This month we celebrate independence, and there is much to be said about autonomy and respect for individual agency. In fact, a big part of our work at REACH is helping folks get away from unhealthy, dangerous relationships where autonomy and respect are erased. However, independence doesn’t necessarily mean going it completely alone; autonomy is not isolation. It is our interdependence that sustains us as human…
by Steve Reed, REACH Board Member When Laura asked me to write a guest post about what masculinity means to me, I was caught off guard. Other than being a son, brother, husband, and father, what do I know about masculinity? To be honest, I’ve never really thought about it before. So, I did what anyone in 2018 would do, I Googled it. Turns out,…
It’s Volunteer Appreciation Week, and we at REACH could not be more grateful for our volunteers. Last year alone, volunteers contributed over 4,700 hours of service to REACH. We have volunteers who help in a number of ways, some of which may be surprising to you. If you’ve ever been to our office, you’ve probably met one of our front desk volunteers. This role is staffed…
If organizations like REACH, the police departments, and the courts were the only people who cared about domestic violence, then not much in our society would change. We do our best to help those who have already been affected by domestic violence, helping them plan for safety and get connected to resources, but until we change the social norms and systems that allow it to take…
You are worth it. You deserve this. Those short sentences contain powerful words. This week, REACH hosted an open house at our new offices. The move to new space was a long time coming and, as you have read over the past year, we are really excited about it. Our excitement stems not just from having more room and new stuff; we are most pleased with…
As we kick off 2018, we wanted to pause and reflect on the past year. 2017 was a year of unprecedented challenges, in the world around us and also for REACH as an agency. At the end of 2016, we tried to focus on healing and being a resource for safety in a time of uncertainty following a divisive election. We kicked off 2017 talking about…
Last March, my husband and I experienced the biggest surprise of our lives. When I was just under 32 weeks pregnant, our daughter decided she was ready to be born. As a result, the first several weeks of her life were spent in the Brigham and Women’s Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The care our family received there was out of this world; each day she…
It’s official! REACH has finally moved! I’m writing this to you from my brand-new office here in REACH’s new location. I can’t tell you where exactly that is, because we don’t publish our address. But trust me when I tell you it’s very close to the old one, and perfect for us. Over the past several years, we’ve looked at a lot of office spaces. We…
“In a healthy relationship, both individuals’ worlds grow larger. In an unhealthy relationship, one person’s world gets bigger while they use controlling behaviors to make their partner’s world shrink smaller and smaller.” I’ve said some variation of the above statement in countless trainings on domestic violence, and recently it has been at the forefront of my mind. Here at REACH, we’ve been thinking a lot…
So much has happened since our last update! At that time, we were still awaiting our building permits and living very much in the hypothetical – examining the designer’s renderings, comparing flooring samples, looking at photographs of furniture. But as you read this, permits have been pulled, demolition has happened, and things are in motion! What’s taking shape now is about much more than our new…
