2017 Annual ReportAchievements

What’s New

To start, our Mission statement has been enhanced to sync up with how we truly serve the community.

The mission of Kaity’s Way is to advocate for healthy relationships by providing education, skills and tools to youth and their allies.

2017 was a very productive year for Kaity’s Way. While continuing to meet the demand to educate about the importance of healthy relationships and bring awareness to teen dating violence we took on a couple of extensive projects. In order to bring these projects to fruition we hosted twelve Interns from our local colleges; Arizona State University (ASU) Social Work, Criminal Justice and University Service Learning programs in addition to Northern Arizona University’s (NAU) Public Health Program and Glendale Community College (GCC).

Therefore, we would like to begin this report with a heartfelt Thank You and recognition of those wonderful individuals that chose to intern with Kaity’s Way. We acknowledge there are many wonderful organizations they had to choose from and truly appreciate them choosing Kaity’s Way to learn from, work with and help.

Intern Name College Area of Study Semester Hour

sJessica Garman ASU Criminal Justice Spring 2017 270Ashlee Nordhues NAU Public Health Spring 2017 360Yvanna Morales ASU Educational Studies Spring 2017 120Trisha Carver ASU Social Work (Master) Spring & Summer 2017 480Mario Vasquez GCC Social Work Spring 2017 40Danielle Thornton NAU Public Health Summer 2017 360Jennifer Carroll ASU Educational Studies Summer 2017 100Erika Fierros ASU Social Work (Master) Summer & Fall 2017 480Haley Backus NAU Public Health Fall 2017 360Destiny Lopez ASU Educational Studies Summer & Fall 2017 170Kenya Dominguez ASU Criminal Justice Fall 2017 135Melissa Wertenberger ASU Social Work (Master) Fall 2017 240

3115

Collectively they completed over three thousand hours of service to the community through Kaity’s Way, which equates to 1.5 full time employees. Each of these interns took part in the day-to-day operations, field events and various projects.

The projects we put as priorities were to formalize our ‘Train the Trainer’ training program and create a curriculum based on the 90-minute class block schedule followed by several schools in Arizona. These projects were selected based on feedback and requests from the community as well as the need of the community; given that teen dating violence can be a very complex and perplexing time for a victim and the ones that love and care about them.

Our first formal ‘Train the Trainer’ training workshop was launched in summer of 2017 at the Emmett McLoughlin Community Training and Education Center in Phoenix. It was a complete success. The thought process behind creating this program had to do with expanding the ability for this education to be available when needed and/or necessary. We wanted to open the door for educators and those that work with youth to have the ability to share this education per their lesson plan and not be contingent on our schedule. After all, it is about helping our youth break the cycle of violence.

All those in attendance had been walked through a Kaity’s Way presentation, detailing the complexity and risk of an abusive relationship. Yet, to balance that out they were also exposed to the elements of healthy relationships through our P.E.A.C.E. Patience, Empathy, Acceptance, Caring, Equality) model establishing the importance of healthy relationships on all levels. In addition, we took them through an “In Their Shoes” activity to promote yet another method to educate their students.

The thing about teen dating violence or any violence for that matter is there is much yet to be done to help the masses embrace P.E.A.C.E. That being said, the more we have out there providing this education, the better the chances of our future leaders leading with P.E.A.C.E. and empowering others rather than the alternative, to lead with ego and abusive levels of power and control.

The next Train the Trainer Training is in the planning stages and will take place in the summer. Look for a save the date coming your way. If you would like to make sure you are on the distribution list for our next TTT, email us at kaityswayttt@gmail.com.

Now for the curriculum. We were fortunate to have an excellent mix of minds to pull from with the interns we hosted. Two of the interns that helped with this project were

working fulltime as teachers and enrolled in the ASU Master Social Work program. The third intern involved with this project is an educational studies major at ASU. The interns worked with Bobbi Sudberry as a team and developed a four, 90-minute module curriculum. The beauty of this curriculum is it is flexible and every module includes an interactive activity. Students will be asked to volunteer and play a part in their learning experience. To develop the curriculum we took apart our workshop content and drilled further down in each area. Depending on the subject matter of each module we incorporated certain activities to reinforce the teachings.

“In Their Shoes” WSCADV.org “The Newly Dating Game” Kaity’s Way

The “In Their Shoes” activity developed by the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence allows a pair of students to walk in the shoes of a victim. The victims vary in gender, race, country of origin and sexual orientation. “The Newly Dating Game” was developed by Kaity’s Way for a Teen Maze we were asked to participate in a few years back. It was such a hit with the students going through the maze that we decided it would be a great fit for our curriculum. The general idea is that one student is vetting potential dating partners. The potential dating partners have some interesting answers for the vetting student. Both activities require student participation, increasing the learning potential and are very enlightening.

Now meet the newest members to join our Board of DirectorsTracy Lenartz and Kellie MacDonald-Evoy to our Board of Directors. These two ladies bring a wealth of experience and knowledge and we are honored they chose Kaity’s Way.

Tracy received a Masters of Public Health degree with a focus on Community Health Education from the University of Minnesota.  Tracy is now President of Lenartz Consulting, a small business providing technical assistance and training to a wide variety of public health and social service agencies, including nonprofits and state government, to increase access to care for rural and underserved communities. Lenartz Consulting specializes in training, grant writing, program development and evaluation, needs assessment and research.

Kellie earned her Master’s Degree in social work from Arizona State University

where she specialized in policy, administration and community organizing. Kellie's

primary passion is working to promote policy change and has spent several years

working with state and federal elected officials on issues such as domestic

violence, education, healthcare and criminal justice reform. She currently works in

the field office of Arizona State University’s School of Social Work.

To learn more about Tracy and Kellie or the rest of our Board of Directors, visit the About Us page of our website kaitysway.org.

Jean Georgianni, who completed her term as a Board member, has agreed stay on to develop and lead an Advisory Board for Kaity’s Way. This is still in the planning stages, but if you would like to be involved or considered for a position on our Advisory board, contact us at kw08@kaitysway.org.

Continuing Successes

In addition to the new developments, we continue to make sure ongoing programs are maintained properly and continue to be successful and grow with these evolving times.

Perhaps we should begin with our workshops for the Juveniles in Diversion program. Since 2014 we have held regularly scheduled workshops in the valley to educate about the importance of healthy relationships and bring awareness to the issue of teen dating violence. Initially, these workshops were developed based on the need of juveniles that have made a poor decision and chose to take responsibility for their action by entering the Juveniles in Diversion program. These workshops had been so well received that we opened them up the general public not long after starting them.

Along this journey, we have been very fortunate to have the support of both LifeSkills High School and Ocotillo Library in providing venues to hold our workshops, but in 2017 we received a grant from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office that helped offset most of our costs associated with this program.

Through our Kaity’s Way Relationship Violence Diversion workshops we served one 177 people. Each workshop was measured by a pre and post survey that was completed by each attendee. Through these surveys, we found that:

66% know or knew someone in an abusive relationship

59% had been in at least one abusive relationship 98% now recognize the signs of an abusive relationship after attending our

workshop 99% plan to use the tools received from our workshop to exercise healthy

relationships in their own lives

Initially 34% were either not sure or did not know it was against the law to impede someone’s ability to call for help. Post survey this number grew to 95% of people knowing it is against the law to impede someone from calling for help.

Here are some of the many responses from them, regarding what they learned:

“I should be aware of my actions as well as others” “Abuse takes many forms” “What I can do to help victims and how important support is” “I re-victimized my sister even though I was trying to help” “Boys can be victims also” “Acceptable behaviors for relationships” “Kaity’s Law” “Abuse can happen to anyone at any age anytime” “How to end an abusive relationship” “Red Flags”

Based on these results and comments it is apparent that a vast majority of those that attended our workshops left enlightened and empowered to understand the importance of and exercise healthy relationships. We believe the positive nature of our workshops and the class size being no more than twenty allows the attendees to interact and open up if they so choose.

It is our belief that our workshops have helped several more than just those in attendance. One parent that attended with her son is the mother of 10, which all are teenagers. She was so impressed that she had all of her children attend one of our workshops. That is just one example of those attending our workshops sharing what they learned with those they associate with personally and professionally.

The total number served through our resource tables, presentations and workshops in 2017 was 10,919 people, 98% being in Arizona. In totality, we traveled over 10,700 miles and 8,775 of those miles were in Arizona. We also provided the community with 8,464 brochures and 5,424 bracelets. The demographics of those served are as follows:

Cauca

sion

Hispan

icAsia

nOthe

r0

4000

8000 24%6%

55%

10% 2% 1% 2%

Ethnicity*Total 10,919

Male

41%Fe

male

59%

Gender*Total 10,919

0

32%42%

6%20%

Age*Total 10,919

In addition to the community service we provide through our presentations, workshops and resource tables, we are also accepting applications for our annual $1,000 scholarship until March 31, 2018. They applicants have to major in a field related to social service and intend to enroll in one of the local Maricopa Community Colleges. Please share this link with http://kaitysway.org/scholarship/ with any students that may be interested.

We would not be able to do all that we have done since 2008 without the help and support from the community, interns, volunteers and donors. They have attended our fundraising events, patronized our cart at the Cardinals games, and selected Kaity’s Way for Fry’s V.I.P. Rewards, Amazon Smiles and the United Way giving programs.

We would like to start by Thanking our 2017 top donors.

Donor Amount

Talking Stick Resort$20,383.0

0Mahnah Club $6,000.00HAPI $3,636.00Rapaport Reality, PLLC $1,500.00Maricopa County Attorney's Office $1,150.00Lenartz Consulting, LLC $1,050.00

Fundraising is an essential part of funding for a nonprofit and Kaity’s Way is no different in that regard. Our board members, interns and volunteers work very hard to create fundraising events that are collaborative, engaging and bring awareness to our program. Since 2009 our Ajo team of volunteers and the town of Ajo has rallied around Kaity’s Way in several ways. They have welcomed us into their schools, churches and clubs to educate the populous about the importance of healthy relationships and understand the risks associated with abusive relationships. They have also gone the extra mile to make sure Kaity’s Way has the funding to support

these presentations, not to mention several other presentations in Pima County. Yes, this town of 2,500 permanent residents has raised the bar when it comes to fundraising through yard sales. They coordinate a yard sale in the spring and one in the fall. The combined average of these yard sales net Kaity’s Way -- $5,000.

We have Susan Guinn-Lahm and Sharon Montijo to thank for their tenacity and determination not to only support Kaity’s Way, but their community as well.

Save the Date Alert! The next Kaity’s Way Ajo Spring Yard Sale is scheduled for April 6th & 7th. We are currently taking donations for this yard sale. You can contact us by email at kw08@kaitysway.org or by calling (602) 740-2734. In the Phoenix area and want to donate, no problem, we have volunteers in the area willing to take a load down to Ajo as needed. We will take delivery or pick up.

Another spectacular fundraising event that takes place annually is our “Step Against Teen Dating Violence” event led by Brandy Aguilar, KW Board Member. This event, for many, is a great time to have a dinner and show night out, all the while supporting a great cause.

Arthur Murray Dance Studio Phoenix, Fred Astaire, Dance Fusion and Alice Coopers School of Rock, is where our professional dancers came from. They worked with each of our volunteers to ready them for the big stage on September 23, 2017. The volunteers this year were, Tania Lopez, Terros, Kathy Knecht, Peoria Unified School District, Cyndi Tercero, Phoenix Union High School District, Chelsea Warren, Big Yam, Charissa Dantas, KW Volunteer, Ginger Butcher, ACESDV, Amy Berry, Digitalwire360, Ruby Craft, KW Volunteer. Every single one of them rocked the house and we are very grateful for their time and dedication to make the 2017 “Step Against Teen Dating Violence” a total success. We appreciate the wonderful meal provided by Black Canyon Conference Center and all the items donated for our Gold Box raffle and silent auction.

Congratulations to the top three teams. On the right we have 3rd place Tania Lopez & Luis Malanche, Arthur Murray; In the middle is 2nd place Chelsea Warren & Tanner Clark, Dance Fusion and on the left you have Amy Berry & Kris Jaus, Arthur Murray who took home 1st place.

All in all this event would not have been as spectacular as it was had it not been for the additional support of our wonderful and generous sponsors.

Sponsorship Level: Mambo Tango Fox Trot MISGIF Quick Step

Sponsor: Talking Stick Mahnah Terros Erica Lenartz Resort Club Amerault Consulting, Inc.

In truth everyone that participated and attended this event are winners but the true winner is the community we serve. Thank you all for making Kaity’s Way and the community you serve a priority.

Save the date Alert! Our next “Step Against Teen Dating Violence is scheduled for September 22, 2018. We are currently looking for dance teams and volunteers to help with planning and production. If interested, email kwstepevent@gmail.com or call (602) 740-2734.

On the Horizon

Things are ever changing in the world and there is so much to be done especially when it comes to our youth. We have a rather comprehensive list of projects that still need attention to continue to help our youth grow in a positive and healthy manner socially and emotionally. Therefore, we continue to work with interns from various schools. Six of our Spring 2018 interns come from ASU’s Social Work or University Service Learning programs, but this semester we have an intern from a local high school, who will be working on a photo project. We are very excited about all of our Interns and mountains they are going help us climb this semester.

Due to our growth, it became necessary to seek out office space. We have been putting out our need for office space for a couple of years and we were heard. Tanner

Community Development Corporation (TCDC) located at 700 E. Jefferson has met our needs within our budget and we are thrilled to have this opportunity. Besides being centrally located, the work environment is very positive, caring and collaboratively conducive. Just what we need and what and were looking for. Nothing short of amazing how things just fall into place eventually. Many Thanks to TCDC for their community service, collaborative and caring nature.

Having this office space really opens the door for Kaity’s Way to provide even more to the community. One such program includes our curriculum for the juveniles on probation. We also have an intern who is working on formalizing our volunteer program. Having this office space will give us easier access to a location to hold volunteer orientations and the like.

On a similar note, we have been looking for a venue to hold a third monthly workshop in the east valley. We are getting close and may have a location here shortly. Our goal is to start hosting the east valley workshops in March 2018. We will keep you updated as the pieces fall into place.

After the “Step Against Teen Dating Violence” event, Linda at Dance Fusion approached us with a fun idea to raise funds. On February 24, 2018 Dance Fusion is hosting a Dance Marathon. This is not your typical marathon. It is an opportunity for the community to learn a new dance step or two. We hope you will come out and see what it is all about.

This is the short list of what is yet to come, stay tuned to our website www.kaitysway.org for updates about all that we are doing to promote healthy relationships on all levels in our youth and their allies.

In addition to our regularly scheduled workshops, we are scheduling conference workshops, presentations and resource tabling events for March and April 2018. If you would like to schedule a presentation or like us to provide a workshop or breakout session for your conference, go to our website www.kaitysway.org and complete the “Request a Presentation” form so we can get it scheduled. That being said we could use all the help we can get from the community by way of donations and volunteerism. Donations can be made through our website http://www.kaitysway.org/donations.html or by mail to Kaity’s Way P.O. Box 83494, Phoenix AZ 85071.

Other ways to support Kaity’s Way:

Kaity's Way supporters can enroll their Fry’s V.I.P. Cards online at their secure website www.FrysCommunityRewards.com. Thankfully, they updated the program so that you no longer have to update your charity selection annually.

Every time an enrolled participant shops at Fry’s using his or her registered Fry’s V.I.P. Card, Kaity's Way will receive a donation from the Fry’s Rewards program and card holders will still get their fuel points.  

Amazon gives customers the option to select a nonprofit to receive .05% of any purchase upon checkout. When you go to Smile.Amazon.com, you can select Kaity's Way and shop away. 

We also accept in-kind donations. Some of the items are used for office supplies; some are sold at our annual spring or Fall Ajo yard sales. Other items are used in baskets to raise additional funds at our Signature event. If someone wants to donate, chances are we will take it.

We are always looking for dedicated volunteers to help with events and to fundraise. Our volunteers also help with data entry and coordination of volunteers for upcoming

events. To complete an application, click on the picture to the left, the word volunteer or follow this link http://goo.gl/forms/ImNy8AO0nW.

For any questions about this report or Kaity’s Way, visit our website or feel free to contact Bobbi Sudberry, Executive Director directly at kw08@kaitysway.org or by phone (602) 740-2734.