WINTER 2025
TAKING
Flight
24-HOUR DOMESTIC ABUSE & SEXUAL ASSAULT HOTLINE
208.343.7025 720 W. WASHINGTON ST. BOISE, IDAHO 83702 208.343.3688 WCABOISE.ORG
THE BEA LINE As we come to the close of 2025, I am reflecting on the fact that the WCA has spent 45 years of its 115-year existence focusing its efforts on supporting victims and survivors of domestic abuse, violence and sexual assault. What a legacy! The WCA’s focus has always been on being of service to those who might need support. First to young women moving into a strange new city, and now to providing services in keeping with our mission of “safety, healing and freedom.” Knowing this is my last year writing for our December newsletter, it makes me so proud and humble that this great organization is so supported by our community. The need we serve is great, and while I wish we could do even more, the services we are able to offer are only available at no charge because our community understands that we do not take their support for granted. We work to collaborate across agencies in order to maximize our resources (Check out this 30 second PSA with Children’s Home & The Idaho Youth Ranch), and we are proud of the fact that 91 cents of every dollar go into direct service work – to provide the services our clients need.
Click here to see our Current Form 990 Through our community’s time, talent and treasure, your generosity warms the heart of our team and brings tears to our eyes as well as those of the clients who are so touched that people who do not even know them are willing to support them on their journey to freedom! Please know that our hearts are full thanks to you making our work possible. Just as you give to support our clients, your gifts allow us to engage in meaningful work that inspires us every day. Wishing you a wonderful end of 2025 and sending wishes for a fantastic new year.
WCA ANNOUNCES FOUR NEW BOARD MEMBERS AND NAMES 2025-2026 BOARD LEADERSHIP The Women’s and Children’s Alliance (WCA) this month announced four new board members and a new slate of board leadership who will each support the nonprofit’s work to provide safety, healing and freedom from domestic abuse and sexual assault. They will also guide the agency through a leadership transition with the news of CEO Bea Black’s retirement in 2026. The WCA Board elected Jessica Flynn as its new Board President. Flynn is the Founder and CEO of Red Sky PR and has served on the WCA Board since 2017. Glenn Michael, Managing Director and CFO of The Caprock Group, Inc. will serve as President-Elect, and Nicola McIntosh, Senior Vice President, Communications & Content Marketing Manager at Zions Bank, was selected to serve as Vice President. The new board members began their three-year terms with the WCA effective November 18, 2025. The four new members are: Josh D. Hurwit, Partner, Holland and Hart LLP and former United States Attorney Tara Hamilton-Lloyd, Mortgage Officer, Certified Divorce Professional (CDLP), Fulcrum Home Loans Dave Wagers, Managing Partner of Wagers Properties, former owner of Idaho Candy Company and President of the Boise School District school board Paul Zurlo, President and CEO of Blue Cross Idaho Health Service, Inc. The new slate of Executive Officers consists of the following: President: Jessica Flynn, Red Sky PR President-Elect: Glenn Michael, The Caprock Group, Inc. Vice President: Nicola McIntosh, Zions Bank Treasurer: Carrie Tucker, Women Innovators, Inc. Secretary: Keli Ann Elledge, Community Volunteer Governance Chair: Sheila Schwager, Hawley Troxell Member At-Large: Christina Bruce-Bennion, The Wassmuth Center Member At-Large: Tara Rosvall, U.S. Bank Immediate Past President: Debra Leithauser, Idaho Power “I'm grateful to Debra for her leadership and passion for our mission that has positioned the WCA well for the opportunities ahead,” said Board President Jessica Flynn, “With new board members bringing fresh energy and expertise, dedicated staff, and compassionate donors and community partners, we’ll make sure the WCA continues to be here for anyone seeking safety, healing and freedom."
The Journeys in Motherhood Conference is our second annual WCA conference featuring keynotes, speakers from specialized fields, workshops, and engaging panels! This year's event theme of healthy relationships on both individual and community levels will connect topics of mothers in leadership, mothers in community, resilience building, upstream prevention, and life-skill tools to support you to thrive. We invite all moms and nurturers alike to attend this day full of connection, selfexploration, and development. To ensure this conference is accessible to all in our community, we are operating on a "Pay-What-You-Can" ticket system. Conference Schedule: 9:00 - 9:30 AM : Check-in and Coffee Connections 9:30 - 10:00 AM : Welcome Announcements 10:00 - 11:00 AM : Opening Keynote - Shannon McGuire 11:00 - 12:00 PM : Lunch & Learns - Enjoy lunch and a breakout session 12:00 - 1:00 PM : Mothers in Leadership Panel or Workshop w/ Megan Smith 1:00 - 2:00 PM : Mothers in Community Panel or Workshop w/ April Masarik 2:00 - 3:00 PM : Closing Keynote Speaker - Suzie Hall For any questions regarding the Journeys in Motherhood Conference, please reach out to Zoë Newman at znewman@wcaboise.org.
Tickets
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GIVING UPDATE We've refreshed our online donation page to make giving easier and enhance your experience. With this update, your recurring donations and past transactions remain unchanged, and we’re excited to offer new ways to support survivors, including DAFs, Venmo, and Apple Pay. We’ve also partnered with Givebutter, a fantastic platform that is helping us reduce transaction and processing costs to ensure that more of your gift goes directly to survivors and the WCA. As part of our transition to GiveButter, you may notice an option to leave a small, optional tip when making a donation. This tip helps support the GiveButter team, who provide their services at no cost to organizations like ours. After selecting your one-time or recurring gift amount, you’ll see a page offering the option to add a tip - similar to the one on the right. While completely optional, we wanted to make sure you’re aware of this feature. Thank you for your generosity this holiday season!
Visit GiveButter Here
AVENUES FOR HOPE DECEMBER 10TH-31ST A SAFE PLACE TO LAND FOR EVERY SURVIVOR Every donation of $25 or more will help provide critical resources to ensure Idahoans in need have access to safe, stable, affordable housing and supportive services. In the 14-year history of this statewide campaign, nearly $21M has been raised for more than 100 housing nonprofits and schools throughout Idaho.
FREEDOM STARTS WITH SAFETY The WCA’s effort to pave the way to safe housing starts with you! Domestic abuse is the #1 cause of homelessness in Idaho. The free wraparound services offered by the WCA to our community and shelter clients directly links to reducing the crisis of homelessness in Idaho. The need for your support is ongoing and is growing each year. Your vital gift will allow the WCA to meet the unprecedented need of WCA services in our community. Your gift supports the healing journey from intake, to an exit into safe housing.
THE DIFFERENCE $150 MAKES One safe bed night at the WCA's shelter facilities costs $150. Your gift of $150 funds and facilitates a safe bed night as well as wrap around services for an individual in our community who needs safety at WCA's shelters. In 2024/2025, we are facing a shortage of necessary funding for shelter services. We are asking our community to come together to fund 150 safe bed nights.
WATCH OUR CAMPAIGN VIDEO VISIT OUR AVENUES FOR HOPE PAGE
CORPORATE PILLAR SPOTLIGHT
We started out our second quarter strong with our 16th annual SueB 5K. Thank you to all the Corporate Pillars and Sponsors that made that day possible! We had a record number of race participants, 16 community vendors including a kids craft section with facepaint and jump houses! In November we hosted our annual Corporate Pillar Reception celebrating all of the businesses and organizations that are a part of our Corporate Pillar Program. A big thank you to Berkeley Building Company for sponsoring and serving as our 2025 TWIN Chair.
A big shoutout to SRA 831(b) for providing Thanksgiving Dinner to both of our shelters! The holidays can be a tumultuous time for our clients, and a warm meal can make such a difference. And finally, we’ve gained four new Corporate Pillars: welcome Holland & Hart, Scheels, RIVHAB, and 8th Street Photography to the Program! We are excited for what these partnerships will look like over the course of the next year.
- Lindsay Greene, Corporate Partnership Coordinator
GOOD FOR GOODNESS’ SAKE Every year we have the honor and privilege of witnessing the community come together in kindness and generosity for our wonderful and deserving clients. Some may wonder, “What I’m doing feels good and easy, am I truly making a difference?” I would like to take this opportunity to share with you why every act of giving truly matters. Each item, dollar, and act of kindness, when in combination with every individual that gives to the WCA, becomes a catalyst for change in our community. We see this every day, through each client we serve. In operating our bigger and better Holiday Store this year, I have had the honor of seeing the culmination of how every individual’s efforts impact our clients. Many clients have shown up at the store scared, believing that they weren’t deserving of such simple kindness. Guided by WCA Staff and volunteers, we have the privilege of introducing our clients to a world that is good. Where love is not conditional. It is offered freely with no strings attached. Slowly but surely, each and every client has felt safe enough to open up. They tell their story to those who will support them, with the uncertainty that comes from never having experienced a safe space. What they don’t know is that they are giving each of us something priceless. They offer each of us the opportunity to learn and grow, and the fulfillment that comes with doing good for goodness’s sake.
Courtney Otto, Volunteer Development Coordinator
GOOD FOR GOODNESS’ SAKE During this Holiday Season which may be difficult for many, I am honored to share some words from a client with you. Each of you collectively, have made a true difference in the life of this individual, as well as the many others we serve.
“I want to say thank you. Without this help my children and I would be nowhere. Christmas would be empty and so would my heart. It is one of the hardest things for me to accept help when once I could and had to do it all myself. Pride is funny that way. It loses all power in moments of desperation. This help reminds me I’m human, that it’s okay to need someone sometimes. From a woman on a journey to save her kids and herself, thank you. For reminding me everything isn’t a disaster.” -WCA Client
THA NK Y OU T O
OUR VOLU NTEE RS!
We are so grateful for the Christmas Tree that was donated to our Shelter from the Festival of Trees! We have received trees donated by Jim Kissler and Norco for several years now, but this one is the best yet.
The furry little monsters and bright colors on the tree have brightened up the room and brought an overwhelming amount of joy to the kiddos currently residing in Shelter with their moms. The holiday season in particular can be tough for these little ones and we do our best to create experiences for them to make sure that their Christmas is magical after the difficult things they’ve experienced. Being able to decorate the shared space for our residents is a huge part of that magic. Thank you, Jim!
HEALING BEGINS WITH HOPE We were honored to welcome over 365 individuals to this year’s Healing Begins with Hope Breakfast, joining together to raise vital funds that support our mission of safety, healing, and freedom from domestic abuse and sexual assault. With $262,000 in matched giving and a room filled with incredibly dedicated advocates and supporters, we not only met our match—we also grew our sustainable giving circle, the Hope Society, to 233 committed members. This year, we were deeply moved by four courageous survivors who shared their powerful stories. Their experiences with domestic abuse and sexual assault, the impact on their lives and their children’s lives, and their journeys toward safety and healing through the WCA’s free wraparound services left many of us with a loss of words and also filled with so much gratitude and hope. We were also blessed to hear a live testimonial from a mother and daughter who lived in our shelter more than a decade ago. Hearing how their lives have transformed, now healthy, safe, sharing meals together and truly thriving, was a remarkable and unforgettable moment shared by everyone in the room.
“Many of us come in thinking survival is the end goal, but I believe survival is just the beginning.” We could not do this work without our community. Your support ensures we remain a safe, trusted place for survivors as they move out of abuse and into lives filled with safety, healing, and freedom.
HOPE SOCIETY Members of the Hope Society are multi-year donors who believe passionately in the work we do. They also understand that we need sustainable funding we can count on each year in order to serve the increasing needs in our community. Joining the Hope Society is a significant commitment and it represents priceless gifts of safety, healing, and freedom to the families we serve. Hope Society now totals to 233 incredible individuals and families. There are four levels available; each represents the minimum level of commitment: Hope $1,000 per year for five years Safety $2,000 per year for five years Healing $10,000 per year for five years Freedom $25,000 per year for five years If you are interested in joining the Hope Society, contact our Philanthropy Manager, Bre Young, at byoung@wcaboise.org or call 208.343.3688 ext. 0242 to discuss this opportunity further.
OUTREACH CORNER Hello everyone! I’m Spencer, the new Outreach Coordinator for the WCA. I am beyond excited to help support the WCA’s mission and inform the community about the services we offer. The work we do here is incredibly admirable and valuable, and I feel honored to be a part of the team. I recently graduated from Boise State with a Bachelor’s in biology and previously graduated from CWI with an Associate’s in psychology. I have experience with mental healthcare from my work with State Hospital West, an adolescent-only inpatient, and I have experience with non-profits from my work with Friends of Zoo Boise. I’m highly passionate about improving the local community and giving everyone opportunities to be the best version of themselves. I grew up helping my mother breed great danes, and this instilled an early love for animals within me. I currently have 5 (yes, 5) cats and would love to get a python soon. I am a big fan of music, especially rap/hip-hop, and would teach patients at the hospital how to use it as a form of healthy expression. I love narrative-driven video games and am an avid chess player (feel free to challenge me sometime). I’m also a certified scuba diver, though Idaho’s land-locked status means I don’t have a lot of opportunities to dive. Thank you all for being so welcoming and for all the passion you bring to this work. I look forward to collaborating with you and making a positive impact in our community.
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OUTREACH MATERIALS?
PLACE AN ORDER HERE INTERESTED IN BECOMING AN OUTREACH VOLUNTEER? EMAIL OUTREACH@WCABOISE.ORG FOR INFO