March Forward: When Healing Begins to Bloom

Over the past few weeks, we stepped back from writing. But with the momentum of recent personal victories pushing us forward, we are ready to continue this journey — our hearts full and our purpose renewed.

2025 was a season of discovery. It brought clarity, hard answers, and alignment with the mission we feel called to pursue. This year, we are building on that foundation. Our focus for 2026 is simple but powerful: deepening relationships, strengthening community, and building a network of advocates committed to changing the lives of survivors and the systems that affect them.

In January, we partnered with Jim C. Bailey Middle School to host a Lunch & Learn focused on bringing trauma-informed resources into the classroom. Educators play a critical role in recognizing and responding to the needs of vulnerable children, and we were honored to support their efforts while raising funds for Gulf Coast Kid’s House, a child advocacy center serving abused and neglected children in Escambia County, Florida.

In February, we attended the Julie Valentine Center “Space for Healing” event, where we heard the inspiring story of Amanda Nguyen — Harvard graduate, astronaut trainee, Nobel Peace Prize nominee, and survivor. She transformed her experience of sexual assault into a mission of advocacy, helping drive legislative change surrounding sexual assault evidence kits and survivors’ rights. Her story reminded us that healing and justice can coexist, and that survivor voices have the power to shape the future.

This month, we continue our efforts to create meaningful change through a Restorative Justice Circle co-hosted with The Hiding Place, a domestic violence outreach organization serving Pickens County, South Carolina. Together, we will gather to discuss how we can better meet the needs of survivors of domestic abuse and build pathways toward healing and accountability.

Spring — my very favorite season — is quickly approaching. It is the time of year when blossoms begin to appear, quiet evidence of the growth happening beneath the surface. Much like healing, the transformation often begins unseen, but with patience, care, and courage, new life emerges.

That is the spirit guiding our work this season: growing deeper roots, building stronger connections, and creating spaces where survivors are empowered to rebuild, thrive, and challenge the status quo.

As we step into this new month, we invite you to stand with us — to be part of the healing and part of the progress. Because when a community rises together, hope takes root, voices grow stronger, and lives begin to bloom.