Our Message to You
This year has been full of ups and downs, major lessons we have learned, and yet still, many moments we will cherish. We won awards and competitions, launched a new campaign and podcast, created new programs that have expanded and translated our work beyond New Orleans and even outside of the United States, and yet we also recently experienced a moment that threatened to damage our reputation and impact our ability to offer the programs, tools, and services that we hold so dear.
Throughout all of the highs and lows, one core thing has remained; gratitude.
IWES family, we are grateful for so many things, and most of all, we are grateful for you. Next week we are kicking off a special series on our social media accounts shouting out some of the individual partners — organizations and individuals — and participants of our programming that we are extremely grateful for, but before we launch our “12 Days of Gratitude,” we want to thank you, first and foremost.
To the youth
in our programs and fellowships, we are grateful that you follow the journeys of each and every opportunity we provide; whether they be an established program that already has a base of evidence to prove its effectiveness, or the new innovations that we are creating, testing, and refining. Thanks for your valuable participation, attention, feedback, and advice.
To the parents and caregivers,
we are grateful that you trust us to teach your most precious gifts, your children. We are grateful that you trust that our holistic approach to adolescent health which incorporates mental health, ancestral wisdom, and cultural practices will help your children to lead healthier lives, think outside of the box, remain resilient, and foster and sustain the self-esteem to stand up for what they know is right.
To the adults
that participate in our initiatives through focus groups, interviews, or direct services, we are grateful that you see the vision within our work and believe in the messages. We are grateful that you are proud to step up and be the faces and voices of so many deep-seated, multi-layered, systemic issues. You have volunteered to be featured on billboards or in media pieces. You have engaged in advocacy with legislators and policymakers to push for better health and improved equity within health systems. You have provided quotes and shared your firsthand experiences to add wisdom to our reports, graphics, website, and more. Thank you for bringing your whole selves to join us in this work.
To our funders,
you always take a chance on us, and we are so grateful you see our value and at times, merely our potential. We are grateful that you not only continue to provide the tangible resources and support that we need to do this work, yet also the emotional and spiritual backbone and guidance to help us through tough moments, put everything into context, and connect us to the avenues and pathways that will help us to continue on this journey after over 30 years so we can ensure 30 more.
And finally, to our Board,
what would we do without you? When we need you the most, you are available at the drop of a dime, at the completion of a text, and at the instant we send an email. This past month you all have stepped up to rally behind us, guide us, and provide direct assistance in such a loving, thorough, and thoughtful way, and we are very fortunate to have such a diverse and powerful group of women with such wisdom and experience that we can turn to both when times are great and when times are rough.
This past month we have had to dig deep into our tagline, Healing is the Revolution, as forces who feel threatened by the DNA of our work — racial equity, justice, and well-being for those most marginalized — attempted to cast doubt on our organizational durability. We stand firm in our values and work, which has always been grounded in resilience-building and finding one’s inner and external strengths, and we are very grateful to those who have stood with us while we attempt to build back even stronger and strive to learn from the challenges we have been through.