Becky’s Fund Welcomes Emily

Hello! My name is Emily Birnbaum and I will be interning for Becky’s Fund this summer.

I am an incoming junior at Kenyon College in Gambier, OH. There, I cover student government for the school paper and host a weekly radio show. I am also the Director of Philanthropy for my sorority, Alpha Sigma Tau, whose mission on campus is to create a safe space for people who feel marginalized on campus. I have helped my sorority partner with several non-profit organizations in Columbus, OH that work with issues such as LGBTQ+ domestic violence and homelessness. Last summer, I interned with Hola Cultura, a bilingual magazine, where I wrote about the ways in which the D.C. housing crisis impacts the Latino community, and Salvadoran Enterprises for Women, an organization that gives women in El Salvador the resources they need to start their own businesses. Although I frequently find myself disheartened by global inequality, my interactions with non-profit life have given me hope. There are people actively working to solve these issues each and every day. That is why I am so excited to work with Becky’s Fund this summer.

When Becky told me I had been selected for this position, I was thrilled. My dedication to women’s issues, particularly gendered violence, is at the core of my personal and academic life. As a sociology major, I spend a majority of my time considering the ways in which structures of inequality impact our daily lives. Researching the patriarchy and the physical, emotional, and spiritual damage it does globally is impactful work, but it’s important to me to know these realities on a personal level. I have watched women in my life enter and struggle relentlessly to exit abusive relationships. I have heard their stories and felt their pain. I genuinely believe that the work Becky’s Fund does helps people escape the cyclical nature of domestic violence. Their educational programs such as Men of Code, Becoming Your Own Heroine and National Domestic Violence College Tour help change culture and conversation. Their direct services support survivors through painful, and sometimes dangerous, transitions. I will be honored to help this organization in any way I can this summer. The women here have so much to teach me about how non-profits organize, program and ultimately truly help.