ASHLEIGH STARNES | July 16, 2020
AVLF is proud to officially release our 40th Anniversary Annual Report.
The 2019 Annual Report covers a wide range of information on our programs, community involvement, finances, and more.
There’s even a fun timeline of our 40 year history!
And as a bonus: the print copies come with pop out postcards that you can mail to your friends! Email us to request a copy.
5. We launched the Standing with Survivors mobile advocacy program.
Our Safe Families Office provides free legal and social services to survivors of intimate partner abuse. But what about survivors who can’t make it to the courthouse? Our Standing with Survivors program is a mobile advocacy initiative that meets survivors where they are. The team is fully mobile, ready to meet our clients out in the community.
We help with legal advocacy, emotional support, childcare arrangements, transportation, emergency financial assistance, and more. We’re working to bring information and awareness to our community so that when the time comes, every survivor knows exactly how to get help—and has the resources to do so.
4. The Standing with Our Neighbors® program expanded to a total of 9 Atlanta schools.
Communities can’t thrive without housing that is safe, stable, and healthy. Our innovative, nationally recognized Standing with Our Neighbors® program places a lawyer and a community advocate directly in Atlanta schools to act as a first responder when trouble arises. When a kindergartner’s asthma is flaring up because of the creeping mold on the walls, and the landlord refuses to step in, parents can turn to our advocates for help.
We focus our volunteer resources on improving living conditions and housing stability in low-income neighborhoods – all to improve resident health, reduce school enrollment turnover, and enhance student attendance and performance.
In 2019, we expanded to Brown Middle School and Carver STEAM Academy, meaning we now have attorneys and community advocates embedded in 9 Atlanta schools.
3. We provided $386,523 of emergency financial assistance to Atlantans in crisis.
As we have been providing crucial legal services to families who can’t otherwise afford it, we’ve noticed that the barriers to safety and stability often extend far beyond the courtroom.
Thanks to generous funding from Partners for HOME and from the Spark Opportunity Donor Circle, we have provided direct financial help to Atlanta tenants in times of crisis. And thanks to funding from the State of Georgia’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, we were able to provide the same assurances of safety and stability to survivors of intimate partner abuse.
Whether it’s keeping the lights on, buying health and safety supplies, or preventing homelessness, our client assistance team works tirelessly with our community advocates and social workers to improve conditions and quality of life for Atlanta families in crisis.
2. 770+ volunteers offered their time and talents to serving their community.
This work is only possible because of the incredible dedication and enthusiasm of our volunteer community. We know we can always count on our volunteers to offer their time to stand with Atlanta families, and to join us in the fight for equal justice.
“AVLF let me gain a lot of legal experience, develop interviewing skills, and meet professionals from different practices, ” said one of our 2019 volunteers. “I am just SO GRATEFUL to y’all!”
1. We celebrated 40 years of fighting for equal justice in Atlanta.
AVLF was formed in 1979 to assure that no one standing up for their legal rights should have to do it alone. Forty years, tens of thousands of clients, tens of thousands of volunteer lawyers, and millions of dollars worth of free, high quality legal services later, we remain the channel through which legal support – and justice – may be available when there is no other access possible.
Make your mark: donate to the 2020 Annual Campaign, and you’ll be listed in our 2020 Annual Report!
Ashleigh Starnes
Communications Manager
As AVLF’s Communications Manager, Ashleigh works in website content development, social media outreach, and various other forms of communication with our clients, volunteers, and supporters.
Ashleigh is ever-eager to share the remarkable stories of our work, and the impact of AVLF’s staff and volunteers on our community.
Before joining AVLF, Ashleigh was a Fulbright Scholar in Turkey. She holds a BA in English and Linguistics from the University of Georgia. She is also a performance artist, and can occasionally be seen performing movement pieces, poetry, and combinations of the two around Atlanta and beyond.
Check out more from this author.