Image Description: A photo of daisies growing from the ground. One daisy in particular is very clear. Happy Spring! We hope you're enjoying the warmer temps and sunnier days. We've been really busy and have so much in store for this spring!
Upcoming:
FH5K by Forest Hills Foundation for Education
Image Description: Forest Hills Foundation for Education's logo for the 5K is multiple shades of green, lime green and dark green. The letters FH are white and "wears" a green graduation cap. Underneath is "5K" in dark green with lime green racing stripes to either side. The whole logo is contained in an octagon. Join Survivor Cards & and our recently created walking group for women, Hot Girls Walking - Anderson for the Forest Hills 5K at Nagle Middle School on May 13th! 🧠💪🏻 All ages, genders and abilities welcome! Sign up here and start by selecting "adult" or "child," then select "Join our Team" and choose "Survivor Cards" The 5K is from 8:30am EST - 11:30am EST and can be walked, ran, jogged, etc. Funds raised will benefit the Forest Hills Foundation for Education. ✏️ We will also have a booth set up for Survivor Cards with information on volunteer opportunities, receiving cards, a card writing station, mental health resources, upcoming events, walking group info & more. Are you a student in need of volunteer hours? Contact us to sign up to cover our booth for 1-2 hours. We will provide lunch! Email us at survivorcards@gmail.com for more info!
Hot Girls Walking - Anderson
Image Description: A woman wearing sunglasses, in a dark brown shirt with yellow polka dots, beige slacks and brown sandals walks her dog on a leash. The dog is yellow like a golden retriever and wears a bandana. The info below is on the image in orange font. Announcing our next 2 walks for our women's walking group formed last month! Thursday, April 6th at 5:45 PM and Monday, April 10th at 5:45 PM. Meet us at the amphitheater at Beech Acres Park. All women of all abilities welcome!
Image Description: Some of the women in our walking group pose together at Beech Acres Park and smile at the camera. The person taking the photo selfie style is barely visible, waving a hand at the camera. The women are a variety of ages and body types.
Mental Health Month Kick-Off
Image Description: 3 green shirts say "You Matter #mentalhealthmatters" and the text next to them says "Go Green for Mental Health!" Join the Anderson Mental Health Collaborative, Thursday, April 27th from 6-10 PM at Big Ash Brewing for a Mental Health Month Kick-Off event! Get your t-shirt now and get ready to Go Green for Mental Health Month in May! Order by April 7th to receive in time for April 27th event at Big Ash. Proceeds benefit Anderson Mental Health Collaborative.
Recent:
Tools to Take Care Event
Image Description: This photo was taken from the back of the yoga studio's room. There are many people sitting on yoga mats and listening to the woman and man instructors give a presentation. The walls are a soft blue with a floral design and and floor is brown. We had a fantastic turn out at the Tools to Take Care event put on in collaboration by Survivor Cards and Touch Education, and hosted at Practice Cincy Yoga on 5 Mile! Thank you to Matt Howe for walking us through how stress impacts the body and to Nicole for teaching us some self-care strategies and guiding us through a yoga sequence! A big thank you to everyone who wrote a Survivor Card for us to distribute as well. We will definitely plan more events like these for folks to come and experience such a calming space, a relaxing form of exercise and give back to their community, so stay tuned! More photos below!
Image Description: A person with long strawberry blonde hair tied back in a pony tail, a green shirt and gray yoga pants sits on a yoga mat and bends over to write inside a card. There are other cards spread out and a container of pens.
Image Description: A woman in black yoga pants and a gray shirt, with brown hair to her shoulders sits on a yoga mat and bends over to write in a card. There are other cards spread out besides her and a container of pens. Her mobility cane is pink and black and sits behind her.
Volunteer Appreciation Corner:
Junior League of Cincinnati
Image Description: A white woman with long blonde hair and a pink blazer, a black woman with her hair in an up-do wearing a crocheted top and jeans and a white woman with a silver, purple and gray bob, wearing a black long sleeve shirt and an orange scarf sit around a round table and write in cards. In the background is another table with multiple women sitting around it, also writing in cards.
Thank you to the ladies over at Junior League of Cincinnati for inviting us to join them to talk about Survivor Cards, what we stand for, what we do and create cards together.
We had a wonderful breakfast and made over 70 cards! We appreciate you taking time out of your weekend to volunteer for the survivors we serve.
Girl Scout Troop #4362
Image Description: Lined paper has a handwritten message on it saying "Dear Survivor, One thing that helps me on my bad days is thinking of my favorite stuffed animal, or looking at the sky and finding cloud animals." There is a drawing towards the top of the paper of a girl with a though bubble with a stuffed animal and another drawing to the right of a girl looking up at the sky at clouds looking for animal shapes in them.
This month we met some of our youngest volunteers yet, a wonderful troop #4362 of Daisy (5-7 year old) Girl Scouts!
We talked briefly about examples of trauma such as homelessness or the loss of a loved one, talked about toxic positivity and wrote Survivor Cards together.
With this activity, they earned their "Make The World A Better Place" badge and learned how to be a good neighbor and peer to those around them who may be experiencing PTSD. Thank you for inviting us out as your meeting guest!
Handmade Cards By Our Volunteers
Image Description: A white card has a watercolor song bird painted on it. It has a brown back, orange and yellow chest, and a blue lower body. Its legs, beak and eyes are black. It is very cute. There are red, blue, brown and yellow hearts painted on the card. The card reads "YOU ARE Beautiful" Beautiful is in a very pretty script.
We wanted to share some of the beautiful handmade cards we received this month, done with colored pencils and watercolor paints, but don't have enough space here for them all!
Nominate A Survivor or Organization
Image Description: A card sits open in the middle of this image. It has a drawing of two hands forming a heart shape and some flowers. It has a handwritten message that reads "Dear Survivor, You're a beautiful human being and I'm proud of you for continuing to go on, even when it's difficult. It takes a lot of courage to do that and you're incredibly strong. I support you, no matter where you are in your healing journey. You matter and are loved. I wish you the best on your future endeavors. Sincerely, Your Friend" On either side of the card are resources, including Survivor Cards' business card, the suicide lifeline's card, the Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network card, and a mental health focused sticker and affirmation card. When you nominate yourself, someone else or an organization to receive Survivor Cards, you're helping us send them a little hope, a little healing and a little solidarity.
It takes less than 5 minutes!
Want to share the word for potential volunteers or recipients?
Feeling Overwhelmed? Remember Your HHALTTS!
Image Description: The words Hungry, Angry, Lonely and Tired are written out with the beginning letter highlighted with crayon. H is highlighted in green, A in red, L in blue and Y in yellow.
Sometimes I look at all the problems and tasks that are on my to-do list, like planning our newsletter, meeting deadlines, making phone calls, and juggling making dinner and housework, and feel so overwhelmed that it’s hard to even get going.
I’m cranky, I’m unmotivated and I feel hypersensitive.
When this happens, our board member Michelle reminds me to remember my HHALTTS!
The following was written out for her student-aged kiddos she serves, but can apply to adults, too!
Am I Hungry?
Our bodies aren’t filled with limitless fuel. If I’m facing an impossible challenge, I need to try and get prepared. Sometimes a snack can be just the right helper. Other times, I like to invest time in myself and prepare food that I know always makes me feel better. The garlic-ier, the better.
Am I Hurt?
Have you ever tried to solve a problem after you’ve stubbed your pinkie toe? Did it go well? Or did you just meltdown because you were in pain? A great rule of thumb (or toe) is that if there’s pain, you are allowed to rest. If you can’t rest, you’re allowed to ask for accommodations. Pushing yourself too hard isn’t a super power, it just takes away time from healing. Yes, this applies for chronic pain and illness, too!
Am I Angry?
I’ll be the first to admit, sometimes I try to take on my problems WAY before I should. Usually when I’ve worked myself up and I’m ready to act based on my emotions. But when I’m upset, when I’m angry, I’m not ready to make smart choices and that can really set me back. So if I notice that I’m upset, asking myself what I need-not what I should do-is often my first step.
Am I Lonely?
People-ling can be really hard. Especially when I try to help my friends and family to avoid the hard stuff in the world. But I also need and deserve to have people in my corner. I need and deserve to have support that allows me to break down if I need to, and to be vulnerable if I need to. If I’m feeling lonely, I know I’m not ready to face my biggest challenges-especially not without help.
Am I Tired?
Anyone who has ever been around a toddler who is resisting nap time knows exactly why this is on my list. We convince ourselves that we can solve all the problems on no sleep and extra caffeine. As guilty as I am (and I sure am guilty) of doing this too, I also know that if I don’t get the sleep I need, I can’t save the world. Productivity is not the price I pay for peace.
Am I Thirsty?
Have you ever seen Jell-o that’s been left out for too long? And it gets all hard and gross? Our brains are kinda like that Jell-o if we don’t keep them hydrated. Now that you have that yucky image in your head, grab some water. It’s a good thing to do.
Have I Showered?
I’ve met a lot of people who are surprised I add this to the list of things I do before I solve problems. But if I don’t set myself up for success, I’m only taking half my tools with me. A shower might not solve all my problems, but I haven’t ever gotten out of a shower and regretted that I was clean. Use your favorite soap. The nice conditioner. That scrub that sits in the back of the cabinet for “special occasions." YOU are the special occasion.
Once I assess my HHALTTS, I can get back to the things on my to-do list and be much more effective, less stressed and less distracted.
As they say, you can't pour from an empty cup, but it's important to remember, that an empty cup is no good for yourself either!
If you've read this far, congratulations! You made it to the end. Thanks for reading and as always, thank you for being here! - Alyson Wick, Founder & President of Survivor Cards Have questions? Email us at survivorcards@gmail.com