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WE ARE HERE TO SHELTER, SUPPORT & EMPOWER

Our Story

The Willow Domestic Violence Center builds safer communities through shelter, services, and support to survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking in Douglas, Franklin, and Jefferson counties.

All services are free, confidential, and available to all.

The Willow was the first domestic violence center in the state of Kansas, opening in 1976. Today, we answer 3,900 crisis and referral calls per year, house 300-450 adults and children annually in our two shelters and multiple trans, and serve over 3,500 of our neighbors and friends throughout Douglas, Franklin, and Jefferson counties.

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The Willow empowers survivors to rebuild and restart.

Our agency began as the Women's Transitional Care Center, but in 2010 changed its name to The Willow.  The willow tree is one of the few trees that, if a branch is broken from it and then replanted, will grow into a new tree itself.

Principles

Our Guiding Principles

Equity

The Willow promotes equity in our services and community by working to support the needs of a diverse population while being inclusive to people of all identities.

Community

The Willow is committed to healthy partnerships, prevention work, outreach, collaboration, and education.

Advocacy

The Willow is committed to advocacy that is confidential, trauma-informed, low-barrier, and individualized.

Empowerment

The Willow works to empower survivors through peer support and respect, while honoring the dignity of those we serve.

Support

The Willow supports the well-being of survivors and advocates via self-care, education, innovation, and research-based practices.

Team

Our Team

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JESSICA BEESON

Executive Director

Jessica spent nearly ten years as the Director of Alumni and External Relations for KU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences before joining The Willow in 2018. She is the president of the USD 497 school board and teaches Leadership Studies at KU. She is a lifelong resident of Lawrence and a parent to two awesome kids.

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AMANDA MARTINEZ

Director of Housing

Amanda Martinez has been serving survivors at the Willow since August 2012. In her current role as the Director of Shelter Services, she oversees the various programs offered to survivors needing emergency shelter in Douglas, Franklin, and Jefferson counties. In her spare time she enjoys late night coffee and game nights with friends.  

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CHRISTY IMEL

Director of Development & External Affairs

Christy is a lifelong Lawrence resident. She graduated from KU with a degree in Ecology and spent 7.5 years working for KDHE in Topeka. She returned to KU and completed her MBA, and worked as Development Director for Douglas County CASA, and most recently, for Kansas Public Radio in Corporate Support. She loves to garden, travel (hopefully again!!), and run after her two boys.

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ADRIANNE NUÑEZ

Associate Director of External Affairs

Adrianne Nuñez joined the Willow in 2017 as the Human Trafficking Program Coordinator, eventually moving to the Community Services Team and finally the Outreach team as the Youth Prevention Coordinator.  She is a lifelong Lawrence resident as well as KU graduate.  When not connecting with community partners, Adrianne enjoys hanging out on her tiny homestead with her husband, kiddo, and sweet pup.  

adea@willowdvcenter.org   |   (785)331-2034 ext. 105

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FELIX RODRIGUEZ

Director of Equitable Practices & Recruitment

Felix Rodriguez has been at the Willow as the Director of Survivor Access since 2017, and a number of roles, including Survivor Access Advocate, SAFE Program Coordinator, and HOPEworks Engagement Coordinator at the Willow since 2015.  In his spare time, Felix enjoys music engineering and production.

frodriguez@willowdvcenter.org  |  (785)331-2034 ext. 109

Board

Our Board

Torrez Dawson

President

ANGELA MOTSINGER

Vice President

CHRISTY BLANCHARD

Secretary

KEITH JONES

Treasurer

SIERRA TWO BULLS

Board Member

JACQLENE NANCE-MENGLER

Board Member, Former Board President

BETH O'NEILL 

Board Member

JENNY LAMB

Board Member

STACI WEINGARTNER

Board Member

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The Willow prides itself on community transparency regarding our finances as well as policies and procedures. In order to be as transparent as possible and to comply with best accounting principles, we've formally written checks and balances into the governing by-laws of the organization. 

Our Finance Committee meets monthly to review The Willow's financials and provides a report at the Board of Directors meetings. Additionally, we employ an independent auditor commissioned by the finance committee. This committee conducts a full audit at the end of each fiscal year,.  The auditor then presents his/her results to the Board of Directors, prepares our annual 990 filing (signed by both the auditor and Executive Director), and submits it to the IRS. 

We welcome any questions you may have regarding our financials, policies and procedures, or any other area in which you have an interest or concern.

Interested in serving on The Willow board? Find out more.

Reports

Annual Reports

2022 - 2023

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The Willow Blog

Blog
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