Jennie Willoughby to Speak at Clackamas Women’s Services’ 2018 Pathways Gala and Auction
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
John Aney, Director of Development and Communications
Phone: 503-557-5820
Email: johna@cwsor.org
Oregon City, Ore., October 17, 2018 — Jennie Willoughby, whose story of abuse at the hands of former White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter gained national media attention in February of this year, will be speaking at Clackamas Women’s Services’ 2018 Pathways Gala and Auction this month. Jennie will be the guest of honor and keynote speaker at the event, the largest annual fundraiser held by the community nonprofit. Jennie’s writing has been published in Time Magazine, and her op-ed in the Washington Post was the inspiration behind the #AndSoIStayed movement. Jennie has become a powerful voice for domestic violence survivors, and has used her platform to educate about domestic violence, its long-term impact on survivors, and what must be done to combat it effectively and help survivors heal.
“We need to make it clear that domestic abuse of any kind is wrong and unacceptable,” Willoughby said, speaking at a YWCA Greenwich event in May. “We need to be willing to have the uncomfortable conversations and face that abuse head on. We need to have the uncomfortable conversations with our family, with our neighbors and with ourselves. It’s necessary to draw a line in the sand and vehemently condemn a person’s abusive actions with no equivocation, no rationalization and no watering it down.”
Since 1987, October has been recognized as Domestic Violence Awareness Month. This month is nationally recognized each year as a month to express continued efforts toward ending domestic violence, providing safety for victims of domestic violence and their families, and holding perpetrators accountable. It is also a month to recognize and commend domestic violence advocates, domestic violence victim service providers, crisis hotline staff, and first responders for their compassionate support, according to the 2017 Congressional Record Supporting the goals and ideals of the month.
At a time when the national conversation about violence against women has been at the forefront, CWS is looking forward to bringing Jennie’s inspirational leadership here to Oregon.
“The courage that Jennie and other survivors have shown in publicly sharing their stories of abuse this past year has been a remarkable, watershed moment in our movement to end violence against women,” said Melissa Erlbaum, Executive Director of Clackamas Women’s Services. “It shed a light into the dark places and history shows us that change grows with that light.”
The Clackamas Women’s Services Pathways Gala and Auction is held yearly and provides for a significant portion of private funding for the agency and the services offered at no cost to domestic and sexual violence survivors in the community.
The 2018 Pathways Gala and Auction will be held at the beautiful Oregon Golf Club on Thursday, October 18th.
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About Clackamas Women’s Services
The mission of Clackamas Women’s Services is to break the isolation of domestic and sexual violence. CWS was incorporated in 1985 as Clackamas County’s first shelter for women and children escaping family violence and domestic abuse. CWS’ service delivery framework is built on trauma-informed best practices that promote safety and self-determination. Participants in our programs receive no-cost services by highly-trained staff with advanced expertise. The mission of Clackamas Women’s Services is to break the isolation of domestic and sexual violence. The 24-hour crisis line is 1-888-654-2288. To learn more, please visit https://www.cwsor.org/.