Thursday, March 16, 2006

R.E.C.L.A.I.M.

This is my inspiration for a new organization serving young women from
middle school - onward. The acronym came to me last night as a working
model and the ideas came to me on the drive home from the office after
practicing my (very out of tune) violin for a bit. (I can't wait until she teaches me how to do it. Last time I tried myself I ended up breaking a string. Whoops!)

I'd love feedback.

R.E.C.L.A.I.M.

Real
Experiences
Can
Leave
An
Important
Message


(Originally Real Experiences Can Leave An Indelible Mark - from a
survivor standpoint)

The acronym is way not an organization name, but I like the idea of
RECLAIMING. Things have been taken and repackaged from women
throughout written history when men controlled the means of
communication.

In the 21st century women not only are story makers, but also scribes,
beginning to include their voice and SLOWLY beginning to DIRECTLY
affect their destinies.

Reclaim can be an organization that provides direct service to young
women, and partner with organizations to support them from first
contact with Reclaim onward.

Programming will allow participants to find their voice, collaborate
with other young women, develop leadership curriculum/media for
distribution beyond the walls and geography of the agency, and sustain
itself through partnerships and developing and successfully
implementing distribution of the media created within the programs.

Reclaim will develop leaders in its core programs that will support young women
through SUSTAINED contact. Graduates from our core programs will allow
young women to become ambassadors for the agency and, in turn, expand
our reach beyond the walls of the agency into the community DIRECTLY
effecting the community for the better.

Reclaim will advocate for the evolution of the individual, the
collective participant and staff body. Reclaim will not only develop
programs for its participants, but will offer workshops to agencies
and organizations sharing our model for success and to policy makers
to inform them on sustainable and successful models of programming
that supplements our resource-taxed schools and families.

RECLAIM will model itself on the self-sufficiency of a community through:

1) Education on Being an Affective Community Agency, Issues informing
our programming, Media delivery of our message
2) Community Awareness, Development, and Service
3) Outreach and Fellowship with Community Serving Agencies
4) Sustainble Business Model that promotes materials developed by/for
the women we serve
5) Develop and maintain successful partnerships with agencies for
development of larger programs (conferences), and reach to local,
national, and international governments' and agencies' resources for
youth (specifically young women) development.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

sounds awesome - you should go for it.