Agency Spotlight: WeCare
WeCare was founded in 2008 by Aryn Quinn in order to make a difference in the lives of those affected by domestic violence and remind everyone that its victims deserve love and support. The organization partners with residential domestic violence shelters across the city to provide services to survivors of abuse that restore their sense of hope and worthiness. The cause is personal to Aryn, as both herself and her mother are survivors of domestic abuse. Aryn’s commitment to other survivors of domestic abuse along with her understanding of such a sensitive topic enable her and her organization to make a lasting impact. When asked what is one thing you would want people to know about your organization/mission, Aryn responded: “Even if you don’t know it, you know someone who has been abused.”
Aryn’s dedication to her cause shines through each and every day at WeCare. Her background, reputation, and hard work has enabled WeCare to develop close relationships with a collection of residential domestic violence shelters across New York City. Gaining the access she and her organization has with the survivors is no easy task. For the sake of victims of domestic abuse and their families, their safety and security is a top priority. Shelters are often forced to conceal the identities, locations, etc. of their residents to ensure that their abusers will not be able to find them and cause more harm. Without WeCare, Projects With Care would not be able to generate nearly as much of an impact in the lives of children and their families who have faced domestic abuse. We cannot thank them enough for all of their hard work and tremendous efforts.
Hands on services with survivors of domestic abuse are at the core of the WeCare program, because even a small change in perspective can transform a life. WeCare utilizes group activities to bring people and families living in the shelter together, many of whom are feeling isolated and depressed. When children see their mothers uplifted and smiling and moms see their kids laughing again, it brings healing to the entire family. To help reestablish a sense of belonging and dignity for the mothers, WeCare provides them with a bevy of services, some of which include brand new clothing, professional hairstyling, beauty gift bags, catered lunches and more. For the children, the goal is to allow them a safe space to laugh, play, and feel happy. WeCare accomplishes this through a variety of events like DJ parties, face painting, balloon artistry, magicians, and pizza parties.
In addition to working with survivors, WeCare also focuses on the prevention of domestic violence through their own educational programming. Their workshop “That’s Not Ok: That’s Abuse” reaches thousands of young girls, women, men, and LQTBQ individuals with an interactive class provided to grammar schools, high schools, local organizations, and corporations. The goal of the workshop is to use education to prevent people from being blindsided by intimate partner abuse. Participants learn how to identify abuse, get help, and embrace healthy relationships. With 1 in 3 teens stating that they know someone, or are themselves suffering from abuse, education is the key to helping them stay safe. One of Aryn’s goals is to recruit and certify “That’s Not Ok: That’s Abuse” presenters in order to expand WeCare’s workshop to college campuses across the United States.
For the families in the domestic violence shelters, WeCare’s support means everything. At the close of their shelter events, they see the residents transformed inside and out from sad and anxious to brightly lit smiles. One survivor remarked, “I had no idea that anyone still cared about me. You are wonderful people. Thank you and know that you moved me to tears.”
After sharing their stories at one of WeCare’s prevention workshops, students on campus come together as one in support of each other. By starting the conversation on such a difficult yet pertinent topic, WeCare knows that they are breaking the cycle of abuse. After one event, a school administrator praised the program and its effectiveness saying, “The WeCare education program should be a must in every school. I believe it will save lives.”
The needs of the families that WeCare supports is the inspiration for Projects With Care’s newest initiative, Project Welcome Home, and we are partnering with WeCare for the pilot program that we plan to expand in the future to support our other partner agencies.
Aryn Quinn’s new book, “Dying For Love” is coming out September 29, 2024. Ask for it at your favorite bookseller.
