S.A.F.E. Place Core Values
Core values are central, deeply held beliefs that ground and guide the organization. They are its moral compass, provide direction, and demonstrates what matters.
Safety
We believe that everyone has a right to live safely without fear, abuse, coercion, oppression, and violence. We carry out our value of safety by:
- • Respecting the confidentiality, personal safety, and privacy of S.A.F.E. Place clients, staff, and volunteers at all times.
- • Prioritizing an atmosphere of emotional, verbal, and physical non-violence in our workplace and in our programs.
- • Providing protection for all constituents through trauma-informed physical, mental, emotional, and prevention services.
Compassion
We believe that everyone deserves to be treated with an open heart, understanding, and acceptance. We embody our value of compassion by:
- • Honoring and respecting everyone’s unique experiences without judgement.
- • Providing high-quality, trauma-informed services no matter who is in need or what situation they find themselves in.
- • Always providing a listening ear.
- • Promoting the holistic well-being of clients, staff, and volunteers.
- • Being curious, not judgmental.
Integrity
We walk the walk and talk the talk; when we commit to doing something, we do it. We hold ourselves and others accountable for decisions and behaviors within both the agency and the community. We enact this value of integrity by:
- • Upholding the mission and vision of the organization as the priority.
- • Working ethically and with accountability.
- • Communicating about our work – including client statistics, finances, and organizational changes – with transparency.
- • Improving our work through evidence-informed programs and services.
- • Following through on our commitments; we respect the time and effort of each other as well as outside partners.
- • Striving to be the best we can be.
Collaboration
We know we are stronger when we work together – together with clients, within the agency, and with our community partners. The value of collaboration is foundational to our work, essential in empowering others, and vital to creating real and lasting change. We demonstrate our value of collaboration by:
- Creating an atmosphere in all areas of our programs that is supportive and respectful and prioritizes open communication.
- Participating in all working groups/task forces/committees and accepting community invitations to engage in discussion in order to raise awareness and advocate for systems change.
- Seeking out and building diverse partnerships to support our mission and clients.
- Engaging volunteers and interns to be full partners in our mission.
- Working in teams; good teamwork includes building trust, good communication, respecting creative ideas, honoring diverse skill sets, and encouraging accountability.
- Listening to each other – including clients – and working in partnership to design and deliver services.
Inclusion
All survivors and their families have the right to services that are provided by individuals who honor, value, respect, support, and celebrate their individuality and cultures. Inclusion requires that different perspectives are respectfully heard, and every individual feels a sense of belonging, leading to the promotion of opportunity, growth, and social well-being. We exemplify the value of inclusion by:
- Establishing environments that are supportive of all people.
- Supporting cultural humility and understanding through trauma-informed services, shared activities, and opportunities to engage individuals from all cultures.
- Promoting self-awareness and trying to understand our own biases.
- Respecting and celebrating survivors as experts of their own culture.
- Working to be particularly sensitive to various communities and their needs: LGBTQ, religious groups, immigrants, people who are Deaf and/or differently abled, etc; we are non-binary inclusive.
- Focusing on diverse representation among staff and volunteers.