St. Croix, USVI, March 8, 2023 – Liberty VI continues to support gender-based violence survivors in St. Croix by funding the Women’s Empowerment and Business Startup Project. This initiative from the Women’s Coalition of St. Croix (WCSC) was funded with a $20,000 grant from Liberty Foundation.
“This grant allowed us to expand into an area we were trying to reach through empowering survivors of domestic violence and help them to become self-sufficient,” said Clema Lewis, founder and executive director of the Women’s Coalition of St. Croix. “We thank Liberty Foundation for giving us the chance to make a difference in the lives of survivors. We hope programs like this will give them the opportunity to provide for their children in a safe and healthy environment.”
The Women’s Empowerment and Business Startup Project teaches survivors of domestic violence in St. Croix how to turn an existing skill into a legitimate business. Participants learn how to build a business step by step, from registering a trade name and obtaining their licenses, to working on a business plan and marketing the business.
“This project gives women a sense of self-esteem so they can realize that they don’t have to be dependent on an individual who mistreats them. Through this project, we take what they have, put it in a skill set, and turn it into a business, so they will be able to take care of themselves,” added Lewis.
The program included a presentation on successful marketing strategies for startup business for women participating in the WCSC’s Women Empowerment and Business Startup Project.
“Business startups not only push the economy forward but have also empowered many women to create their own employment and generate a steady income to provide for themselves and their families,” said Catherine Kling, director of commercial sales at Liberty VI, who served as the presentation’s speaker. “Establishing partnerships with organizations such as Women’s Coalition is significant for us because we are making a difference by encouraging women to believe in themselves and giving them the tools to be self-sufficient.”
Women’s Coalition of St. Croix is a nonprofit organization that offers advocacy and assistance to crime victims, domestic violence survivors and families in need in St. Croix. Founded in 1981, the entity seeks proactive solutions to address violence against women and children in the community.
Liberty Foundation will continue to help Women’s Coalition and other nonprofit organizations in the USVI throughout 2023. Since November 2020, Liberty and Liberty Foundation have invested $277,500 and impacted 22 organizations that offer services in the areas of education, social well-being and health, arts, and environmental protection to underserved populations throughout the USVI.
Liberty Latin America, Liberty VI’s parent company, is a leading communications company operating in over 20 countries across Latin America and the Caribbean under consumer brands such as Flow, Liberty, and BTC, among others.
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