Local volunteers fight domestic violence on all fronts

A war requires both soldiers and generals. The YWCA, which is
battling domestic violence, has both.
Volunteers like Laura (see story at right) work in the trenches
to help women overcome domestic violence. But it also takes
high-level managers — business savvy board members like Healdsburg
resident Michelle Edwards — to make sure that the YWCA remains
solvent and on track with its mission.
“Working on the Board of Directors is about supporting a higher
level, strategic picture. Working towards our mission on an agency
level is really exciting to me,” Edwards said.
It’s also, Edwards noted, a weighty responsibility.
“My job is to make sure that the agency is running at its best
and that it’s moving forward in the most prudent, wise direction. I
think that’s a challenge I take very seriously. The Board of
Directors is ultimately responsible for this agency, and the YWCA
is the only provider of domestic violence victim services in the
county. If we’re not doing what we need to be doing, those services
could be jeopardized. I carry that closely to me.”
Michelle Edwards grew up in the South, and always had an
awareness that women often made less money than men, and were
presented with fewer opportunities. As a young adult, she became
involved in young women’s leadership development, targeting
elementary and middle school students to try and develop future
female leaders.
After time in graduate school and the work force, serving on the
board of the YWCA was a logical next step.
“I was first attracted to the YWCA because of its mission, from
the national level on down: empowering women and eliminating
racism. Those two social justice elements really appealed to me,”
Edwards said.
“As I further explored organizations to become involved with at
the board level, I thought that the YWCA really matched my
interest. When I looked at our local community I realized there
wasn’t a lot of programming or agencies that were tackling those
issues. The YWCA is focused on fighting domestic violence as a way
to empower women, but it’s bigger than that as well.”
Edwards serves on the Board Governance Committee and the
Diversity and Inclusion Committee. On the Board Governance
Committee, she exercises her practical management consulting skills
to develop the organization’s capacity and make sure that the
agency is always forward looking and following their strategic
plan.
On the Diversity and Inclusion Committee, Edwards puts her
passion for equality to work. The committee aims to ensure that the
organization practices what it preaches, employing and reaching out
to a diverse array of people.
“Presently the YWCA board is all women,” Edwards noted. “That’s
unique, and that appeals to me as well. It’s a really special group
of women who are dedicated to making this county better for other
women,” Edwards said.
She added that the all female board seemed to enact the YWCA’s
mission of empowering women.
“Boardrooms across the county are largely run by men,” Edwards
said. “I don’t mean any disrespect, but it’s very empowering to run
a financially solvent and healthy agency that’s run by all women,
and we’re living our mission that way.”