This past week our national news has been defined by President Obama's 100th day in office and the outbreak of swine flu. At A Woman's Place (AWP), we continue to provide services to people in need and to search and apply for funding opportunities that will support those services. It was yet another reality check.
Everyday, amidst the national and international newsworthy incidents that swarm around us and impact us in large and small ways, life continues. You and I get up each morning and move through the responsibilities of each day. Many of us care for families, getting spouses off to work and children off to school while also making sure we can get to our own offices on time. The bottom line is that while we are attentive to the world around us, we can not allow ourselves to lose focus.
At AWP, we are constantly focused on the task at hand - ending domestic and dating abuse and violence and making our shared community safer for everyone. We need you - your support - to achieve this audacious goal. I ask you to remember AWP as the news of the world we are all living in today swarms around you.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention Mother's Day. On Mother's Day, the President of the United States issues an annual proclamation reaffirming the national significance of mothers to the American people. Between Presidential proclamations, well-deserved kudos, and the greeting card sales, Mother's Day becomes part of the news swarming around us. I must take this moment to add my voice to the praise of mothers.
In 1996, President Clinton said this in the Mother's Day Proclamation: "As we honor our Nation's mothers for past and present accomplishments, we recognize that mothers' roles have changed significantly in recent years. Today, mothers are CEOs and teachers, physicians and nurses, elected officials and PTA presidents, police officers and volunteers, homemakers and heads of households. Many serve on the front lines of the struggle against violence and poverty. These women - problem-solvers, caregivers, and teachers - are using their talents in every sector of our society, helping all Americans to look forward with hope and faith in the future.
I urge each of you to turn off the news, put down the paper, take a deep breath, and spend a few moments reflecting on and honoring the women you know and have known who are, have been, or may one day become mothers. Our world has changed, and mothers are in the thick of that change "using their talents in every sector of our society, helping all Americans to look forward with hope and faith in the future."
This month, join us in adding to the excitement of these times by taking a moment to celebrate Mother's Day. Send a card, send flowers, or just call to say thank you for playing a critical role in building healthy families and healthy communities. You can make a gift to AWP in honor or memory of that special someone by
clicking here, and we'll send her a special certificate to let her know how much she is appreciated.
These are exciting times, and AWP will stay the course and remain focused on building a safer community for all of us. I thank you for your continued support and partnership.
With deepest thanks and gratitude,
