8/20/2020
Your monthly news & updates
Welcome to the Anti-Violence Partnership's newsletter! Through this monthly email, we'll keep you up to date on everything that's happening at AVP. We'll highlight events we hold, people we cherish and news we think is relevant to the world of victim services.
AVP's Offices Are Closed
Sadly, a new newsletter means the same old opening paragraph that our offices are still closed due to COVID-19. The good news is we're still hard at work-- if you need to contact us, everybody at AVP is working from home. Please email avp@avpphila.org or leave a voicemail at (215) 567-6776 (we will continue to check our voicemail!) and we'll get back to you as soon as we can. For help with victims compensation, please call our West Philadelphia office at (215) 748-7780. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Since our new website went up last month, you can also self-refer for victim and therapeutic services. Professionals are more than welcome to refer clients through those links as well.
Partnering with the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute
As Boston's WGBH reported AVP has partnered with the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute!
The agency is named after Brown, a 15-year-old who was killed randomly in a shooting in 1993. Though he was on his way to a Teens Against Gang Violence meeting when he was murdered, media speculated Brown was himself involved in a gang. His parents, Clementina Chéry and Joseph, started the Peace Institute in Louis' honor, continuing the work he had just barely been able to start, teaching peace to whoever they could reach.

The Anti-Violence Partnership is proud to help extend that reach, working to bring the Massachusetts-based group into Philadelphia.
Zoom Support Groups
If you engage in face-to-face therapy, our current quarantine could be hitting you hard. Everybody needs to communicate, and this temporary age of isolation isn't making that any easier than it would normally be. Our clinicians started a couple of online support groups last month-- each one is conducted by two members of our team over Zoom.

Follow the links under these fliers to give us some basic information, and we'll be in touch to see if the group is right for you!
Guided Meditation
Our therapists have taken to Instagram and have been running live guided meditation sessions every Monday at 3 pm!
It's easy to feel isolated during quarantine. That's, you know, what quarantine means. These sessions have been a great way to focus on mindfulness with live people. The longer this goes on outside, the more important it is to remember to take some time to establish an inner peace.

The sessions are free and open to everybody!
Meet AVP
A few words from YVO Therapist Emma Marcus
What's your job title at AVP and how would you describe what you do here?

I am a Child and Adolescent therapist. I provide therapy to youth in the counseling center and at 3 different schools during the week. During Covid-19 I am seeing clients through telehealth. I use play therapy, sand tray therapy, motivational interviewing and talk therapy. I also communicate with parents and school personnel on client progress.

Why did you decide to get into victim services?

Previously, I worked as a school social worker in Camden, New Jersey. In Camden, I worked with students who were survivors of various types of violence and trauma. I found this work very rewarding and wanted to work for an agency that specifically focused on healing people who experienced violence. 

What part of your job means the most to you? 

I absolutely love working with children and adolescents! I am committed to client growth and helping children and families heal. 

Is there anything you'd like to focus more of your effort toward as you further define your role here? 

I am currently working towards my clinical license and getting fully certified in play therapy. 
Resources
Social distancing, school closures and the decision by many businesses to have employees work from home has hurt everybody in ways we may not have been able to predict. Below, find a number of resources that can help in this chaotic time: