As an organization, we are devoted to our mission. Our staff works tirelessly to meet the needs of our clients and community. Given this, we aren’t accustomed to tooting our own horns. This week, the FISA Foundation did that for us. In a publication titled, “A Case Study in Audacious Leadership,” our funding partner told the story of how our agency has led the charge in social transformation work. We couldn’t be more proud to share it with you today.
Since 1976, Blackburn Center has provided services to victims of domestic and sexual violence. Celebrating our 25th anniversary in 2001, we realized that the issue hadn’t diminished. We were providing more services than ever in 2001, despite all of the societal changes that had occurred the preceding 25 years. That’s when we knew that this was a deeper issue, and one that had to be addressed at a more fundamental level if we ever hoped to see a significant decrease in gender violence. We devoted ourselves to the principle of social transformation, knowing that if we were going to end the violence, it had to happen through a change in our culture.
Over the past 15 years, our devotion to social transformation can be seen in all parts of our agency. It impacts how we provide services to victims, how we run our education and training department, and even how we run our office day to day. Our commitment to getting at the root causes of gender violence is deep, as we believe that it is the ultimate way to reduce the level of domestic and sexual violence in our community (and the world!). A Case Study in Audacious Leadership details our work, from our partnership with Seton Hill University and the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg to our Future Advocates of Blackburn group and our signature event, Walk A Mile in Her Shoes. It also discusses our broader efforts to change the online conversation through our social media and blogging outreach. Combined with our grassroots work in Westmoreland County, these endeavors have made an impact on community attitudes — and we believe that they will ultimately lead to our goal of ending gender violence.
True change will only happen if we transform our society. We could not be more thankful for the support of FISA Foundation in funding this important work. Their commitment to improving the lives of women, girls and people with disabilities is truly remarkable. We are proud to partner with them. We also appreciate the dedication of our staff, Board, volunteers, donors and community partners, all of whom make our goal of social transformation possible. Collaboration is what made the work shown in A Case Study in Audacious Leadership possible.
If you would like to get involved in our mission and be part of our “audacious leadership,” you can start by joining us this weekend at our Walk A Mile in Her Shoes event. We hope to see you there!!
Learn More: