Harris County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council

CANCELED “Building on Culture and Community”: Unpacking the Need for Culturally Responsive Services when Supporting Black Women Survivors
2026-02-19 10:30 - 12:00 (America/Chicago) | Texas
THIS SESSION HAS BEEN CANCELED

Join Ujima’s Training and Technical Assistance Manager, Ayana Wallace Vieux, for an interactive workshop which will explore strategies and unpack current realities for Black survivors, that enhance advocate capacity by building from the cultures and community of the survivors they serve.

Throughout this workshop, participants will:

Unpack layered violence and the multitude of ways in which it impacts Black women.

Delve into modern day experiences of Black survivors seeking domestic violence resources.

Explore the ways in which a trauma-informed, person-centered, and culturally responsive approach best supports survivors.

About our speaker:

Ayana Wallace Vieux, MS, is a Training and Technical Assistance Manager with Ujima, The National Center on Violence Against Women in the Black Community. Ayana’s career began as a client case coordinator providing direct services and support to victim-survivors who sought emergency shelter. Ayana has been instrumental in the national implementation of the Lethality Assessment Program—Maryland Model (LAP) and has served as the lead trainer for the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence, the state coalition. Ayana has worked for over a decade in the domestic violence field providing both direct service to survivors and technical assistance to advocates, law enforcement, community-based partners, and faith communities.

February Community Partner Meeting
2026-02-12 14:30 - 16:00 | United Way of Greater Houston, 50 Waugh Street, Houston, TX, United States
You’re invited to our Monthly Community Partner Meeting, where community voices come together to shape our shared future.

Topic: Immigration & Legal Updates

This presentation will cover an update on law and policy changes impacting immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and other forms of violence over the last year. The training will also briefly include important tools for advocates serving survivors and tips for enhanced safety planning.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

Katharina Dechert is the Houston Policy & Advocacy Manager at the Tahirih Justice Center. Katharina leads the advancement of Tahirih’s Houston and Texas advocacy campaigns to change the laws and policies that prevent immigrant survivors from accessing safety and justice. Before stepping into this role, she worked on Tahirih’s legal team for 6 years as a legal advocate, working with immigrant survivors as they navigate various legal systems in their journeys to safety and justice, and representing survivors before USCIS as a DOJ Accredited Representative.

When you register, you’ll be added to our newsletter so you can stay connected and hear about upcoming events and updates.

If you have questions, please contact:

Enhanced Safety Planning For Survivors of Domestic Violence
2026-01-30 13:00 - 15:00 | Texas
FULL-THIS TRAINING HAS REACHED CAPACITYThis training will explore how advocates and organizations can develop responsive, trauma-informed safety strategies and strengthen organizational preparedness.Topics will include key recent policy and protocol changes impacting immigrant survivors, tools for enhanced safety planning within the law and considerations for organizations. Registrations must be completed using your agency email address. After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email within two business days with more details.

When you register, you’ll be added to our newsletter so you can stay connected and hear about upcoming events and updates.

Enhanced Safety Planning For Survivors of Domestic Violence
2026-01-29 10:00 - 12:00 | Texas
This training will explore how advocates and organizations can develop responsive, trauma-informed safety strategies and strengthen organizational preparedness.Topics will include key recent policy and protocol changes impacting immigrant survivors, tools for enhanced safety planning within the law and considerations for organizations. BOTH OF THESE TRAININGS ARE AT CAPACITY

When you register, you’ll be added to our newsletter so you can stay connected and hear about upcoming events and updates.

THIS EVENT IS POSTPONED and will be RESCHEDULUED
2026-01-09 08:30 - 13:30 | United Way of Greater Houston, 50 Waugh Street, Houston, TX, United States
Know More, Do More: Recognizing and Responding to Stalking

SNACKS WILL BE PROVIDED

Training Description Stalking is a prevalent, dangerous, and often misunderstood crime. This seminar explores the dynamics of stalking, focusing on the highly contextual nature of the crime by discussing common tactics used by perpetrators, the co-occurrence of stalking with intimate partner and sexual violence, the use of technology to stalk, and the use of risk assessments in stalking cases, as well as tools to plan for victim safety and hold offenders accountable.

Objectives By the end of the seminar, participants will be better able to:

Apply strategies for working with victims of stalking

Identify stalking behaviors and dynamics

Recognize the intersection of stalking with other victimizations

Identify common technologies (mis)used by offenders

Identify the 14 risk factors in stalking cases

🎤ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Kendra Eggleston (M.A.) is the Training & Campus Specialist for the Stalking, Prevention, Awareness, and Resource Center (SPARC). In her role, Kendra specializes in working with colleges and universities to develop effective campus stalking resources. Kendra designs and delivers dynamic trainings to equip students, staff, and faculty with tools to recognize and respond to the unique dynamics of campus stalking and advocate for victims and survivors on campuses.

Kendra has a longstanding passion for advocacy in higher education. Prior to joining the SPARC team, Kendra served as Assistant Director of Student Advocacy Services at The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), overseeing the Relationship Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention program. In this position, Kendra developed educational trainings and programmed campus outreach events around sexual and relationship violence prevention and victim-survivor support. She also had the privilege of mentoring a team of Peer Educators, college students who were leading the movement to end campus sexual assault, relationship violence, and stalking and advocating for their peers who identify as victim-survivors. Additionally, she supported other programs under Student Advocacy Services, including the LGBTQ+ program, the Maverick Food Pantry, and the Emergency Assistance Program, as well as served on the Behavior Intervention Team. Before UTA, Kendra worked as the Perkins Grant Coordinator at a community college, supporting historically underserved students pursuing career and technical education degrees. Kendra also served as the Academic Coordinator at College Living Experience in Austin, Texas, where she provided academic advocacy and independent living support for college students on the autism spectrum.

Kendra received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Texas A&M University and a Master of Arts in Counseling from St. Edward’s University. She is currently a doctoral candidate pursuing a Doctor of Education in Learning and Organizational Change from Baylor University, with a goal of enhancing her knowledge and skills to create significant and lasting change in the movement to end relationship violence, sexual violence, and stalking. Kendra is based in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area.

January Community Partner Meeting
2026-01-08 14:30 - 16:00 | United Way of Greater Houston, 50 Waugh Street, Houston, TX, United States
Topic: Community: Breaking Isolation Through Collective Care

Description: Social support is one of the strongest avenues of recovery from trauma. Yet domestic violence survivors often have the smallest support networks due to shame, stigma, exhaustion, and fear. We are working with the community to change that, one wish, one woman, one family, one generation, one community at a time.

FEATURED SPEAKER: Hilda Marcel, Founder of LueWish

Hilda, a native of Houston, is dedicated to empowering others through transformative learning and compassionate service. Guided by the “3 Cs of Life,” she inspires individuals to grow through adversity while pursuing purposeful change.

With a strong background in corporate training, event planning, logistics, and project management, Hilda has worked with leading organizations including Shell Oil Products US, Boeing, and Goodman Manufacturing. In 2021, she shifted her focus to literacy and vocational training, applying her expertise across both forprofit and non-profit sectors.

Hilda is actively answering her call to share Christ’s love and make disciples of all nations as the Associate Pastor of Trinity United Methodist Church, where she helps others move from “doing” to “being” to fulfill their God-given purpose. She is the founder of MOVEmentum Growth Services (MGS), where she serves as a community ally and contractor, helping adults and youth overcome life challenges and regain professional and personal momentum. Her credentials include:•Professional Christian Life Coach•Board-Certified Master Mental Health Coach•Certified Vocational Workforce Solution Job Readiness Trainer•Mediator

In 2019, Hilda founded LueWish, a nonprofit that grants wishes to women facing life-altering issues such as cancer, heart disease, and domestic violence—reflecting her belief that compassion is vital to community building and sustainability.

She holds a BBS in Business Administration and is a proud mother and grandmother who enjoys reading, cooking, road trips, and dancing.

Her life motto: Never fail the love test.
