I am not sure where I would be today without the information, community, support, and collaborations I have experienced with the team at PACEs Connection (formerly ACEs Connection). Right now this amazing organization is in need of support. Here is their SOS message:
PACEs Connection is in dire financial straits. We are asking for support, from you, our 57,505 members, to help cover the loss of foundation funding that was promised and did not come through. Pay and hours have been cut for our staff—most of us will be laid off for the month of December. Another grant will pick up in January. Since sounding the alarm this summer, we’ve raised about $24,000 . To get a sense of who your fellow members are, who is donating and why, please enjoy and share…
I am sharing why I set up a modest monthly donation to this amazing organization that has provided so much to so many. They have more than 57,000 members, imagine if each person donated, even a small amount! Here is my why:
PACEs Connection has been my north star for credible information about the science, research, and lived expertise that is centered on healing our most intractable problems. It also lifts up community-inspired solutions by engaging grassroots groups working to heal their communities. PACEs Connection has been a focal hub for learning, growing, and amplifying the science of positive and adverse childhood experiences.
Finding PACEs Connection after the death of my father, a complex man who died from a hemorrhagic stroke. His death decades later, was directly linked to the trauma he suffered as a 12-year-old boy witnessing the murder of his entire family. He was buried on the 60th anniversary of the murders. I was on a quest to understand the life and death of my father, and found it through the research provided in the treasure trove of information available on PACEs Connection.
My family has experienced the trauma of two mass shootings with both survivors and victims. Generational trauma was my original reason for digging deeper into the science of ACEs. It is my goal to do everything in my capacity as a school nurse and family member survivor to end gun violence through public health measures which drives me to share this work. PACEs science holds the key by working to reduce childhood adversity, especially exposure to violence.
For so long the content of PACEs Connection has been open-access and I am sure that will continue, but asking for support is the least that we can provide for all that has been given by the organization. When you look at the structure behind PACEs Connection, you realize how few devoted people are providing so much content, research, opportunities for community building, and space to exhale in this complex world. I have given over the years, but realize that if each of us gave even a small amount, the collective impact would be a game changer for PACEs Connection. Giving back is a gift that will be used to bring more light into this world in great need of healing.
