Kia ora from Auckland, NZ.
My name is Adriana.
I am the community manager of trauma-informed NZ with ACES CONNECTION.
ACES CONNECTION, is based in the States, far from New Zealand, and our way of life, yet, I am the community manager of a community with ACES CONNECTION
Today, I am going to share with you, my reasons for joining ACES CONNECTION.
I will make a call for action at the end of my talk, so please stay to the end
Why did I join ACES CONNECTION?
Here is my story.
I live in NZ, always have done.
I love NZ, the people, the places and spaces.
I have faced adversity in my life.
I have layers of it.
I struggle with my trauma.
I am not alone, for in NZ, we have sad, bad statistics for racism, violence against women, violence against children, violence against self, power imbalance, inequity and now child poverty.
We are busy, so busy, responding to crisis, after crisis, that we don’t take time to stop, to reflect, to recover, to heal and to renew.
We remain stuck in response mode.
Trauma, and my inability to share my trauma, got in the way of my relationships with my loved ones.
Trauma divides us.
Silence divides us.
Together, they perpetuate the harm we face, the harm we do to ourselves, and to others, because of our ignorance.
Ignorance is never a good excuse, for harming children nor for harming others
Ignorance fuels our fear.
To overcome, our fear and our ignorance, we need to be informed
In 2017, my first grandchild was born.
As I held her for the first time, I looked down at her and I saw how vulnerable, powerless and voiceless, she was.
I saw how dependant, she was on me, to hold her, keep her safe and to protect her.
At that moment, I made a promise, a commitment, to her:
I will do my utmost best, to ensure, that you, will never face, the adversity, that I have faced.
You, all my grandchildren, and all children are worth the struggle, that I WILL face, to keep my promise.
Angela Davis said:
I’m no longer accepting, the things I cannot change
I’m changing the things, I cannot accept
So, I set up, Child Advocacy NZ, to advocate, for the rights of the child, to change the things, I cannot and will not accept.
In 2019, I joined ACES CONNECTION, to be informed.
I became community manager for Trauma-informed NZ on ACES CONNECTION, to spread the information to NZ.
I made the decision, to start advocating for, a trauma-responsive NZ.
By joining ACES CONNECTION, I found people, like me, who wanted to inform themselves and others, and to make change.
I found a place where I belonged
A place I was seen and heard
A place with solutions
A place of Hope
ACES CONNECTION, provides resources, free resources, lots of free resources, to inform us, and provides lots of opportunities, to participate, no matter where you live in the world, including here in NZ.
In doing so, they enable us, to make change to:
- Prevent adverse childhood experiences
- Build resilience
- Heal the harm
Ultimately, ACES CONNECTION, is about building healthy relationships, and strong connections, between people, communities, organisations, and countries.
We need to bring people together because trauma divides us
We need to listen to the stories from others so that we know we are not alone, to get hope and to understand just how bad trauma really is because silence divides us
Only then, can we, address our trauma, within ourselves and beyond in our families, community and countries across the world.
ACES CONNECTION, is about people, for people and with people and for the protection of all people
Far too many people face harm from adverse experiences, especially our children
We need to make change.
We need to make change, now.
Be informed
Participate with others
Take action together
That is why, I joined ACES CONNECTION, and that is why you should join ACES CONNECTION too.
Join ACES Connection.
Membership is free,
By joining, you, ensure ACES CONNECTION continues to bring people together from across the world with a shared understanding of what trauma is, how trauma impacts us so that we can walk together as one, to overcome the harm, the insidious harm, that trauma has caused in every community, in every country in our world
My call for action: ACES CONNECTION NEEDS YOUR HELP
ACES CONNECTION will receive $50,000 from an anonymous donor IF we raise $50,000 from our members by 31 December 2020
We don’t have much time
With your help, with your membership and your donation, we will reach that goal
In giving, you will receive
Join up to ACES CONNECTION today and add a donation
It is a win-win for everyone
Thank you
Have a lovely day.
Treat others and self with kindness and compassion
Adriana, from Trauma-informed NZ and Child Advocacy NZ, coming to you from Auckland, New Zealand.
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