Dear Global SE Community,
From the time I was young, I knew that I wanted to devote my life to doing work with purpose. I wanted whatever I was doing to have a deep impact on the people around me and the world at large. I wanted to contribute to something greater than myself. It’s a sentiment that I’ve heard often from the SE community. You feel the same as I do: you want to do work that has ripple effects, the kind of work that changes a person’s life, and in time, can do so much more.
Emily at Randyland, Pittsburgh PA with a wall of “hellos”
In the time I’ve been on staff at SEI, I’ve been continually amazed by the compassionate, giving, expansive nature of Somatic Experiencing and all those who practice it. It acknowledges our perfection as we are and encourages us to work within and at the borders of our windows of tolerance to find healing and growth from within. It’s built upon genuine care and belief in the potential of others and ourselves to achieve wellness and ease. SE does not pass judgment on what you’ve been through, it celebrates where you are and the progress yet to come.
When I think about SE, I think about generosity. In my role in SEI’s fundraising department, I think about ways to inspire generosity in our community and in those not yet in our community. I find projects worth celebrating, success stories of students who found their calling, needs to be met, and new applications for Somatic Experiencing in the around us.
Just this year, I’ve seen:
- Students like Kelsey, who was able to tackle transgenerational, racial trauma in a safe, supportive environment through a BIPOC-only training.
- Community Members like Ana, who created an SE-based fairy tale to help children and families affected by Colorado’s Marshall Fire and other disasters to find healing after trauma.
- Organizers like Cheryl and Doree, who partnered with SEI to bring SE training to BIPOC students in their community.
- Volunteers like Liana who use their passion for inclusivity to make SE more accessible to a global community, whose story I can’t wait to share with you soon.
Generosity is at the heart of SE and at the heart of this community: we give each other space to feel, a shoulder to lean against, another nervous system to co-regulate with, all with generous minds and hearts.
There’s a biological response to being generous that we in fundraising call the “warm glow” effect: it’s the good feeling you get from doing something good for another person. That feeling, the felt sense of helping someone else, is inherent to SE too: SE helps not only those with whom you work, but your own hurts as well. It’s by giving to others that we find wholeness within ourselves.
I am a believer that through the generosity of individuals, great change can be made. One person, acting with care and intention, has the power to change a community. A community together, acting with that same care and intention, has the power to do even more. I saw that this summer, as we launched our first regional-specific scholarship, the Tri-State BIPOC scholarship. As donations started to come in, my inbox was filled with notes from community members who were so excited about the impact this fund would have in their communities. They saw possibility in their gifts, and the opening of doors that had not been accessible for many years.
This sort of philanthropic spirit inspires me every day as I spread the word about the nonprofit, humanitarian work SEI is doing in the world. It’s what I hear from you when you tell me the exciting ways you want to use SE to make a difference in the lives of those you care about. I’m lucky to have the fun job of showing you how to harness your generosity of spirit and multiply your impact for those around you.
The easiest way? Making a gift.
Giving Tuesday, the national day of giving in the United States, is on November 29th this year! It’s a perfect opportunity to show your support to causes you care about.
We’re coming up on what we in fundraising call “the giving season,” the end of the fiscal year for many organizations, and the end of a calendar year of impact. In the coming months, your inbox is bound to be filled with calls to give from organizations you care about, all with impactful, essential missions.
From one purpose-driven helper to another, I want you to practice generosity not only to SEI, but to these organizations as well. In doing so, you’re spreading the spirit of SE and building a kinder, more compassionate world.
As you make your most generous gifts, I hope we’re in part of your heart, and I hope you expand your impact beyond us as well. Somatic Experiencing is expansive: when you are generous, we are all stronger as a result.
Your generosity has ripple effects, here and beyond. I can’t wait to see what your generosity makes possible.
Give to SEI at www.traumahealing.org/give
Discover more causes worth caring for at www.charitynavigator.org
Thank you so much for all you do, and happy giving season!
With warmth and gratitude,
Emily