Your Board of Directors

An area for important announcements and reminders regarding isurvive.
This section will keep you updated with what's going on within our organization.

Moderator: Jonesy

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Board_of_Directors
Board of Directors
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 7:04 am

Your Board of Directors

Post by Board_of_Directors »

Dear Members

We want to introduce ourselves, the current Members of the Board, to you. This is an important step forward for us, but one that we believe will help show you that we are all in this together.

Please understand that our names have been withheld for reasons of privacy.

Chair - I joined as a member in 2009, became a Moderator in 2010 and then joined the Board in 2011. My background is in Primary Education.

Vice-Chair - I joined as a member in 2005, became a Moderator in 2009 and was then elected to serve on the Board in 2012. In my daily life, I design courses and help to guide young people in their careers for a small college.

Treasurer - I have never been a member of isurvive. I have a background in banking and finance and was invited to become the Treasurer in 2011.

Secretary – I came to isurvive in 2009, became a Moderator in 2012 and joined the Board as secretary that same year. My background is in marketing and advertising but I am currently a full-time mom.

Communication Committee Chair – I came here in 2011. I am a science teacher in a college and while obtaining my Masters in Public Administration, I was required to pick an organization to get to know and work with. I picked isurvive because they were so helpful and inspirational for my sister in her healing. I have never been a member, but have given my heart to them for how wonderful isurvive is.

Moderator Representative - This position is rotated within the Moderating Team on a yearly basis.

Member Representative - I joined as a member in 2008 and was invited to join the board in 2014. I have a background in health care.

Honorary Member – Has connections with the organisation which span many years, receives the minutes of all meetings and is kept up to date with news.

We meet every 3 months via an acceptable web-based conferencing medium (currently UberConference)
- our goal is to continuously find ways to improve your user experience and safety, as well as to keep the site as helpful and engaging as possible.

Some of the things that we have accomplished include:

● A new interface for the forums

● Several new and protected forums for different groups in our membership

● Moderator representation on the Board

● Member representation on the Board

● Additional moderators for the forums

● Enhanced communication with the Board of Directors through the addition of a Board-specific email

● An upgrade to a dedicated server which; increased the speed performance, ensured greater security and reduced traffic issues

● Production of isurvive.org business cards to help reach more people

● The addition of Google Translate

We are currently seeking new suggestions and ways in which we can improve the site for you.
Please send us an email (boardofdirectors@isurvive.org) or post here if you have ideas for our community.

Thank you for reading.
Board_of_Directors
Board of Directors
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 7:04 am

Re: Your Board of Directors

Post by Board_of_Directors »

What does isurvive mean to you?

Having been a long-time member, I can tell you that isurvive got me through the worst time of my life…it got me through the darkest hours when I was new to the idea that my abuse had really affected me – that I really wasn’t living, but merely existing and not doing so well at that.
For the longest time, I thought I was alone. I thought that I had to carry the shame, the embarrassment and the humiliation with me to the end, an end that was closer than I dared to admit. I don’t even remember how I stumbled upon isurvive. I just know that, when I did, and when I first started reading the stories and posts, I began to realize that there were others like me. That I wasn’t “crazy” and that maybe, just maybe, there was hope for a brighter tomorrow. Finding isurvive literally saved my life.

One of the most important things that I have learned in my time here is that no matter what is happening or how bad things might seem, there is always hope. As a now thriving survivor, I know in my heart that it is my responsibility to keep hope alive for the next new member who may be feeling hopeless.
Please join me in helping to keep hope alive.

Each year, we ask the membership to consider donating if they can – there is really no amount too small and, in fact, http://www.isurvive.org/support-us/ offers ways in which you can support simply through shopping online for products you might be buying anyway.
Please visit the support page and see if you might be able to help us. Your support is truly appreciated. You are important.

isurvive is here because we, the membership, keep it going from year to year to year and we, the membership, continue to give back “what we can, as we can.” The core of isurvive is us – the members.

So please visit http://www.isurvive.org/support-us/ to look at the different ways in which you can participate. If you can, choose one and give back to our community – your help is truly needed and appreciated! If you can’t right now, that’s okay, too. We know that not everyone is able.

May the coming holidays bring you all that you need and at least some of what you wish for!
Feel peace, all of you.

Vice-Chair
Board_of_Directors
Board of Directors
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 7:04 am

Re: Your Board of Directors

Post by Board_of_Directors »

Recently, in my role of monitoring the Board’s email account, I was approached by a member who requested complete removal of their posts from isurvive… for all traces of their existence here to be wiped out. I know that many of you may struggle with this same desire from time to time and wanted to share my reply to that one member in the hope that it will be helpful to others.

I apologize as there is no way to remove posts once they have been replied to from other members. Any that had not been responded to, I believe, would have no problem. Let me explain the why behind this if you do not mind. Sometimes a person will post something, be it a positive or a negative moment for the individual, and someone else gets something from it.

Kind of like when you have a conversation with someone. Something one person says, even if just off the cuff, can sometimes mean the world to someone else. In the case of offline life I know I will see or hear a phrase that just means so very much to me. So in offline life I will make sure to write this phrase down so as to be able to look back at t when I need to. I even have one of these hand-written on the back of a piece of old scratch paper on my refrigerator. This may not sound like much, but this piece of paper has been on every refrigerator I have had since 1998. This one simple phrase really got me that much.

On a discussion board something said may do exactly that. It could be something you yourself said, or it could be something someone else replied with to you. A simple heartfelt reply, or even an offhanded comment, could be like that one phrase of mine. But in the online world most people just know where to look when they need that phrase again.

It is this reason that isurvive does not delete posts (with the exception of a hurtful post) once there have been replies. We do not want to take away anything that may be helping someone. But on top of that we also do not wish to cause confusion. Just imagine how upsetting it could be to someone who found much needed inspiration by something you wrote, something that gave them that extra positive vibe to face a bad day, and when they tried to go back were unable to find it.
As with life offline, everything we say matters. Even that simple "good morning" or "I'm here" could be the kindest moment in a person's day.

I am sorry if you feel the need to disappear from isurvive. I do understand if you need to take a break or need to move on. I also hope we can still be of some help in your future as we all matter. I also
hope you can understand our reasoning and that it does not cause you any undue stress.


Please take gentle care,
L
Board_of_Directors
Board of Directors
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 7:04 am

Re: Your Board of Directors

Post by Board_of_Directors »

Dear Members,

For those of you who remember our former Director, Lori, who died in 2011, it is with sadness we bring you the news that her husband Joe recently passed away. He was rushed into hospital last week after suffering quite a severe stroke and passed away on Sunday 10th July 2016.

Joe supported Lori in her work at isurvive and helped out more behind the scenes. He knew Lori would want isurvive to continue and was a great support in the early days of transition following her death. He was a long standing member of our Board of Directors and later an honorary member. We will continue to cherish the memories of both Joe and Lori and carry on with the work they so deeply believed in, here at isurvive.

Our thoughts are with his family, friends and all whose lives he touched.
Board_of_Directors
Board of Directors
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 7:04 am

One Happy Moment Every Day

Post by Board_of_Directors »

Dear Members,

There is a thread on isurvive entitled ‘One happy moment every day’ which, if you are unfamiliar with, is well worth a read http://www.isurvive.org/forum/viewtopic ... 41#p159441

Some of us on the Board thought we would share some of the things we are grateful for and how isurvive has helped take each of us forwards

• “I am grateful that isurvive exists, and for the service of folks who give their time to keep it assessable (special nod to Vince and Jonesy.)
I am grateful for the wonderful caring members who were there to help during hard times, and to share in the joys of better times. It is a constant and needed reminder of the good in the world.”

• “I am grateful for the supportive nature of isurvive and its’ amazing ability to help me see through the mist to the edge of the ocean. I am constantly moved by the genuine care, support and gently healing nudges prevalent on our site. I now have a quiet confidence within myself that I never thought possible, recognise that I make a worthwhile contribution at work and continue to realise that not only can my every day hurdles be overcome, but also that my dreams can be attainable.

• “I am grateful knowing that the site that in many ways saved my life is still out there, helping others. I haven’t been around as much as life has gotten so busy, but I think of the site often and marvel at how this supportive, caring community has continued to grow and thrive despite changes through the years. I am a different person than I was 10 years ago and I owe a lot of my growth and confidence to having this safe space in which to cry and thrash and then, finally, reach out to others.”

We would like to take this opportunity to wish each of you all good things in the year ahead and hope that you continue to make the most of what isurvive has to offer.
Board_of_Directors
Board of Directors
Posts: 22
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 7:04 am

Re: Your Board of Directors

Post by Board_of_Directors »

Dear Members,

It is with great pleasure that we announce the election of a new Board member, who will serve in the role of Vice-Chair. This individual joined isurvive in 2013, and became a moderator in 2016. She is currently a stay-at-home mom.
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