Alliance saying Goodbye to 2021 and Welcome to 2022

Written by:  Jennifer Tofaeono, Alliance Executive Director
Wow what a year 2021 has been!  It’s time to say goodbye to 2021 as we get ready to welcome in New Year 2022 and make our New Year wishes.  It’s the time we reflect on the past year, cherishing the good times, and recognizing the challenges—and how we adapted.  With that same concept in mind, I would like to share the Alliance 2021 Year-in-Review. 
 
It was a great year for virtual learning, thanks to the pandemic!  During the past year the Alliance has vamped up the approach to virtual learning, as we learn new things about the Covid-19 Pandemic.  We partnered with Dr. Jueta McCutchan and the American Samoa Mental Health Team to support the first ever hybrid conference in American Samoa.  This began our path in hosting “Reform the Norm” Youth Summit, a hybrid Summit, July of 2021.  In October, we orchestrated the very-first virtual proclamation-signing in American Samoa, with Lt. Governor Talauega E. V. Ale proclaiming October as Domestic Violence Awareness month.  We hosted a two-day virtual summit with our local partners to talk about domestic violence, and the lens in which it impacts their work or calling.  We continue to stretch ourselves as we find innovative ways to connect with our community to share discussions to help eliminate domestic and sexual violence in our community.  These discussions continue to focus on healthy relationships and communication, as we parents, or intimate partners learn how to react in healthy responses to difficult situations, versus resorting to violence. 
 Our staff continues to build towards empowering individuals’ abilities to identify domestic and sexual violence.  The pathway to domestic and sexual violence is built on power and control.  Having thoughtful discussions focused on culture, wellness, and current information about power and control is our effort to promote resiliency and strengthen capacity in our homes, and workspaces to eliminate domestic and sexual violence. The successes we hold from 2021 stem from our workplan and strategy.  We identified our projects, developed measurement tools, implemented actions, and analyzed the results.  It has provided specific guidance for staffing, timeline and costs associated with implementation. 
 At the end of each year, we assess what worked well, and let go of things that held us back.  In the next few weeks, we will be able to reset as we welcome in the New Year 2022.  By conducting a Year-In-Review assessment, revisiting our workplan, and measuring our successes and challenges we learn from them.  We will celebrate our successes, but more importantly we will embrace what is to come in 2022.  Happy New Year!!!