July Newsletter
July blog from ElevateHer International — Empowering women to heal, grow, and thrive across the globe!
Letter From Our CEO
Dear Friends,
This month at ElevateHer, we've been hard at work practicing one of our values: community building. We are convinced that a healthy community is a form of resistance from despair.
Resistance is not only found in marches or moments of public protest. It is also the daily, courageous decision to choose life, hope, healing, and one another. Healthy, trauma-informed communities make that choice possible by creating spaces where women are seen, supported, and empowered to flourish.
This month, we had the privilege of strengthening communities in three different settings. In New Jersey, we partnered with Mercy Center of New Jersey to equip Haitian faith leaders to respond more effectively to domestic violence. In Philadelphia, alongside Bushfire Theatre of Performing Arts, we gathered community members to explore what it truly means to care for one another. And through a partnership with Mission of Hope, we spoke with Ukrainian refugee leaders about surviving the realities of war by embracing community as a form of resistance.
Each gathering reminded us that when we invest in women, we are investing in entire communities. Healing is never just personal; it ripples through families, churches, neighborhoods, and generations. When women heal, communities flourish.
Thank you for believing in this vision and for partnering with us. Because of your generosity and support, we continue to build communities where healing is possible, dignity is restored, and hope is cultivated every day.
With gratitude,
Dieula Previlon
Founder & Executive Director
ElevateHer International Ministries
Malaysia Update
This past month, ElevateHer partnered with Come Before Winter to host a renewal retreat for women leaders in Malaysia. Forty-seven women gathered to invest in their own healing so they could return home better equipped to serve their communities.
Thanks to generous supporters like you, we raised $1,087 toward this trip. Thank you. Every gift mattered.
Our original goal was $6,000, and while we were able to make the trip because of an incredible partner, we know lasting global impact cannot depend on borrowed capacity.
When ElevateHer is fully funded by our own community, we can respond more quickly, cover the full cost of training and travel, and reach more women around the world.
Now, we're preparing for two critical opportunities:
Kenya — Leadership training for women serving in Nairobi and Mombasa ($7,500 needed)
Haiti — A healing retreat for women who faithfully care for their communities ($5,000 needed)
Will you help send us there?
Your gift of $50, $100, $250, or $500 helps equip women leaders with the tools they need to bring healing back to their families, churches, and communities.
The women in Malaysia are better equipped today because someone chose to give. Together, we can make the same impact in Kenya and Haiti.
Equipping Faith Leaders on Domestic Violence
This month, ElevateHer partnered with Haitian faith leaders for a virtual training on domestic violence, equipping pastors and ministry leaders with trauma-informed tools to recognize, respond to, and support those experiencing abuse.
The response was overwhelmingly encouraging. Every participant reported feeling more informed and better prepared to respond effectively to domestic violence within their churches and communities. One participant shared, "It was a meaningful and informative conversation, and we truly appreciate the opportunity to be part of such an important dialogue."
Many leaders expressed that trainings like this are urgently needed and should be offered more regularly. Together, we reflected that honest conversations like these are the beginning of dismantling systems of violence and silence within the Haitian community.
Thank you for partnering with us to equip leaders, strengthen communities, and create safer spaces where healing can flourish.
Ukrainian Refugee Leaders and Resistance
This month, ElevateHer had the privilege of equipping Ukrainian refugee leaders with a workshop on Community as Resistance. Together, we explored different forms of resistance; including self-care, joy, and emotional regulation but spent the majority of our time reflecting on how investing in healthy community is one of the most powerful acts of resistance.
The message resonated deeply with participants as they continue to navigate the realities of war, displacement, and separation from their homeland. Even in the midst of unimaginable hardship, they were reminded that healing, connection, and belonging are ways of refusing to let trauma have the final word.
Please continue to pray for peace in Ukraine. And thank you for partnering with ElevateHer as we continue to equip communities around the world with the tools they need to cultivate healing, resilience, and lasting stability.
Bushfire Theatre of Performing Arts in Philly
ElevateHer joined community leaders of Bushfire Theatre of Performing Arts in Philadelphia for a powerful panel discussion on what it truly means to care for one another. The conversation was rich, honest, and filled with hope as participants reflected on both the challenges and the possibilities within our communities.
One theme echoed throughout the evening: the growing disconnect between elders and younger generations. Together, we explored the importance of creating small, intergenerational spaces where wisdom can be shared, relationships can flourish, and communities can grow stronger together.
The discussion ended with a clear call to action: we cannot wait for someone else to come and save our communities. Community care begins with each of us. It looks like investing in one another, showing up consistently, listening well, sharing resources, and building partnerships that remind every person they belong.
That's the heart of ElevateHer: building stronger communities so women can flourish. So join us and together we can build stronger communities so women can heal, grow and thrive.
Upcoming Events
Next Stop: Kenya 🇰🇪 | August 23 – September 13
In just a few weeks, the ElevateHer team will return to Kenya and this year, we'll spend three weeks investing in women leaders who are transforming their communities.
Week One takes us to South Rift, about three hours outside Nairobi, where we'll train church leaders, community organizers, and pastors' wives. Together, we'll explore how trauma impacts individuals and communities while equipping these leaders to become healing agents. Just as importantly, they'll have the opportunity to recognize and begin healing from the trauma in their own lives, because healthy leaders create healthier communities.
Week Two brings us back to Nairobi, where we'll reunite with the incredible women leaders we trained last year. This time, we'll equip them to facilitate Healing Circles so they can confidently lead others on the journey toward healing and flourishing.
During this week, we'll also spend time at Africa International University (AIU), partnering with faculty and staff to strengthen their work with students. Together, we'll explore ElevateHer's model of integrating psychology and theology, equipping university leaders with trauma-informed tools that prepare students to lead from a place of healing and wholeness.
Week Three takes us to Mombasa. You may remember this community from last year's sewing machine initiative. Our partnership didn't end there. We'll continue walking alongside church leaders, community organizers, and pastors' wives, providing trauma-informed training that strengthens both leaders and the communities they serve.
Would you pray for our team as we travel, teach, and encourage these remarkable women? And if you're able, would you consider making a gift today? Your generosity helps ensure that every woman who comes seeking hope and healing can receive the training she needs to become a catalyst for change in her community.
Together, we're equipping women to heal and helping communities flourish.
Join the mission and give a scarf to a woman in Kenya
Every woman who participates in an ElevateHer training receives three things: practical training materials, a copy of Does God See Me?, and a thoughtful gift that reminds her she is seen, valued, and deeply loved.
As we prepare to serve women leaders in Kenya this August, we'd love for you to be part of that experience. We've created an Amazon gift list where you can choose a beautiful scarf for one of the women attending our training. It's a simple gift, but one that communicates dignity, encouragement, and care.
Please visit our Kenya Gift List to select a scarf. When you check out, be sure to select "Share your information" so we can personally thank you for your generosity.
Thank you for helping us remind women around the world that they are seen, loved, and never alone.
Join the Sustainers’ Club
One of the things that keeps ElevateHer from doing its best work isn't a lack of passion or talent. It's the unpredictability of funding.
That's why we created the Sustainers Club. This is a group of people who believe so deeply in empowering women to heal from trauma and become leaders that they make a monthly commitment to make sure our work never stops. No gaps. No scrambling. Just steady, reliable support that our team can count on.
Here’s what one of our previous board members, Prudence, have to say about why she joined the Sustainers’ Club:
“When Dieula invited me to join the Elevate Her International board in 2022, I hesitated; I wasn’t sure I had enough experience to contribute meaningfully to the team. But she trusted me anyway. Over the next four years, I served as Secretary and watched this organization grow in ways I never could have imagined: fundraising galas, programming reaching women across East Africa, West Africa, Haiti, and North America, and an expanding team of board members, consultants, and staff bringing their expertise in strategic planning, program management, development, and finance to implement the mission and vision of Elevate Her International.
As board members, one of our core responsibilities is to support Dieula in leading the mission forward and a key part of that role is donor relations, encouraging others to invest in the mission. But I quickly realized I couldn’t ask others to give without experiencing it myself. So I decided to start donating monthly. I wanted to understand firsthand what that journey feels like: receiving the updates, seeing where the funds go, and witnessing the impact my contribution makes alongside so many others.
What I’ve found is that giving has deepened my connection to this work in ways I didn’t expect. Through the newsletters and updates I receive, I see how donations translate into real programming, real growth, and real transformation in women’s lives; across their communities, their families, and within themselves. It is a holistic approach to empowerment that I am glad to be part of. These women’s lives are being transformed through the training, skills building, networking, and community development programs Elevate Her International offers and I am honored to contribute financially to such meaningful and transformative work.”
Will you, like Prudence, join the Sustainers with a gift of $50 a month in support of ElevateHer?"
Short Grounding Exercise for you and your community
This month at ElevateHer, we've been leaning into the idea that community is resistance. In a world that often encourages isolation, rushing, and carrying burdens alone, choosing to show up for one another is a powerful act of hope. We want to close our newsletter today with a simple grounding activity that you can take back to your families, churches, neighborhoods, and communities. Our hope is that this becomes more than an exercise; it becomes a practice of remembering that healing happens in connection.
Grounding Activity: We Are Here Together
"Let's begin by placing both feet on the ground.
Take a slow breath in... and a slow breath out.
Notice the support of the chair beneath you. Feel your feet connected to the earth.
Now, look around the room. Notice the people here. Some may be friends, some new. Just notice them. Notice how each carries the image of God within them. Simply recognize that every person in this room has carried joys, disappointments, victories, and burdens and yet, here we are, together. Still standing.
Community doesn't begin when we solve each other's problems. It begins when we choose to be present with one another.
Take another slow breath in... and as you exhale, silently say to yourself:
'I don't have to carry life alone.'
One more breath.
Now silently offer this blessing to the people around you. Do it slowly so your words can be heard and felt:
'May you be safe. May you be seen. May you know you do not have to carry your burdens alone.'
As we close, remember this: Grounding is not just about calming ourselves. It's about remembering that our nervous systems were designed for connection. Healthy community is resistance because it refuses to let isolation have the final word. And at ElevateHer, we believe there is no healing without community.
Let’s meet…
I want to thank the many partners who have already met with me so together we can dream of the next phase of ElevateHer.
If you’d simply like to connect with me directly, I would absolutely love that. You can schedule time with me using my personal Google calendar link below.
We truly believe that this work grows through relationships and you are a vital part of that.
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