Victim Support Services

📣 DATE CHANGE — 2027 CORE ACADEMY

Please note that the dates for our next 40-Hour Core Academy have changed!

📅 New Dates: March 22–26, 2027
💻 Live via Zoom

Our Core Academy provides comprehensive training for victim advocates and professionals working with victims of crime.

Registration is open! We hope to see you in March! 💙

For more information:
victimsupportservices.org/events/core-training

Yesterday, we gathered in remembrance, reflection, and community for the National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims. 🖤

Survivors came together to honor those whose lives were taken far too soon. Throughout the evening, we created memorial frames in honor of their loved ones, sharing photos, memories, stories, tears, and moments of connection with others who understand a grief no one should ever have to carry.

There is something incredibly powerful about peer-to-peer support. Over time, many of the survivors we serve have formed genuine relationships and bonds with one another. Watching those connections grow, seeing people check in on each other, offer comfort, share memories, laugh together, cry together, and simply understand, is truly beautiful.

We are also continually inspired by the strength of the survivors we serve. They advocate for themselves and for one another. They use their voices to raise awareness, speak with lawmakers, advocate for legislation and change, and help make the path a little easier for the survivors who come after them. To witness people turn unimaginable loss into advocacy, connection, and support for others is incredibly powerful.

We were grateful to have State Representative Lauren Davis join us as well. Having her there to listen to survivors’ stories, and witness firsthand the strength, advocacy, and support within this community meant so much.

Moments like these are exactly why we provide these spaces. Sometimes healing isn’t about finding the right words. It’s about being somewhere you don’t have to explain your grief, surrounded by people who understand. It’s about connection, being heard, remembering together, and knowing you don’t have to navigate this journey alone.

Their loved ones mattered. Their stories matter. Their voices matter.

To every survivor who joined us yesterday: thank you for trusting us with your stories, your memories, your advocacy, and the people you love and miss. Your strength is incredible, and it is an honor to stand beside you.

We remember. We honor. We support. We advocate. 🪽🤍

🎓 Congratulations to our 24 newest CORE Academy graduates! 🎉

We are excited to celebrate 24 advocates who successfully completed our CORE Academy training and are now qualified to provide direct services to victims of crime throughout Washington State. ❤️

A huge thank you to Programs Administrator Leslie McPherson for planning and coordinating the week-long training, as well as teaching several sessions. We are also incredibly grateful to all of the external presenters and community partners who shared their time, knowledge, and expertise with our advocates, including representatives from the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office, Crime Victims Compensation Program, Address Confidentiality Program, Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, Lynnwood Police Department, Naval Station Everett, Aspen Victim Services Center, and more.

Special thanks to our Victim Services Coordinator, Janine Daniels Moore, for teaching a couple of classes and moderating throughout the week, and our Community Support Coordinator, Amelia Bell, for teaching and moderating sessions, as well. It truly takes a village to provide a comprehensive 40-hour training like CORE Academy, and we appreciate every person who helped make this week possible.

Most importantly, congratulations to our 24 graduates! We are excited to see the impact you will make as you support and advocate for victims of crime in communities across Washington State. 💙

📅 Our next CORE Academy is March 8–12, 2027, and registration is now open!

If you or someone you know is interested in becoming trained to provide advocacy and direct services to victims of crime in Washington State, we encourage you to apply!

victimsupportservices.org/events/core-training/

Today, on National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims, we pause to honor and remember the lives taken too soon and to stand alongside the families and loved ones who carry their memories every day. 🩵🪽

Victim Support Services invites you to join us this evening at Martha Lake as we come together for remembrance, reflection, and connection. We will honor those we have lost, share space with one another, and create memorial frames in memory of loved ones.

We hope to see you there. Whether you are remembering someone you love or simply want to stand in support of families impacted by homicide, you are welcome. 🕯️

📍 Martha Lake, Lynnwood
🕓 Today | 4:00–6:00 PM

May we always remember their names, their lives, and the love they left behind. 💚🫶🏼

🤍National Day of Remembrance🪽
Victim Support Services invites you to join in honoring the National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims.

In 2007, Congress designated September 25 as the National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims. This day serves as an opportunity to remember those whose lives were lost to homicide, honor their memories, support their loved ones, and raise awareness about the impact of homicide on families and communities.

Each year, VSS hosts a family-friendly gathering in recognition of this important day. Whether you have lost a loved one to homicide, want to support someone who has, or simply want to join us in honoring victims and raising awareness, you are welcome to join us.

This year, those wishing to honor someone lost to homicide are invited to decorate a memory frame in their loved one’s honor. We will provide all the necessary supplies, but if you would like to include a photograph, we encourage you to bring a 4x6 photo of your loved one.

RSVP required.

Details:

📅When: Friday September 25th from 4:00-6:00 PM
📍Where: Martha Lake, 16300 E Shore Drive, Lynwood, WA 98037 (Shelter 2)
💚Cost: Free of charge
🩵Elibigility: All are welcome. This is a family-friendly community event for those who have lost a loved one to homicide, as well as friends, family members, supporters, and community members who want to honor homicide victims, support survivors, and help raise awareness. You do not need to have personally lost a loved one to homicide to attend.
⏰RSVP By: September 18th

RSVP Here: victimsupportservices.org/csp

Contact Amelia Bell, Community Support Coordinator, at [email protected] with additional questions.

🖼️Vision Boards: Carrying Love Forward�Hosted by Victim Support Services�Led by Kimberly Frink, founder of Be You Breathwork, LLC.

Join Victim Support Services for a creative and reflective vision board making workshop led by Kimberly Frink, founder of Be You Breathwork LLC. Kimberly is a breathwork facilitator, yoga instructor, and wellness educator serving the Everett and Arlington communities. This free, trauma-informed workshop is designed exclusively for those impacted by homicide.

Grief doesn't mean moving on or leaving someone behind. Sometimes it means learning how to carry their love, their memories, their lessons, and their legacy with us as we continue forward.
�In this gentle, creative workshop, we'll take some time to reflect on the people we've lost and the pieces of them that continue to live within us. Through guided reflection and creative expression, you'll create your own vision board using magazine images, meaningful words, colors, symbols, and whatever speaks to you.

We'll explore questions like:
* What did they teach me?
* What strengths have helped me through this?
* What do I want to carry forward in their honor?

You don't have to make your board a certain way or follow a specific format. Come as you are and intuitively create your vision board in whatever way feels good to you. This is simply a space to pause, remember, create, and honor the love and legacy that remain.

Materials will be provided, but you are welcome to bring your own stickers or decorative pieces, adult-sized scissors, scrapbook paper, photographs, or small personal mementos you'd like to include, and a yoga mat. We will close out our class with a guided meditation.

🗓 When: Thursday September 24th from 5:00-6:30 PM
📍Where: Mukilteo, WA (exact location shared with accepted participants)�💜 Cost: Free�👥 Limited to 12 participants�📅 Apply by: September 10th�📬 Confirmation Notifications sent by: September 17th

💫To apply: victimsupportservices.org/csp

For questions, contact Amelia Bell at [email protected]

📣 FINAL OPPORTUNITY TO APPLY!

Interested in becoming a trained victim advocate or expanding your skills in the victim services field? Victim Support Services is accepting last-minute applications for our September Core Academy Training through August 28!

Core Academy is a nationally accredited, 40-hour comprehensive victim advocacy training designed to prepare participants with the knowledge and skills needed to support victims of crime.

Throughout the week, participants will learn about topics including:

💙 Victim advocacy & crisis intervention
💙 Trauma and its impact on victims
💙 Grief & complicated grief
💙 Case management & victim resources
💙 Su***de assessment & intervention
💙 Self-care & vicarious trauma
💙 And more!

Graduates who successfully complete Core Academy Training will be eligible to apply for, at minimum, the Provisional Credential through the National Advocate Credentialing Program (NACP). Those with previous victim services experience may qualify for Basic, Intermediate, or Advanced credential levels.

Whether you’re interested in volunteering with VSS, entering the victim services field, or strengthening your professional advocacy skills, Core Academy is an opportunity to learn, connect, and build a strong foundation in victim-centered advocacy.

📅 September 21-25
⏰ 40-hour training
💻 Held live via Zoom
📌 Apply by August 28

There’s still time to join us! Apply today and take the next step toward making a difference in the lives of victims and survivors of crime.

victimsupportservices.org/core-training

🌿 Wellness, Connection & Healing in Leavenworth 🌿

From July 24–27, we had the privilege of hosting our third Wellness Retreat for Violent Crime Survivors in beautiful Leavenworth, Washington.

Six incredible women gathered for a weekend intentionally created to give them something they so often put aside while navigating life after violent crime; time and space to care for themselves.

Throughout the weekend, there were opportunities to slow down, spend time in nature, participate in healing-centered activities, share meals, laugh, reflect, connect, and simply breathe.

There is something incredibly powerful about bringing women together who have each experienced unimaginable loss and trauma. Their stories may be different, but there is an understanding between them that often doesn’t require words. Over the course of a few days, strangers become sources of comfort, encouragement, laughter, and connection. 🤍

And while these retreats hold space for grief and everything that comes with the lasting impact of violent crime, they also hold space for joy. For laughter around the table. For trying something new. For quiet mornings. For meaningful conversations. For moments when the weight feels just a little lighter.

We are incredibly grateful to the six women who trusted us to be part of their weekend and allowed us to witness their strength, vulnerability, humor, and resilience.

Our Wellness Retreats are a reminder that victim services can be about more than helping someone navigate the aftermath of a crime. They can also be about creating opportunities to reconnect with yourself and others, to experience moments of peace and joy, and to be reminded that healing doesn’t have to happen alone. ✨