:30-
3:00pm
Or
the evening Zumba fundraising dance session 5-7pm
Community
fitness of Seattle
2113 NE 65th Street, Seattle WA 98108
*$10 for
PRE-registration, $15 at the
door for each session.
Start 2008
off right & Drop the workout- come join the party! This 2 hour Zumba Dance
and Fitness Challenge is guaranteed to be a BLAST! All will benefit-you have
fun & burn over 500 calories per hour. Entry fees will be donated to
C.A.R.A (Communities Against Rape & Abuse). Think you can make it all 2
hours? Gather some pledges and donations from friends and family. The top
fundraiser over $100 gets a GRAND Prize. Door Prizes and refreshments for all
who participate. We challenge you to help end abuse in our communities. This is
an event you won't want to miss!! Bring a friend. Zumba is for everyone-all
ages and genders welcome. Zumba combines high energy and motivating music
with unique moves and combinations that allow the Zumba participants to dance
away their worries. It is based on the principle that a workout should be
"FUN AND EASY TO DO". Check out www.zumba.com and www.communityfitness.com
* Space is
limited so pre-register now. To Pre-register or get more information email zumbaworks@yahoo.com
3. Yoni Ki Baat (South Asian adaptation of Vagina Monologues)
Seattle Yoni! We Want You!
Let
us introduce ourselves- we are the Yoni Ki Baat (YKB) team brought to you by
Tasveer. After popular demand we are back - save the date for Friday March 28th
and March 29th as a part of Tasveer's
Aaina Film Festival. YKB is a bold, courageous, and artistic presentation of
all the conversations dear to your Yoni and you. Have you ever felt
telling your story would be seen as taboo? Are you involved in human rights or
social justice issues that impact the South Asian community? Do you feel
strongly about the way such issues aren't discussed in the South Asian culture?
Well now it's your turn to talk.
Call for Performers and Scripts!!!
We are looking for performers and scripts.
We need all kinds of Yoni to speak up but we know some Yoni like to play it
shy. So you can still submit your spoken word in the form of a script that can
be read by a fellow performer. Please send your submissions to arshiyaq@gmail.com by January 15th
for consideration- if your script is selected we will contact you. We are
looking for a diversity of voices, some Yoni talk in English, others in
Bengali, Urdu, Telegu, Tamil, Nepalese, Tibetan, Pashto and many other
languages. We would like to hear from all of you!
That finally brings us to performers- some Yoni
love the center stage and we invite you to attend the informational meeting
on January 13th, 2008 at 4pm at theWAMU Center Downtown Seattle, 1301 Second Ave, Seattle WA 98101.
Those interested please get in touch with one of the YKB Coordinator at arshiyaq@gmail.com (206.267.8525) or sahar.zaheer@gmail.com.
4) Featured
Resources
Garments for One Another: Ending Domestic Violence in Muslim Families
The
FaithTrust Institute offers an important new resource for mosques, religious
leaders, social workers, community groups and shelter staff who offer help to
Muslim women who currently experience violence in the home. This complete
package offers solutions to prevent future violence within the context of the
Islamic faith. Includes interviews with survivors, religious leaders, and
community advocates.
Package Includes
- Three video segments
- Understanding Domestic Violence (32 minutes)
- Islamic Perspective on Domestic Violence (31 minutes)
- What We Can Do to End Domestic Violence (29 minutes)
- Comprehensive study guide
- CD with masters of 11 handouts to be used in training
- Includes 25 Peaceful Families audience brochures
To
order, or for more information, please visit http://www.faithtrustinstitute.org/index.php?s=307
Chaya thanks you!!
Chaya extends
a heartfelt thank you to all the persons, families and organizations that donate
generously to help us keep our communities free of domestic violence. Thanks to our supporters, we raised over $180,000
in private and corporate donations in 2007!
Chaya also
acknowledges the following foundations for providing funding for its programs
and operating costs:
Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation
Paul G.
Allen Foundation
Summit Foundation
Seattle Foundation
Bigelow
Dewey Jeddiah Foundation
Lucky Seven
Foundation
Women’s
Funding Alliance
Social
Justice Fund
Verizon
Hopeline
City of SeattleDSHS
Horizons
Foundation
Henry M.
Jackson Foundation
Cedermere
Foundation
One Family
Foundation
As a
community-based organization, Chaya is only as strong as its community, which,
fortunately for us, is stronger every year! We would never be able to fulfill our mission without the hard work and
dedication of our volunteers, who implement our programs, engage in outreach
events, participate in forums and organize our events. We are lucky to be part of this
community. Thank you!
Who’s who at Chaya
In 2007,
Chaya doubled in staff size! The year started
out with our ED and two full-time community advocates, and by New Year’s Eve we
had five full-time staff, two-part-time staff and two interns. Here is the Chaya team:
Staff
Pradeepta
Upadhyay, Executive Director
Charu Wahi,
Manager of Programs
Sabina
Ansari, Fundraising Coordinator
Afrose
Ahmed, Community Advocate
Natasha
Merchant, Community Advocate
Neena
Makhija, Community Advocate
Nitika Raj,
Community Advocate
Satprit
Kaur, Intern
Priya
Raghav, Intern
Board
Urmi
Saraiya, Co-Chair
Ketu Shah,
Co-Chair
Meena
Vashee, Treasurer
Aaliyah
Gupta
Smeeta
Hirani
Fauzia Timberlake
Huma Zarif
Neha
Chandola
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