As Awake Begins Our Fifth Year, We Unveil An Updated Mission Statement
By Sara Larson
Executive Director
It’s hard to believe that it was only four years ago, in August 2019, that Awake Milwaukee was launched. What started as a small group of Catholic lay people gathering in my living room has become a vibrant, rapidly expanding nonprofit organization with a national and even international reach. When we first clicked “publish” on our little website, centering on Awake’s Open Letter to Survivors, we never could have imagined where we would be today! (If you have not seen our 2022-2023 Annual Impact Report, check it out here for a summary of the past fiscal year.)
Over the past nine months, Awake’s staff, Leadership Team, and Board of Directors, in consultation with our Survivor Advisory Panel, have been in the midst of a strategic planning process to clarify Awake’s vision and discern our next steps. We have already shared some of the fruits of this process, including the establishment of Awake’s Core Values and the decision to add the Survivor Care Coordinator position to our staff.
There will be more important announcements in the months ahead, but today I’m excited to share one significant step: an update to Awake’s mission statement. This mission statement guides all of Awake’s work, and while it remains very similar to the words we first chose in April 2020, we have made a few adjustments to the language to more accurately represent who we are today. After much discussion and prayerful deliberation, we are proud to share Awake’s new mission statement with you:
Our mission is to awaken our community to the full reality of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, work for transformation, and foster healing for all who have been wounded.
Awake’s mission statement has three main parts, and I’d like to tell you a little about each of them, including what we mean by these words and what has changed with our recent update.
OUR MISSION, PART 1: AWAKEN OUR COMMUNITY TO THE FULL REALITY OF SEXUAL ABUSE IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
The first section remains identical to the words we chose so carefully in 2020. A large portion of Awake’s work is focused on building greater awareness of the issue of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, especially among Catholics themselves. (It’s important to note that the “full reality” we refer to includes the abuse of adults as well as minors, and abuse not only by clergy but also by lay leaders and religious brothers and sisters. In addition, our attention to the problem extends beyond the abuse itself to include past and present leadership failures in addressing this abuse.) Awake’s blog, Courageous Conversation series, and outreach to priests, lay ministers, and parishes are all part of our effort to deepen understanding and increase engagement with these issues.
PART 2: WORK FOR TRANSFORMATION
The second portion of our mission statement also remains unaltered from the original. We want to help change how the Catholic Church and our broader community prevent, recognize, and respond to sexual abuse by religious leaders. This means advocating for specific changes in policies and procedures, but we also know that real, long-lasting transformation goes much deeper. It requires a change of heart among all Catholics so that our Church culture becomes more compassionate and more supportive of victim-survivors.
The work of transformation is often frustratingly slow, and we believe hope is necessary to make a sustained effort possible. As we explain in our Core Values statement: “We choose to ground ourselves in hope, celebrate progress, and resist the temptation to cynicism or despair. We trust that God is at work and believe that transformation… [is] possible.”
PART 3: FOSTER HEALING FOR ALL WHO HAVE BEEN WOUNDED
The final part of our mission statement is where we have made a significant change. While the previous version ended with a description of our geographic focus (“in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and beyond”), we have realized that what is most important in our mission is not the “where” but the “who.” So, we have removed the reference to geography and instead focused our mission statement on describing who we aim to serve: “all who have been wounded.”
From Awake’s earliest days, we have been deeply aware of the ripple effects of sexual abuse. At the center of the circle, and the center of Awake’s ministry, are the individuals who have experienced this abuse. But we also recognize that the family members and friends of the victim-survivor are impacted, along with the whole community where abuse took place, and ultimately, the entire Catholic Church. We remain committed to creating safe and supportive spaces where people can listen deeply to one another, develop community, and move toward healing together.
Awake remains rooted in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, where we began, but this change officially expands our mission to be more inclusive of the many people throughout the United States who are already part of the Awake community.
As we move into a new program year, I hope you will continue journeying with us in this mission. I’m excited to see where we will go together next!
Sara Larson, executive director of Awake, studied theology at Marquette University, worked in parish ministry for eight years, and is a member of Saint Francis of Assisi Parish in Milwaukee. She feels honored to have the opportunity to listen to and learn from many wise and courageous abuse survivors.
(The photo above includes members of the Awake Staff and Leadership Team, including (bottom row, l to r) Jerri von den Bosch, Sara Larson, and Esther Harber; (top row, l to r) Lynn Charnitz, Mike Larson, Elizabeth Schick, Sara Knutson, Erin O’Donnell, and Cathy Dante. Not pictured: Elizabeth Brick, Mary Gentile, and Catherine Owers)
