This one was easy. I became familiar with Mary’s Place through an old barista job- we did a coat drive every year where each shop would compete for who could collect the most non and lightly used clothing articles to donate. Mary’s Place is a shelter that focuses, but isn’t exclusive to, women (and children) leaving abusive homes. I grew up in a household of mostly women- my parents weren’t divorced but my dad was a crab fisherman in Alaska and was gone from the house more often than he was home. I was raised predominantly by my mother, grandmother and sister, and I have a strong affinity towards female identifying people. It’s deeply important and ingrained in me to seek out sisterhood in all its forms; I think there’s a deep power in it.
I also experienced a childhood that included physical, verbal and emotional violence. I can say that I was safe, as in, my life wasn’t in danger, and overall I have a lot to be grateful for. I don’t want to compare my early home life to what a lot of people experience when they are marginalized in their own homes. But I can relate to feeling isolated, unsafe, codependent, and utterly beholden to the happiness and whims of someone who had control over my life, happiness, schedule, meals, etc. Though I experienced this through some of the women who raised me, it was also my relationships with my sister, cousins, and other female friends that gave me agency and a sense of community. These foundations were absolutely vital to my sense of self, and I don’t know where I would be without them.
I think about my values a lot, how to honor them and where to put my time and effort. It almost always comes down to sisterhood and to supporting anyone who has been made to feel that they don’t have control over their own lives. I would love to be able to contribute more than just clothing to what Mary’s Place does for the Seattle Community.