For some of us, 2023 was a great year — and for others it was filled with hardship. It’s important to stay mindful of this as we move along with the push and pull of 2024 and our daily connection with others. Some of us are celebrating and some of us are rebuilding, but in the mix, all of us are healing from something. The only constant we have is change. 

As we welcome in a new year, let it be one focused on progress. What would you like to change in the world?  Ask yourself…and then work toward being that change through your words, actions, and leadership in everyday life.

It starts with you. 

In reflecting back on a productive 2023, A Safe Place would like to extend our continued gratitude for the support we receive within our mission. We are able to create impact each and every day thanks to you. Your commitment to helping us aid and empower survivors alongside our passion for education and prevention is instrumental in creating a safer and healthier community one person at a time. 

We are looking forward to a 2024 filled with continued impact, new and existing collaborations, further community outreach and connection, and additional educational and training opportunities. 

Thanks to specific grant funding from Nantucket Golf Club Foundation, we will be adding to our collaborations with Nantucket High School this year via a keynote speaker geared toward our youth community members for education and prevention initiatives. Our annual Walk A Mile event will be upcoming this spring and our summer fundraiser is set for July 11 at Great Harbor Yacht Club. 

We continue with our youth education year round in both the public and private schools and we remain connected with the Nantucket Boys and Girls Club for collaborations that promote healthy mindsets and relationships with our island youth. 

Our domestic violence and sexual assault services are here free and confidential to the Nantucket community on a year round basis, inclusive of our 24-hour hotline and M-F 10am-4pm online chat. 

If you are a survivor of domestic violence or sexual assault, or a family member or friend supporting a survivor, we are here to remind you that you are never alone. No one deserves to be abused for any reason.

Let us help you. 

Marta comes to A Safe Place as a part time bilingual advocate who is excited to learn about supporting survivors within the Nantucket community. She came to Nantucket at the age of thirteen speaking only Spanish. She quickly learned the English language and became a top student at Nantucket High School, graduating in 2019, Marta received her bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Neuroscience from St. Anselm College this past May.

She currently works full time at Nantucket Intermediate School as an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher and often volunteers with her father translating and completing documentation for immigration proceedings. 

In her free time, Marta enjoys cooking, reading and going on nature walks. 

We are excited to have Marta as part of our A Safe Place team in 2024!

This January marks the 20th annual Stalking Awareness Month (NSAM) where advocates, allies and survivors bring attention to the crime of stalking. One in three women and one in six men are estimated to be victims within their lifetime. 

The Stalking Prevention, Awareness, & Resource Center (SPARC) defines the crime of stalking as “A pattern of behavior directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for the person’s safety or the safety of others; or suffer substantial emotional distress.” 

We invite you to educate yourself on how stalking affects society as well as its links to intimate partner violence. 

What does stalking have to do with domestic violence?

Learn More

A Safe Place bids farewell to Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Advocate Annabel Dannheim as she steps into her new chapter at Simmons University in Boston. Annabel joined our team in 2022 and has worked as an advocate for survivors as well as a mentor within A Safe Place’s prevention education and outreach initiatives. She lead this year’s Date Smart program at the Nantucket Boys & Girls Club for grades 6-8 and has been a steady voice for change within her endeavors. 

We wish Annabel great success in her next chapter at Simmons University, where she will be focusing on her degree within social work. We thank her for making a difference for survivors within the Nantucket community!

A huge thank you to the following businesses and organizations (as well as all individuals who donated personally or as a team) for their continued generosity and support of our A Safe Place families during this year’s holiday season:
Inky Santa’s Toy Drive, Nantucket Cycling & Fitness, Wicked Island Bakery, and Island Energy Services.

For the third year in a row, “Operation Sneaky Santa” (spearheaded by Lisa Wisentaner of Nantucket Cycling and Fitness  and Heather Woodbury of Wicked Island Bakery), brought holiday magic to one chosen ASP family that has demonstrated strength and resilience during their toughest times this past year. The Nantucket Hotel generously donated a two night stay at their island resort, complete with complimentary Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dinners at their Breeze Restaurant, while Lisa and Heather trimmed the tree and stocked the resort room full of locally donated gifts and baked goods.

Operation Sneaky Santa is a true example of holiday magic and community support. Thank you to everyone who makes it possible!

Thank you to everyone who has and who continues to support island children’s charities via the Nantucket License Plate!  A Safe Place is grateful to be among the recipients of this gift that keeps on giving! 

A message from the Nantucket License Place Committee

Dear Nantucket Community,

On behalf of Nantucket Lighthouse School and the Nantucket License Plate Committee, we would like you to thank the Nantucket and Massachusetts residents who have supported island nonprofits that benefit children by putting a Nantucket License Plate on their cars. We are excited to announce that this project has raised over $1,000,000 for island non-profits that support children.

Over a decade ago, while serving as the Chair of Nantucket Lighthouse School’s Board of Trustees, Robert Sarkisian proposed the idea of a Nantucket specialty plate. At the time, non-profits undertaking this initiative faced an uphill battle in that they had to pre-sell 3,000 plates to Massachusetts registered vehicles before the State would begin offering the plate.

Nantucket Lighthouse School undertook this Herculean effort and, through leadership provided by Nantucket License Plate Co-Chairs Robert Sarkisian and Tucker Holland and the whole Committee, the School collaborated with 17 island non-profits that support children, including SUPER PARTNERS A Safe Place, First Congregational Church, Nantucket Community Sailing, St. Mary’s Church and PARTNERS Children’s House of Nantucket, Community Foundation for Nantucket, Fairwinds: Nantucket’s Counseling Center, Friends of Nantucket Public Schools, Nantucket Booster Club, Nantucket Boys & Girls Club, Nantucket Dreamland Foundation, Nantucket Ice, Nantucket Music Center, Nantucket New School, Small Friends on Nantucket, Strong Wings Adventure School, and Unitarian Universalist Meeting House. With over $1,000,000 raised, we are grateful for this community partnership and for the support of Nantucket’s children.

Each organization receives funds quarterly to support children’s programs. Additionally, ANY island non-profit that serves Nantucket children may apply for funding through the Community Foundation for Nantucket where 25% of the proceeds are distributed annually through Nantucket Fund grants.

Today, there are 6,026 Nantucket plates on the road. If you love Nantucket and you love supporting the children who are raised here, we hope you will consider putting a Nantucket specialty plate on your car.

With many thanks to the Nantucket community,

Emily Miller, Head of School
Robert Sarkisian, Nantucket License Plate Co-Chair
Tucker Holland, Nantucket License Plate Co-Chair

Learn More

A Safe Place is Hiring!

In a moment like this, your train of thought may go in a variety of directions.

What’s happening here? Does someone need help? Couples argue all the time…this is none of my business. I feel awkward as they know I saw them. No one else is doing anything, so why should I? No one else is saying anything, maybe I need to be the one to say something. Is it my place to say something? Do I want to involve myself? He didn’t hit her, he just pushed her into the car. It wasn’t that bad. I don’t know what was happening before this moment. What if I interpreted this wrong? What if I interpreted it right and something worse happens later? This really isn’t my problem. Can I really pretend I didn’t notice? He really should know he can’t behave like that. Will me stepping in cause further issues? Will I be putting myself in harms way if I say something? Is it really that big of a deal? What should I do? 

Here are some options to think about in this scenario:

  • Do nothing. It’s none of my business
  • Do nothing, it could make it worse for her or for me
  • Wave at them as you walk by to let them know someone is there, but don’t intervene or say anything
  • Walk over and ask if everything is okay so it’s acknowledged that you saw what happened and it holds some accountability with having it known
  • Do nothing in the moment but call or email the female the next day to check in and make sure she is okay/ask her if she needs any support
  • Contact someone I know who is closer to her that could check on her
  • Talk to someone at the organization we are a part of about it and see what they think 
  • Look into local resources she may benefit from and let her know they exist if she feels she needs them
  • A combination of the above or a personal option not mentioned above

Please Note: There are no right or wrong answers here, just perspective. 
The more we think about these scenarios, the more our choices may change in how we approach situations as bystanders. Sometimes, there isn’t just one answer, but a combination of answers that work together to make a difference. 

Learn more about the Bystander Approach here

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